Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, so I don't own Inuyasha…or anything related to the show…yeah go ahead, smirk and laugh…make fun of me…but I warn you, my men are keeping tabs on you all…

Thanks to all my reviewers!!! Sorry it's taken so long. I would've had this up a week ago, but something happened to my computer, and my hard drive was wiped. I didn't even have a picture left… So updates will be a little slower…because all of my outlines for both of my current stories are gone…yup…I know what happens…muahaha, anyways, I apologize!!! And since I don't remember the stats on for what fic I should do next, y'all are going to have to revote!!! SO GO TO MY PROFILE PAGE, AND READ ALL THE SUMMARIES FOR THE INUYASHA FICS, AND VOTE!!!!

Thanks for reviewing Pixy-Misa-Misao-Amano, Beth, lei-yu, REDWOLF, vampireluv, Kaoru4, = ?, KagomeGoddessofLight, BlueDove, Chibi Horsewoman, silver-celestial, sesshylover16, Inuyasha-my-lover, AngelMiko69, Pink Sakura and DemonKikay.

Beth- I would never forget about this story! That's why I am trying to resist temptation, and continue writing my current stories and not start any new ones… And thanks for voting!!!

REDWOLF- You read my mind...and I think in a chapter or two the real Sess/Kago relationship shall begin.

Kaoru4- Another Korean!

BlueDove- What details? I'm confused!

Chibi Horsewoman- I saw that episode, and I STILL don't know what you're talking about…--…and yes, Sesshomaru and Rin pairings are also known as 'pedophilic.'

Silver-celestial- Thanks for voting!!!

Sesshylover16- Glad you changed your mind!!!

Okee…and the voting so far goes like this:

A Tale of Autumn: 1

25 days with Mr. Arrogant: 2

The Doctor is in- love: 1

Ironies of Life/A pinch of chance and a twist of fate: 1

The Trade: 1

Chapter 8

As soon as he finished talking with Kagome, Akeno hurried up the stairs, but was stopped at the entrance to the fourth. "I need to talk to the lord." Akeno told the guards.

The guards let him pass without further explanation. Akeno's loyalty to Sesshomaru was great. He had been a young boy when he came to work under Sesshomaru, and as a young boy, he had admired Sesshomaru and considered him a hero. He felt the same today, and would gladly give his life up for him.

Some would call it 'blind' devotion, but Akeno had been there when Sesshomaru revived the little girl. He knew that underneath it all, Sesshomaru had the ability to love. He knocked on the door, and waited until he heard Sesshomaru give him permission to go in.

Akeno bowed respectfully, and took a seat across from Sesshomaru. "What is it that you need?" Sesshomaru asked.

Akeno shifted a bit. Despite his intense loyalty, he never could help but feel as if those golden eyes were reading his mind or looking inside his soul. "It…it's regarding that…servant girl…Kagome." He began.

If Akeno hadn't been so busy fidgeting, he would've noticed the worried look that filled the lord's eyes. But the look went as quickly as it had come. "Continue." Sesshomaru said as Akeno's speech began to falter.

"I heard that you gave her permission to accompany the monk and the other servant girl to a village to get married." Akeno said, trying not to stutter or pause too much. He knew that it irked the demon lord, and that was the last thing he wanted to do.

"You see…it struck me as suspicious that she carried so much with her. I was thinking that perhaps she was going to try and escape…" Akeno furrowed his eyebrows as he drew parallels, "Because she really is Lady Kagome." He concluded.

Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed. "That is a foolish notion. Besides the lord and lady of the Southern Lands will be here any moment now. I will find out for sure if they are aiding Kouga's family."

Akeno looked almost crestfallen. He had hoped that Sesshomaru might approve of his theory…but it seemed that that wasn't going to happen. He sighed inwardly. Sesshomaru noted how one of his closer and youngest advisors seemed disappointed. Sesshomaru raised a brow, was he expecting a reward or something?

Sesshomaru then realized the other part of what Akeno had said. 'She was going to try and escape…' Akeno's words echoed in his head. A grim look crossed his face, what if it were true? What if she was going to try and escape? That would not do…he refused to answer himself why, and eyed Akeno.

"But we cannot have servants escaping now…can we?" he asked Akeno.

Akeno shook his head, "No my lord." he answered.

"Then perhaps you can go and keep an eye on her for me." Akeno, too glad to do something for his lord jumped up. "But do not let her know that you are watching her…and if she does indeed escape, come back and tell me."

Akeno nodded, and bowing walked out of the room. Perhaps he was foolish to be so loyal to Sesshomaru, but Sesshomaru had given him a second chance, and turned him from a thieving outcast to a highly respected warrior. Sesshomaru might not know, but he was like the father Akeno could only wish he had.

The long dark haired hawk demon walked out into the large palace garden, and transforming into his youkai form, took flight. His large and powerful wings beat through the air, and now with a single flap, he could blow most of his opponents away. He climbed higher and higher until he was flying through clouds.

His dark brown eyes looked down, and with his acute vision, he saw a whole caravan of horses. 'Ah, the Lady Kagura and her human mate.' he thought. It was curious to him that such a powerful wind demonness would agree to mate with such a weak human. Perhaps humans and demons could get along.

He had heard rumors that once a human and a demon mated, the human would live as long as the demon…unless they were a miko. The mikos could live almost as long as demons without mating with one.

But then again, Lord Hojo and Lady Kagura were proof enough he guessed. He heard that Lady Kagura was finally with child. They had been mated for about half a century now, but it wasn't as easy for a demon to be impregnated by a human, and it was the same vice versa.

As he flew, Akeno tried to fit the pieces together. It all worked…the Lady Kagome never ran away with Kouga's parents, and she disguised herself as a servant, and now she was going to run away. It puzzled him greatly…why didn't Sesshomaru believe him?

There was more than enough evidence to support it. There was a strikingly similar resemblance, that couldn't have been coincidence, and he had watched her when she threw herself on Kouga's dead body.

His eyesight surpassed that of Sesshomaru's, and he had watched from a distance as Sesshomaru saved the servant girl, Kagome, before she burned to death. Sesshomaru had never done anything like that for any human…not even for his young ward, but then again, Rin did not go throwing herself upon corpses as they went up in flames.

Akeno had too many questions, and not enough answers. He tried to focus on his 'mission', and concentrated on flying.

Sango had surprisingly refused to allow them to stop and let Kagome eat. She had merely tossed Kagome an apple that Kagome had a sneaking suspicion was originally meant for the horses, and not her. Sango seemed to be on edge and a bit touchy, and Kagome could only guess why.

Her best guess was the whole marriage thing that was coming up. Kagome had yet to get her answers. As the horses plodded again, Kagome was given an opportunity to contemplate on the past week or so.

It had been hectic. Chaotic. Crazy. Anything along those lines. She was surprised that she wasn't a nervous wreck yet…especially after all those personal encounters with the fluffy demon lord. It surprised her that in such a sort amount of time she had been able to accept Kouga's death.

So last night wasn't really accepting, but at the moment she did. She was used to death. She had seen her whole family die, and since she was the only miko in the family, she was alone. That was a miko's curse. Of course, it was a privilege to have the powers, but it wasn't so great to watch your family age and die.

Most miko's never married or mated. Their husbands would grow old and die, and they would once again be left alone, they would outlive their children, and most parents never wanted to do that.

There were rare instances of mikos mating with demons…as in Kagome's case, and as in most cases, it was harder for the female of the relationship to become pregnant when it wasn't with one of her own race.

There were exceptions when it worked the first time, but for most it would take years…maybe even decades. She and Kouga had wanted pups…but the dumb wolf had gotten himself killed before it happened. At least she wouldn't have to watch her children die.

Kagome was a little over a hundred, which was actually relatively young compared to Kouga. He had been about three hundred or so, most demons forgot how many years they were because they lived for so long, and keeping track was often a bother. Despite her age, she only looked about seventeen or eighteen, and Kouga had looked about twenty one or twenty two.

Kagome mentally cursed herself, why did she remind herself of Kouga? She looked around, the scenery hadn't really changed. Lots of green trees, and grass. She glanced up toward the blindingly bright blue sky, and squinting, made out a bird of some sort circling around. 'Hmph. And the bird gets to eat,' she thought grudgingly.

If her miko powers had fully awakened from their long slumber, she would've been able to sense that that wasn't no ordinary bird. Sango felt that tingling shiver along her spine when a demon was near. She looked around, but didn't see any traces or signs of one lurking nearby.

She glanced over her shoulder, and noticed Miroku looking around too. As long as the demon wasn't nearby, they'd be okay.

Akeno after circling around rose into the clouds. They had passed the nearest village a while ago. Surely the humans couldn't be planning on running away, especially with their mode of travel. Whatever they had in mind, he would be keeping an eye on them.

They reached the village in the dead of the night, and everyone but Sango seemed to be exhausted. Kagome fallen asleep while sitting in her horse, and now that she was awake, she had the biggest knot in her neck. Miroku had fallen asleep as well except that he had ended up falling out of his horse.

He had gotten back on, only to fall off again several more times after that. Kagome wished that she were awake to have seen it…but unfortunately she hadn't been. "Welcome to the hidden demon slayer's village." Sango announced as they rode through the wooden gates.

"Hidden?" Kagome asked, confused.

"I believe that you were sleeping Lady Kagome." Miroku replied.

Sango rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything. "My village is extremely hard to find by humans who are not demon slayers." was Sango's explanation. "That, and an extremely powerful barrier surrounds the village. Only those who know how to get through are able to."

Kagome nodded, as she nodded, several men came out with torches. "Halt! Who goes there?"

"It is I, Sango. I was part of the raid on Lord Kouga of the Northern Lands. I was the only survivor, and I have returned." At the mere sound of Sango's name, the three men in demon exterminator suits like the ones Sango used to wear, bowed.

One of the men led Sango, Miroku and Kagome to the guest hut while another led the horses away, and the last man remained to keep watch. "The hour is late, and you will need to be rested for the whole village will be excited to see you," the man told Sango.

Sango nodded, "Thank you Danno. And what of Kilala?" she asked. Danno did not need to reply, for a fire neko youkai came bounding in. "Kilala!" Sango exclaimed, she swooped down, and embraced her friend who was in her smaller form, tightly. Danno silently left, something that most demon slayers mastered in.

"If only she would embrace me like that." Miroku told Kagome with a sigh.

Kagome quirked an eyebrow at the monk, and yelped in surprise as Sango dragged her out of the hut. "Kagome, get on Kilala and run away." Sango said quickly as Kilala transformed into her larger form. Kagome out of sheer surprise let out a squeak at how big Kilala was.

Then she fully absorbed what Sango had just told her. "Wait…you want me to get on Kilala, and run away?" she asked in disbelief. Kagome had been looking forward to having a good night's rest, but instead found herself on top of Kilala. "But Sango-" Sango turned to Kagome. By the look on her face, she was not going to negotiate.

"What about my things?" Kagome asked lamely in an attempt to delay. She didn't want to admit it, but she was scared…she wasn't sure if she wanted to run away. She was tired, sore…and she could see Sesshomaru's face leering at her, telling her not to run away.

"You don't have time Kagome. Go!" Sango urged.

"I can't leave without those things. They're all I have left of him." Kagome replied, her voice full of genuine sorrow. This was true though. That, and she couldn't help but think what some of the 'dire' consequences could be. Would he hunt her down…or hurt her friends? She was about to bring it up, but Sango had run off into the darkness.

Miroku came out as Sango disappeared. "Lady Kagome…where are you going?"

Kagome sighed, as she slid off of Kilala who laid down on the grass, her head resting on her front paws. "I don't know Miroku…I don't know." Her voice was a mixture of sadness, confusion, and fear.

"You will be missed Lady Kagome." he continued.

Kagome gave him a small smile. "Thank you Miroku," Then it reminded her, "What has been going on between you and Sango?" she asked, "I remember seeing you two being…affectionate, and then later trying to strangle each other."

Miroku smiled, "I believe the time you saw us was the only time she ever allowed me to act that way to her." He said sadly.

"Do you love her Miroku?"

Miroku nodded, "Very much so. But Sango doubts it…perhaps it is because of these wandering hands of mine." Kagome almost snorted, so he knew what the problem was. "But she does not understand that she has no need to be jealous…for no one will be able to replace her."

Kagome and Miroku sighed at the same time. Kagome sighed for the sake of the confused lovers, and Miroku sighed because of a certain former demon slayer who seemed to be oblivious of his true feelings. "At least you two getting married will give you a chance." Kagome commented.

"But she is being forced to…it is not of her own free will."

"She loves you," Kagome finally said, "She's just afraid."

Then Sango reappeared with Kagome's packs in her hands. "They're so heavy! What do you have in there?" she asked as she tossed them onto Kilala's back.

Kagome didn't reply, but embraced her friend before she lost her nerve. She had managed to forget about the scary demon occupying what used to be her home, and she would continue to forget about him…for now anyways. "I'll miss you," she whispered into Sango's ear.

"I'll miss you too…and I'll make sure that they don't find you Kagome…Miroku and I will fight him off if we have to." Sango assured her. Sango released her friend, and Kagome then hugged Miroku.

"Don't even think about it," Kagome hissed into Miroku's ear as they hugged.

Miroku let out a weak 'heh' and let go of her. Kagome then hoisted herself onto Kilala, and looked at her friends sadly. "No matter what you do, don't contact us." Sango added as Kilala rose into the air.

"Wait…Sango!" Kilala slowly lowered to the ground. "What…about you guys?" she asked worried.

Sango and Miroku looked at each other. "It doesn't matter at the moment," Sango said quickly, "Just go!"

Kilala rose into the air again, and that panicky feeling returned. Her heart began to pound harder, and she felt flushed…like a little kid who did something bad, and felt guilty. She did feel guilty…she would be guilty if anything happened to her friends.

She wanted to yell back to Sango that she couldn't do this…he had warned her…he had told her…what would he do? She shook her head as she tried to rid herself of the doubt. He wouldn't catch her.

Kagome looked behind her as her friends on the ground grew smaller and smaller. "Oh great…what have I gotten myself into?" she bitterly muttered. Kagome soon found warmth, and comfort in Kilala's fur, and fell asleep.

Akeno found that he could not pass through the barrier around the village. He did try, and got a few burnt feathers for his troubles. Akeno, being a hawk youkai was into the whole preening himself scene, and was extremely disgruntled at his singed feathers. He fixed them up as best as he could, and settled into the top most branches of the tallest tree.

Even with his incredible sight, he had a hard time seeing through the murky barrier. He had guessed that the older servant girl who had hit Kougorou with her bone boomerang had been a demon slayer of some sort. This made him even more curious as to what sort of ruler Kouga had been. To let a demon slayer live at the palace?

As he tried to put it all together, a fire cat came bursting from the barrier. He sat up, now alert…his singed feathers forgotten. His eyes narrowed as he saw a person it its back, a familiar person…the servant girl, Kagome. He waited, and watched before taking on his smaller hawk form. He had three forms, his human form, smaller hawk form, to go unnoticed, and his demon hawk form.

In his demon hawk form, he was at least twenty times the size of a normal hawk. He rose high into the scattered night clouds, and out of view. Akeno watched as the girl fell asleep. The fire cat did not stop and neither did Akneo. He loved this feeling of being able to stealthily spy on someone.

He took care to remember certain geographical markings, and took note of how the fire cat occasionally looked upwards. In those cases he would just go higher up into the sky. The sun was high in the sky by the time the fire cat landed. Akeno flew off a ways, and circled around, acting as a normal bird. He was not familiar with the area, but would remember the village by the river than ran through the middle of it.

He perched on a higher limb in the village, near the fire cat. Kagome who wasn't used to flying, let alone for so many hours, bounded off of Kilala, eager to touch the firm and grassy ground, oblivious to the stares and the commotion she had caused.

"Demon!" someone shouted.

"Careful! That demon might be hungry!"

"The girl must be a demon too!"

"She's going to cast a spell on us all!"

Akeno snickered. This was all too much. That slip of a human girl Kagome? She was a tiny thing, hardly dangerous looking. It was about this time that Kagome became aware of the ruckus she had caused.

"I'm so sorry to scare you all!" she apologized. The villagers quieted down, and eyed her warily. "We're just stopping by…we're wanderers." she explained.

Then the priest of the village came forward, and slapped a ward on Kagome's forehead. Kilala managed to dodge the one that was thrown towards her, causing frightened reactions from the villagers.

"Ow!" Kagome yelped, "What was that for?" she demanded angrily as she peeled the ward from her forehead.

"Only the most powerful of demons can do that!" someone exclaimed.

Kagome's eye twitched, "Well first of all, I'm NOT a demon!"

The priest who happened to be an old man peered at her face, "You certainly don't look like one," he mused. "And since my wards are extremely powerful, I declare you not demon!"

Kagome wanted to bash her head against the tree. She could've told him that a long time ago. "And what of your demon friend?" the priest inquired. "Is it friendly?"

"Yes, Kilala is friendly." Kagome told him. On spot Kilala transformed into her smaller form, and earned many remarks on how cute she was from the village women and girls.

Kilala let out a innocent 'meow', and immediately bounded to the nearest person, and nuzzled herself against their ankles. Kilala soon disappeared from view from the mass of people who surrounded her. "My name is Totousai, I am the priest of this village, and my son is the headman."

She bowed courteously, "My name is Kagome."

"Kagome? That's not a very demon-like name," he commented.

"I take it that this village does not welcome demons?" Kagome asked trying to stick to the subject.

"I wouldn't really say that…" he began. Kagome raised an eyebrow. "You can never be too careful," he lectured, changing the subject. "There are many slimy and shady characters around."

Totousai led Kagome towards the village now, and he began to spew his life story to her. "As well as a priest, and former headman, I am also an accomplished sword smith. I have created many a beautiful swords in my time. Do you need a sword?" he asked.

Kagome let out a weak 'heh.' "Oh no…I'm fine." she insisted.

"Have you ever used a sword before?" Totousai asked her.

"Well…erm…no...I prefer the bow and arrow." Kagome added hastily as she saw where this was going.

Totousai grunted. Kagome smiled wistfully as she followed him. He reminded her so much of her grandfather. He had lived the longest of her family. He had outlived her mother, her father had died when she was young, and Souta; her young brother had died in war. She tried to get him to move into the palace, but he had refused.

He never told her why, but she always had a nagging suspicion that it was because of all of the demons. After all, her grandfather had been a shrine keeper…not exactly the sort of job that embraced demons with love.

"So what is it exactly that you do?" Totousai asked her curiously.

Kagome smiled nervously. "I'm a miko…well…I used to be one…?" she offered, almost uncertainly.

"Used to be?" Totousai questioned.

"I haven't been for quite a long time now…" she explained.

"Nonsense! You youngsters don't know what 'long' is, how old are you now? 17? 18? 19?"

"I'm a little over 100…I've lost count." Kagome replied.

Totousai almost fell over in surprise. "I guess it is true! Mikos do live for a long time!"

Kagome smiled, and laughed lightly. "Yup. I suppose it is…" she added almost wistfully.

"Our village has not had a miko for just about as long…" Totousai commented as he cleared his throat. An idea struck Kagome, she could stay here! Yes…she could stay here, be the village miko, and never ever have to go back…no…what if he did come find her? She'd have to keep moving…

Maybe she wouldn't be able to hide…but she could run…she'd run forever if she had to. "I'm sorry, but I must be going by tomorrow morning."

"Oh come now! Stay a few days, heal a few of the sick!" Totousai encouraged.

Kagome smiled sadly, "Kami does not allow me to stay in one village for long…"

Totousai sighed, "Very well then…here is the guest hut, you and your…demon friend can stay here for the night. And do join me and my family," he paused and pointed to a larger hut, "For lunch and dinner."

Kagome thanked him enthusiastically. The last thing she had eaten was that apple…and that had been HOURS ago. Akeno took flight as he saw Kagome head off into the village. When he was out of sight, he transformed into his larger demon hawk form, each beat of his wings blowing away the clouds, and hardly visible.

He was back at the palace in less than an hour. Those humans had taken forever to travel, even in his smaller hawk form he could've gone faster.

As soon as Akeno left, the grim set of his mouth turned slightly upwards a bit. It did not worry him at all that she had taken everything with her. It would make it all the more fun…she was such a predictable one…they all were…stupid humans…

Not too long after, Jaken came waddling in. "My lord Sesshomaru! The Lord Hojo and Lady Kagura of the Southern Lands are here."

Sesshomaru silently and with an almost surreal grace stood up, and followed Jaken out of the room. He wasn't really the social type, but sometimes interaction with such people were inevitable. He didn't bother speeding down all the flights of stairs, they could wait.

"You sure took your own sweet time." Someone commented the moment he arrived into the throne room.

If he snorted, he would've snorted. "As rude as ever I see." He replied as he settled himself onto the throne. If there was one thing that stupid wolf had done, it had been picking a comfortable throne. 'And there's something else Kouga did right…' his subconscious called to him, Sesshomaru ignored it.

A horse youkai by the name of Kin handed Lord Hojo and Lady Kagura a scroll. Sesshomaru caught a whiff of Kagura's scent, 'So she is pregnant…' he thought to himself as Kin handed him one too. They were copies of the treaty, and Kin was the official scribe.

Kin had hair that was as glorious as Sesshomaru's if not more. His was the color of spun gold, and his skin was not alabaster as Sesshomaru's, but a golden color. He had a white diamond on his forehead, and a long face, like that of a horse. His eyes were of a dazzling emerald color. Due to his physical features, his name was Kin, meaning 'golden.'

Lady Kagura was the first to speak. She slammed her fan down onto the table where she and Lord Hojo sat. "This treaty is outrageous! You get all the benefits and we get crap!"

Sesshomaru was tempted to reply with a, 'It's better than nothing.' But remained silent, and let Kagura finish with her rant. "Calm down Kagura, I'm sure that we can talk things over with Lord Sesshomaru." Hojo told her, in an attempt to calm her down.

Kagura eventually quieted down when Hojo told her that it wasn't good for the baby. Kagura grabbed her fan, and pointed it at Sesshomaru. "You! You expect us to become your allies, let you walk all over us, and use our lands for nothing?! In your dreams Sesshomaru!"

"If you prefer war, then so be it." Sesshomaru told them.

"No!" Hojo yelled. "I mean…let's talk this over…in a civilized manner…Sesshomaru-sama, all you require of us is our alliance, and to use our lands?"

"Nothing extremely destructive will happen upon your lands." Sesshomaru replied.

"Liar. He's probably going to raid all the villages, and cause complete chaos." Kagura muttered.

"This Sesshomaru does not lie." Sesshomaru's golden eyes flashed angrily. He usually never got this angry, but to accuse of him of being dishonorable and so low was out of line.

"Oh yeah? Then tell us exactly why you want such a strong alliance…especially when you're not going to give us anything." Kagura demanded.

"To wage war on the Eastern Lands." Sesshomaru said rather matter-of-factly.

"And why is that Sesshomaru-sama?" Kagura spat.

"Reasons that are none of your concern." Sesshomaru said gravely. "You choose," he continued, "Have your treasury drained by the expenses of war, and end up losing your titles, or keep your titles, and the treasury filled, become an ally of mine, and let my soldiers travel across your lands."

"I'm not the war sort of person if you know what I mean…" Hojo announced. Kagura shot him a beady look with her red eyes, and a weak 'heh' followed soon after.

Sesshomaru suppressed a yawn, and flared his nostrils just slightly. This was ridiculous. Kagura was yelling at Hojo for being a weakling, and Hojo was trying to tell her that yelling wasn't good for the baby. At the rate this was going, it would go on for days…and they would be here forever then…the mere thought made Sesshomaru cringe- if he was the 'cringing' sort that is.

He had more important things to do. To be honest, even he didn't know exactly what to do after this whole Southern Lands alliance deal was settled. He knew where he wanted to be; he just didn't know which road to take.

Sesshomaru was almost relieved when Jaken came in, and announced dinner. Kagura and Hojo had been bickering for that whole time. It was clear who was dominant in the relationship, and because of Hojo's unsuccessful attempts to 'calm' Kagura down, her rants lasted much longer than usual because she had to take time to tell Hojo to "shut his trap." Kagura and Hojo had eventually both signed the treaty, but Kagura had had to continue yelling.

Sesshomaru had been extremely close to injecting some of his toxins into her so that she would fall asleep, but let the whole thing 'slide.' After all, being pregnant did do things such as kick the hormones into overdrive.

"I trust that during the meal that you will not disturb my peace." Sesshomaru remarked as he led his 'guests' to the screened area away from the long and huge tables where the servants, soldiers, and guards ate.

"I thought that the great Sesshomaru-sama ate alone." Kagura commented rather snidely as she saw Kaede and Rin. "Oh look! There are extra spots meaning that other people eat here with you. What happened to them? Did you kill them off?"

"Kagura…perhaps we shouldn't be so rude to our…host." Hojo suggested to his wife.

"I'm not being rude Hojo! I'm being frank and honest. There's nothing wrong with that." Kagura snapped.

Hojo merely cleared his throat, and sniffed. He, Kaede and Rin waited for Sesshomaru to start the dinner before eating, but Kagura helped herself. Sesshomaru glared at her, "What? I'm pregnant. I'm feeding two now."

A scowl appeared on Sesshomaru's face, but no one noticed for they were all stuffing their faces. Sesshomaru was the last to finish. He found it repulsive to eat so fast, and considered it a 'gluttonous' quality, a bad quality of all means in his book. Yes, that was one of that servant wench's flaws. She ate too fast, not to mention she sprayed rice grains into his soups and teas because she talked with her mouth full.

And he had asked her to teach Rin etiquette? He'd have to see about that. He bet that the old hag with the eye patch knew more etiquette than that 'Kagome' did. At the thought of Kagome, a picture of her, laying there in his arms, and holding onto him like there was no tomorrow flashed in his minds.

Sesshomaru almost shook his head to clear his mind. What was he thinking? Being nice did things to people…and it was starting to happen to him. Oh well, he'd just have to be extra mean tomorrow to make up for it all. It wasn't like any of the human servants would be traumatized for life after he growled at them.

Sesshomaru read a book of philosophy as everyone else dined on sweet rice cakes. He was never one for sugary sweets and such. Finally he stood up, and went to his study without another word. The moment he stepped out from behind the screens, everyone out in the Main Dining room fell silent. They all waited until he was up the first flight of stairs before talking again.

The corners of his mouth turned upwards, just slightly. He loved having this effect on people. 'Stupid ningens…' he thought. He seated himself behind the desk again, and began to smell the room as if searching for a certain scent. He sorted through the millions of smells, and finally found the one he was looking for. The lavender scent that was distinctly Kagome's…

The scent was somehow soothing, but when he closed his eyes, he could see her as well. She was definitely not the most beautiful creature he had ever come across, nor the most innocent, but there was something about her that made him want to watch her. He had never had these sort of feelings before…what were they?

He came to the conclusion that they were the results of being too nice again. He would have to stop doing that if this was the consequence. He had better things to do than daydream about his former friend's mate.

That reminded him, the scent of Kouga's that had lingered about her was fading, so was the bite mark on her neck. She being an ignorant ningen probably hadn't noticed though. Kagura never came into the study, although Hojo did. He was almost grateful for that.

"So Lord Hojo, I have heard rumors that the former Lord Koji and Lady Yugi have fled to your lands." Sesshomaru commented.

Hojo quickly sipped his tea, and set his tea back down onto the small tea table. "Well they are rumors. You shouldn't listen to such things Lord Sesshomaru."

"It is in our treaty that you cannot keep such information from me." Sesshomaru continued.

"Of course! Of course. You haven't by any chance killed Kagome now have you?" Hojo asked, almost nervously.

"I heard that she fled as well." Sesshomaru replied.

Hojo's eyes had been cast down at his tea cup the whole time. Sesshomaru almost smirked, the pitiful fool did not even know how to lie properly. "Oh really? Yes…I believe that I heard that too." He nodded in agreement.

After he drained his cup, he spoke again. "I am going to retire to my bed chamber now."

"Thank you for the tea, Lord Sesshomaru. Kagura and I will be leaving in the morning tomorrow after breakfast." Hojo informed Sesshomaru.

"Very well then." Sesshomaru called Jaken in, and had him remove the tea table, while Kougorou escorted Hojo to the upper floors.

Sesshomaru did not retire though. He shifted through papers and papers. He had been trying for ages to find out who was the ruler of the Eastern Lands because it could always be some human, and that could be easily taken care of, but if it were not a human, it was a totally different matter then.

Sesshomaru carefully read the paper. This was written by a demon who died not too long after the new lord came into power. He had been killed, and how 'his men' had gotten a hold of these documents was a mystery to him, but he was nevertheless pleased. The document stated that the man ruling was Kagura's brother.

In that case, he would have to have Kin do some genealogical research for him. This struck him as odd. If the man was indeed Kagura's brother, then maybe they already had a secret alliance that he did not know about. He would have to send a spy over to the Southern Lands soon. No one tried to trick or best Sesshomaru. Why? Because it was simply impossible.

After reading this interesting information, Sesshomaru went into his bedroom and slept. Usually he slept without the interference of stupid dreams and such, but ever since that painting….of Kagome, he had been having dreams, and they were often about her.

Her dark chocolate colored eyes. There was nothing spectacular about them. He had seen eyes of much prettier shades; he had seen prettier dark brown eyes as well. But something about them, something about her…even her hair wasn't all that great.

Her 'former demon slayer' friend even had straighter and nicer hair. Kagome's was all over the place, and had a slight wave. So why did these dreams torment him with visions of her? The dreams were always of her smiling, and laughing, and there was one where she was holding his hand as they watched Rin pick flowers.

In these dreams he felt…happy? But when he looked at her, he not only felt happy…he felt complete…whole…something odd…and he hated these feelings and dreams because they were so foreign to him: Sesshomaru knew everything.

This time, in his dreams, he was tormented. Then again, he was usually tormented by the dreams. He didn't understand…

He was chasing her. She was wearing that light purple yukata, the same thing, and all the flowers from when he first saw her in the fields that day. She was laughing, and smiling, and telling him that he wasn't such a scary demon lord if he couldn't even catch her.

He always seemed so close, but she always got farther and farther away. She disappeared into a thick fog…of miasma? It was a scent familiar to him…where had he smelled it before? He heard her calling his name, still laughing and taunting him.and every time he stepped into the miasma; he found that he couldn't breathe because of his sensitive nose. The heavy smell of sulfur was making him nauseous and dizzy.

He stepped out of the miasma. It was so thick that he couldn't see her. Kagome…where was she? The sound of her laughter had stopped, and the laughter of another was heard. It was a man…

((A/N: I've done it! I've finally updated. Sorry about the long wait, I went on vacation shortly after I posted Winter Sonata. Anyways, thanks for reviewing y'all! I would be nothing without you all! Oh and I apologize if Kagura was OOC, I had trouble 'writing' her character. Then again, I can blame it all on the pregnancy.))