A/N: I got a lot of interesting reviews for the last chapter. Many of you were convinced that I killed off Kagome. Just a hint – I don't change POVs in my stories. Haha. Anyway, this is the second to last update on this story... the last true chapter. Stay tuned for the epilogue though!

Golden Fire
Chapter 21: Awakening

I heard someone singing softly as I rose out of sleep. The tune was sad, but full of hope and I found that I didn't want it to stop. I remained lying down with my eyes closed, despite my wakefulness. Unfortunately, with a little sniffle, the singer paused and moved next to me. I could feel fabric brush across my arm.

Reluctantly, I cracked my eyes open and was met with a shadowy movement of blue and yellow. I reached out and grabbed at the blue, which felt like silk in my fist.

"Ouch. Don't pull so hard, Kagome-chan."

My eyes snapped fully open at the voice and I blinked, clearing away the vestiges of sleep in my sight. "Yuki!" I exclaimed. The Lady of the Western Lands sat next to me with her long blue hair flowing down her sides and wrapped in a simple daffodil colored kimono. When I tried to sit up, she gently pushed me back down, her touch confirming that she was real. I eyed her suspiciously after a moment. "You're dead. Does that mean I'm dead too?"

Yuki put her hand to my forehead and smiled when she found I had no temperature. "I'm not dead and neither are you, thanks to Inuyasha."

I ignored the last part of her sentence. "I saw you die. That snow demon..." I trailed off. I took a deep breath and realized I could smell the blood in the room, mixing with Yuki's scent of lilac.

She frowned for a split second and then nodded. "Yes, I couldn't fight him off and I was careless. I died for that mistake."

"And then Sesshoumaru came and killed him and then he turned into a big puppy." I spoke before remembering that the Western Lord and his mate might not like the nickname I had for him in my head.

Her eyes just sparkled. "Well, I wouldn't call him a puppy to his face, but yes, he told me what happened while I was in the spirit world. He revived me after Naraku's death."

"But he didn't use Tensaiga right away. He just transformed. If he could revive you immediately, why didn't he?" My mind was drowning in thoughts.

She propped my head up, brought tea to my lips and spoke as I drank the warm liquid. "My, we are playing 'Twenty Questions', aren't we? Anyway, it's an instinctual thing, Kagome. My Lord Sesshoumaru had no time to calm his emotions and use Tensaiga before his heart called him to transform. Whenever a demon's mate, or intended mate, gets seriously injured or killed, the demon becomes hell-bent on vengeance." Her eyes took on a mischievous gleam as she looked at me.

I blushed. "Are we still talking about you and Sesshoumaru?"

Yuki shrugged. "Take it as you will." She took the cup from me and stood up. "Now, I must fetch your mother. She's been worried to death over you and will want to know you're awake."

"What about the others? Are they okay?"

The Western Lady arched a brow at my comment but smiled. "Of course. Every last one of them. Oh, a few cuts and bruises, but my Lord Sesshoumaru brought all the deceased back to life. Including Kohaku, who is slowly coming to peace with Naraku's manipulation. And Miroku's wind tunnel has disappeared, which he immediately celebrated by kissing Sango" she added with a wink, noticing my eager look. "Now don't move. You are still the most seriously wounded person we have. Just rest." She bowed and moved out of the room, which I now realized was the back room of Kaede's hut.

As Yuki moved out of my sight, I saw that she had been blocking me from the other person in the room. Inuyasha lay on a mat a few feet away, bandaged up and asleep. The sunlight filtered in through cracks in the wall onto his relaxed body. He had cloth wrapped around his torso, his arms and hand. I breathed a sigh of relief when I realized his wounds weren't serious.

"Inuyasha?" I whispered. My body was sore and so I couldn't move to wake him. I had to content myself with watching him sleep.

"He won't wake up for awhile, dear." My mother's voice floated in from the doorway.

"Mom!" I cried, unbidden tears coming to my eyes.

She knelt beside me and brushed her hand across my forehead. "Oh, my Kagome. I was so worried about you." She sat back with what looked like considerable effort. "But Kaede and Jaken say that you will be fine, and I must trust their word."

I raised my eyebrow. "But Jaken isn't a healer."

"I know," she agreed. "But he knows about demon blood better than Kaede. He oversaw the procedure that saved your life."

Yuki's words came back to me and I turned my head to look at Inuyasha, who apparently had been my savior once again. "What do you mean, Mom?"

"Inuyasha brought you back in his arms after the fight. He just kept muttering something about a promise. You were so pale. Jaken knew of an ancient method to save your life. In the past, a stronger youkai would mix blood with a weaker one, strengthening him and accelerating the healing process. Of course, since you're human, none of the demons could do it for you. Their blood would be like poison to you because of its strength." She paused and stroked my arm down to my hand, which I noticed had a bandage around it. "Inuyasha volunteered to do it. Being half human would allow his blood to strengthen you without killing you. And so he cut his palm and allowed his blood to mix with the cut on your hand."

I bit my lip, aware of Inuyasha's sacrifice. The procedure must have tired him out.

"Kagome," my mom continued softly. "There was a side effect to what Inuyasha did."

I squeezed her hand. "What would that be?"

She sighed. "You and Inuyasha are bonded by blood now. Jaken said that you have cheated death. As a price, one of you cannot now live without the other."

Ain't that the truth, I thought bitterly. Somehow, I had always ended up in the Feudal Era, even before I fell in love with the hanyou. But I had a feeling that wasn't what she meant.

My mother caught my confused expression. "In other words, if Inuyasha dies tomorrow, you will die too. If you die in thirty years, he will die in that same instant. You share a life now, no matter how far apart you are."

As the words sunk in, tears began to prickle in my eyes. "But that means I have condemned Inuyasha to a life of fifty years or so. He would have lived so much longer!"

She tilted her head and gave me a sad smile. "No, Kagome. Inuyasha's demon blood is stronger than your human blood. You have inherited some interesting traits. Jaken believes that you shall live as long as a hanyou, with the same long youth. You probably won't even start to grow old for centuries. He also mentioned something about increased senses, strength and speed. Nothing like Inuyasha's abilities, but you are essentially part demon now. A hanyou."

I gave her an incredulous stare. "And Jaken was the one who helped with all this?"

My mother smiled slightly. "I think he had a bit of persuasion from Yuki. And I believe her exact words to Sesshoumaru were 'just deal with it'."

A wide grin spread over my face for a moment, as I realized Inuyasha couldn't call me weak anymore. But it fell away as soon as I saw my mother hunch over. "What, Mom? This doesn't make me any less your daughter, you know."

"I know, dear. But I also know that you shouldn't return through the well with me, Grandpa and Souta."

"What? Why not?" My eyes grew wide and tears began to form again. I wiped at my eyes, ignoring the physical pain of moving and wishing away my fragile emotions.

My mother bent over me as if she were about to give me a goodnight kiss. "You love Inuyasha, don't you? Well, you must stay with him. Kaede believes the well will seal itself once you've put together the shards of the jewel. There's every chance you will live for five hundred years, if you're careful. You can live history, Kagome! Don't continue this half- life you've been suffering through for the past three years. Live with your mate and come see us when you get to that time period. I would have done the same for your father."

Tears flowed out in small rivers and I noticed that I could smell their saltiness clearly, as well as my mother's soap. "I don't even know if Inuyasha loves me back, Mom."

She just smiled and got to her feet. "You'll be fine, Kagome. Rest now."

///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///

I stayed in bed for three interminable days. In retrospect, I shouldn't have been so impatient; normal humans would have taken months to recover from injuries like mine. However, on the fourth morning, I couldn't stay in that hut any longer and went outside, intent on making my way to the God Tree.

Inuyasha had disappeared during the previous night while I slept. When I had asked Yuki and Kaede about it, they simply shrugged, but I noticed that they wouldn't meet my eyes. They knew something.

Finally, after twenty minutes, I reached the base of the tree. The journey tired me out, so I decided to rest before calling for Inuyasha. He had to be around, right? I found it hard to believe that he would go far after what he had done. Leaving me alone would open not just me, but both of us to death now.

"You're doing it again. Out alone and looking for me."

I turned sharply and immediately regretted it as a shooting pain went up my side. "Hi, Inuyasha," I squeaked.

He frowned at me with a concerned gleam in his eyes. "You shouldn't be out here, Kagome. You're still hurting. It must have taken you twenty minutes to get up here."

I smiled. "You were watching me."

Annoyance flashed across his features, but he almost immediately relaxed. "Maybe. Don't see why you're so happy about it."

"Why shouldn't I be happy that you're still protecting me?" I stood up with a little difficulty, but he let his arms encircle me and help me up. When I got my balance, he didn't take them away and I began to blush.

"She's gone, you know," he whispered.

"Huh? Who?" I forced my head up and found him staring intensely into my face.

His voice was emotionless. "Kikyo. That's where I was this morning. She said that she could be at peace now. Then she said she had forgiven me and that she hoped I would live a long, happy life. She told me to tell you that your soul is complete again, and that she's proud of her reincarnation. Then she just dissolved into the wind. She's dust again." He looked at the God Tree for a moment and then settled his golden eyes on me again. I leaned my head on his chest and listened to his heart and his breath. "You smell like me. I mean, you smell like you, too. But it's nice not to smell the wolf on you."

I felt the heat emanating from his cheek, telling me that he was blushing at his jumbled speech. I couldn't resist teasing him. "That must've been one hell of an imprint you left on me."

He growled lightly. "It's not just the imprint. My blood runs in your veins, and yours in mine."

"Yeah... you're stuck with me now." I reached up, ruffled his hair and began to rub his ears.

His chest vibrated as he closed his eyes and growled again. "Don't do that."

I pulled my hand away. "Sorry. I forgot that bothers you."

He grabbed my hand and nuzzled his face into it. "It's not that it bothers me, Kagome." He lowered his voice and leaned even closer. "It does the complete opposite. So I think you should wait to do it until after the ceremony. Preferably when we're alone."

My heart skipped a beat. "What ceremony?" I silently cursed as I listened to my voice tremble.

He pressed his body against mine and smirked slightly. "Don't tell me that you changed your mind. I remember you told me once that you want a small, romantic human wedding. I could always get Yuki to perform a demon mating ceremony for us if you want that though. You are part demon now." I choked back a sob and he leaned back. "Kagome? You're crying... Why are you crying?"

"I'm happy, you big jerk." I threw my arms around him and hugged as tightly as possible.

Inuyasha sighed in relief and buried his face in my hair. His next words were muffled. "Kagome... I turned into a demon, even with the Tetsusaiga in my hands. I transformed because every part of me wanted you to be revenged. For you to be safe. And I stayed in control because it was you in danger and not me. But..." He paused.

I ran my hands down his mane of white hair. "If you're scared that one day you won't be in control, don't be. I'm not."

He lifted his head from my shoulder. "You don't mind having me as your husband then? As your mate?"

"Of course not. I love you." I spoke the words before thinking, but quickly realized that I wanted him to know. There was no reason to hide my feelings anymore.

He hesitated and then whispered, "I love you too, Kagome. I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier."

Smacking him lightly on his upper arm, I playfully said, "What was the pause for?" I pouted a bit as he smiled and trailed a clawed finger down my cheekbone.

"Gimme a break. I've never said it out loud before. It's gonna take awhile for me to get used to it." He buried his nose in my hair. "You really do smell good."

I lifted my own nose to his hair and sniffed in vain. "I can't smell you, even with my heightened senses."

"You're trying too hard. I guess I'll have to show you." He took a lock of his long hair and held it up to my face. "Just relax."

With a deep breath and closed eyes, the scent of the forest invaded my nose. Inuyasha smelled like nature... of wildflowers, grass and sky. There was no other way to explain it, but I knew I immediately liked it. "You smell nice too," I said, opening my eyes.

He grinned and let out a happy sigh. "I can't wait to discover the scent of our pup growing within you."

Raising my eyebrows, I commented, "Aren't we jumping a bit ahead ourselves?"

He rubbed his forehead against mine. "Don't worry. I plan on keeping you to myself for a little while at least."

My hands encircled his neck and I felt the beads of his rosary under my fingers. "Inuyasha, don't you want me to remove this? I think that you've been wearing it long enough."

"Will it disappear if you remove it?"

I frowned a little. "I don't know. It will probably fall apart. Why? What does it matter?"

He blushed a little. "I don't want you to take it off until I'm sure I can keep it. It's been a real pain in the ass over the years, but it kept me bonded to you, so I guess I'm a bit thankful for it." He tensed up as he finished, but settled down as he put his head on my shoulder.

I giggled and he pulled back again, giving me a confused stare. "You're getting sentimental and you're smiling more than I've ever seen you do. I never thought I'd see the day." I ran my hands through his hair, feeling him relax even further.

"Hmm... I'll let you get away with that one, this time. But don't get too comfortable with it." He smirked and closed the gap between us, kissing me softly. I sighed against his lips. Inuyasha had finally said he loved me and wanted to marry me. I felt as if my life had finally come together. Apparently, it only took a near-death experience to get it that way.

I gently broke our kiss and blushed. "We should get back. My mom will worry."

"In a minute," he whispered, right before he captured my lips again.

///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///

Before twenty-four hours had passed, Inuyasha declared that he never wanted to hear the word 'finally' again. Supposedly, even the villagers were murmuring it in the streets as we walked by.

There were a couple people that didn't seem too happy. My grandfather was naturally not too pleased that I had chosen to marry a half-demon, but the one that really took the news hard was the wolf prince. Kouga immediately walked out of Kaede's hut when Inuyasha and I returned from the forest.

"You should talk to him," suggested Yuki, after Kouga had been sulking in the fields for a whole day. "Remember, he let you go from his promise, so he really shouldn't be complaining that you chose another."

Sango nodded her agreement. "Besides, you need the jewel shards in his legs to complete the Shikon no Tama." Inuyasha and I each had half of the jewel, since Kaede still believed joining them would seal the well. Kouga's shards were the only missing pieces now.

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, this will be fun. 'Hi Kouga. Sorry about choosing to love your enemy over you. By the way, could I have those shards now please?'"

Inuyasha wrapped an arm around my waist. "I'll come and make sure the wolf behaves himself," he growled.

"No, Inuyasha. I have to do this on my own." I gently pushed away his arm and kissed his cheek so that he wouldn't protest.

He relaxed against my touch until he heard Yuki and Sango whispering 'aww' to each other. "Shut it, will you?" he snapped at them. "Feh. Gossips."

Yuki just grinned at him. "Sure, little brother. I swear, you and my Lord are really too much alike sometimes." She winked at me, letting me know that this was the time to slip out without Inuyasha following and making things worse.

I smiled back as my hanyou removed his grip on me and growled, "I have absolutely nothing in common with that tyrant mate of yours."

As they began to argue, I made my exit and went to the edge of the rice fields, where the wolf clan had been spending their time. Two sentries spotted me as I crossed over to them and one ran off. By the time I reached the wolves' camp, Kouga was waiting for me. His eyes were sad although he wore the usual smug expression.

Before I could say anything, he grabbed my hand, deposited two jewel shards onto my palm and withdrew his touch. I looked at them purifying in my hands and then up at him, noticing for the first time that his legs were bandaged.

"I told you I'd give them to you," he said, his voice lacking the usual bravado.

"Yes... you did," I answered slowly. "Arigato, Kouga-kun."

We stood there for a moment in silence and I noticed that the wolf pack was trying their hardest to ignore us and were failing miserably.

"You love him?" spoke up Kouga.

I inwardly groaned. Demons went on scent, right? Why couldn't he just save us both from this embarrassment? Finally, I nodded. "I do. Very much."

His tail twitched and he began to stare off into the distance. "I can't do anything about it. He's asked you to be his mate and you've accepted. To intervene would be dishonorable. But if you love the dog-face, I guess I shouldn't interfere anyway." Kouga's eyes darkened as they refocused on me. "Just make sure he treats you like he should. If he doesn't, he'll have to answer to me." He flexed his claws.

Arching my eyebrows, I said, "I'll be sure to tell him." The wolf prince still obviously wasn't satisfied, but I'd take what I could get.

///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///*///

"Please don't go," I begged between gasping breaths. "Please stay. I need you here."

"Oh, Kagome. You know I love you, but I can't stay. You know that."

I hugged my mother tightly. "Please, just stay for the wedding. Me and Inuyasha want you there. And Souta and grandpa too."

She gently pried me off of her waist and looked into my very red, tear- streaked face. "If I stay for the wedding, then what? Stay for the first child to be born? The second?" She brushed my tears away. "Kagome, I want to stay and see you live your life. But you're not only my daughter anymore. You're also going to be a wife and mother. And your brother and grandfather still need me back in our former life."

I let my head drop. She was right of course. My mother had supported me through the first eighteen years of my life and it was time for me to take over that job. I just wished I didn't have to endure it completely without her and the rest of my family.

"Kagome," she whispered. I noticed for the first time that her own silent tears were sliding down her cheeks. "We will see each other again. Sooner than you would think. Take the house we built as a wedding present and enjoy life here. Just make sure you take care of her." She finished with her eyes flashing towards Inuyasha.

"I will," he responded solemnly, bowing a little at the waist.

"And I expect to have several grandchildren which I can spoil horribly."

I blushed through my tears. "I won't be able to wait, Mom. You'll see me as soon as you get through that well. I'll just be about five hundred years older."

"I know, sweetheart," my mother answered, kissing my forehead. "This is where you life led you. Remember that and don't ever regret this, because I don't. Because I know you love that boy and your friends so much that you couldn't live without them."

I smiled through my tears and turned to hug my grandfather. He stuffed a few demon wards into my hand, warning me about evil spirits and muttering something about Yuki and Sesshoumaru.

"Thanks, grandpa." I finally turned to my little brother. "Don't grow up too much, okay?"

"You said you'd be there when we went through the well again," he sobbed as he latched onto me.

I fought to keep my remaining tears back and found that I couldn't speak. After a few minutes, my grandfather finally unhooked Souta's arms from around my body.

"I love you, Mom... Grandpa... Souta."

"We love you too, Kagome," my mom answered. She helped Souta over the lip of the well and was followed by Inuyasha carrying my grandfather.

I began to sob as I saw the light emanate from the well, telling me that Inuyasha had taken them across the time barrier. Two minutes later, he returned alone. Through my bleary vision, I saw that he held out Naraku's half of the jewel. I took it and, with shaking hands, fused it with my own part of the sphere. It lay in my palm, glowing a soft, purified pink. Next to us, the well radiated golden light and then died. It was sealed.

I sobbed again and threw my arms around Inuyasha's neck. He just hugged me tightly and said nothing.

~Fin

A/N: I know that this is a sad ending, but it was rather necessary. Kagome's family had to go back to their time, and I couldn't exactly put a happy scene in after that. However, THERE WILL BE AN EPILOGUE! And it will be happier... fluffy even.