WAI! SORRY this is so late! School started, and all offa sudden it's like PFFOOOOME! And I have a butload of homework to deal with, and everything… and it sucks. I havn't even been able to type for the last bazillion days, cause I'm learning about calculus, and latin, and the native Americans, and very basic physics stuff. Anywho, here it is, the end. I'll try to put some author notes up after this. I didn't want to put it at the end of this, cause it would ruin the mood. Anywho, enjoy!

Kagome slowly became aware. She didn't open her eyes. That would ruin it. She didn't want to see where she was… although, personally, she had no doubt she was in heaven.

            She was warm. Very, very warm. And her pillow was wonderfully soft, and had that wonderful downy feeling that you got when you rubbed a furry cat's tummy. IT was wonderful. She didn't want to wake up. Ever.

            Wait! There was something wring… The pillow, just off to her left… it wasn't the same! It was hard in places, and shaped funny. It didn't fit in! It ruined her sleep!

            No… it couldn't be! Was she in the other place?

            Slowly, her eyes opened. Ahh… the pillow to her right was clad in red… and had silver hair and doggy ears… No… it was heaven. Very definitely heaven.

            She closed her eyes, and slumped down again, this time leaning her head on InuYasha's shoulder.

~~

            Sesshoumaru sat silently in his bedchamber. It had been a long time since he had been here. A very long time indeed. But now, here he was. Back in Shinjuku, back in his fathers estate, and even in a position of the utmost political power. He had honor, respect, and much more.

            "Sesshy-chan!" A voice called, clear crisp, and laughingly. "Lunch is ready!"

            Sesshoumaru almost laughed at that. Despite all his power, he had no staff in his place. Only one simple human girl to look after his needs. And she wasn't even his slave. He had given up trying to pass her as one within a week of returning home. She didn't carry herself like a slave, and as much as he was loath to admit it, he couldn't bring himself to treat her as one.

            She did everything for him of her own free will, and wouldn't allow him to hire or buy anyone else. He snorted at the thought. The mighty lord Sesshoumaru, needing the permission of a little human girl to buy anything.

            And yet, when she smiled, it made him want to smile back. And she held more power over him than any youkai he had ever faced before.

            "And could it be that the mighty Sesshoumaru is falling into the same thing his father did?" Asked a cool confident voice.

            Sesshoumaru turned around to face the intruder, knowing instantly who it was.

            Atma stepped out of the shadows with a shrug and smiled at him.

            Sesshoumaru turned around again, and inspected his reflection in a full length glass mirror.

            "You remind me so much of you're father when he first met his mate." The dragon said softly.

            Sesshoumaru didn't react. His eyes traced up and down the mirror.

            Atma giggle slightly. "He was so cute back then." She said with a slight giggle, then paused to look at Sesshoumaru. "But then so were you." She said authoritatively.

            Sesshoumaru's eyes focused on her, through the mirror. "And you would know this? My father met mother as I was born."

            Atma nodded authoritatively. "Yes…" She said softly. "Yes he did." She smiled. "She was the midwife, if I remember correctly."

            Sesshoumaru looked up. "And you would know this? The only ones at my birth were her and my mother."

            Atma nodded, smiling to herself. "Aye… I was there." She said softly. She looked up. "You should go." She said with a smile. "You're lunch will get cold." With that, she disappeared into the darkness, leaving the youkai to his own speculations.

~~

            Already the forest was eating away at the desert of the dead Khellendros. Without the magic to hold it in place, it shrank away.

            And life already started to appear in the land of death. The dead plants fell, and new greenery grew in. The rains, long kept from the land, fell… except for in one place.

            Deep in the heart of the land, a deep crater laid. A perfect hemisphere laid into the ground, almost sixty feet across.

            And at the bottom of the crater lay a man. He was dressed in the long robes of a monk, and scattered around him was small pieces of bone, smashed and shattered into odd angles.

            The man stirred, and slowly got to his feet. He was wounded horribly, he could tell. There was something wrong with his neck, and he was very weak from loss of blood.

            And his right hand ached, hurt with a fury that almost brought tears to his face. Slowly, he looked down, and saw why. The right hand had been crushed, mangled beyond all recognition. His legs gave out, and he slumped back to the ground.

            Slowly, he reached over, and grabbed one of the pieces of bone. It was large, and curved oddly. It had a bit of cloth attached to it. The cloth was shredded, and torn. It was died with the die of a traditional village.

            Slowly, he laughed to himself, and placed the piece of bone on his sternum. He lay back down, and waited for death to claim him.

            "Houshi-Sama." A warm voice called.

            The man's eyes opened once more, and he looked up. Standing over him was a girl. She was dressed in a baggy, purple outfit, and her long black hair was tied up in a frayed pony tail.

            Slowly, she reached down, and held a slip of paper down to his face.

            On the paper were two names, along with several tallies.

            Under the name "Sango" There were about fifteen.

            He looked up and smiled slightly at her. "Sango…" He said softly.

            Under the name "Miroku, there were only two marks, which the man thought, was a respectable sum when dealing with someone like Sango.

            Sango lifted the paper up, and did some quick marking with a piece of charcoal.

            She put the paper down in front of Miroku's face.

            Now Sango had seventeen marks, and Miroku had none.

            The monk looked up in confusion at Sango's grinning face.

            SMACK! SMACK!

~~

            Kagome was shaken suddenly out of her paradise.

            Her eyes flew open, and she looked up. There was a pair of warm golden eyes above her.

            "InuYasha?" She said softly, yawning.

            "Kagome… you're alright!" The hanyou said softly, not quite trusting it to be true.

            She nodded slightly, realizing that she did indeed feel just fine. No pain, at all!

            She smiled slightly. "So… did we die?" She asked.

            InuYasha blinked, and scratched his head. "I don't know." He said with a shrug. "Your heart stopped beating for a while, but it's going strong now."

            Kagome nodded, and leaned back into the wall of white fluff that was behind her. It was really, really soft.

            That tickles… A warm voice said lethargically.

            Kagome gasped, and jumped away from the wall of fur. The biggest, green eyes she had ever seen starred at her lazily.

            InuYasha stepped in front of her, and his claws came up.

            The dragon sighed softly, and laid her head down. As I was saying before you so rudely interrupted. The voice said. A human doesn't actually die until a few hours after their heart stops beating.

            InuYasha's eyes widened, and his face lost a little bit of its previous color.

            Vadise chuckled slightly. Luckily, the minor injuries that you had were easier to fix than Kagome-chan's.

            InuYasha whirled to Kagome, worry written plainly on his face. "She's cured?" He demanded.

            The dragon nodded, and suddenly there was a bright flash of light. Standing where the dragon was, was once again a happy looking little cat-girl, her tail twitching ever so slightly. "Yupperz!" She declared. "Cured as cured could be."

            InuYasha's eyes narrowed. "How do I know you're not lying?" He demanded.

            Vadise shrugged. "You don't." She said simply.

            "So I just have to trust you, izzat it?" The hanyou demanded.

            Vadise thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yep." She said simply. "Sounds right to me."

            InuYasha's claws flexed. "What happens if I don't trust you?"

            The dragon held up a hand, and a fireball appeared in it. "You and Kagome are incinerated the second you go back on your promise." She said in the same voice one might talk about the weather with.

            Kagome quickly ran and interceded herself between InuYasha and the dragon. God, it felt good to run without pain again! "InuYasha, I feel fine." She said, desperate to avoid conflict at this point. "Let's just go home."

            InuYasha regarded Kagome, and then turned back to Vadise. His growl was threatening.

            Vadise smiled at him, and waved.

            "InuYasha, sit." Kagome said, her voice going flat.

            InuYasha winced, and braced himself, but nothing happened. He opened his eyes, looked around, expecting to see hard earth. Suddenly he stood up strait, looking very happy.

            Kagome winced, and looked back to Vadise imploringly.

            Vadise shrugged. "Sit, boy." She said simply.

            InuYasha crashed to the ground with stunning force, his head driving through the earth, and embedding itself in the clay and rock below the soft loam.

            Vadise looked up, and winked at her. "Listen, Kagome." She said softly. "I know this sound sorta sketchy, but you're just going to have to trust me, okay?"

            Kagome swallowed heavily, and shrugged. "I don't have much of a choice, do I?" She asked.

            Vadise shook her head. "Not really." She observed.

            Kagome sighed. "Well, I'm alive," She said happily. "I guess that'll do."

            Vadise smiled, and nodded. "And keep in mind, that in my eyes the shikon jewel is worth much more than you're life. If you need any more favors, I'm here for the asking."

            Kagome blinked. "Umm… thanks… I guess." She said, her eyebrow perking. "Um… I don't suppose, you could give us a ride to the well?" Kagome had no real doubts that Vadise not only could do this, but also knew exactly where the well was.

            Vadise thought for a moment, then nodded. 

            Even as her head came up, they were at the well.

            Kagome wasn't really sure how it happened, but it did, Atma had been standing by her giant willow, and then her vision had blurred, and she was standing in a clearing right next to the well.

            InuYasha's head was still embedded into the ground.

            The hanyou's hands planted on either side of his head, and he heaved himself out of the ground. He looked up angrily, his eyes fixating on Vadise.

            Her eyebrow perked. "Don't make me SIT you again." She said. InuYasha crashed to the ground once again. "Oh, look, I accidentally said SIT!" Crunch. "Oh, I really must stop saying SIT!" Thud. "I'm sorry I can't refer to the word SIT without using the word SIT, cause then you wouldn't know I was referring to the word SIT!" Thunk, Thud, Crunch.

            Kagome tried to repress a giggle, and shook her head. When she wasn't acting depraved and evil, the little dragon was pretty cool!

            InuYasha staggered to his feet, his face dirty, and a few teeth missing.

            Vadise giggle slightly, and turned back to Kagome. "Anywho, I really need to be getting back to my lair." She said. "But, I'm sure we'll meet again." She giggled mischievously.

            Kagome smiled back at her nervously as the dragon stepped back, and disappeared.

            InuYasha staggered to his feet, growling madly and glaring back and forth.

            Kagome sighed slightly, and shook her head. It was finally over. She could go home.

            InuYasha looked around carefully. "How'd we get here?" He demanded.

            Kagome smiled at him. "Vadise got us a ride." She said softly. "I can go home now."

            InuYasha's eyes widened, for a moment, then he nodded. His arms crossed, and he straitened his back, posing in that arrogant way that only he could. "Feh!" He said indifferently. "If you want."

            Kagome rolled her eyes, and laughed. "Hey InuYasha?" She asked. "I'm sure Mom has enough food for another mouth to feed, even if it is yours." She nodded towards the well. "Ya wanna come home with me?"

            InuYasha barely suppressed his smile, but still managed to look indifferent. "Feh." He repeated. "If you want me to."

            Kagome rolled her eyes, and grabbed his arm. "C'mon, lets go!"

            InuYasha smiled. She wasn't gonna leave him.

~~

            Kagome hauled herself laboriously out of the well, the little rope ladder they had set up still being hard to climb.

            She pulled herself over the side of the well, and turned around to give InuYasha a hand up.

            The hanyou, however, simply leapt up from the bottom of the well, up through the hole in the roof he had made with that dramatic exit only two weeks earlier.

            Kagome sighed. "Showoff." She grumbled, stalking out of the well house herself.

            She emerged out into the full light of a glorious day. The sun shone down through the sparse clouds, casting filtered light all around the grassy areas in front of the shrine.

            And there, standing next to the house, sweeping away at the already spotless floor of the ancient stone walkway, was her mother.

            "Mom!" She called excitedly.

            Mrs. Higurashi raised her head, and glanced up, her eyes fixing on the girl in her side yard, and the red-clothed hanyou standing on the roof.

            She stood up, and began walking forward, aimed in a strait arrow path towards them. And walked… right past Kagome, and looked up at the hanyou on the roof, arms akimbo, and a quirky little smile on her face.

            Ignoring the shocked look on her daughter's face, she perked on eyebrow, and said: "What took you so long?"

            InuYasha fell backwards, and tumbled off the roof, while Kagome suddenly found herself hard pressed to not laugh.

            Laughing herself, Mrs. Higurashi turned around and wrapped her arms around her daughter, squeezing her tight.

            Kagome laughed again, tears streaming down her cheeks, and squeezed back.

            InuYasha lifted himself off the ground, and shook himself, growling slightly. "What's the big Idea?" He demanded, a deep growl in his chest.

            "InuYasha, sit." Kagome said, muffled slightly because her face was buried in her mother's shoulder.

            InuYasha covered his head with his arms, and braced himself, but once again, nothing happened. The hanyou stood up strait again, grinning arrogantly. "Excuse me?" He asked, "What was that again?"

            "InuYasha, sit!" Came a new voice, carrying an arrogant tone of command.

            InuYasha's eyes widened, and he went crashing to the ground again, creating large crater in the gray stone.

            Kagome and Mrs. Higurashi's eyes widened, and their eyes traced up to the stranger.

            Green hair rustled slightly as Celest stepped over the prone for of InuYasha. Her smile upturned arrogantly, she made a false little bow. "My sincerest apologies for interrupting this little interlude, however I'm on a tight schedule."

            "You have other people's walkways to destroy?" Mrs. Higurashi noted, stepping slightly in front of Kagome.

            Celest shrugged, and glanced back at the crater. InuYasha floated back to his feet, and the rock reformed into perfect bricks.

            "That better?" she asked saucily. "Or can I have a nice chat with Kagome now?"

            Mrs. Higurashi glanced slightly at Kagome. The young miko nodded, and her mother stood aside.

            Kagome stepped forth, confidently. InuYasha was crouching right behind her, in case she turned hostile. Almost a full year of running around looking for shards of the sacred jewel had trained Kagome to not be surprised by anything. She wasn't going to act confused about a youkai that didn't even look that weird!

            Celest smiled slightly, and did another mock bow. "Allow me to introduce myself." She said. "My name, is Celest."

            Kagome nodded sweetly, noting by this time that Souta and Grandpa were also standing near her mother.

            "And I just wanted to stop by and thank you."

            Okay, now that was unexpected. Kagome blinked, and with all the wisdom her sixteen year old mind could possibly muster, said: "Huh?"

            Celest smiled, and held up her hand. The air around it began to shimmer. "For the lovely Tetsusaiga you left in the past."

            There was a slight chink, and the Tetsusaiga fell into her hand, it's black sheath glistening in the sunlight.

            InuYasha was up in an instant, and snatched his sword from the odd girl's hands. "Where the hell'd you get this?" The angry hanyou demanded.

            Celest shrugged. "You left it lying in the snow after that tender little interlude at the cave."

            InuYasha and Kagome exchanged nervous glances, and blushed.

            "I picked it up after you left." She said explanatorily. "It's been exceptionally useful for these five hundred years, but now I suppose I should give it back."

            With a shrug the girl nodded to Mrs. Higurashi, and turned to go, leaving an absolutely stunned InuYasha and Kagome behind her.

            Before she disappeared down the stairs, she turned and looked directly at InuYasha. "Remember Vadise's warning." She called, and then disappeared down the stairs.

            InuYasha looked down at the Tutsusaiga, and then back up, and shook his head confusedly.

            Mrs. Higurashi walked back up by Kagome. "Any Idea what that was about?" She asked.

            Kagome shook her head. "None whatsoever." She said, blinking. "Never seen her before in my life."

            There was a sniffing sound behind them, and they turned to see InuYasha's sensitive nose wiggling slightly in the air. He looked down squarely at Mrs. Higurashi, and asked: "Is that Ramen?"

            Mrs. Higurashi laughed, and nodded.

~~

            Vadise lay by her giant willow, humming to herself as she twiddled her fingers in the water.

            Slowly, a long shadow detached itself from the rest of the darkened realm, and approached her.

            "It is done?" the shadow asked, slowly forming into a much more substantial figure.

            Vadise nodded slightly. "And you have taken care of Morkleb I see." She said, narrowing her eyes slightly. Now the ripples from her finger danced out along the water in the shapes of dragons, stars, and things no human could possibly conceive to name.

            Atma chuckled slightly, and shrugged. "I know you meant for me to do it on my own, but I had the monk and slayer there to help me."

            Vadise chuckled slightly. "Yes, well, that's the second rule of being a leader. 'If you can't do it yourself, find someone who can.'"

            Atma smiled slightly, and chuckled. "Well, I suppose so… but still…" Her lips pursed. "I was hoping to be able to do it myself."

            Vadise smiled sweetly at her. "Well, it turned out for the best anyway." She said. "Sango is beginning to notice the monk."

            Atma chuckled. "Well, valiant acts of self sacrifice aren't really what I'm after here." She said softly.

            Vadise stared at her. "Well?" She asked, bemused. "How did you get our little slayer friend out of Miroku's wind tunnel without actually killing him?"

            Atma chuckled. "I finally mastered the little thing I've been working on."

            Vadise perked up. "Interdimensional transportation?" She asked, her eyebrows perking. "How?"

            Atma wagged her finger at the smaller dragon. "Oh, no!" She said arrogantly. "I've got an advantage over you and I'm keeping it."

            Vadise shrugged, and nodded. "Alright, fair enough." She said.

            Atma poked her fingers together nervously. "But there are a few limitations." She said softly.

            Vadise's ears pricked. "Yes?" She said, not looking up from the intertwining ripples in the water.

            Atma sighed. "It only works with Dimensions that are thoroughly linked with this world, such as the one the monk's wind-tunnel leads to."

            Vadise smiled. "So, in other words, it's almost useless."

            Atma smiled confidently at her. "You really think so?" She asked. "How would you like to see how useless it is?" Her tone grew playfully sinister.

            Vadise looked up at her, and stood up. "Is that a challenge?" She asked.

            Atma clenched her fist, and lightning crested along it, down her blue velvet sleeve, and across the large wings on her back. "Sure, why not."

            Vadise shrugged, and clutched her hand, as if gripping something. Slowly, the Tetsusaiga formed into her hand.

            Atma lunged, grinning. "Where'd you find that thing?" She asked, lashing out with glowing claws.

            Vadise chuckled as she fended off the blow with the huge blade. "Found it outside in the snow." She said, swinging low in an attempt to take Atma's legs off.

            Atma leapt up, and landed on the sword's blade, and dashed down, planting heavy leather boot into the smaller dragon's face. "You gonna return it?"

            Vadise shrugged, making the blood from her nose flow backwards into the wound. "Maybe…" She said softly, dancing backwards, avoiding the flying claw strikes. "In five-hundred years."

            Atma kicked violently, sending the girl crashing into her own giant willow. "Those are some long term plans." She said, grinning slightly. "You sure your gonna last that long."

            Vadise dropped down to the ground, and stood back up. "I'm never sure of anything." She said happily. "It's what makes life interesting." And then with a simple thought, Atma was thrown back into the pond, and driven to the bottom.

            "But then…" Vadise said. "One must simply try to survive the storm that is life, and attempt to live while doing it."

            Vadise held her opponent at the bottom of the pool for a little while long, then turned around, releasing her force on the dragon.

            Atma sputtered to the top of the pool, and gasped for air.

            Vadise smiled, and laughed. "Go Home, Atma." She said. "We should all return to our own place at one point or another."

            Atma smiled, and bowed mockingly. "Oh, yes, great master." She said in a pitiful sounding voice.

            Vadise rolled her eyes, and made a gesture with her hand. Atma grinned at her, and melded into the shadow before the spell could hit her.

            Vadise looked back at the shadows, and shrugged.

            She sat back again, letting her fingers drift into the water.

            Her head tilted back in contentment as the sounds of the forest, music in of itself, ran through her.

~~

            After a hot meal, (Well, several hot meals on InuYasha's part) and a nice hot shower, Kagome was feeling much better. "Hey, Mom, have you seen InuYasha?" She called into the kitchen.

            Mrs. Higurashi leaned back from the laundry she was folding, and smiled. "I think I saw him heading out towards the sacred tree." She said happily. It was wonderful to have Kagome back… although keeping her friends at bay while InuYasha was around would be difficult… and Mrs. Higurashi had a feeling that both of them would be coming around considerably more often.

            Kagome nodded her thanks, and dashed out the door, heading in the direction of the sacred tree. Circling around the wide trunk, she scoured the entire yard. There was no sign of the hanyou.

            Kagome pursed her lips, and put her hands on her hips, looking left, and right. There was a light thud behind her, and she gasped as she whirled around.

            InuYasha rose to his feet, and smiled at her.

            Kagome rolled her eyes, and mock punched him in the chest. "Where have you been?" She demanded.

            InuYasha looked up at the top of the tree, and pointed.

            Kagome looked up. "You can jump that high?" She asked, slightly awed.

            InuYasha grinned with a devilish little chuckle, and wrapped an arm around her waist.

            The young miko gasped, and was suddenly aloft, soaring up past green foliage and into sky starting to redden with sunset. InuYasha landed on the very top branches lightly, and set her down carefully, propping her on the "Vs" of two branches to help her stand.

            Kagome glanced at InuYasha, a slight smile on his face, then traced his glance up to the beautiful sunset.

            It burned brightly, painting the sky in reds, oranges, and deep royal purples. The clouds surfed across the painted sky playfully in the distance, and a light breeze ruffled Kagome's hair.

            She turned to look at InuYasha again, and was shocked. The light etched all his features, turning his normally silver hair into the purest spun golden thread, etching his handsome jaw, and turning his eyes absolutely molten. He now wore only his inner white Haori, and his standard red hakama, and his posture was strait, erect, and proud. A light smile creased his face, and his eyes closed in contentment.

            "InuYasha…" She said softly, knowing he could hear. "Thank you…"

            InuYasha shrugged slightly, and smiled, not turning towards her. "No big deal." He said. "I just wanted to keep my jewel shard detector around."

            Kagome's jaw dropped in a gape. He still… Shard detector!?! He! She! How!

            Her eye began to twitch in anger… then slightly cooled.

            He wanted to keep his jewel detector around. His jewel detector.

            Kagome smiled, and carefully took a step towards him, and was rewarded with a warm arm around her shoulder. 

            His…

            Her eyes traced up to the sinking sun, and Kagome broke into a big, unbridled smile.

~~~~~FIN~~~~~