Hey everyone! It's time for another update. I taped yesterday's episode of Inuyasha and Wolf's Rain so I'll watch it today hopefully. I think Wolf's Rain is wrapping up, and it's SO sad with all the death and stuff that's happening. Anyways, I don't own Inuyasha, and here's the next chapter!:

Sweet release.

After weeks and weeks of parting, we were together again. I felt as though I was fully living again. The temperature of the night had risen in the background directly from our touch. But this was far from my biggest concern. All of my concentration...went to her. Calming her. Comforting her.

Pleasing her.

I could see it in Kagome's eyes—she was starting to remember more and more as the moments passed on, which was something that had far outreached me expectations and hopes. Restrain began to crumble away, and I wrapped my hands around her waist. In her shock, Kagome uttered a surprised gasp between our lips. Confusion and a struggle to understand passed Kagome's face, but there were no traces of repulsion or even a want to stop. I waited anxiously.

And then, I felt her respond to my touch at last. "Sesshoumaru..." Kagome breathed. "I...I remember..." My heart beat frantically from this exciting news. Slowly she put her hand against my cheek with some final, nervous hesitation, and brushed up against it.

I couldn't bring myself to believe it. Kagome was finally mine again. Surely this was another dream that I had conjured up. A simple hallucination in the dead of the night. Her fingers weren't really tangled softly in my hair. I wasn't really holding her waist protectively. And her lips...Kagome's sweet, sweet lips...weren't really upon mine.

And then, she sighed quietly, and I knew that this was no dream.

She tugged at my shoulders nervously. I was puzzled by this, and said, "Ask and I will do anything."

Kagome blushed a little. "Anything?"

"A taiyoukai is always true to his word." I eased her gently against my chest and held her there. She breathed into me peacefully, and this gave me the chance I had longed for to at last inhale Kagome's wonderful scent in her hair. I remembered well when we had first laid in bed together and how her hair was simply intoxicating in that state. A small breeze shifted through our bodies, and she shivered slightly. I covered her cold arms with my hands in order to help remedy the cool night.

"Would it be best if you are taken inside now?"

"Oh, um...no. I'm fine, really."

This was an unexpected answer, and I looked at her happily. She truly wanted to be with me now.

"And...Sesshoumaru, I'm sorry about the things I said before. I shouldn't have doubted you."

"No." I answered quickly. "I should be the one apologizing to you. I should have explained everything sooner, and now I regret it."

She smiled warmly. "Don't be."

I was perplexed slightly. How could one possibly be so forgiving after being forced from a treasured home and friends? "You are sure, Kagome?"

"Yeah. I'm sure." She reached down and slid a hand in mine. "I understand now...I understand everything now. You brought me back here so I could remember my feelings for you. You needed them, Sesshoumaru...and in a way, so did I. For the past few weeks, I've felt a puzzle piece from my heart missing, like there was something that used to be there, but I didn't know what. Now, I realized that the missing piece was...you." She blushed.

"Truly, this surprises me." If only I had known this, then my situation might've been bearable. Oh, the agony I had once suffered with her away from me! But now, that seemed to be a distance memory, with the emotional torment that I no longer felt. It would take some time, yes, but gradually Kagome would remember everything. "You continue to amaze me more and more each passing moment, Kagome."

"Oh, Sesshoumaru…" She whispered. Kagome moved closer to me once again and sighed. "Arigato, I'm so happy that you took me here." She snuggled up against the top of my neck and gave a gentle kiss right below my jaw line. I in return traced the skin on her forearm with gentle strokes, and she shivered involuntarily. I wanted to see that effect on her again, so I raced my hand down her backside and to her waist without warning, holding her close. She gave a small gasp from the movement. "…Hmph! Just try to startle me like that again, Sesshoumaru-san!" With that, Kagome sprinted away from me playfully to hide somewhere amongst the flowers. The youkai personality in me gave a growl of anticipation, and I leapt after her.

Had I angered her? No, she was only being playful…but still I looked for Kagome with a slight amount of franticness. I needed her…now. There was no other way around it. Finally, I picked up her scent amongst the flowers and leapt in front of her. During the tangle of arms, Kagome's hair became undone from the way it was tightly wrapped and at that moment she had never looked more desirable. I growled with longing and impatience, and bent down to give Kagome a fast, fierce kiss that expressed my wanting. She gripped my hair lovingly and allowed her mouth to be opened just for my access. I lapped around with gentle strokes and paid careful attention to her eyes as they became soft and glazed during one moment and surprisingly wide the next. I savored these different shapes of her eyes, for I had always longed to see them again.

"I know how long you must've been waiting for this." She breathed between kisses. "So…so please, don't stop."

I was ecstatic. Not only was I by Kagome's side once again, but she actually wanted to be with me. From this, I pulled her closer and held her body protectively. She smiled.

During all of this, I had failed to notice that we were actually out of the seclusion of the garden and in plain view to anyone.

Guards spotted us and rushed forward angrily. They tried to pull her away, but when I noticed this, my eyes flashed a dangerous red, and I snarled at them.

They drew their swords and arrows. "Get back, Lady Kagome! Stay away from that treacherous youkai! We'll save you from him!" One of them said to her while trying to pull her away.

She avoided their grasp. "But—you don't understand-"

"I knew you were trouble when I first saw you!" One of the guards shouted to me. "I knew it!"

"This is all a mistake!" Kagome protested.

One of them swiped their sword at me, but I blocked it without a second thought. "Go." I whispered to her urgently. "It is time I left anyways. You're needed here, Kagome."

She looked around to me wildly. "But I can't just—Sesshoumaru!" Another guard pulled her away.

"Don't touch her." I snarled, snapping the man's hand away fiercely. I turned back to her. "…Don't despair. I'll return for you, Kagome. Soon…I promise I'll be back here."

She was frightened for me, but she had faith. "…Okay." She finally whispered. "I'll be waiting for you."

That was all the reassurance I needed. I gave one last hard look at the guards. "Stay away from her. I'll be back again soon enough." I swiped a clean cut through one of their shields so it broke into pieces as a warning, and they shrank back quickly. Kagome seemed pleased at this, and so was I. She squeezed my hand for a goodbye, and I sighed pleasantly at her touch one last time before sprinting away from the land. Moments after, I saw the light from her room on from a faraway hill. She would be waiting for my return, so I would not let her down.

I traveled all through the night with a swift, steady speed. My heart was racing at an equal pace, if not faster. The whole world suddenly had a brighter outlook. Hope was not lost. Kagome would be waiting for me now, and the only thing left to do here was find Naraku, kill him, and return to her once again with my brother and the Tetsusaiga so we could return to our own time. I would not fail her.

After several hours, I entered the castle of the youkai kingdom. So many things needed to be done, and I could not waste any time. Quickly I moved into the hallways. Various servants greeted me back, but I continued to search without slowing down. At last, I paused, turning to one of them. "Tell me, where had my father gone at this hour?"

He nodded. "You must want to talk to him about your journey and the negotiations. The Emperor is outside among the trees somewhere, hunting along with his fellow comrades. I would say that he left about…two hours ago. In fact, he should be returning at any moment…"

I needed nothing more to be said. I leapt away down the halls and out into the forest.

Already it might have been too late.

I cursed at myself for my stupidity. I had been too focused, too obsessed, with winning Kagome's affections that I had forgotten about my other important task—preventing my father's death by making a fast return to this kingdom.

Everything was happening wrong, and somehow, I felt that it was my doing. Of course it was my doing. My father needed to be saved. The future of both kingdoms depended on it. I sprinted forward with haste.

When I reached my father at last, I saw that a shadow-figure was gliding about him, attacking. I looked towards its back, and saw the spider-shaped mark. It was Naraku. My father swiped away the attack with his claws, but the shadow countered with another blow.

Before I could jump out from within the bushes to help him, I saw suddenly my brother leap seemingly out of nowhere with his Tetsusaiga blade extended. He deflected Naraku away and once the evil youkai saw that he was not alone with the Emperor, he shot up into the sky and flew away, saying, "You may rest for a few more days…your death has been delayed—for now. Next time, your son won't be able to save you."

As it seemed, then, I wasn't late at all to prevent things. Inuyasha was meant to save him today, not me. This was the way history had been fated to repeat. Naraku would attack another day however, and this would be when I could change things.

Inuyasha helped him up. "…Was that…Naraku?" His face was grim.

"Hai." Our father answered. "He never said his name, but I could see in his eyes the immeasurable amount of evil in it. It was this same evil that killed Kikyo—I'm sure of this fact."

Inuyasha balled his fists. "Then…then I'm going after him! This isn't finished yet!" He crouched down for a leap into the trees.

The Emperor growled and forced him back down again quickly. "…You will do no such thing, Inuyasha."

He stubbornly gripped his sword. "But now that I have the Tetsusaiga, Naraku won't be any trouble at all!"

"You have not yet mastered all of its techniques!"

Inuyasha's expression was of childish anger. "I can take him! I'm strong enough without the techniques!"

Our father was about to say more, but suddenly he straightened in a stiff manner. "…You can come forth now, Sesshoumaru." He turned around to look at my direction in the forest's trees. "You've been there long enough."

I complied, and revealed myself from the hidden spot. There was no use in fighting it—a taiyoukai's sense of smell is strong, especially for one that is of his own kin. I stepped forward calmly.

"So, you've returned, then." Inuyasha grumbled. Clearly, he was still upset for being called weak, which he undeniably was. "You came back a little late, Sesshoumaru. Naraku has already left the area."

I growled inwardly, thinking of Kagome. "I had important matters to attend to, but I have returned at the necessary date."

"Indeed you have, it seems." Our father remarked. "Tell me Sesshoumaru, did you see any of my cowardly hunters? They left me in fear of Naraku once they saw him. I will see to it today that all of them are placed in our dungeon for a week as punishment for their traitorous actions." He grimaced with anger and disgust. "I considered them to be my bravest men, and yet, they ran from the face of danger. Perhaps execution will serve better." He paused to consider this option.

"This is not the time to worry about that." I interjected. "We must leave this forest at once—Naraku may come back, and we will be unprepared."

Inuyasha's ears perked up from this. "Then let him! I will avenge Kikyo's death!" He flexed his claws arrogantly.

"No." The Emperor said calmly. "Your brother is right. We must return back to the castle, where we can plan things further."

Inuyasha made some feeble protests, but we turned our backs and left the area. After awhile, he reluctantly followed us, although it was clearly evident in his frustrated step that he was very angry that Kikyo's killer had escaped yet again.

'You must keep yourself calm and composed in such situations, Inuyasha.' I thought with annoyance. Naraku had killed Kagome once—it was the entire reason why we were here. But although I had badly wanted to see revenge upon Naraku for it, this was a delicate situation and everything needed to be planned accordingly. Not only that, but Naraku was also very unpredictable, both in battle and in character. It was because of this that I needed to wait for my chance. 'Your opportunity will come soon, Inuyasha.'

When we returned to the castle, Inuyasha left us to go speak with the dead shell that was Kikyo. I also left our father to be alone for a few minutes to collect my thoughts for the best way to proceed.

I saw a messenger run by suddenly, but I thought nothing of it until a few minutes later, when my father burst his doors open angrily. "Sesshoumaru!" He called to me impatiently. "Hurry and find your brother! Word has come to me just now of an attack—go quickly!"

And before I had time to question him about anything, he raced down the hallways, shouting with frustration for the whereabouts of his royal advisors. I decided that it would be best to wait before learning the details, so I went up to Kikyo's room to look for Inuyasha.

When I reached his room, I saw him standing off to the side, looking intensely at Kikyo. She had the same blank expression on her face that had no emotion, and was lying down on the bed, the same as always.

Inuyasha made no indication that he saw me enter, so I said, "We are needed right now—something has happened."

Still he made no movement. "…Does it really matter?" He said at last with suppressed anger. "Does anything really matter? Now that she's dead…look at her, Sesshoumaru. There's nothing left…I don't understand why she continues to stay…"

'Kagome.' I looked at the woman thoughtfully, and tried to see what Kagome and I would do if the situation was reversed. "She stays because she feels that you are not ready to let go. Even though this woman has no scent, she fights to stay in this world for a little longer until you're ready for her departure."

He was quiet for a moment. "…You really think so?" Inuyasha walked over to Kikyo and whispered, "Kikyo, I…I love you. I know that the dead have no emotions, but I promise…after I bring my revenge to Naraku for you…Kikyo, you can stop doing this for me." After he was finished saying this, Inuyasha looked at me curiously. "You've been unusually insightful, Sesshoumaru. Normally, you have no opinion or concern for these things. Has something changed?"

This caught me off-guard, but I was quick to be defensive. "No, but it was only evident enough for anyone to see. One day you might have enough experience and wisdom to see such things as well." I retorted with a cold voice. "Furthermore, we must leave now."

Inuyasha sighed in disappointment and finally followed me out of the room.

When we finally found our father, he was pacing back and forth on a bridge that connected the castle's towers. At that moment, he saw us and walked forward to tell the full, but brief, story.

"We've been attacked from our northern borders. It seems as though the humans are furious about something and plan to fight their way to the castle." He looked at me sharply. "Sesshoumaru, you just went over there for negotiations. Surely you have an idea why the Queen ordered this?"

I was truly perplexed. Something was not right. Then, I remembered suddenly how the guards had seized her away from me last night, and how because of it, they were sure after seeing me become angry over the taking of Kagome that the youkai had evil intentions and they could no longer trust us.

"Lady Kagome did not order this attack." I answered strongly. "I will go now to our northern borders and settle everything myself."

"For your sake, you had better, Sesshoumaru." The Emperor growled. I nodded and leapt off quickly.

Review Responses:

xypherscompany: Well dear, you should certainly finish your homework before reading! Lol.

Katgome: Arigato! I'm happy to hear that you like it so much. Hope you'll keep reading, then…

Harmony8390: yeah, I hope things get better for them too. XD

AngelMiko69: Haha well everyone seems to hate me with my cliffies…heh.

SugarCube: Huh? Why don't you want to leave reviews? They're fun to leave for Vira! XD Well thank you though, and here's an update…

Hell's Angel-Heaven's Demon: With…what…? Erm, thanks for the review though…

Shadow Dragon59: Most readers really don't understand this concept, but Sesshoumaru's personality had merged a little with the real King's, which is actually why he is able to love Kagome as a human so much.

SakuraPetal13: Hehe, yeah I have a tendency to be unreliable…

Dragen Eyez: Hmm, yep, I suppose this means everything will be fine again. Figures, ne?

m1s7ress: Ah, well, I hope that you like the version on my site then…

Youkai no Yume: Hmm. Yeah I figured it was writer's block. Well yes, I think Amon is a very hard character to write for, ne? Maybe you should have a brief amount of time where he tries his hardest to forget about her/move on/give up chasing her, but simply can't. Well, just an idea! Heh.

sweets427: Glad to hear it! And thanks for the review!

Chibi-Midnight-Sakai: Sadly I don't think this update was fast enough, but here it is at any rate…

Tsuki Yume: Hehe, yeah they are, aren't they? I'd burst into song about feelings, but somehow, I don't think that'd be appreciated…

Blue Rhapsody3: Heh heh, that's okay. Well I'm glad to see you like this story so far…

fluffys-sidekick: Alright then, here's another update just for you!

Sesshys Hime: Oh believe me, I'm always growing as a writer, and as long as I continue to write, I'll just keep growing stronger, ne?

yuki kesuma: Yeah it is kawaii isn't it…hehehe!

KouseiJL: Cookies!!! XD Teh yay! And yeah, Kagome seems passive, but I guess it's because she's unsure of things and also because of the fact that it's Sesshoumaru's point of view in this story, ne?

tenshi-fluffy-inu: Yeah, I hope she will be…hey, I wanna be treated like a Queen…

Beautiful Witch Hunter Robin: Hooray, you're safe! Well now that the hurricanes are done, you can update now for your WHR fic! XD

Hell's Angel-Heaven's Demon (again): Oh, I see now. And to answer your question, it's before the time of the first one (before the King and Queen aka Sesshoumaru and Kagome were married).

CubanBlood: Hmm, interesting title for a fic, ne?

Supreme Neo slytherin Countess: Hahaha yeah you and your idea with the son…lol. But why not a daughter? Huh? Huh!?

And that seems to be all. Thanks for all the reviews everyone! More is on the way! I trust that many of you know what it's like to have a very busy schedule, especially around this time of the year. Have pity! Lol. Well anyways, R&R! Arigato, ja ne!