Not surprisingly, it had taken several months to find Naraku. He was hiding, cowering in the ever present distance that seemed to stretch before them.
They had come across Kohaku first. A heart wrenching event, Sango had run to him when he fell, begging him to forgive her as she withdrew her sword, preparing to kill him. Just as suddenly as she had proclaimed this, Miroku shoved her aside, rolling down the hillside with her. InuYasha stepped in and slashed the boy, remaining within the view of his body so that nobody save him could see the gruesome image.
Sango's sobs could be heard for miles. There they fell upon the ears of a child, a child who knew the name that was being called. She looked up with pleading eyes at her father-figure and his face fell, ever so slightly, in defeat. They would go to see what had been done, if only to have her forget about it tomorrow.
But she would never forget. Neither would he.
InuYasha noticed him first, turning slightly with Tetsuiga still drawn. He growled out the name in an angry manner. "Sesshomaru. What do you want?"
Kagome inhaled sharply, turning from her position over the fallen Sango, and watched as the brothers faced. It had been the first time she had seen him in weeks. But this was not him, not the man she had known, he was younger and unchanged from the hard time of a war that would hopefully never be.
Her heart cried out in agony. Why did it have to be this way? She looked to Sango and then up to see Rin, the child that followed Sesshomaru, watching where the body of Kohaku lie. That's right, she had known him. She sighed and then turned back to the brothers, who were now arguing over why the elder was even there.
Without thinking she ran up to him, tears streaming down her face, and fell to the ground before him. "Please. I know you can stop this. Please help me." He sneered down at her, she was peculiar.
"Why should I help a weakling like you?"
Everyone watched, in amazement as Kagome stood slowly, and then proceeded to knock Sesshomaru to the ground. "I'm not weak! Now get up and do what you can to help or stop being part of the problem!"
His eyes narrowed. Something was different with her. He lightly sniffed the air and noticed that she stiffened when she saw this. She smelled… what? That wasn't possible. He stood and looked down at her, face unreadable. "Woman, I will do as you ask and you know exactly why, but you must then tell me just how this came to be."
She shook her head. "I can't tell you that, Sesshomaru. Not yet. But I give you my word that I will. Once we defeat Naraku."
"You cannot go up against Naraku now!" Everyone stepped back, including Kagome, at his outburst. What was wrong with him?
Kagome shivered with nervous tension and sighed, looking at him with pleading eyes. "I must. I made a promise. I must fulfill it."
He turned from her in an angry movement and walked over to the crushed Kohaku. Sneering he pulled out his Tenseiga and slashed at the boy, watching in slight amazement as his lungs began to rise and fall once more. "I will go with you to go against Naraku." This was not a request and there was no room left for argument.
Sango quickly ran to her brother, holding his frightened form against her breast. He was alive again! "Th..thank you, Lord Sesshomaru."
But he never looked at her, his eyes were on Kagome. He walked over to her and pointed towards Ah-Un where Rin sat. "Get on." The miko blushed and lowered her gaze, walking over to the dragon and climbing on behind the child.
"Kagome?" InuYasha asked, questioning and completely confused. Why was she listening to him? Wasn't Sesshomaru their enemy? And why had he insisted on helping them?
center/center
The hours that had passed, riding upon Ah-Un, had gone by in a blur for Kagome. Rin chatted idly, mostly with Kohaku who never spoke. The girl didn't seem to mind.
Sesshomaru kept sending looks her way. InuYasha kept sending looks his. Miroku kept looking at his hand. Sango kept looking at her brother.
But Kagome, she looked down, away from everyone and towards herself most of all. Being so near him was painful, memories of his presence near her while she slept or his voice when he told her how well she had learned a new move. Little moments like that just kept popping back into her head.
Then, as if he had been sent in on queue to ruin the peace, Naraku appeared. Kagura approached them first, she looked to want to go after InuYasha but after seeing Kagome and Rin upon the dragon, changed her mind and turned her wind upon them. What happened next would be a blur. Kagome saw the blades flying towards her, turning to Rin. There was no time. She couldn't jump from the dragon with the child and still escape unscathed. So she pushed her, shoving Rin to the opposite side of the youkai and protecting her with him.
She closed her eyes, wincing in wait for the inevitable pain to come, but it never came. Opening her eyes she saw blades, flying to either side of her, some hitting the poor beast below her and others cutting… cutting hair that flew to the sides. Silver hair. Kagome gasped and before she even turned screamed out his name. "Sesshomaru!"
He stood there, looking down on her, teeth clenched but otherwise looking rather normal if it weren't for his tattered clothes and hair. Smoke could be seen rising from his back and you could hear the sizzle of his flesh in the silence that held all people present captive.
Kagura sneered. "So, Sesshomaru. You've done well for yourself, haven't you? A mortal child. A mortal woman. And a hanyou bastard." Kagome heard no more. The blood pumping through her ears prevented sound from entering.
She stood, helping Sesshomaru to sit, and then turned, angry to Kagura. What came from her in response was not what people were expecting.
"My… child… is no… bastard!" She ran to the wind witch then, anger and fury on her face. Her body seemed to take on an earth real glow, as if it were a purification arrow, but not the same. However, as she stormed up to the witch it diminished and she smirked. "Would you like me to show you what my child's father taught me, Kagura?" Kagome's voice was deep and seductive, and very frightening. She sounded so sure of herself.
Before she could say anything, Kagome reared up and punched the woman in the face. Kagura fell back, hitting her back on the ground rather sharply. Kagome ran up to her, pulling up her hair tight and then grasped both sides of her head, twisting it in a final jerk.
Nobody believed what they saw. Kagome had just snapped Kagura's head like it was a twig!
They heard Sesshomaru's laughter and turned a concerned eye his way, what was with him? "It must be the pregnancy hormones." What?
InuYasha stepped up to him, ready to demand answers on this supposed pregnancy when the next of Naraku's minions came up. Kanna. She didn't say a word, stepping up to InuYasha and holding out her mirror. It wasn't a battle stance. She was making a request.
Wordlessly she looked to her fallen 'sister' and then turned back to them, her somber face never changing. "I'll do it." Kagome had said it. She walked over to where the girl was and held onto the edge of the mirror, feeling parts of her soul trying to go within. Then she held up an arrow, lighting it with her miko powers and then thrusting it within the mirror hard. It wasn't breaking enough!
She growled low and turned to the others. "It's not working!" InuYasha nodded to her, giving her a signal to move away, then lifted the Tetsuiga.
"Wind Scar!" His voice echoed across the little pass they were in and birds flew up in fight. Kanna fell, her body unmoving and apparently lifeless. It was hard to tell with her. Hopefully she was with Kagura.
Then it came to Naraku. He had been standing there, amused, watching the whole spectacle. "I have an offer to make. I will hand the shard over to someone, and battle the miko only. If I win, I receive the shikon. If I lose, well then I don't have much say in that, do I?"
InuYasha was ready to turn him down, this was his fight! Kagome was in no way able to defend herself against Naraku! Even Sesshomaru looked a little bothered by this idea. He must realize that she was not going to win, this couldn't be good. But the girl stood up, and turned to him, brushing her hair out of her face.
"You're on Naraku. I have a promise to keep, so let's make this quick."
"WHAT!" InuYasha screamed, ready to pull her back and tie her down if he had to. Sango stood to the side with Miroku and the children, unsure if she should leave their side to assist or if this were some trick of Naraku.
"Kagome." It was Sesshomaru, still laying against Ah-Un but looking a little better than he had a few moments before. She ran up to him, kneeling beside him, and smiled. "Be careful. You need to keep your promise, after all."
A tear fell down her face and she sighed. "Don't worry Sesshomaru. I've never broken one yet." He nodded and she smiled, happy that he wasn't arguing for her to stop this battle.
Without another moment wasted she turned and ran up to Naraku, kicking out against him. He dodged and she growled out low. A smirk appeared on his face. "Ah. I see. I had thought it to be a ruse before but now I realize it is not. You truly have given up on the boy. And with his brother, no doubt! How ironic!" Kagome frowned, why was he talking instead of fighting? Moron. She lowered to the ground slightly, knocking him down and then pulling out an arrow, stabbing it into his chest. The purity of the arrow seeped into him and he cried out, thrusting the base of his hand into her face and throwing her off.
Kagome flew, tumbling over herself before she landed, face down in the dirt. She lay there, perfectly still, and nobody was sure if she was even alive anymore. Naraku laughed, walking over to her, ready to kick her when she spun out and grasped his leg, jerking him down and rolling with him until she was once again over him, new arrow in hand. This one went into his forehead. He screamed, flailing out at her with whatever he could. When his outer image disappeared the tentacles came, but she still held firm to the arrow, pushing into him with her pure power.
It was very painful. Every strike created a new wound. Blood was pouring from her body everywhere. But she could not stop. She couldn't. The Sesshomaru that she knew might be gone but she now knew that she was carrying his child within her. She had to live! With a cry she reached within herself and pushed, ever so slightly, allowing the torrent of her power to release and overflow.
Then the world went black.
