I still dont own Inuyasha or it's characters...Sorry this chapter is so late...Thanks to all who have read and reveiwed...I really appreciate it. Here are the definitions to some words that I used in this chapter.
Yaken-stray dog
Dekunobo-blockhead
Chinpira-urchin
Inchiki-cheat
Baka-idiot
Kyakusenbi-the beauty of leg lines, shapely
Reflections of the Past :Changes
chapter 19
Kagome stood facing Rin, unaware of the glow that surrounded her as her gaze rested on the child before her,thrilled at the knowledge that she was the final addition to a family she had never known, and with that final thought she reached to grasp the crown , and as her touch grazed the golden edges of her skin she heard a soft clicking noise as Rin's crown was released from her own. With it held lightly in her grasp she held it in front of her waiting for Rin to accept her place in their small family.
Rin stood and slowly closed the distance between herself and Kagome, and with one last glance tword Sesshomaru she knelt down awaiting what ever it was that was to come next.Kagome slowly placed the crown onto Rin's small head and stepped back and...waited.
Rin watched with wide trusting eyes, a part of her soul answering the call that came from Kagome's heart. This was right, this was what she had been missing all these years. She remembered now, her parents, Soureikan , the battle that had ultimatly seperated her family, and the priestess who had done all she could do to keep them safe. She closed her eyes as she felt the familier change flow over her, a change that she hadn't felt in 19 long years...
Kagome could feel the surge of power radiate through her own slight frame, it's warmth wrapping itself into every fiber of her being. She had never felt this way before, had never known such intense power existed, and was even more awestruck that that power was her own, that it came from inside her.
She allowed it to wash over her, to fan around her unrestrained. Something deep down telling her to let it go, to allow this final transformation to occure...and so she did. She could feel the wind surge around her in response to her call, could feel the heat pouring off her very soul, it's fire rolling through her blood as it surged forward, uncurling itself into the massive force that it had yet to become. It vibrated within her being, calling to the elements of nature, demanding a response to the authority it held. Lightening flashed through the afternoon sky, as the thunder rolled in response to it's urgency, the clouds darkening as if in prelude to some unforseen danger, hinting to those who witnessed that this was indeed something to be reckoned with.She could feel every nerve ending in her body as it channeled her power around her, through her...could feel it's sharp tingling between the shoulder blades of her back before it branched away to caress those who sat watching, connecting with each one on a level deeper than any had thought possible..reassuring them that all was as it should be.
She could feel Inuyasha's surprise at the power she wielded with ease, could feel his love and pride swell at the knowledge that this woman, this creature that stood before them was his...and she felt his reassurance that he supported whatever it was that she was being compelled to do.
She could feel Rin...could read her soul like a book laid out before her...And Rin was begging her to make their connection include Sesshomaru, as he was so important to her...someone that she held close to her heart and was not willing to let go...
So reluctantly Kagome reached out to Sesshomaru...her gaze locking with his, her eyes asking for his permission...
Sesshomaru watched Kagome, unsure of what it was that she asked of him, but unwilling to back down or show doubt.
Inuyasha's wench was more powerful than he had initially believed, and she was indeed dangerous, but there was something about her calling to him. His inner demon was demanding that he respond, told him that this was indeed something that he was supposed to be a part of...so he allowed it...whatever it was she intended to do , he would allow it...if not for his own curiousity, then for Rin...though he would never admit it to anyone...
Kagome reached out to Sesshomaru again, unsure of how he would recieve her, if he would allow her to connect with him, to make that final connection that would hold the four of them together on a level deeper than any of them realized. This was important, she could feel it deep inside that this had to be done...because it was what Rin wanted...
Her aura gently nudged his as they crackled violently, hers patiently waiting for his response, and his having a silent war against itself before reluctantly letting down it's guard to allow his brothers wench to do whatever it was that had her calling him. At first he was apprehensive, but no one would see that or any other emotion upon his face. He was proud of the fact that no one could read him, it was a defense that he had learned as a small child..that he would hold on to for the sake of his own protection. What the others could only guess at made him stronger, harder to decieve if they did not know what things they could use against him.. And as Lord of the Western Lands he could not risk anyone knowing him so intimatly.His guard would forever be in place, his emotions kept under strict control, this was the only way of life, his way of life for the choice was never his to be made. It was just something that he'd been unintentionally given the day he was born..the day he became the heir to the Western Lands.
Kagome could sense Sesshomaru's apprehension, and realized that for him to allow her this connection was the ultimate show of trust for him. He'd never allowed anyone this close to his soul before, and she understood that this connection with him was something that normally would only be experienced by his chosen mate.
She had the ability to communicate with Inuyasha, to feel his emotions, because they were mated, but this connection with Sesshomaru was something entirely different.And she vowed that she would only read him when he allowed it...that it would be he that would open the channel to the others as well as herself if that was what he chose. She would not take from him what he didn't willingly and knowingly offer. And Kagome was at this point unsure if he truely understood the connection that he had allowed.
Sesshomaru could hear her thoughts as they raced through him. He hadn't initially realized what it was that he had allowed her to do but even now as that knowledge set in he was awed by the fact that she would allow him that much control over what she could just as easily leave for the others to pick up on. He sat silently pondering what it was about Inuyasha's wench that had him trusting her so completly...the only other person he trusted was his Rin. She had always followed him blindly, trusting in him so completly that it left him wondering why she had chosen him, what it was that made her give to him so freely...and now Rin was changing...becoming the woman he had never thought she would become...
Kagome shut the channel with Sesshomaru and turned her attention back to Inuyasha and Rin. She would allow them the same ability she had allowed Sesshomaru, so that they could keep their most intimate thoughts and secrets as just that...secrets, only to be revealed as they saw fit.
And with one final look at Rin, she closed her eyes and released what remained of her energy letting it flow around them like a cocoon, it's glow blinding to any trying to look in.
She watched as Rin's body changed to that of a young woman, her eyes glowing black, her hair lengthening around her to rest softly against the earthen floor,...she watched as claws formed at her fingertips and hoped that she felt at ease with the changes that were happening to her. But what she hadn't realized were the final tranformations that were taking place within herself.
Inuyasha watched as Kagome closed her eyes, her head falling back as she let loose one last burst of power that spiraled around them, the glow around her and Rin intensifying so much that he could no longer see what was happening, and with a growl he stood intending to wrap his arms around his mate. But Sesshomaru stopped him, a soft growl coming from deep within his chest, calming the hanyou before he got to out of control.
"They are fine Inuyasha, be patient...allow your mate to finish what she must..." Sesshomaru said, only Inuyasha didn't see his mouth move...and this brought another wave of panic until he was hit with yet another understanding.
Kagome had included Sesshomaru into the bond she shared with Rin and himself ...but why?
Just then the wind died down, the glow surrounding Rin and Kagome flickering briefly before dying down like the embers of a camp fire that had extinguished its last bit of fuel...And what Inuyasha and Sesshomaru witnessed had them both wide eyed and stunned...
There standing within a circle of burnt grass stood two of the most beautiful woman either demon had ever seen.
They almost mirrored each other as they were so alike in their appearance.
Kagome stood, eyes wide, their pink depths resting on Inuyasha. Her raven locks rolled down her back in soft waves to pool at her feet, her fangs reaching her bottom lip. She wore a dress that shimmered around her, adapting to the colors of her surroundings, the sandles on her feet held in place by a braided golden rope that weaved it's way up her calves and past her knees before tying off at her thighs. But what held Inuyasha's attention were the almost irridesent wings that protruded from her back.
They were framed in golden skin, but the inside of them were almost transparent, as if they held a sparkling sheen of water within them...they shimmered in much the same way as the dress she wore, changing colors to mimic their surroundings...first the blackness of the grass she stood upon, then the deep brown of the tree trunks that stood behind her, then changing again to the green of the leaves on the trees as she spread them out, stretching them as far as they would reach so she too could catch a glimse of whatever it was that held Inuyasha's shocked gaze.
It was then that her gaze caught Rin.
She stood at Kagome's right, her straight raven hair cascading down her back to also pool at her feet. The dress she wore was similar to Kagome's except it was lined in silver instead of gold.
But it was her eyes that held them all. Her eyes were the deepest black she had ever seen, only if one looked deep enough into their depths they would realize that they were not black, but the deepest, darkest green.
She also had wings adorning her small frame, lined in the same silver as her dress, but the inner skin remained emerald in color, shimmering in the sunlight before also becoming virtually transparent.
Sesshomaru stood quietly looking at the child that had followed him tirelessly for the last three years...only she wasn't a child anymore. There before him stood a woman more beautiful than any he had ever seen, a demon female whos emerald black gaze held his own, her head set proudly as she spread the wings on her back in a movement that mimiced Kagome's.
HENTAI! Sango screamed as a loud slap was heard echoing through the forest sending nesting birds fluttering this way and that.
Miroku stood unfazed staring straight ahead, his eyes fixed on the kyakusenbi before him, his hand that had only moments ago found it's way to the curvey backside of Sango still twitching slightly at his side, as the other rested on the red hand print on his cheek.
Sango stood confused next to him, still trying to figure out what was wrong with the damn monk. But it didn't take long before her gaze followed his to two sets of legs.
There before them stood two demons, their backs turned tword them, wings spread as if they were ready to take flight. The dresses they wore split clean up both sides before stopping at mid thigh, thus what held Miroku's gaze.
"KAGOMEEEEEE! Shippo yelled as he ran past Sango and Miroku to the woman standing on the left.
Kagome turned just in time to catch Shippo as he launched himself into her warm embrace.
"I didn't know you had wings Kagome, can you fly?..Will you take me for a ride?..When did this happen?..Why is Sesshomaru here?...And who's she?"Shippo questioned as he pointed at Rin.
Kagome giggled softly shaking her head at the kitsune she held. "I didn't know I had wings either, till just now Shippo...I don't know if I can fly, yes I'll take you for a ride if I can, and this...she motioned with her free hand...is Aihana, my sister, better known as Rin."
"Rin...Since when has Rin been so...womanly.?" asked Miroku as his gaze shifted to take in the shaply figure of the new woman who stood in front of him.
Sesshomaru stepped into his line of vision then, a low growl erupting from him..."You...are to stay away from Rin, or you will lose the right to call yourself male, do we understand each other?"
"Uh, yep...I believe we do." Miroku replied uneasily as he shifted his gaze to Inuyasha who had moved to stand beside Kagome, a sly smile upon his face." What's the matter Sesshomaru, don't like the idea of someone else eyeing what you consider yours?"
"Grow up Inuyasha, I owe you no explanation in this matter." Sesshomaru replied, his face devoid of any emotion before he turned and walked away. "Yaken..." being heard faintly by the demons he'd left behind.
"Well, I'd say that was a little to close for comfort." Miroku muttered," Hey Kagome, do you think we can get a dress like that for Sango? I 'm sure she'd look absolutly amazing..."
Sango rolled her eyes angrily before stomping off in the direction of their bathing spring..."hentai, baka, inchiki, dekunobo, chinpira..."she muttered aimlessly before her figure and her words were lost within the forest that surrounded them...
"What?..what did I say?" Miroku muttered helplessly as Kagome and Rin slapped him upside the head.
Kagome leaned over to Inuyasha.."I'll go find her, but would you mind keeping an eye on pervert here, I'd hate to see what happens if Sesshomaru finds him peeking."
"Yeah, but don't be gone long..." Inuyasha replied.
"Rin, would you care to join me at the spring? Kagome asked as she moved her wings behind her and followed the path Sango had taken.
"Love to Kagome, but what about Shippo, surely you arn't bringing him with us are you?" Rin replied.
"Ah yeah, well um, since you arn't used to him yet, I suppose we could leave him with Inuyasha and Miroku...you don't mind do you Shippo..you can bath with the guys later..."
"Yeah, yeah...I don't mind Kagome." Shippo answered quietly as he jumped from her embrace to land on Inuyasha's shoulder..
And with that the two girls headed tword the bathing spring to calm a very irritated Sango.
One month later...
Days turned into weeks and weeks flew by relatively quickly. The days were initially spent building seperate huts for Inuyasha and Kagome, one for Miroku and Shippo, one for Sango and Kilala that sat near Miroku's, and one for Sesshomaru and Rin as he had refused to leave her until she was able to defend herself. They shared their small hut as Sesshomaru declared he would not be staying long enough to warrent the building of his own. Sango had offered Rin a place to stay in her hut, but Rin had declined, though the others knew perfectly well that Sesshomaru had refused to allow her far from his sight due to the males in the village who looked longingly in her direction when ever she was near.
Sango and Miroku had finally gotten over their last arguement, and had since been training together daily..along with Kilala and Shippo.Kagome trained with Keade every morning learning how to use her priestess powers then trained with Inuyasha in the afternoons to learn how to use a sword in hand to hand combat. She had already become an excellent archer during the years they had spent looking for the jewel shards. Rin trained with Sesshomaru learning how to defend her self as well and both she and Kagome had become quite good. But Kagome had yet to learn how to fully transform. With Rin's help she had finally become able to make her wings dissappear, but she still couldn't harness the ability to transform into her full dragon form. Rin had successfully changed several times, but no matter how many times she explained it,Kagome still hadn't been able to.
Inuyasha had also tried to help, but as he had never transformed either he was rather at a loss for how to help her, and now she was off by herself yet again.
Sesshomaru watched quietly as Kagome sat on a rock overlooking the village. He had been watching her as she tried repeatedly to change into her dragon form, but she had never succeded, even with the help of Rin.
Inuyasha and Rin had also followed Sesshomaru to the clearing but she hadn't noticed any of them as they stood silently behind her.
Sesshomaru felt compelled to help her, but he was unsure if Inuyasha would allow it. She had given him the ability to control the connections he made with the others and had not told them of the reasons behind his lack of emotion, and in doing so she had further earned his respect. So, if Inuyasha would allow him, he would help her. As he made his final decision, he allowed his aura to reach out to Inuyasha's, seeking his permission to speak directly to his mind so that they did not disturb Kagome.
Inuyasha was suprised that Sesshomaru had connected with him as he had not done it since the day Kagome had included him into their bond.
"Inuyasha, I will help your mate if you'll allow it. But I will ask you not to interfere...She will need to concentrate if she is to learn this ability."
"Why would you wish to help my mate Sesshomaru?"
" Let's just say that I wish to repay a debt...now will you allow me to help?"
"Yeah, but if you hurt her, I'll kill you where you stand."
"I won't hurt her Inuyasha, you must trust me in this..." and with that Sesshomaru closed their connection and moved to stand behind Kagome, his aura brushing against hers gently.
" Kagome, I can help you if you wish it, do you trust me?" Sesshomaru questioned.
Kagome was shocked to say the least. She hadn't realized that they were behind her.
"Help me with what Sesshomaru, I don't understand." Kagome replied as she stood and turned to face him.
" I can show you how to transform if you'll allow it. But you must trust me..." Sesshomaru replied.
" Rin has already tried, it hasn't worked. Maybe I am unable to transform...perhaps the jewel has somehow interfered with my natural abilities.." Kagome answered softly. " Besides, why would you want to help me with this?"
" When you included me into your bond with Inuyasha and Rin, why did you allow me the ability to control what others could have easily taken advantage of?"he asked.
" Because it was the right thing to do, and because it is your right to have that ability...I didn't want to take that away from you. I wished it to be a gift...to you and to Rin. I did not wish it to be a curse." Kagome replied as she shifted her gaze to Inuyasha.
" That is the reason I wish to help you, because it is your right to know your true form, and because you were concerned enough for my safety that you in your own way protected me. I am honored by your actions Kagome, and I merely wish to repay that kindness." Sesshomaru replied, glad that they spoke low enough that the others would be unable to hear as they had stayed further back by the edge of the trees.
" And what of Inuyasha, have you spoken with him on this matter?" Kagome asked, still in a state of shock that this conversation was actually happening.
" I have requested his permission to help you, and he has given his approval. Now it is your decision to make.Will you trust me Kagome?" Sesshomaru replied.
Kagome looked again at Inuyasha, and seeing the approval in his eyes she looked up at Sesshomaru." I would be honored if you would teach me this Sesshomaru, and yes, I trust you."
Inuyasha and Rin stood silently watching as Kagome and Sesshomaru spoke to each other, though niether could hear a word that was being said. But unknown to all were the insects that hovered behind the tree tops as they gathered information for their Lord and Master...Naraku
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I am truely sorry that I wasn't able to update on Sunday as has been the norm, but it couldn't be helped as much as I tried. I will start on the next chapter of this story tomorrow, so hopefully it will be ready to post by the weekend. Please let me know what you all think so far...this chapter was harder than the others have been, but I think that is due to adding more characters and trying to keep them as close to character as possible, though I know that they are slowly changing.PLEASE Review as I really need the motivation...you wouldn't believe how much it helps...Thanks again to all who have continued to review as well as to the new readers who have also been reviewing...You are ALL what keeps this story going...
And to Linda and Travi...I hope you both like this chapter..thanks for the encouragement...I really needed it...Neisha