Sesshoumaru's Castle

After breakfast was served and eaten the high spirited child and Kagome went out to the garden along with Jaken. After Sesshoumaru's general came back and told him the message was delivered Sesshomaru went outside. When Sesshoumaru approached on silent feet he saw both Rin and Kagome laying on their stomach's in the meadow he listened as they spoke.

"Kagome-chan would you stay and live in the castle with Rin and Sesshoumaru-sama?" Rin asked.

"That would be very difficult, Rin. You see, I have a duty that I must do and until it's taken fully care of; then, I'll constantly be on the go as well as mean people and demons will be after me and I would not want you to be hurt." Kagome said picking a blade of grass.

"You mean like bad lady who attacked Kagome and Rin?" Rin asked. She watched as Kagome nodded. "Sesshoumaru-sama, could protect you the way he protects Rin!" She saw Kagome go sad. "Then after would Kagome-chan?" Rin asked again.

"Of course, she won't Rin! Sesshoumaru-sama won't let another filthy human live here..." Jaken said as he soared through the air. They turned to see Sesshoumaru standing behind them.

"Haha, Sesshoumaru-sama teaching Jaken-sama how to fly again!" Rin squealed. Then tackled Kagome making her tumble to the ground. "Haha your it Kagome-chan!" Rin jumped back up and ran behind Sesshoumaru.

"Oh, you think so do you! You think, your Sesshoumaru-sama can protect you from me! I'll get you." Kagome said as she got up off the ground. Kagome went one way to go around Sesshoumaru and Rin went in front of him.

"Nah nah nah, you can't get me!" Rin stuck out her tongue at Kagome. Kagome ran for Rin again and Rin went behind him again. Sesshoumaru got a evil smile on his face as Kagome went to run for Rin. Sesshoumaru leapt into the air then landed a little ways away from them. As he lowered to the ground he watched Kagome grab a hold of Rin.

"Hey, that's unfair! Sesshoumaru-sama moved." Rin pouted.

"He may of moved but you're it now!" Kagome ran from Rin. Then stopped so Rin could catch up then turned left towards Sesshoumaru. "Ah come on, Rin, I know your not tired this soon are you?" Kagome stopped about thirty feet away from Sesshoumaru with her back to him. Sesshoumaru saw that his ward was getting closer as well as getting tired of running and that Kagome was about to run again so he snuck up and anchored Kagome to the spot not letting her go.

"You've got to play fair!" Sesshoumaru bent down and whispered into her ear then nipped it with his teeth.

"How is this fair?" Kagome asked trying to struggle free. As a solid object rammed into them sending Sesshoumaru onto his back taking Kagome with him. When Kagome sat up she did not realize she was straddled on Sesshoumaru's lap until her seat moved and she looked down to see two large white silk covered legs sticking out in front of her. She turned around on his lap and came face to face with Sesshoumaru and blushed the color of a cherry. "Umm ah, sorry, Sesshoumaru for sitting on your lap but th-thank y-you for breaking my fall. I'll just ah just get up off of your soft but yet hard lap now!" Kagome scrambled to get off his lap. When she did get off his lap she looked at Rin and Rin's face got a pale color before she took off running. "Come back here, Rin." Kagome called just before she heard a familiar sounding voice that made her snap and look up into the sky to see a yellow fire cat coming down and a orange flash leapt at her.

"Kagome!" Shippou cried as he landed on the ground and ran over to Kagome.

"Shippou! How are you?" She said and asked.

"Happy, now that I'm back with you!" Shippou said before giving Kagome a hug as well as crying in her shoulder.

"Don't we get a hug as well?" Sango and Miroku stepped up to her.

"Sure you do. Your my friends!" She hug both of them and patted Kirara who was still in her bigger self.

"Hey what about me?" Came a deep voice. Sango and Miroku stepped aside as Inuyasha stepped forward. As he did her skin went pale and her heart picked up beat.

"S-sure Inuyasha." She said with a hint of fear. Everyone there saw her body go tense as Inuyasha wrapped his arms around her. As soon as Inuyasha got done hugging Kagome she took a step back.

"Since, you're well and were back together we can head back to the village and tomorrow we can set out for the shards!" Inuyasha said. "So, let's go!"

"Inuyasha, don't you think that was a little rude!" Sango asked.

"No not at all! We have not been able to go out to look for the shards because we had no way to detect them and now we do!" Inuyasha said.

"Well who's fault was that? Your the one who throw her into the stone wall and wounded her!" Sango yelled. The whole time Kagome's body started to visibly shake.

"NO!" Kagome soft tone. Inuyasha and Sango stopped yelling and Inuyasha turned to face Kagome.

"What did you say?" Inuyasha said full of spite.

"NO, I'm not leaving. I'm not ready to look for jewel shards right now!" Kagome said. Inuyasha growled in rage that she told him NO and in turn he grabbed ahold of both her wrists.

"You are coming back with us!" He was starting to turn enraged and red slowly started to leak into his eyes. When Kagome saw his eyes starting to turn red her body went as white as snow and she started crying.

"Let me go!" She cried. "I don't want to go anywhere with you!" She cried even more as she tried to fight to get away from Inuyasha.

"Inuyasha, this is not the way to do this. The way you are now is what lead to Kagome to be hurt in the first place." Miroku stated.

"Let her go, Inuyasha! I don't want to fight a friend but if I have to fight a friend to save a friend I'll do it!" Sango said reaching up to her boomerang.

"Inuyasha, do you really want to hurt Kagome again? This time there might not be a chance to save her!" Miroku pointed out. The red started to fad out of his eyes and he let Kagome go. When he did she turned and fled back towards the gardens and the castle coving her scent just incase Inuyasha followed her.

"Kagome, wait don't go!" Inuyasha took a step forward and Sesshoumaru stepped in front of him.

"Half breed, I give you this warning and only this warning LEAVE NOW and never step foot near my castle uninvited or you will not be walking away. Lady exterminator, monk and kitsune you are welcome to come. Escort this half breed back to the village where you reside!" He spoke.

"Thank you, Sesshoumaru. We will do that and please tell Kagome that we are sorry!" Miroku said as he bowed. Then turned and faced Inuyasha. "Do you want to do this the easy way by walking back on your own or the hard way but also easy way where I use a sutra and we take you back that way. I for one would choose the first so I could save these sutra's for something more worthy like in a battle." Miroku pulled out a sutra and showed it to Inuyasha to show he meant business. Inuyasha started walking away. Sesshoumaru watched as they entered the forest before he turned and started walking towards his castle.

"Rin, go look for Kagome!" He said as he let his senses go to locate her but was unable to pick up her scent.

Inside the garden

Kagome came running into the garden tripping over her own feet and falling on her hands and knee's scraping them and ripping the plain light green kimono.

"I've got to hide but where?" She stood up and faintly saw the shape of one of the bridges in the gardens. When she ran up to it she saw that there was enough space were one could bend down and walk under so she did. When she went under the bridge there was a place between the bottom of the bridge and the ground like a cubbyhole were she could sit or lay down without being seen. Sitting under there she started thinking to herself.

"Why did Inuyasha have to do what he did? Wasn't it enough for him to hurt me once or did he not get enough satisfaction the first time for him to want to do it again?" She started crying even more. "What went so wrong between us? Was I not there all the times he was hurt and kept his secret of the new moon?" She forced herself to stop crying and drew up and laid down as she heard the voice of Rin come near.

"Kagome-chan were are you? Kagome-chan!" Rin called out as she stopped by the bridge. "That mean guy in red is gone! Come out, Kagome-chan." Rin continued on as she walked over the bridge.

Sesshoumaru landed in the courtyard and summoned his warriors. When they were in front of him he spoke. "Somewhere within the castle grounds is the miko who is under my protection. She ran and hid covering her scent from my half brother who was just here. Do not harm her but approach with extreme caution! That is all." He turned and looked at Jaken. "Jaken, take Rin and Ah-Un and work from the meadow and back this way again." He told his retainer.

"Yes, Sesshoumaru-sama! Come along Rin!" Jaken called as he climbed onto Ah-Un's back as well as Rin. Then they took off to the meadow that Rin and Sesshoumaru just came from. When they landed Jaken went one way and Rin and Ah-Un went another.

Back in the garden underneath one of the arched bridges the one whom everyone was looking for had curled up and cried herself to sleep due to Inuyasha. But little did she know that as she fell asleep some of her miko powers that covered her scent started to wane.

Back at the meadow

Jaken, Rin and Ah-Un were coming in from the meadow to search another part of the gardens.

"Master Jaken, where do we search now that Kagome-chan is not in the meadow?" Rin asked as she walked along side of AhUn.

"We'll check over there." Jaken pointed towards the way that lead to the small lake with a waterfall. As the breeze picked up slightly. While walking onward Ah-Un stopped and smelt the breeze then turned and walked a different way.

"Ah-Un, where are you going?" Rin asked as she ran over to him. "Come, let's go back this way!" Ah-Uh snorted and continued walking. "Master Jaken! Ah-Un's not acting right. He's heading wrong way." Jaken looked over at his master's ward.

"Stupid beast and equally stupid child." Jaken scurried over to where the child was following the two headed dragon. As they approached the entrance that lead to another part of the garden the dragon stopped and sniffed at the ground. Rin checked to see what he was sniffing around about and saw something and walked over and picked what they were sniffing at up.

"Look, master Jaken. This same color of kimono Kagome-chan kimono!" Rin held the light green silk out as she walked towards Jaken. Jaken took it from her and looked at it. But while he was doing so Ah-Un decided to sniff the air moving foreward as he did so.

"What do you think Jaken?" Rin looked at him and asked.

"It's belongs to her." Jaken looked up and did not see the dragon. "Where's the beast?" They ran into the next part of the garden and did not see the dragon at first until they rounded the hedge. When he came into view they saw him standing by the water's edge near a bridge that lead to another garden and that would also lead to the castle and courtyard. Rin ran up to him and patted him with Jaken following her.

"What you find Ah-Un?" Rin walked in the shallow part of the stream to get around Ah-Un. After getting around the dragon Rin looked around walking a little forward until she was under the bridge looking around then her eye's got wide. "Master Jaken, she's here! She's here!" Rin ran over to Kagome as Rin went to reach to touch Kagome's shoulder Jaken showed up next to her. "Kagome-chan, wake up!" She heard a whimper as she watched Kagome slightly move away. Rin turned looked at Jaken "Rin will stay here. Jaken get Sesshoumaru-sama!" Rin watched him leave. But not long after Jaken there was a sound of someone landing. Rin looked up to see Sesshoumaru bend down and made his way over to Rin.

"Sesshoumaru-sama, she won't wake up for me." Rin pouted. Sesshoumaru touched Kagome on the upper arm.

"Kagome, wake up, it's time to go home!" Sesshoumaru mentally kicked himself as he went to turn Kagome onto her back. While doing so he heard a whimpering moan as if she was being hurt in her sleep. He carefully pulled Kagome closer to him. Rin helped by lifting Kagome's shoulder off the ground as much as she could so Sesshoumaru could get his arm under Kagome to pick her up. When he did she cringed in her sleep and he heard her whimper out again.

"No, please don't hurt me, Inuyasha! I didn't tell your brother anything! She's lying." She cried out.

"Ssshhh, you're safe now!" Sesshoumaru made his way over to the spot Ah-Un was standing. Once there he stood up straight then walked up onto the main path that lead over the bridge. "Jaken, once in the castle take Rin and have her dinner served then take her to her chamber for the rest of the night." He continued walking. He knew that Rin was worried. "She will be fine Rin. Go with Jaken and give him or your servant any trouble tonight." Once they reached inside the castle he continued until he reached the royal wing and his father's old chamber. While on the way to the chamber he motioned for a female servant to follow to dress Kagome into a sleeping kimono. While the servant dressed Kagome he got a bucket of water. Then came back to the chamber and dismissed the servant.