Disclaimer: I own Inuyasha!! Mwa ha ha ha!!! *gets dragged off by men in white lab coats and dumped into a room with tens of other Inuyasha-crazed fans*

 Man #1: Gee, it sure is getting crowded in there…

 Man #2: *shrug* well, we were running out of rooms.

AN: Heh, that was fun! I was going to do a little recount on what happened last chapter… but then I realized some of you probably just read the last chapter yesterday… Wow, lots of people liked the Grandpa incident… now the explanation is here!!!  *still rather crazed*

Icari
Chapter 34

 "Wow! I never realized how cool feudal Japan is!!"

 "Shippo!!"

 "What?" Kagome went over to pull the two boys into the hut by their ears.

 "I was worried sick about you two! You, Shippo, should know how unsafe it is to be running around out there alone!" Both boys were sat down on the ground by the fire.

 "But Kagome!!" They both whined, making her eye twitch. A bit to her left, she could hear Inuyasha snickering. Kagome turned on her heel, ready to give them all a nice little lecture, when her mother came in, dragging in her grandpa as well.

 "My, there are so many nice people out there, Kagome! You should come out with us. And the meadows a bit outside of the village…"

 "Mom! Please stay inside the village, there are lots of demons out there ready to… err… attack you…" Her mother smiled as her grandpa huffed out his chest, trying to be intimidating.

 "No Demon is going to hurt us while I'm around, Kagome, I'll just use my-" He was cut off by his granddaughter face-faulting into the ground Icari stepped in at that moment, looking from the girl on the ground to her snickering brother, to the two young boys and the people at the door.

 "What in the world…"

 "You'd think that by now, Grandpa, you'd know that those mantras of yours don't work…"

 "Of course they do!!"

 "Argh!" The dog demon blinked, watching as Kagome unceremoniously pushed her grandpa and mother in and sat them down next to Sota and Shippo. About that time, Miroku, Sango, Rin, Sesshomaru and Yasuo came in with Kaede behind them.

 "Found her!" Rin chirped happily, completely unaware of Kagome's frustration. Not that it really mattered, because the miko completely forgot about that and clapped her hands almost giddily.

 "Great, now everyone has to stay here and not wander off!" Inuyasha's snicker came a little louder this time, making Kagome hit him with a very evil glare.  The ones that had just entered the hut looked at them curiously, while everyone else either smiled or whistled, trying to act innocent.

 There was a quiet mumbling after Inuyasha clapped his hands, a small dot floating down in front of the hanyou. He looked at it quickly. "Hey, I'm getting good at that…"

 Icari regarded her brother with a dumb look before snapping out of her reverie. "Alright! Now that everybody's here, well, besides Jaken, why don't we sit down and discuss this like normal people?"

 "Because we aren't normal," Kagome said dryly, her eyes flitting across certain people in the room, "But that reminds me, where is Jaken?" Shippo answered that one.

 "He was bugging Kirara, so she volunteered to teach him how to fly." More blank/dumb faces. As he got tired of the staring, Shippo shrugged. "Well, weren't we going to discuss something?"

 "Aye, no more joking around. Now, it seems that the talismans that I have entrusted to ye have not only giving power to Naraku, but brought Kagome's kin here, and Shippo there. Could it be that the well has been neutralized?" The room became suddenly quiet, everyone thinking about the possibilities.

 "No, Lady Kaede, I don't think it's possible. Myouga has tried for it, but it did not let him through." Yasuo flicked the said flea demon away from his face while he talked. Kaede looked from him to Myouga.

 "And what were ye wishing to do over there?" Myouga laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head with an arm.

 "Well… Lady Kagome's blood was so tasty…" Kagome gave him a dirty look, resisting the urge to stamp at him. Sota and Kagome's Mother sweat dropped, while her Grandpa rummaged in his shirt for a ward of some kind.

 "Aye, Myouga, we know what ye mean…" Even Kaede looked like she was about to face-fault or something. "Well, it seems like The Bone Eater's Well is now only able to let some certain people through, like though of pure intentions."

 "Yeah right." Shippo glared at Kagome's grandfather from the corner of his eye, watching as a few herbs, spices, and weak looking wards appeared out of nowhere.

 "Shippo…" Kagome chided. "The well must've known that whatever he had wouldn't work. That was why it let him through; he's harmless." And indignant look crossed his face as her grandpa gave up and started to filter everything back in his shirt. "See? Can't even find the right things to do whatever he was hoping to."

 Icari ignored the kitsune and boy's laughs and spoke, "Lady Kaede… What I don't understand is how the talismans have anything to do with the well. How were we supposed to figure that out if Shippo hadn't gone on a rant?"

 "Aye, it does seem strange… but I think we've been looking at it in some of the wrong ways. If ye think about it, the four swords and talismans all hold steps in life, and in time. Over time, Life, growth, death, all happen, as well as spirits being sent to the other world." Icari nodded slowly, digesting the information.

  "But why?" Miroku thought aloud. Kaede sighed, her shoulder slugging as if admitting defeat.

 "There are things in life, young monk, that no one can explain. Why was the well made in the first place? Why was Kagome let to travel through time, if the jewel would've been safer in her time? Why did we all meet? An important lesson in life, Miroku, is that those kinds of things, the ones we can't explain, maybe we weren't meant to know.

 "But, in the end, things did turn out for the better. Ye have all met and become great friends, Shippo found parents anew, Sango came with you, and did not live a lonely life, Miroku is now free of his Wind Tunnel, two feuding brothers were brought together, and a sister once lost was found. Do ye still feel the need to question what has been given to us?"

 "No, Lady Kaede. You are right, I should be thankful for what I have, and pray that it shall remain as such." The old woman nodded.

 "Aye, do not question things such as this…" The group fell silent again, but only for a moment. Rin chuckled.

 "Lady, you've forgotten the most important thing, we have all found ourselves wonderful mates." A smile crossed everyone's faces, including Miroku and Sango, as they each reached for their partner's hands. There was a gasp from Kagome's mother, but she never did get to see her expression, as Sota had suddenly lunged himself as Kagome and Inuyasha. He hugged them both tightly.

 "I have a brother now!!" Gasping for breath, Kagome peeked over her brother's shoulder to see her mother standing there, smiling happily. Her grandfather had his mouth wide open, not believing what he had just learned.

 "I take it ye haven't told them yet?" Inuyasha and Kagome smiled sheepishly from their spot on the floor. Icari gave them a big, goofy grin as she went to hug Yasuo, whispering into his ear. He chuckled at hearing Inuyasha's plans tonight…

*~*~*~*~*

 With her mother at home making preparations for a little celebration, for all four couples (Icari and Yasuo didn't have to, but they wanted to, and Miroku and Sango had only just revealed their engagement) Kagome stood up to head back to Kaede's village. She had led her family to the well, equipped with a bow and arrow so that she had an excuse not to let them out of the village while they were here.

 A demon aura flitted across her path, though too far away for her to see. A bow notch and ready, she waited for it to come again.

 "Hey… you weren't planning to point that thing at me, were you?" One Inuyasha's large, toned arms wrapped itself around her thin body, and she sighed, leaning back into him.

 "You just surprised me, that's all." He nipped at her ear lovingly, and she smiled. "What are you doing here, anyways?" soft lips kissed down her throat, making her shiver.

 "I… was just wondering where you were planning to live, after… you know…" Her smile widened as he continued to caress her. Before she could reply, though, something very soft and furry brushed her bare arm.

 "What's that?" She turned quickly, catching the slight lush on the hanyou's face. A little rabbit hopped into her arms, obviously frightened by her sudden movement. "What the?" It's nose twitched as it remember where it was, but Inuyasha caught it again quickly, and turned to her.

 "Um… surprise?"

The End!

*~*~*~*~*

 A cute and fluffy (pardon the pun) ending to a very weird and dramatic fic. Well… I didn't really expect this to be the end either!! But… I think an Epilogue is in store, ne? I'll do one if you want one!