A/N: Coolness!

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My Only Hope
Chapter Twelve

"Are you sure that you wouldn't mind?" Kagome repeated.

"It's perfectly all right with me. You shouldn't have to worry about anything. There will be no power struggles of any type. Your family and mine are two entirely different entities, and I'm pretty sure having him back won't bother me at all." Sesshoumaru smiled. "And if it will get rid of the jewel, it sounds like an okay idea to me."

"Are you serious? You think it's a good idea?" Kagome smiled.

Inuyasha frowned. "As long as it isn't dangerous, I'm all for it as well." He shrugged. "Besides, I've never met the man either."

"All right then. Come on, Inuyasha. Let's go tell my mom." Kagome reached out and took his hand. "Thanks, Sesshoumaru!" she called as they left.

Inuyasha and Kagome were nearly back to Kaede's when Inuyasha turned to Kagome. "Aren't you nervous?" he whispered. "I mean, I would be nervous if I was about to meet my father…"

Kagome stopped in her tracks. "Inuyasha, weren't you listening to the conversation that Sesshoumaru and I were having?" she asked.

Inuyasha blushed. "Parts of it."

"Inuyasha…I talked to my mother. Yes, I'm nervous about meeting my father, but I'm also a little nervous about meeting yours as well."

Inuyasha's jaw dropped unceremoniously to the ground, and he pivoted on his heel to stare at Kagome. "What did you just say to me?" he gasped. "Are you…did you…" Inuyasha nearly stumbled into a nearby tree, and Kagome grabbed his arm to steady him.

"Yes, Inuyasha. My mother didn't think it was fair that I get to meet my father and you don't get to meet yours…" she explained. "That's what Sesshoumaru and I were talking about. Not so much my father, but yours."

Inuyasha was looking very pale. "But my father…the bones…the jewel can bring him back?" After a moment, he smiled at her, walked over, and picked her up. "Well, let's get back quickly then!" he grinned, jumping away.

Kagome squealed in surprise and wrapped her arms around Inuyasha's neck as he jumped above the trees. In no time at all, they had landed in front of Kaede's hut. Kagome's friends, Kaede, and Kagome's mother and brother were standing outside waiting for them.

"Hey Kagome!" Eri grinned, waving to her friend.

Inuyasha set her down lightly. "Hey Eri!" she smiled back. "Mom, if we're going to do this, we'd better do it soon. I don't want any other demons to get the jewel…"

"Do what?" asked Yuka.

"What's going on?" asked Ayumi.

"We're going to bring back my father, and Inuyasha's…" Kagome pointed to Inuyasha.

Souta gasped in surprise. "Really? Will I get to meet him?"

Kagome nodded. "Of course, Souta."

"Yay!" Souta celebrated.

Kagome's mother walked over, smiling at her daughter, and wrapping her in a hug. Kagome slowly removed the jewel from around her neck, and placed it in her mother's hand. Akira stared at it a moment, and then stared at her daughter.

She took a deep breath. "What am I supposed to do with it? How does it work?"

Kagome frowned. She wasn't really sure, either. "Kaede?" she asked.

"Just make the wish, Akira." She whispered. "Everything will be all right."

Akira nodded, took yet another deep breath, and smiled. She didn't say her wish out loud. Everyone already knew what it was. She thought about it, and she made the wish.

The jewel began to grow warm in her hands. Slowly, it got hotter, and Akira would have dropped it, had it not shot out of her hand like a bullet. The jewel rose several feet above the group's heads. The light it emitted was much brighter than normal. It remained there for several seconds before it began to come back to earth. When it reached eye level, it rocketed towards Kagome, hitting her in the chest and knocking her backwards.

Inuyasha jumped to catch Kagome before she hit the ground. "What the hell just happened?" he demanded.

" Do not worry. The jewel is no more." Kaede smiled.

"Then why did it shoot back into Kagome like that? It could kill her!" he growled.

"The jewel will not harm her anymore. It has served its purpose. Midoriko was returning the remainder of Kagome's soul to her…or did you forget that my sister took part of hers?"

Inuyasha nodded in understanding. "Oh…"

Kaede smiled. "Well, would ye like some tea?" she asked everyone.

"Where are Sango, Kohaku, Shippo, and Miroku?"

Kaede turned. "They went to see Miroku's mentor about his kazaana." She informed them. "Shippo has gone with them."

Kagome frowned, but nodded. "It still didn't go away?"

Kaede shook her head. "No, it hasn't."

"How do we know if mommy's wish worked?" asked Souta, tugging on Kagome's shirt. "When will we get to meet your dad?"

Kagome shrugged. "I don't know, Souta."

Akira sighed. "Well, how about that tea, Kaede?" she smiled.

Kaede nodded, and pat Akira on the shoulder. "Yes, I think it would be a good idea…"

Kagome sat next to Inuyasha across from the fire in Kaede's hut. She was staring off into space, thinking to herself, when Inuyasha interrupted her solitude.

"Are you okay?" he asked her.

She shivered. "What? Oh…I'm fine, yeah. I'm just…surprised is all."

"Why?"

Kagome sighed. "I don't know…because Kaede is so sure that the jewel has served its purpose…that it's gone. And we've defeated Naraku, but Miroku's kazaana is still on his hand…and my mother made her wish, but…" Kagome paused a moment, "but it didn't work. It just makes me wonder, is all."

"Wonder about what? You don't think this is over yet?" he asked.

Kagome looked at the ground. "I don't know what I think. I think I'm a little disappointed." She admitted.

"You were excited about meeting your father?" he frowned.

"Of course." Kagome nodded. "I thought the jewel had to work in order to go away…and it went away, but it didn't work. You know what I mean?"

Again, Inuyasha nodded, and wrapped Kagome in a tight hug. "It'll be all right. We'll just have to wait and see what's going to happen. You never know what could happen. Maybe it just takes a while for Miroku's kazaana to go away and for the jewel to work?" he suggested.

"Maybe." Kagome admitted. "I guess we'll see, won't we?" she smiled at him.

"Yeah." Inuyasha agreed.

Kaede was in the fields, and Kagome's brother, mother, and friends were sitting on the other side of the fire in Kaede's hut. Eri and Yuka were playing a game of cards, and Ayumi was talking to Kagome's mother. Souta was curled up in a small ball with his head in Akira's lap, snoring soundly.

Akira coughed, and Kagome and Inuyasha looked at the door of Kaede's hut. Inuyasha's ear twitched lightly.

"What is it?" asked Akira, realizing something was wrong.

Inuyasha and Kagome stood, looking at the door to the hut with suspicion in their eyes.

"What is it?" Kagome's friends chorused.

"Someone is outside the hut…" Inuyasha whispered. "Be quiet for a minute…"

Kagome and Inuyasha approached the door with caution. Kagome rose her nose to the air. Her eye twitched. "Hey…Inuyasha…can you smell that? Smells a bit like you…"

Inuyasha blinked. "Huh?" He frowned. "It could be a trick…" He pulled out his sword, and Kagome pulled out an arrow. The two of them jumped out into the night.

Inuyasha lowered his sword almost as quickly as he landed on the ground outside. Kagome's arrow hit the ground with a small clicking noise, and her mouth dropped open. She would have hit her head, had Inuyasha not been there to catch her.

"Kagome?" Jin whispered. "Is she all right?" he asked Inuyasha.

Inuyasha shook her lightly. "Come on, Kagome…" he laughed. "Wake up."

Several seconds later, Kagome groaned, and looked up into her father's eyes. "You're...my dad?" she whispered, her voice unsure.

Jin nodded. "Yes, Kagome." He smiled at her. "It has been a very, very long time." He frowned, apparently doting on an unpleasant memory. The look in his eyes passed quickly, however, and he wrapped his daughter in a tight hug.

Inuyasha stared at his father a moment. Unsure of what to do, he coughed. "Hello…father…" he nodded and bowed.

"Inuyasha…" his father bowed slightly. "I have heard some rather interesting things about you already."

"Yes, well…we've been busy," Inuyasha groaned. "Naraku is gone. He wasn't in your time, but…well, let's just say he wasn't exactly one who went down without a fight…"

"Really now? Tell me about this. I want to hear everything. We've missed so much," at this, Inutaisho turned to Jin, who nodded in agreement.

"We should all sit down and get ourselves caught up…" Jin smiled.

Akira could hear the conversation outside the hut and, after getting herself Souta situated so as not to wake him, she slowly went to the door of the hut. She smiled brightly. "Hello, Jin." She nodded to him.

His eyes brightened when he saw Akira. This woman was his mate. Jiro had, of course, ruined the possibility of the two of them staying together, but he had never stopped loving her. "Hello Akira. Kagome is beautiful…" he replied.

Kaede returned to her hut an hour later to find Inutaisho, Jin, Akira, Kagome, and Inuyasha all sitting around a small fire just outside her door. She smiled at them as she went inside, but said nothing. Rubbing his eyes, Souta came to the doorway of the hut. All of the commotion outside had woken him up.

"Mommy?" he whispered.

"Come here, Souta. There's someone I'd like you to meet." Akira smiled to her son. "This is Jin, Kagome's father…and Inutaisho, Inuyasha's dad. Would you like to sit with us?"

"Would gramps get mad?" he asked, and Akira, for a split second, looked very hurt.

She sighed. "No, Souta. Don't worry about gramps, okay?"

Jin glanced at Kagome's sword. It had once been his. He laughed. "If we'll be around for a while, I shall have to go to Totosai and get a new sword made. I see that one has become rather attached to you…"

Kagome nodded. "It's been rather helpful. After Miroku sucked up Naraku…" Kagome stopped. They didn't know who Naraku was.

"Tell us about this Naraku." Inutaisho said in his most authoritative voice. "This definitely sounds like a topic of interest…"

"Is that Kagome's dad?" asked Yuka.

"I would suggest you wait until later to interrupt them, dear." Kaede whispered.

Inuyasha took a deep breath. He was about to tell his father everything. How his mother had died, how he had met Kikyou, how the thief Onigumo had fallen for Kikyou, been devoured by demons, and become Naraku…how Naraku had killed Kikyou, how she had sealed him to that tree….

Then there was the more recent stuff. How he'd met Kagome, how Naraku had kidnapped her and killed her, how she had found out that she was a hanyou…how he had finally realized that he had feelings for her…

Wait a minute! Inuyasha growled to himself. I haven't even admitted that to Kagome! Inuyasha glanced at his father, who was eyeing Kagome suspiciously as it was. Has he already figured out how I feel? Is that even possible? If he can tell…can Kagome…?

Inuyasha was jolted from his thoughts when he heard someone very familiar scream. And then he smelled it. Blood. Miroku's blood…and a lot of it. Kagome, his father, and Jin had also been interrupted in their conversation when they had caught the scent as well.

"Miroku?" Kagome whispered.

It was Sesshoumaru who appeared. He had Rin and Jacken with him. Ah-Un was carrying Miroku.

Sesshoumaru bowed to Jin and his father as if they hadn't just come back from the dead, and looked at Inuyasha and Kagome.

"What's happened, Sesshoumaru?" demanded Inuyasha.

"I don't know." He admitted. "I found the monk like this. I caught the scent of the boy, his sister, and the fox and cat demon, but the scents were also mixed with blood. I fear something may have happened to them…"

"Then why…" Kagome stood up, and walked over to where Rin was standing next to Sesshoumaru. From this spot, she could glance at Miroku from a distance. "Why was Miroku by himself?" She stared suspiciously at him. "He doesn't smell right…"

"What do you mean?" asked Jin and Inutaisho in unison.

Inuyasha stood, jumping in front of Kagome. "Miroku is a monk…yet he smells strongly of Naraku's poison…" He held Kagome protectively. "That wound in his chest…was made by Kohaku's weapon…"

Sesshoumaru growled. "If the monk has been possessed, he needs to die. The demon slayer and the rest of your friends are injured somewhere in the forest…"

"No!" Kagome yelled.

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A/N: I know now that I am evil, but if you review, I will surely update quickly. I will not give any clues right now as to what will happen next…you will have to read and review to find out…