A/N: Okay, well... typically I don't do the authors notes at the beginning, but I took the hint from all of the reviews and decided to clear some things up.

First- I have no idea about anything Kagome's Dad actually was and/or is. I've never heard anything about him, which makes it easier for me as a writer because I can make him whatever I want him to be. (Evil laugh) o.0' Well..... er.... hm.... I don't know why I've done this whole thing with Kagome's dad, other than I felt like it. And I love a good plot twist mind boggler.... and lots of cliffies! DON'T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT! Goodness, can't an author joke around a bit? .' Alright fine....

Second- About the "vision"....... Umm.... I don't know.... It was something that Inuyasha saw.... whether in his mind or something that he actually saw, it doesn't really matter. The important thing is that he saw it and it motivated him. And to answer whether the baby is actually a boy or not.... Donno yet.... That's privileged information.

Third- Lots of requests for what is going on with Kagome..... Goodness.... It's not like I'm going to let her die and not tell you about it..... If she does I'll be sure you hear the Eulogy. Besides, Kagome is with Kaede.... perfectly safe right? It's not like it's characteristic of Kagome to get herself into trouble or anything....... 0.0' OH... right....

Also- Shari :), Miroku has a void in his hand that he can suck things into, kind of like a black hole, and eventually, it will consume him... just fyi ;)

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The night was warm and the moon was dim. A light rain had just passed through, and a light breeze blew the sakura out of the trees, and guided them gently to the damp ground. Kaede's village was silent. Not a sound was heard, except for the gentle rushing of the river nearby. Kaede opened her eyes, and rolled over. She looked at the fire cackling next to her, and then to the other side, where Kagome's futon was. Her eyes widened. The futon was there, Kagome was not. How could Kagome have left without her knowing? If anything happened to her...

Kaede quickly placed some shoes on her feet and rushed out of the Cabin. She looked around for any sign of Kagome. Because of the rain, she was able to make out vague footprints of a staggering Kagome. Kaede let out a sigh of relief. Quickly she followed the footprints down the pathway and into the forest, out of the village. Along the way she saw several signs that Kagome had tripped and fallen on various things, a rock, a root, or a fallen tree branch. She continued on across the forest floor, and stopped when she recognized where she was. Looking up she gazed upon the large tree in front of her. The Sacred Tree. The tree that so many years ago Inuyasha had been sealed on. At the bottom of the tree, Kaede saw Kagome, sitting against it, a small smile making it's presence on her face.

"Kagome." Kaede whispered softly.

Kagome didn't look at her, or change the expression on her face, but she replied softly.

"I remember the first time I saw him here, an arrow holding him to this tree."

He had looked so peaceful, sealed away in what was meant to be an eternal slumber. To Kagome, this tree symbolized much of her life, of what was important to her. She had met Inuyasha here, and at home, many centuries later, this tree still remained. It had survived, and were she in her own time, she would see her house just a short distance away. In this way, Kagome felt that no matter what time she was in, there was always something that the two time periods shared, where she could feel safe.

Kaede stood in awe of the girl in front of her. Was this really the young, noisy girl that had come from the future? The girl in front of her was very different. When had it happened? When had the young girl become a woman? Kagome continued.

"I know you know about the baby Kaede. I think I owe you an explanation."

Kaede nodded. She had to admit, she was curious.

"You understand how my family feels about Inuyasha, I have explained it to you before..." Kaede nodded, as Kagome continued speaking, "Three months ago, Inuyasha and I eloped. I guess it just seemed the only solution, with the way my family felt, and well, you know how Inuyasha feels about 'mushy stuff'. Anyway, a few weeks later, I found out we were pregnant, and I didn't know what to do, so I stayed in my time, trying to figure it out. One night, I went out for a walk to think, and I was attacked, which explains the bruises..."

Kaede looked over Kagome. Bruises? There was certainly more than that. Even her clothing was tattered, and blood stained.

"So Inuyasha came and found me, and took me to a hospital, but then he went back to the house to find the Shikon shards, and never came back, so I came after him." Kagome paused and looked at the old woman, "Kaede, I.... thank you for saving my life today. It was you, wasn't it?"

Kaede nodded.

"Hai Kagome-chan." Kagome-chan? She certainly wasn't a child anymore.

"Arigato."

"Come on Kagome, I'll help you back to the village. We need to get you some food, and out of those dirty clothes, into some clean, larger ones. We don't want anyone to know about that little one quite yet, and unfortunately, you're showing enough that you're going to have to be really careful what you wear. I think I have a Miko outfit just the right size back home. Just don't tie it too tight and you'll be fine."

Kagome was surprised how well Kaede had taken everything in.

"And when you're well enough, we'll both go looking for your husband." Kaede laughed.

Kagome smiled. She was glad she finally had someone that she could talk to. She had a lot of questions, and she was tired of living a lie. Kaede seemed to sense how grateful she was, and smiled at her.

Kagome took a final look around her, and tried to shrug off the fear for her husband that she held inside. She had hoped that coming here would have comforted her.

"Please be alright," Kagome thought to herself, "Just wait until I can get there. I can't make it yet, but as soon as I can, I will."

And using all of her strength, and Kaede's, the two headed back to the village.

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Sango, Miroku, and Shippo ran along the cliff edge.

"He must have jumped." Sango stated.

"There's no way we can jump that far." Shippo said.

"We could take Kirara."

"No." Miroku said firmly. "We need to go back."

Sango looked at him in confusion.

"Inuyasha ran on ahead, and he hasn't returned. Tonight he turns into a human, and he just ran right into Sesshomaru's hands. We can't take Sesshomaru on alone. We need help."

Shippo looked at Miroku.

"But who? Kagome is in her world and..."

"Kouga." Miroku stated matter-of-factly.

"But if Inuyasha found out that we asked Kouga for help..."

"He'll get over it. He can't do it alone, and neither can we. Besides that, we don't know if Sesshomaru is still working with Naraku, and if he is, we can't risk that those bees will show up. We can't afford to be short a person."

Sango nodded in agreement. She looked up at Miroku, making eye contact. He held her gaze for a moment, and then she looked away blushing.

"We can't waste time here, come on." Sango said, "Kirara!"

The small cat like creature looked up at Sango and transformed into a large youkai.

"Take us to Kouga, Kirara."

Sango picked up Shippo and hopped onto Kirara, Miroku climbing on quickly after her.

After they had been flying for a while, Shippo fell asleep on Sango's lap. Sango began to wonder why Miroku had been so quiet. She looked behind her to see him with his eyes closed, holding his void hand close to him, sweating profusely. For the first time, Sango began to wonder what it must feel like for Miroku, always to have that void in his hand. She never asked about it, so she didn't know much, but now she began to wonder if it ever, well, hurt.

"Are you okay?" Sango asked concerned.

Miroku opened his eyes, unaware that Sango had been watching him.

"I'm fine."

Sango looked at his hand a moment, then spoke again.

"Does it ever, hurt Hoshi-sama?"

Miroku stared at the concerned face of the woman in front of him. Was Sango actually worried about him? How he had wished that maybe, someday, Sango might have feelings for him, like he had for her. Quietly, and somberly, he replied.

"Sometimes."

Sango was silent. Then she did something that Miroku never expected. She took a hold of his hand, and placed it in hers.

"I'm sorry." She spoke softly.

Miroku looked at her a moment, staring into the eyes that he had grown to love. He wanted so badly to take her in his arms, to pull her close to him, to kiss her. He wanted her to be the one he spent his life with. He wanted her to be happy. And he could never make her happy. He could never be there for her, because he didn't have much time left. Miroku hated to admit it, but the void had been growing, and soon, it would consume him. Soon he would be gone, and he couldn't get involved with Sango, because he couldn't bear to make her live her life alone. Miroku gently pulled his hand back from her, and placed it close to him once more. Sango's cheeks went red, and she turned around. Miroku felt bad, and he resented pulling his hand away, but he couldn't make things harder for her. He didn't want his death to be more painful than it already might be for her. For that reason, he told no one about the growth of the void.

"Sango, I..."

"I'm hungry." Shippo yawned as he woke.

"It's alright Shippo, we're close to Kouga now, we'll find something then." Sango said, trying to comfort the young fox demon. She looked at Miroku. "What were you saying Hoshi-sama?"

"Er... nothing Sango."

Miroku sighed. He should have been out looking for Naraku, so that he could rid himself of the curse that would devour him, take from him his chance to have a life, a family of his own. But instead, he was in search of a wolf youkai to save his friend.

After all, the lives of his friends, meant so much more than his own.

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A/N: Okay, sorry for the short chapter, and I know you're probably mad at me for not updating you on Inu's situation, but you'll have to forgive me, because it's very late, and I can't even spell right. I promise I'll start writing more as soon as I wake up in the morning, although I may not get to post for a day or so... anywho, thank you so much for all the reviews!!! And see? Kagome is fine.... for now. Oh! BTW, I drew a pic of Kagome that inspired this chapter, so as soon as I find a scanner, I'll put a link in my bio to it right at the top. Until then, enjoy Giovannag's pic of Inu in the last chapter. And if any of you have a user account on , let me know so I can check out your work! And thanks again to RenaissanceGrrl for the reviews! You always make me smile! That goes for all of you! Okay, well, I'm off to dream up more story ideas! Love you guys!!!!!!