Disclaimer - It's not mine. Never was.
A/N - Ookie dookie, here is the next chapter for your reading pleasure. I hope you guys enjoy.
A special thanks to everyone who has reviewed my story. I love all of ya'll.
Later,
A.A.
All in the Family
The next day as Kagome and Kouga took off towards the Eastern lands to speak with Lord Jiro, Kagome wondered what kind of reception she would get from the demon lord. She had faced raging, blood thirty youkai before, but for some odd reason, the impending meeting between herself and the taiyoukai had her in quite a disarray. After Laniko had left the day before, Kagome had killed some time helping Keiko and playing with the pups. Kouga had put some of her fears to rest about his father after coming back from his evening patrols, but Kagome still had her doubts. 'The guy can't be worse than Sesshomauro. He tried to kill me the first time we met. It doesn't get much worse than that.' she thought. 'Of course, I could be doing all of this for nothing at all. After all, Kaede said it was only a possible theory that I could purify the child. There is no proof that is has ever happened before. So I could just be running around for no reason at all. But, at least this way, I'll know for a fact.' She shifted around in Kouga's arms and tried to get comfortable. She had a feeling it was going to be a very exhausting day.
Kouga, meanwhile, was having some thoughts of his own as they flew through the air. 'Father will be able to tell us what we need to know. I just know he will. We will be able to find a way to save Kagome's child. If something happens to that child, I don't want to know what will happen to her.' he thought. 'I've seen what happens when she-wolves loose pups in birth; the mother usually follow the pup into death. I won't let that happen to Kagome! Not now that she's recovering from Inu-baka's betrayal.' He tightened his hold on Kagome and put on an extra burst of speed. He finally had her by his side, and he was not about to let something like the possible death of her child get in the way. He would find a way to keep the child alive, no matter what he had to do.
As they crossed the invisible borderland into the East form the interior of the country, Kagome gasped a the beautiful expanse of land and sea. It was breathtaking, there were no other words for it. The forest was dark and lush, proving that the land was fertile and well cared for. The vast expanse of sea had boats dotted along its surface. All in all, it was definitely something that took Kagome's breath away.
Kouga began to slow down and descend into a more mountainous ridge right along the coastline. Kagome looked below, over the ledge they had landed on and was surprised to see a small fishing village. The boats were drifting in the water, idly content until their owners came back. Glancing to her right, she saw a small inlet, where it seemed people kept popping in and out of the water. 'Pearl divers.' she thought 'The girls who harvest the precious stones from the oyster shells.' She looked over at Kouga, who seemed to be assessing the village below them.
"Why did we stop here, Kouga?" she asked, wondering why they had stopped in such a remote place.
"Anytime father wants to speak with me concerning matters of the land, we meet here." he answered with a shrug. "It's far enough away from the castle so that no one is around to bother us, seeing as how these discussions can sometimes take hours depending on the problem at hand."
"How long before he gets here?" Kagome asked, feeling a little nervous.
"He will be here soon. I have a feeling Laniko is telling him about why you are going to be with me today." Kouga said with a smile.
"I see. Will Laniko be with him?" she asked hopefully.
"She should. I'm not sure though." Kagome nodded and turned her attention back to the village.
It was not long after that when Kouga glanced northward and motioned for Kagome to stand beside him. Brushing off the borrowed clothes Keiko lent her to wear the evening before, she steadied herself to face the impending parent. A strong gale wind blew up out of nowhere, and Kagome bent her head and covered her eyes to stop the sand and rocks from hitting her. As quickly as the winds came, they were gone, and in their wake were three demons. One, Kagome immediately recognized as Kouga's stepmother Laniko.
The other two males were a bit of an enigma. One, the center male, had a mass of thick auburn colored hair pulled up into a pointy tail, much like Kouga's. His piercing green eyes flickered when his gaze swept over Kagome, something akin to humor making his eyes dance. The other male however, a demon with chin length black hair and green eyes, grinned happily and broke the awkward silence.
"Kouga, you've been hunting again, I see." he grinned, smiling over at Kagome. "Good going, big brother. Laniko's been telling us all about her, and let me tell you, rumors do your catch no justice." Kouga growled at the demon and stepped closer to Kagome, placing his hand on her back.
"I see you are well, little brother." Kouga said casually, sending him an 'if you want to stay in one piece, you better shut up' glare. "Father. Lady Laniko." he said as acknowledgement. Laniko smiled and went over to Kagome's side.
"We'll just leave you three alone to talk." she said with a grin. Kagome looked a little shocked and was about to protest when Kouga smiled and nodded at her. "We'll be back later." Kouga watched as Laniko led Kagome away from him and down the slope leading into the village. When they were sufficiently out of hearing range, Jiro turned back to his son and nodded.
"Raidon was correct, my son. The rumors do the young woman no justice." he said blandly.
"You wanted to speak with me?" Kouga asked, basically ignoring the comment about Kagome.
"Yes. There have been some problems with the tribes north of you." his father said tersely.
"Over what?" Kouga asked.
"Territorial rights." Raidon said with a frown. "Some of the food supplies are starting to thin out, and the tribes are competing with each other, as well as the local villagers for the land and its resources."
"There's something else, isn't there?" Kouga asked, peering at the two demons. His father nodded and rubbed his temples, trying to ward off a headache.
"Some of Lumosiko's pack has been attacking nearby villages, carrying the cattle and sheep off. Two wolves have been killed in the last month alone by the villagers." Jiro explained.
"This is causing problems between villagers and demons alike. We need to stop the before any more wolves or humans are injured or killed." Raidon said.
"What is causing the food shortage? The area you speak of is a vast expanse of forest bordering the Northern lands. We've never had problems with food stuffs there before." Kouga asked.
"The land is dying. Already half of the forest is withered down to nothing. Many of the streams have stopped running, only to become stagnant pools of water." Jiro explained.
"How long ago did this start?" Kouga asked, frowning at the report.
"Just recently. Maybe a month or so ago. It happened in such a short amount of time, and we cannot pinpoint the origin of the problem." Jiro said.
"What do you suggest we do, father?" Raidon asked.
"We have very few options. One, we pull the packs off of the lands and divide them up into our other safely established packs. Two, we leave them there and send supplies at regular intervals to keep everyone alive. Or three, we figure out what's going on, and get rid of whatever is causing the land to die out." Jiro explained.
"We must do something quickly, though." Raidon said. "The villagers are blaming the packs, and our packs are blaming the villagers. We have never had this much civil unrest in centuries. We need to stop it before it gets any more serious." Kouga frowned and looked down the cliff at the villagers going about their work.
There had been no civil unrest in his homelands since before he was born. Long ago, his grandfather had made an agreement with the humans of the East. The wolf packs would stay to themselves, as would the humans, each one continuing as though the other did not exist. It had worked surprisingly well, and over time what had started as an uneasy truce had led to an understanding friendship, and then a mutual respect for both groups. A few minor posts had later been set up along the coast, and both human and demon alike would trade for goods. The wolves brought wild game, pelts, furs, as well as spears, and woven mats to the coast in return for such things as cloth, salt, fish, oysters, silk, and pearls.
The trade was just starting to get an even better footing, with both sides benefiting in the long run. But something as bad as civil unrest could cause all of it to crumble, in no time at all. 'Why now?' Kouga thought angrily, 'Why now, when it seemed like everything else is going so good….'
**Meanwhile, with Laniko and Kagome…**
The demoness and miko walked down the path toward the village, chatting about whatever came to mind. Finally though, Kagome brought up her reason for being there.
"Lady Laniko, did you find out if Lord Jiro knows where the old woman lives?" she asked.
"Surprisingly, yes." the demoness answered. "After I returned yesterday and spoke with Jiro, he told me he know where to find her."
"Where is she?"
"She lives closer towards the borderlands between the East and North lands. Her home is protected by a barrier that only a select few can get through. So even if someone did know where she lived, they still may not be able to get in to speak with her. In fact, it is near the very place that is causing Jiro so much worry."
"Worry?" Kagome asked. "Is something wrong?"
"The lands up there are dying." Laniko answered truthfully. "The packs are becoming restless as food sources die out."
"They're starving?!" Kagome gasped out.
"Not yet. But another month or so, and they could be." Laniko said as they stopped by the small inlet Kagome had been watching earlier. The pearl harvesters were still going, and it seemed as though Laniko was known well in the village, seeing as many of the girls would wave or call out to her as they went about their business. At Kagome's curious expression, Laniko smiled and shrugged. "This is my mother's home village. She was a hanyou, and this was her home before she met my father. After that, she moved with him, but still brought me back here from time to time. She always told me that I should never forget where I came from, no matter how much status or wealth I achieved in life. Because of that, I know many of the villagers quite well."
They continued on until they reached the outskirts of the village. It had been almost three hours since the had left the men, and Kagome was anxious to find out if she was going to get to see Cali. After a while, the conversation once again turned to the dragon hanyou.
"Do you think Cali could tell Lord Jiro and Kouga what is going on in the lands?" Kagome asked.
"Possibly. We will find out tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?"
"We are going to be going to her home tomorrow." Laniko explained, picking a sakura blossom off of a nearby tree. "You, to find out if your baby is at risk for being purified, and Jiro and I to find out if she knows what's wrong up there."
"Will Kouga come also?" Kagome asked hopefully. She really did not want to be with the Eastern taiyoukai without Kouga there. Laniko grinned and nodded to her.
"More than likely. He and Raidon are the oldest two sons, and they will need to be with their father."
"Is Raidon the other demon that arrived with you?" Kagome asked.
"Yes, he is." Laniko chuckled. "He's two years Kouga's junior, and just as mischievous as his older brother, if not more."
"Kouga? Mischievous?" Kagome asked, her face a mask of disbelief.
"Yes. He's quite a character. Why do you seem so surprised?" the demoness asked. Kagome shook her head and smiled again.
"Mischievous isn't a word I would describe Kouga as." Kagome said. "Stubborn, tenacious, caring, obnoxious at times, but not mischievous."
"Give it time, Kagome, and you will see." Laniko grinned. She turned back towards the village and Kagome followed. They were headed back to the cliff where Jiro, Kouga, and Raidon were. "If you can believe it or not, those two actually get it from Jiro."
"He has a sense of humor?" Kagome blurted out before she could stop herself. She immediately blushed and covered her mouth with her hand. "Ooops, shouldn't have said that. Sorry."
"It's okay. He just keeps it hid rather well." Laniko said. "The strain about the northern packs have him in a bit of a spot, as well as Kouga's refusal to take a mate."
"What's so bad about Kouga not taking a mate, yet?"
"Jiro is annoyed because Kouga is waiting on you, Kagome. It's just irking him that Kouga isn't paired off yet and settled down with some pups of his own."
"I'm not going to just run to Kouga, and cry my eyes out since Inuyasha screwed me over." Kagome snapped. "Kouga's a close friend, and a form of stability for me right now. Why does everyone automatically assume that I can't stand on my own two feet and take care of myself? I don't need a man to live my life to the fullest."
"Calm yourself, Kagome. I know that. I know a semblance of what you're feeling because I'm part human. But, demons like Jiro only know how to take things they want, no matter what." Laniko said placatingly. "When a demon male sets his sights on a female, he'll do anything for her, even f it means waiting a ridiculous amount of time. Trust me, I know."
"But Kouga doesn't seem like he's too worried about that." Kagome pointed out. "I mean, he's all but physically claimed me as his mate, but he's never pressured me into anything, only offered assistance since the whole Inuyasha ordeal."
"And he won't pressure you, Kagome. No matter what his father or anyone else says or does. Kouga does care for you deeply. In fact, when he came back from his visit to your village, right after finding out Inuyasha had marked you, Jiro told me he was depressed for a week. He was snapping at anyone and staying out in the forest for the majority of the time. It finally took Raidon making him mad enough to almost beat the living soul out of him to make him snap back to reality."
"I didn't realize…" Kagome trailed off. Her respect and affection for the wolf was growing by leaps and bounds. Ever since Inuyasha's betrayal, Kouga had tried picking up what was left of her broken heart, and piecing it back together. She knew that the wolf demon cared deeply about her, even possibly loved her. All the little things he done for her made her feel good about herself again, and it was starting to make her own feelings for the wolf turn into something other than friendship.
"I think it was then that Jiro realized Kouga had made his choice for a mate." Laniko continued on. "And it was then that Jiro started to question who you were and what you had done. After finding out that you were the miko that had purified the Shikon jewel, his respect in Kouga's decision had jumped considerably. Whether he realized it then or not, he actually began to accept the thought of having you in the family, especially since it is common knowledge that Kouga wants you as his mate."
Kagome smiled and shook her head. Her affection for the wolf prince was growing with leaps and bounds the more she heard about him. She was about to say something else when her stomach gave a lurch, forcing her to stop for a moment and lean against a tree.
"Are you okay, Kagome?" Laniko asked worriedly.
"Yes, just an upset stomach. I should be fine in a minute. After a few more moments Kagome pushed herself from the tree and nodded. Keiko had explained to her the day before that the gestation period for a child with demon blood was actually shorter than the time a normal human mother carried a child. As such, Kagome would be experiencing the symptoms of pregnancy much quicker since the child had demon blood in it. That meant that the feelings of nausea and dizziness would start soon, as well as the dreaded morning sickness. 'I didn't realize she meant this soon.' Kagome thought as she clutched her stomach as it twisted and turned. It took a few minutes, but the feeling of nausea passed and she was ready to continue on
After another fifteen minutes, the women trekked up the side of the cliff and found the three demons concluding their meeting. Laniko and Kagome held back for a few more minutes, allowing them to finish off their discussion before walking over to them.
"Are we finished here, my Lord?" Laniko questioned her mate.
"Yes. We are done here." he said, not looking at the demoness. Laniko nodded and stepped up to his side, giving him a small smile before nodding to where Kagome was standing by Kouga. "Kouga, you, Raidon and Lady Kagome are to meet us here early tomorrow morning. From there we will head north. Hopefully, we will arrive at the northern boundary before noon. Is that understood?"
"Yes, father."
"We'll be here, father."
"Very good. Now if the rest of you would excuse us, I'd like to speak with Lady Kagome for a moment before we leave." he said, looking at the miko by his oldest son's side.
Kagome tensed immediately, but took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. Laniko had put her mind slightly at ease earlier today about the wolf taiyoukai, but she was still somewhat uneasy. She glanced up at Laniko, who gave has a smile and stepped back, signaling for the two sons to follow her.
"Let's go, you two. This doesn't concern us." she said. Kouga stepped away, but not before gripping Kagome's shoulder reassuringly. Raidon grinned and walked back to where Laniko was standing.
"Don't eat her alive, father. You've been known to do that to a human or two before, after all." Kagome glared at the younger brother and Kouga growled, grabbing his brother's armor and pulling him towards Laniko.
"Shut the hell up, Raidon!" he barked.
"Aww, come on Kouga. I was just kidding." the younger demon protested.
"Raidon?" came Laniko's voice.
"Yes?"
"Shut up and come on." she said sternly. Raidon frowned and shrugged while Kouga grinned impishly.
"Now I remember why I like her so much." Kouga mused as they walked of. Kagome turned to the stoic lord who had watched his bickering sons leave. Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself for the conversation to come.
"You wanted to speak with me, Lord Jiro?" she asked respectfully. The auburn haired demon turned to the girl and nodded.
"Kouga has explained why you seek out Cali's help, but I want to know what your plans are for the future of the child, should you be able to bare it."
"I will raise the child." she answered matter of factly, as though there was no other option to speak of.
"Where will you raise the child?" he asked. "Kouga told me that you come from a place far away. Do you plan on staying around after getting your information?"
"I must return home for a short time, but I will be returning." she answered flatly. 'Why does he want to know all of this?' she thought. 'It's none of his business what I do or don't do.'
"And what of the hanyou Inuyasha? What is his part in this, other than being the father of the child?" the Eastern lord queried. Kagome's temper began to rise with the mention of Inuyasha.
"Inuyasha is no longer my concern." she said pointedly, looking the demon straight in the eye. "He betrayed me, and even if he did come back, I wouldn't have him."
"He forfeited his rights to the child to you?" Lord Jiro questioned.
"Yes."
"Were their any requests on his part?" he asked.
"Only that he was given the chance to see the child once after its birth." Kagome answered evenly. 'What the hell is his problem?' she thought as she bit the inside of her mouth to calm herself.
"And you intend on granting this request?"
"Yes." Kagome answered.
"You're giving into him." Jiro prodded. "What is the difference if you give into him now than giving into him later. If you do it once, he'll expect you to do it again."
"That does not necessarily mean I would give into him again, just because I allow him to see our child one time. I see no problem in that." Kagome said, here eyes flashing dangerously. 'This guy does not even know me, and he's passing judgment on me. Who the heck does he think he is?' she thought
"It also does not mean you will not give into him at some later point in time. If he asked you to give him the child to raise, would you do it?" Jiro asked, circling the girl and watching her reaction to his question.
"No." she answered flatly.
"Why not? He is the father of the child after all." the Eastern Lord prodded.
"No one will take my child from me!" she said flatly.
"You'll be raising the child without a father. Are you strong enough for that?" he asked scathingly, trying to get a rise out of the human. He could feel her anger mounting, but he did not think to stop his questioning.
"I was raised without a father." Kagome ground out. "It is possible to do, despite what you may think to the contrary." The Eastern Lord stopped his circling and stood in front of her, glaring.
"You presume to know how I think?" Jiro growled out.
"I presume to know nothing about you." Kagome said fiercely. "What I do know is I'd rather protect my child from an unfaithful father who only causes heartache. Inuyasha will not cause our child the same heart ache he caused me!"
Lord Jiro grinned and nodded. The girl was certainly spirited, much like Kouga had described. The earlier nervousness scent he had detected had disappeared completely, and now her body exuded nothing but anger.
Down the trail that his own family had left by, he heard Kouga angrily ask why Kagome's anger scent had spiked so suddenly. He could hear Laniko telling him to calm down, and Raidon chuckling and mumbling something about 'Kouga's turned into father, how wonderful.' He picked up Laniko's growl and heard Raidon's exclamation when he was hit by his older brother. As amusing as he found the exchange between his mate and sons, there was the slightly more pressing matter of the miko he had just angered enough to feel the powerful purifying tendrils of the Shikon snake out around her body. The air around the miko and taiyoukai crackled with power as Kagome' temper rose. Jiro tried to step away, but found he could not move. Jiro blinked and tried to move again, but found he was stuck to the ground. 'I think I pushed the young lady too far.' he thought grimly.
By now, Kouga, Raidon, and Laniko had ran back up the path. They had sensed Kagome's anger, as well as the building power of the Shikon jewel, and decided to see what was going on. Needless to say, they had not expected to see the Eastern Lord solid as a stone and Kagome's hands glowing faintly pink.
"Kagome…father…." Kouga said, going towards the two, intent on breaking up whatever was going on. Laniko stopped him immediately.
"Leave him, Kouga. He's doing this for a reason."
"He's going to get himself purified!" Kouga said.
"He's testing her, Kouga." she explained.
"For what?"
"He's testing her strength and hold of the Shikon's power." Raidon explained. "It's his way of finding if she is truly worthy of being in our family." Kouga growled and stepped back, knowing there would be hell to pay if he interfered.
Jiro growled and his eyes began to bleed red when he realized that the miko in front of him was threatening to kill him.
"You dare to threaten me, miko?" he growled out.
"You dare threaten a woman….a miko…..a mother?" she asked venomously. "One wave of my hand, and you'd be dead, purified before your next heartbeat."
"You wouldn't dare!"
"Oh, I wouldn't?" she said, swirling the purifying power of the jewel around the taiyoukai. Jiro flinched as some of the translucent light touched his skin, causing it to burn slightly.
"I came to you to find out how to save my child." Kagome stated simply. "Tell me how I can find Cali, and I'll leave you alone. You'll never have to see me again."
"You would kill me? The Lord of the Eastern lands?" he questioned.
"Is that a rhetorical question?" she said. Jiro smiled and nodded.
"You have guts and spirit, little miko." he said. "Especially to want to protect something that is only half yours."
"You're pushing your luck, my Lord." she drawled sarcastically. "Are you going to help me, or not?" Jiro actually laughed, and nodded.
"Let me go, Lady Kagome, and I will explain my actions." Kagome cut her eyes at the demon but did not release her hold on him. He tried to move, but still found himself stuck to the ground. He growled and glared at the young woman. "Why won't you let me go?"
"Just because someone asks me to do something, does not mean I always give into them." she said pointedly. Jiro flinched when his own words were thrown back at him. What worried him now was Kagome's attitude. Kouga had told him she was usually a kind girl who would not hurt anyone without just cause. 'Well, if she'd have just called me a weakling who could not care for my own child, I would be a little angry also.' he mused.
"You've proven your point, Lady." he said. "And proven me wrong at the same time. Forgive my presumptuousness." Kagome was seemingly placated by the apology, and all the demons present breathed a sigh of relief when she retracted the power of the jewel back into her body. Jiro took another step back from the girl as Kouga went up to her and placed his arms around her waist.
"Well, that went well, don't you think?" Raidon grinned.
"Father," Kouga said. "What is the meaning of this?"
"She passed the test, my son." Jiro explained.
"Test?" Kagome asked, getting angry again. "What test?"
"He had to make sure of your intentions for questioning Cali." Laniko explained.
"It was a stupid test?" she asked angrily. "I could have killed you."
"But you didn't." Jiro said. "Which proves one of my personal theories correct."
"Which one, father?" Raidon asked.
"Only the carrier of the Shikon could wield a power like that." he said with a grin. "And temper such raw power with a need to preserve life." Kagome listened intently and felt Kouga's arm tighten around her. "You are truly a wonder, Lady. And should my son ever be blessed with a gift from Kami, you and your child would be welcomed into our family with open arms."
Kagome gaped at the man in disbelief. Beside her, Kouga had a hard time reigning in his prideful, happy grin at his father's words. Laniko smiled and took her mate's arm.
"I think it is time we left, my Lord." she said quietly. Jiro nodded and turned his attention to his sons.
"Until tomorrow then, Kouga, Raidon, Lady Kagome." He said, and with a smirk, oddly reminiscent of Kouga's, Laniko and Jiro took off. When the wind had died down, Kagome shook her head and looked at the demon brothers.
"Well, now what?" she asked.
"We wait until tomorrow, then meet father and Laniko here." Raidon said with a shrug."
"That's it?" Kouga nodded and looked at Kagome.
"Ready to go?" he asked.
"Yeah." she answered.
"You going back to your den, big brother?" he asked.
"Yes. Why?"
"Just thought you'd like to know where I was taking my woman." he said with a grin.
"What?" Kouga asked, frowning at the man. Raidon grinned and before Kagome could blink, she was airborne with the younger of the two demon brothers.
"Catch me if you can, big brother!" Raidon called out.
"Put me down!" Kagome yelled above the din of the rushing wind. Raidon dived quickly, forcing her to hold onto him as though her life depended on it.
"Calm down, Lady Kagome." Raidon said with a grin when Kagome glared at him. "I haven't been able to tease Kouga this much since we were pups. Besides, I'm not going to hurt you. Kouga would definitely kill me if something happened to you." Kagome shook her head at the playfulness of the demon, recalling Laniko's words about the boys being mischievous.
"RAIDON! I'M GOING TO FEED YOU TO MY PACK WHEN I GET MY HADNS ON YOU!!! THERE BETTER NOT BE A HAIR ON HER HEAD OUT OF PLACE!!" Kouga yelled. Raidon chuckled and looked back behind him where his brother was steadily gaining on him.
"If you're that worried, then come get her, Kouga!" he yelled back. Kouga pulled up beside his brother and glared. "Calm down, big brother. She's fine."
"Kagome?" Kouga asked, looking down at the girl in question.
"I'm fine, Kouga." she said, smiling at him.
"Drop her, Raidon!" Kouga growled, looking back at his brother. The younger demon grinned mischievously.
"Sure you want me to do that, big brother?" he teased. "It's an awful long drop to the ground, and I don't think mikos can fly." Kouga glared at him and reached over, safely taking Kagome from his brother in midair.
"Leave us, Raidon." he barked.
"Awww…come on Kouga…" Raidon whined, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Raidon…" Kouga threatened.
"I'm alright, Kouga." Kagome said, clutching the wolf prince. Her stomach was starting to cut flip flops again, and the sooner she got on the ground, the safer they all were from her throwing up on them. "He was only playing." Kouga growled and shot off like a lightning flash, leaving a smirking Raidon behind.
"Just like father." he grinned, running after his brother. "Wouldn't mother be proud, Kouga? I think she would be. I know I am…"
A/N- Okay, how'd I do? Like I said before, there are going to be many other characters in this story that are not present in the manga or television show. Sorry to anyone who doesn't like that. But they won't be playing too much of a major part, so don't worry about them.
Anyway, remember to leave me a review telling me what you think. I really want to know.
