Disclaimer - It's not mine. It never was.

A/N- Okay. Here is the next installment in this crazy story. I hope you all enjoy. Later

Sometimes the Truth is the Hardest Thing to Face

About noon the next day, Kagome was standing at the Bone Eater's Well wondering if indeed she was doing the right thing by going back. She heard a door creak and turned around to find her mother standing there. Kagome could not meet her mother's soft gaze. It was true that Rei was not mad at Kagome for getting pregnant. In fact, she was looking forward to the idea of being a grandmother, now that the shock had worn off. It was her own father that had her worried. 'Father never did like Inuyasha that much.' Rei thought as she looked at her daughter. 'I hope he doesn't go crazy when she tells him.'

"How long are you going to be gone, dear?" she asked her daughter. Kagome turned her head to the side and shrugged.

"I'll be back in a few days." she answered. "I wanted to tell Sango and Miroku also, but they have moved to another village, and it is going to take me a day or so to get there. I should be back in about four days. If I need to stay any longer, I'll come home and tell you guys before hand." Rei nodded and moved to hug her daughter. It was obvious to the older woman that Kagome was on the verge of crying again. She consoled her daughter as best she could, knowing that it was at least a little helpful. If she could have, Rei would have went to tell the others for Kagome. But, that was not possible, and she knew it.

"Will you be okay?" she asked. "I don't want you to go back and try to face him too soon. If you want to, you can wait." Kagome shook her head and pulled her backpack up to her shoulders.

"No, mom." she said. "The sooner he finds out, the better."

"Do you think this will change his mind, and make him come back to you?" Rei asked. Kagome stiffened up and pulled out of her mom's arms.

"I don't know." she replied. "But I do know that I won't take him back." Rei looked a little surprised at the curtness in her daughter's voice.

"Why not?" the older woman asked. "If he makes an effort….."

"Because if he cheated on me one time, he's likely to do it again. And my child will not have a father who can't decide which woman he wants." Rei nodded in understanding and hugged Kagome one last time before she sat on the edge of the well and dangled her feet into its depths.

"Kagome, you do know that whatever you decide, I will stand behind you one hundred percent." Rei said slowly, quietly. Kagome nodded and gave her mom a hug and a kiss before slipping down into the well. Her mom watched as the dark nothingness enveloped Kagome, taking her back 500 years into the past.

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Kagome climbed out of the well and threw her bag onto the ground. She looked up into the sky and smiled. It was a beautiful day in the Warring States. The sun was shining brightly, and there were birds singing in the trees that surrounded the well. She gave a half hearted grin and shouldered her bag. 'Well, I'm not going to get to Kaede's just standing around here, am I?' she asked herself. And with that, she slowly began to make her way towards the old miko's village, hoping against hope that she would find some answers to her questions.

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Kouga was flying low over the tops of the trees when he picked up the familiar scent of Inuyasha. He stopped and landed in a clearing, the dirt and dust sweeping away from him as his feet touched the ground. He sniffed again and caught the hanyou's scent again, this time more strongly. 'Yes, it's time for dog-boy to pay for what he done to Kagome.' Following his nose to where the scent ended, he looked up into the tree tops and saw the red of Inuyasha's coat.

The wolf prince had been aching to get a fist full of the hanyou's hair since the whole mess had went down three weeks ago. His own mind told him to beat some sense into the insolent half demon, but Kagome's face would loom in front of him every time he made to beat the other young hanyou into the ground. She would not want him to hurt Inuyasha, and he knew it. 'She's too damn kind hearted at times.' he thought angrily. Kouga's mindset was simple when it came to the hanyou.


Inuyasha had hurt Kagome.

He, Kouga, loved Kagome.

Therefore, he was going to hurt Inuyasha.

The hanyou was obviously asleep, and Kouga smirked. Where they were standing was actually not far from Kaede's village. 'Dog face has guts, coming back here after Kagome all but banned him from the village.'

"Hey! Dog breath!" he yelled. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be with that bitch Kikyou?" Inuyasha's eyes popped open and he quickly looked down. He had fallen asleep and was surprised to hear someone below him. When he laid eyes on the wolf demon, he growled and put his hand on the hilt of Tetsusaiga.

"What do you want, wolf?" he growled. "You have no business here." He dropped down onto the ground and stood up, his hand still on the hilt of the sword. Kouga smirked and decided to tease the hanyou for a while. 'What the hell, at least I'll get a kick out of it. Even if I can't get a good kick in his ass.'

"My business concerns Lady Kaede." he said simply, folding his arms across his chest. "I was on my way to inquire as to when Lady Kagome would be coming back. However, I guess I could pick up some trash along the way and dispose of it accordingly." With that simple statement, Inuyasha's temperature soared towards the heavens. "Besides, Lady Kagome promised to come back to the pack and play with the pups. They're getting rather anxious to see her, as is the rest of my pack." He chuckled and shook his head. "It seems as though my pack has chosen my future mate for me. Not that I'm complaining of course."

"You stay away from Kagome, you damn wolf!" he yelled. "You've got no right to be anywhere near her!" Kouga smirked and leaned against the trunk of a nearby tree.

"I think I have more right than you do, hanyou." he spat out. "I wasn't the one who broke her heart." He watched as the hanyou's face flashed his emotions like a light show. Kouga could tell that the half demon still cared deeply for Kagome. It would be impossible not to see it.

Inuyasha was slowly loosing his grip on reality. Just the thought of Kagome with the wolf made his blood boil. He unsheathed the now transformed Tetsusaiga and pointed it towards the wolf prince.

"If I ever catch you near her, you're a dead wolf." he said fiercely. He walked closer towards Kouga, but the wolf demon never moved. "You'll only hurt her."

"And I take it that you won't?" he asked. Inuyasha held the blade at the demon's face and growled. "Where is Kikyou, by the way?"

"I made a mistake." he said. "And I intend to rectify that mistake." Kouga laughed and shook his head. Tetsusaiga's blade was mere inches from his face, but it did not phase him.

"It's too late now, doggy boy." he said. "Kagome won't take you back, no matter how much you beg, plead, or cry out to her."

"You know nothing of her." Inuyasha spat. Kouga's temper soared then.

"I know enough, dog." he said, finally getting angry. "I know that she is a good woman who doesn't deserved to be tossed aside like some overused toy. I know that she has a caring heart that looks for the good in everyone. I know she's strong, and resourceful. I also know that she is a woman. And once a woman's heart has been broken, no matter if she's demon or human, it's very seldom that they will open it back up to the one that broke it to begin with." Kouga stepped back from the blade and shook his head. "How long did she wait for you, hanyou? How many times did you run to Kikyou when you knew that there was this wonderful girl who adored you, and would do anything for you?"

"Shut up!" Inuyasha said, his hands itching to get a hold on the arrogant tribe leader's face.

"How many times did she come back to you?" Kouga went on, snapping at the hanyou. "How long have you known that she loved you, and yet you turned from her? How many times do you think her heart has been broken by you? How many times has she put herself in danger, when you were in your human form, to protect you. Only because she loved you unconditionally. And she very seldom asked for anything in return."

"I SAID SHUT UP!!!" Inuyasha screamed. The angry hanyou lunged at the prince, swinging Tetsusaiga with a force he had never know before. The wolf prince barely dodged the attack, as the wave of energy released form the blade split the tree he had been leaning up against in half. Kouga took a few shaky steps back and looked at the hanyou again.

"I promised Lady Kagome that I wouldn't lay a hand on you." he said. "Unless, of course, you gave me a good reason to. And at the rate you're going, I'm finding a good reason not to kill you now."

"I don't have time to fool with you." the hanyou said. "You're not worth my time." Kouga smirked and took back to the air again.

"As I said, I must go speak to Lady Kaede. She will know what Lady Kagome will return to me." Inuyasha watched until the arrogant wolf was out of sight.

"It doesn't matter." he said. "The minute she steps out of that well, I'll know it. Then, I can figure out exactly what I need to do to get back on her good side." With that, he hopped back up into the tree and settled into the crook of the branch.

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Kaede was on her way out of her home when she stopped dead in her tracks. There, standing right in front of her home, talking with some of the villagers, was her sister, Kikyou. 'What in Kami's name is she doing here?' the older miko thought. She stepped down and into the street, staring at her sister. When Kikyou noticed her sister coming out of her home, she sent the children off to play and faced her sibling.

"Sister." she acknowledged, nodding her head in Kaede's direction.

"Kikyou." the old woman said in a low tone. "What brings you here?" She did not want the excuse for her sister to be in her village. It only meant trouble was brewing.

"I am in need of some information, Kaede." Kikyou said quietly, getting straight to the point. "Some information concerning the Shikon no Tama."

"You were once it's keeper, Kikyou." Kaede said stiffly. "What do you need to know from me?"

"I want to know how long Kagome has been able to fully wield the power of the Shikon." Kikyou said stiffly. Kaede shook her head.

"Lady Kagome mastered the power of the jewel long ago. Her sacred arrows are pure and can purify anything or anyone." Kaede said. "Why do you want to know?"

Kikyou snickered and pulled her hand out of her robes. Taking the bow off of her back, she knocked an arrow and sent it flying towards Kaede's hut. Before the arrow hit its mark, a bright pink light enveloped the arrow. Kaede stared in fear and astonishment as the purifying arrow hit it's mark. A flash of pink light escaped, and surrounded the hut. 'This is not good.' Kaede thought. 'Not good at all.' Unfortunately for Kikyou, Kaede and the villagers were not the only ones who saw the little display of miko energy.

Kouga had landed behind the hut only minutes before hand. He had picked up Kikyou's scent and was waiting to see what would happen, and what had brought Inuyasha's bitch this close to the village. He crept around the side of the hut and carefully peered out, only to find the older and younger miko's in a death glare.

"That is why I wanted to know, sister." Kikyou said stiffly. "I am regaining my power that I once held when I protected the Shikon Jewel. I lost it when the guardianship was passed to Kagome. But now, I seem to be regaining it back." Kaede watched her sister in silence as she turned her back and began to walk away. "Thank you, sister." she said coldly. "Now that I know what I need, I can find out what is going on with the Shikon's power."

Kaede watched as her older sister walked towards the edge of the forest and disappeared into it's depths. 'Oh, this is not good. If Kikyou regains her full power of the Shikon, she is liable to kill Lady Kagome.' The old miko straightened up and picked up her basket from where she had dropped it. However Kouga decided to come out and find out what had happened.

"Lady Kaede." he called out. Kaede turned around and nodded in the wolf demon's direction. Kouga walked up to the old woman and frowned.

"Lord Kouga." the miko said. "How are you today?"

"Cut the small talk, Lady Kaede." he growled out. "What was the hanyou's bitch doing here?" Kaede shook her head and frowned.

"She is searching out information about the Shikon Jewel." Kaede said slowly, taking a deep breath to steady herself. "It seems as though she is slowly regaining her hold of the Jewel's power. This does not look promising."

"Is there anything we can do? Is Kagome in any danger?" he asked quickly.

"We will wait until Lady Kagome comes back to question her." Kaede said. "I have a feeling we will be seeing her shortly." Kouga's eyes suddenly dropped the evil hatred they had been showing with the mention of Kikyou. 'She said Kagome's going to be back soon.' he thought happily. Kaede smiled as the look of loving passed over the young man's eyes. "Well, Kouga, I am afraid that I must make a call to some villagers that need my assistance. I must be going."

"When will Kagome be back?" he asked suddenly. He did not want her running into Kikyou on her way down here. If that happened, he was sure a fight would ensure. Kaede smiled and pushed the basket of herbs onto her arm.

"I think you should go to the well and wait for her." the miko said. "Lady Kagome should be back soon, how soon I know not, but soon."

"Thank you, Kaede." the wolf mumbled. The aged miko only nodded and started to walk off. Kouga stopped her once again.

"Lady Kaede." he asked. "Isn't Kikyou your sister?" The old woman stopped dead in her tracks for the second time in under half an hour. Without even turning back to face the wolf demon, she told him.

"Yes, Kouga. Kikyou was once my sister." she said in a tone that make chills go down the demon's spine. "However, that thing that was just here was not my sister, only the shallow shell of the woman that once was. My true sister died many years ago." The old miko began to walk off again, leaving Kouga to stare in bewilderment at the way she had turned on her own family. In his confusion, he did not pick up the smell of the one, lonely salty tear that trailed its way down the woman's face.

He did not have time to contemplate the obvious family treachery because a shift in the wind brought a sweet smell to his nose and a smile to his face. 'Kagome.' he thought happily. He inhaled again, and his heart stopped. Shaking his head to make sure he wasn't going delusional, he sniffed again. 'I smell her, but I also smell the scent of ……pregnancy!? This can't be right! She can't be pregnant!' He suddenly remembered that the hanyou was not far away from the village. With that thought, he took off towards the path that led to the Bone Eater's Well as fast as he could.

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About the same time, Inuyasha's nose picked up the scent of Kagome. He sighed and jumped down from the tree, adjusting the Tetsusaiga as he went. 'I might as well get this over with.' he thought. He sniffed the air again and froze solid. Kagome's scent was tinged with the scent of a new life. 'No. There's got to be some mistake. This can't be real.' he thought, panicking at the thought of Kagome being pregnant. He shook his head and took off towards the Bone Eater's well as fast as he could go. 'It's probably just one of the women in the village who's with child. That scent just mingled with Kagome's. That's all it is. Kagome's not pregnant.' he thought as he made it out of the clearing. But even through all his rationalizing, and justifying, he knew that something was not right with Kagome…and that he more than likely had something to do with it.

A/N - Okay people. Hope you enjoyed. Remember to leave me a review and tell me what you think. Later.