Disclaimer: See chapter 1.

The Beginning And The End

Chapter 13

The next morning found a somber atmosphere, with the friends barely speaking as they ate breakfast. Kagome left Sessho-maru to join Miroku to prepare for the funeral rites. As she gave him a kiss on the cheek and said goodbye, she heard his voice whisper within her mind. "Never doubt me, nisou…" She didn't know where it was coming from but she recalled hearing it when she woke up this morning as well. It must be a dream echo.

Kagome and Miroku prepared the village temple, lighting incense, praying and finally, preparing Inu-yasha's body.

"Kagome….I can handle this myself if you---"

"No. I'll be fine, thank you, Miroku." She looked to her right and smiled at her concerned friend. "Besides, it's the very least I can do for him."

The priestess and monk worked together, removing Jaken's preservation spell, purifying the body and placing it upon the draped dais. By the time their tasks were completed, Kagome looked worn out. She was kneeling in front of the dais, as if in prayer, silent tears running down her cheeks. Miroku waited silently in the back corner of the room, wanting to keep an eye on his friend. Soon enough Kagome bent low, bowing to their dead comrade, then slowly stood up and turned to face Miroku whom she knew was in the room.

They walked towards each other and Miroku frowned as he observed the slight tremble in Kagome's body. She offered him a weak smile and he took her hands within his own.

"I'm worried about you."

"I'll be fine. I wanted to pay my respects now so I could concentrate on the funeral."

"You're trembling, Kagome."

"Yeah, but I'm still standing so everything's fine."

"Kagome…."

The priestess waved off Miroku's concern as she hooked her arm within his and started leading them out of the temple.

"I'll rest until the funeral. Deal?"

"Deal."

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To say he was unhappy was an understatement. Sessho-maru watched as Kagome and the others filed into the temple to pay their last respects to Inu-yasha. He'd almost been tempted to attend, if for no other reason than to keep an eye on the stubborn priestess he loved. When she had returned from the funeral preparations that morning, she had practically collapsed from exhaustion.

"You are not going to do the ceremony today. Miroku will handle it."

Sessho-maru watched Kagome with narrowed eyes as she calmly situated herself on the futon and drank the glass of juice he offered. He scrutinized everything about her appearance and movement. She was pale, her eyes were pink around the edges, no doubt from crying, and she had dark circles under her eyes. Her demeanor was calm, but he could sense the tension within her so strongly, he wanted to grab her by the shoulders and yell, telling her she wasn't fooling anyone. But he remained still, waiting for her inevitable rebuttal.

"I'm going to do the ceremony and if you try to stop me I'll never forgive you."

A quiet, matter-of-fact voice and determined eyes met his commanding glare and for the first time since they'd met, he was beginning to think that maybe her tumultuous relationship with his brother was not entirely the half demon's fault. Damn stubborn woman. As their silent argument waged through their gazes, Sessho-maru knew he was beat. Although they were mated and loved each other, there were some things even he could not influence in Kagome's life.

So he stood outside the temple, showing no signs of his inner turmoil as he watched Kagome get swallowed by the temple shadows, off to pay her last respects to her murderer. Damn stubborn woman.

When I look back on everything…..I remember…..a lot of yelling. You yelling at me, me yelling at you, you and Kagome yelling at each other and Sango yelling at Miroku. It seems only Sango and Miroku moved beyond the yelling. But even though we all yelled at each other, I don't think most of it was actually said in true anger. That's just how families work. That's what Kaede told me anyway.

Shippo spared a glance to the older woman and his stomach tied in knots as he took in the trembling hands and almost imperceptible swaying of her body. He wasn't fooling himself. Kaede was old and her time was coming near. My family is falling apart.

The young kitsune bowed his head and squeezed his hands together and vehemently prayed to any and all gods to keep his family together. For the most part he'd reconciled his feelings with Kagome. Once he was told the whole shocking story of what happened between her and Inu-yasha, he couldn't bring himself to hate her for what she did. And after she told him that it was Sessho-maru who had saved her life, his opinion of the cold and arrogant inu youkai softened just enough to make him not hate the youkai prince.

But, Inu-yasha…..I don't understand why you did it. Why did you kill Kagome? Shippo swallowed hard and he felt the tears began to stream down his burning cheeks. He swiped an angry little fist across his eyes then clasped his hands tightly within his lap in a futile attempt at regaining some control over his emotions. I….I can't hate you, Inu-yasha. Even after everything I found out….I can't hate you. And I can accept that because…..I don't want to ever understand why you did what you did. Shippo didn't bother to wipe away his tears anymore. He stayed there, kneeling, trying to send out comforting thoughts to his lost friend. I hope you find your mother and father, Inu-yasha. I'm sure they'll be happy to see you. Everyone should be with their family.

She wasn't sure if she was going to make it through the ceremony. Showing defiance in the face of old age and her inevitable and fast approaching death was mere playtime compared to what she faced today. She knelt on the hard wooden floor with a groan and ignored the concerned gazes of the young people around her. She bowed her head and clasped her now constantly shaking hands together.

Looking back, she'd had a most fortunate and happy life. But when tragedy did strike her, it struck hard and mercilessly. Losing Kikyo at such a young age and under such evil circumstances was the first time she thought she couldn't go on. But she had. Losing the love of her life to a senseless war was the second life altering occurrence that threatened her existence. But still, she had lived on. And now she faced what was possibly the worst thing she could imagine. She was burying her child.

Kaede looked up and watched Kagome and Miroku, two more of her "children", preside over the body of her most precious son. None of them were blood kin, all having families of their own at one point in their lives. But they'd come together to form their own family, one where she was the mother to all. The family she would have had if only he'd lived.

Inu-yasha…..my rash and lively son who always seemed to hide behind his bravado and bury his big heart. I wish you peace and happiness in your next life. Perhaps we will be seeing each other very soon. I'm old and very tired and I'm not sure how much more of this world I can bear. May the Great Powers guide your soul, Inu-yasha.

All eyes were on the priestess as she slowly approached the dais, her face a mask of calm. She reached out a trembling hand and removed the charmed necklace that Kaede had placed on him so many years ago and clenched it tightly to her chest.

"Goodbye, Inu-yasha. Our time is done. May you find the peace you never found here in the Great Beyond."

Kagome backed away from the dais and let Miroku finish the rites before cremating the body. She didn't want to witness Inu-yasha's body being engulfed by flames so she continued backwards until she reached the doorway. There she turned and slowly made her way out of the temple. She had to stop a few times and lean against the wall to regain her balance, her body giving out under the immense strain of the past several days. Eventually she made it outside where she found Sessho-maru waiting for her. She gave him a grateful smile before she collapsed to the ground.

To be continued…