A/N - Wow. 118 reviews for only 6 chapters? That is so awesome, and you all deserve a cookie. Sorry for not posting sooner, but it took me FOREVER to find a song that fit the emotions in this chapter. Thanks for waiting.

And as a humorous side note, I've gotten a lot of reviews and e-mails, asking whether there's going to be any…how shall I put it…'action' between Sess and Kag. There will be, but not graphic. This is a Teen fic people! Sorry for the overly long author's note. Read on!

As The World Falls Down

There's such a sad love
Deep in your eyes, a kind of pale jewel
Open and closed within your eyes
I'll place the sky within your eyes

There's such a fooled heart
Beating so fast in search of new dreams
A love that will last within your heart
I'll place the moon within your heart

David Bowie

When she woke up she felt his arms around her, his warmth pouring into her body. She opened her eyes and looked at his face, serene in the dying candlelight. His hair shimmered and fell all around her, an almost intimate gesture. Kagome's heart beat faster, panic spreading through her, but it was quelled when she realized both of them were still fully clothed. Then the sleep cleared from her groggy mind and she remembered what had happened the evening before.

She had embraced him, taking comfort in the strong arms that held her, and then they had lain down and basked in contentment passed between them. They both spoke of their past, though Kagome had been left to do most of the talking. Sesshoumaru didn't seem to want to offer much about his life, a fact that intrigued Kagome more than anything. She wanted to know about him. Eventually they fell asleep.

And now, lying in the warmth of the line of his body, Kagome remembered how he had attacked her. 'And for the Tetsusaiga, no doubt…' she thought, only the thinnest remnant of anger beating in her veins. It was replaced by an eerie sadness. 'He really only did it because it was all he knew.' she tried to vouch for him. But still, even though she couldn't deny the faint stirrings of some deep emotion running through her whenever she thought of him, she knew she had to get out. She reached a hand up to run her fingers down his cheek, smiling at how soft it felt. She gently pulled herself out from his arms and placed her bare feet on the cold ground, feeling her skin prick at its iciness.

She walked over to the door; glancing back to make sure that he hadn't stirred. Her heart jumped when she tried the handle and found it unlocked. 'I knew he didn't lock it behind him!' she thought happily. She opened it as quietly as she could manage and then walked out, shutting it firmly behind her. 'Okay, now to find a map because I have no idea where I am…' she thought, walking quickly up the stairs. When she reached the top of the stairs she was amazed by the huge corridor full of doors. She walked down the hall, not sure of which door to try first. Her eyes went to one door in particular. It was pure white, with no wooden panels or depressions to break it of its monotonous design. It had an ebony handle with gold inlay.

She was still gazing at the door when she heard Jaken's staff beating against the ground. Her heat beating frantically, she opened the white door and entered the bedroom, not moving until she heard the toad pass.

When she let her gaze trail over the bedroom she was amazed at the grandeur of it. She could already tell that it belonged to Sesshoumaru. The blood red bed in the middle of the room looked so ethereal with its colours and textures that she had to resist the urge to go and lay upon it. In the corner she noticed a white desk and she ran over to it, opening drawers, trying desperately to find a map.

After searching for a few minutes, finding nothing but papers of deeds and an intricately drawn map of the hedge maze outside, she began to get the feeling of someone watching her. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and she turned around slowly, already knowing who it was.

When she turned and saw Sesshoumaru, she wasn't sure she had ever seen him so angry. His face betrayed no hints of emotion at all, but her skin shivered with the fury that radiated off of him.

"How long have you been there?" she asked him, trying to put some nonchalance into her voice. She stood from her crouched position and felt herself involuntarily back up to the wall.

"Long enough." he said, his voice clipped, as if trying to hide the feeling inside of it.

"I'm sorry, but I need to leave." she said, hating the thin note of panic that had crept its way into her voice. She was surprised at his speed as he suddenly appeared in front of her. She pushed back farther into the wall, wishing she could go through it.

"You haven't seemed that hasty to leave until now." he seethed, thrusting his hand out and grabbing her already-bruised arm. The sudden burst of pain made her just as angry as he was.

"Must you always be so rough!" she yelled, struggling to get free from his grasp. She couldn't imagine that she had lain in those arms all night, relished in how he softly rubbed her back, wishing that it would never end. He glared at her.

"Trust me, I can be a lot rougher." he said quickly before kissing her. Kagome gasped as his brutal lips assaulted hers, so rough it felt like he was trying to break her apart. She felt a sharp sting of pain. Kagome felt heat rise in her body and she panted heavily when he broke the kiss to take a breath. She raised a hand to her lips and was amazed at the thin crimson line of blood that ran down from them. She looked at him in astonishment before reaching her hand around his waist and pulling him against her, kissing him just as roughly as he had to her.

Before she knew it, she found herself placed amongst the silk sheets of his bed, amazed at the softness of it. There was a confusion of fabric coming off and of warm flesh moulding together, but only one underlying thought was running in Kagome's mind. 'This seems so right.' A small smile curved her lips.

XoXoXoX

"And then one time, I was outside on…wait I was inside…but anyway this one time…"

Inuyasha's ears were flat against his head, trying everything he could manage to tune out the annoying little girl. He had endured her musings for the past couple of hours, and trying to keep her still when he set down for camp annoyed was almost impossible. She seemed to be a ball of energy, and it was grating on his nerves.

"But that was before I died, so it doesn't really matter." she said. Inuyasha's ears perked up and he looked at her sitting across from him.

"You died?" he asked, this time honestly curious.

"Mhmm, but Sesshoumaru brought me back with his sword." she replied, almost as if he should have known it. He was amazed that his brother had saved the life of a human, a human child no less.

The following day he kept her a little closer to him, knowing that if anything happened to her, Sesshoumaru would not let his brother see the next day.

He didn't even bother to tell Rin about the danger they were walking right into. Naraku was going to be there when they got there, Inuyasha had no doubt. 'And then he's going to take both me and Sesshoumaru on…what an idiot.' he thought, a smirk spreading across his face.

The wind had grown calm, and Inuyasha was surprised to find that Rin had shut her mouth, tired from the long journey. It was a while before either of them spoke again.

"Inuyasha…what's that?" she asked, tugging lightly at his drooping sleeve. He looked out and saw two semi-circular blades travelling towards them at an imperceptible speed. He grabbed Rin and jumped to the side, feeling the dirt on his back from where the blades hit the ground where they were standing.

"Go back there!" he yelled at Rin, pointing into the woods. The little girl, frightened and a little shaken, ran into the thick foliage, careful to get far away but not go too far out of Inuyasha's sense of smell.

"Come out Kagura!" he yelled, the Tetsusaiga drawn and prepare for combat. His eyes scanned around, searching for her lithe form. He heard a whistling sound from behind him and dodged just in time to see another blade hit the ground. When the smoke cleared Kagura stood out in the distance, a smile playing on her lips.

"Had enough yet, Inuyasha?" she asked, amused by his flustered appearance.

"You wish." he said before charging at her, the Tetsusaiga slicing through the air, sure he was going to connect. The blade didn't connect with flesh, however, and when he looked up, Kagura was standing in front of him, Rin struggling in her arms.

"Let her go!" he yelled. Kagura chuckled. She pressed a sharp nail up against the girl's cheek until a small dot of blood formed. "Stop it!" Inuyasha yelled again, the sight of his charge getting hurt almost too much to bear.

"Kagura, this was not the plan." came a smooth voice out of the trees. Inuyasha looked in the direction of the voice and saw Naraku walking towards her. He could see fear, with a very distinct undertone of malice, in her eyes. She couldn't seem to find anything suitable to say, so she just stood there, holding onto Rin, her eyes glaring at her master. Inuyasha took this distraction to use his Soul Stealer attack, lashing out his claws and slicing Kagura on the face. She screamed in rage and dropped the girl. Inuyasha picked her up and backed away from Kagura and Naraku.

"Let's go, Kagura."

"But look what he did!" she seethed, wanting nothing more than to slice him apart and use his bones to clean her teeth.

"Let's go." he said again, this time finality evident in his voice. Kagura hissed at Inuyasha before walking away, turning and waiting for Naraku.

"We shall meet later, Inuyasha, of that I am sure." he said, a small smile turning up his lips. He walked over to Kagura and they walked away.

Inuyasha gathered up the shaking girl, surprised she hadn't cried in Kagura's grip, and continued on.

XoXoXoX

Each hour she seemed to get a little better. Miroku had moved her into a small clearing, cleaning her wound and making sure no new blood was seeping out. When night fell, along with its icy coldness, he had laid down beside her, trying to keep her warm. Kirara had slept on her other side in her large form, trying to keep both Sango and Miroku warm.

In the middle of the night he felt her stir.

"Mirok…Miroku…" she said softly, still obviously in the clutches of her fever. Her skin had begun to sweat and she had started to shiver. He put cool water on her forehead, working tirelessly to keep her alive.

When she had finally stopped shivering, and her fever had gone down a little bit, he sat down against a stump, his body tired with the need for the sleep he had been denying. Under his breath he cursed Naraku:

"Damnit, Inuyasha, you better kill him."

XoXoXoX

A/N - Yeah I know, kind of short, but I had to go to work early today. Next one will be longer. Review please!

Oh and please check out the C2 group I just created. It's called 'Strange Pairings' and it's dedicated to some of the lesser known pairings of the Inuyasha fandom, lots of good stuff. Go read!