Kurama stood off to the side of the hustle and bustle of the shrines morning rituals, taking care to render himself out of the way of any wayward chores. He had come fairly early this morning to pick up the miko and take her to the Makai, but she had still been in her room and the family had been rushing about, only able to give him a quick 'she'll be down in a sec!' before they rushed off and around.

Kurama smiled slightly as he watched them, wondering at the way this family seemed to work together and complement each others abilities. 'I told you it's like the old ways.' Youko's voice came form the recesses of this mind. 'Trained villages always had a set way to work, and everyone had to pull their own weight. It was always fun to watch them go about their days…until they took notice of you of course.'

Kurama didn't like the way that was sounding. 'What happened when they took notice of you? What exactly do you mean?'

Youko sighed dramatically as he threw an arm to his forehead in mock exasperation. A golden eye cracked open to stare at him judgingly. 'The old ways were when they were private people, and very averse to any type of strangers in their life.' His pose shifted into the thoughtful and playful pose Kurama had become accustomed to during their short stay together. 'It's really fascinating watching this family interact, because they do act like those old time generations, but they go about it in such a modern way.' Kurama distractedly ran his fingers through a stray lock of his hair and tugged at the knot holding the rest of his hair out of his face.

At times like these, when Youko was giving him rather interesting information, he found his mind wandering even as he listened and absorbed the knowledge. The idle part of his brain led his feet to wander down the halls, checking to make sure that there were no wayward feet of a person doing chores or a cat to rub against his leg and trip him or distract him.

He knew what he wanted to look at.

The hallway gradually opened up to him, and he let his gaze wander over the pictures without really seeing them, until he got to the beginning of the hall- farthest from the entryway door.

A glance around told him that the family was out of the way, and there was no one there to interrupt his perusal of the family history captured on the photographs that covered the walls. So his feet took him to the beginning, letting him see a loving couple standing under the shrine gates…a soon-to-be grandfather placing a hand on his daughter's swollen abdomen…a weary looking woman with a smile on her face and a new child in her arms…a young girl child wobbling and struggling to take her first steps…the woman pregnant with another child…a happy family of four…a frazzled but happy looking grandpa chasing around two little kids with dark brown and black hair…relieved parents holding their children to them in a death grip…

Kurama took notice that that particular photograph had been cut out of a newspaper and that Kagome's face, although obscured by the fuzzy detail, was the calm serene mask he had grown accustomed to at this time.

…a young boy with a grin on his face and his eyes squinted closed holding a trophy up in victory and a soccer ball under his elbow with team mates beside him…a young girl precariously balanced on pointe as her tongue stuck out of her mouth in concentration…a sad child gazing out a window with her brother held in her arms…a grandfather smiling gently as he held the hand of his granddaughter and helped her up the shrine steps…

Kurama had almost made it to the middle of the hall with his half hearted perusal, taking note of the more interesting pictures and noticing that most of the photos had no clear shot of the children's faces.

…Souta leaped through the air with a happy grin and closed eyes as the rain came down around him and the foggy figure of a young woman stood farther away…A grandfather had an intense look of meditation on his face as he held his hands in a blessing position, a cat was batting at his ponytail…a group of teens were sticking out their tongues and giving peace signs to the camera as overly large hats covered most of their faces from view, no mistaking the smile though…

Then Kurama stopped.

He had to stop.

Near the middle of the hallway, almost exactly center stood one lone photograph that stood out from the rest- not because of the quality or emotion they evoked from the onlooker, but because of what it captured.

A younger Kagome smiled happily up to the camera from her seat on the bench Kurama knew she sat on near the Goshinboku, her eyes were squinted slightly in serene enjoyment but the color stood out even through the long dark lashes.

Blue and grey.

Powerful.

The happy woman in the picture was nothing like he expected Kagome's eyes to look, they held more power then, a more natural power that seemed to wrap around his soul even from the aged confines of the picture frame.

The quiet shifting of another beside him drew himself out of his awe and Youko's heavy silence to greet the sight of the youngest Higurashi. The young man stood silently at his side, staring into the picture with longing eyes and a wistful smile on his face. "Kagome used to hate getting her picture taken."

Kurama lifted his brows and looked directly at the child. Noticing that although the siblings shared a powerful bond there was things that set them apart. There had been a gap in time where they hadn't been together, because these two children – despite their tight knit relationship – turned out almost as complete opposites.

Kagome was calm serene and had the aura of someone who was used to power and knew how to deal with it. While Souta had a power, that average power of a priest, and he had no clue the extent of what he could do with it. The siblings acted so differently, compared to those who had grown up together and adopted the idiosyncrasies of each other.

There was none of that.

Kurama was drawn out of his thoughts by the quiet swishing of cloth as someone behind them moved a limb. Kurama shifted his eyes to glimpse a feminine hand reaching out to touch Souta. Kurama felt no ill intent so he refrained from doing anything, but Souta jumped when the hand placed itself upon his shoulder.

It just solidified the differences in his mind. Kagome was always alert, always sensing that which was around her so she wouldn't be surprised. Souta still maintained the alertness of a cub, not really taking anything as suspicious unless he was told he was in a life and death situation.

Kurama shook his head as Kagome smiled and whispered something into her younger brother's ears. And they were gone.

…

Kurama settled himself into the shelf of a window in the room they were in, watching the Highers and the servants gather and interact with the miko. He had been mingling earlier, asking rather subtle questions about the origins of the miko, but he had received a wary look from some of the retainers, two in specific: Onigumo and Kikyou.

He had delegated himself to the window seat and proceeded to watch all the gathered demons and the miko; who interacted with grace and ease that should never have existed. He had seen Hiei react to the miko like these people, with no discomfort and no qualms about the fact that she could pose to them a possible threat.

Sesshoumaru was forever within two to five feet away from Kagome, and Kurama watched with some amusement as Kouga and Inuyasha broke out into a verbal spar enough that even though it appeared to be religiously happening it still drew attention away from him for an extended moment.

He risked it and approached the silent servant. Shiori. She had been quiet during the gathering, but he noticed that she was one of the ones that were old enough to have been the same age as some of the Highers, and she seemed to know the miko well. He cautiously approached her and he wondered if the distraction was kami-sent or his downfall.

They did say that curiosity killed the cat…

'Toughen up red, that's a cat we're talking about. Not exactly kami's brightest creature.' Youko's irritated snarl snapped Kurama out of his misgivings, and with that mental push he steadied himself in his approach.

The white haired bat demon glanced up meekly as he approached and as he got closer he was shocked to scent that she was a hanyou. He shook his head slightly to clear it of such meaningless thoughts, at least for the moment. And Youko stilled in his mind as he focused all of his attention on the petite hanyou. "Shiori is it?"

"Hai." Came a soft whisper, caressing his ears and making him wonder how old she was- for although she had those eyes, she didn't have the commanding presence the others seemed to exude from their very being. "You are the avatar that has my Lords so worked up."

Kurama smiled faintly, amused at the wording and amused at how his reputation was in this circle. "I'm afraid that they don't think much of me."

Shiori shook her head innocently before her quiet voice rang out. "Oh no, it is that they think much of you, that you would pose a threat."

Kurama was dumbfounded for a moment. 'A threat?'

'Obviously there is something more going on here.' Youko tilted his head as the calculating gleam came into his eyes. 'I can't wait to find out what.' Kurama tilted his head forward in agreement and smiled genially at the small woman before him. She smiled in return and shifted her feet placidly to scan the room.

Kurama did so as well and noticed the advisor Onigumo talking somewhat heatedly with Kikyou- Kagura's only advisor. The demon of the void was standing off to the side, and Kurama could just make out the amusement in her face. "I can see how one young kitsune avatar would be a problem for a court room full of Highers and their acquaintances."

Shiori glanced up at the amusement laced in his voice, and her small frown greeted his eyes. "You would do well to respect what the Highers feel, they have lived long and they surely wouldn't be here if they considered some paranoia petty."

Kurama brought his hands forward to placate the now angered hanyou, and he took a step back as he hid his grin to establish a respectful distance to the power he felt flare up from the bat. "I meant no disrespect, Barrier-holder; I just can't seem to wrap my mind around what you have confessed."

Shiori seemed to tense at his admission and Kurama mentally joined in with Youko at berating him for his choice of words. He noticed the two distrusting retainers look over their way, and Hiei who had been with the miko sent over a suspicious glare.

He paused for a moment, taking note of the few Youko left to him, and wondering at what Youko saw in who he was studying. The room seemed to pulse with an awareness and suspicion, but it calmed and Kurama turned calculating eyes to the hanyou servant who was gazing wide eyed up at him. He almost smirked, but he was afraid that she would view that as predatory and run before he could get any answers.

"I am sorry for my thoughtless words," he gave her a small nod in apology, "I am just curious about your miko." Youko purred in their mind: 'She took that hook, nice touch there.' Kurama sent a feeling of smugness back to Youko, he too was proud of the possessive pronoun he used in reference to the miko, it set the Highers all at ease. He sent an amiably curious look her way with a small smile. "You don't think that you could tell me a little about her, could you?"

The servant youkai he had been conversing with stiffened and bowed, and Kurama felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand at attention. He turned and raised an interested eyebrow to note the more human looking retainer of the Five standing almost directly behind him.

He hadn't even sensed him in the room….

Onigumo growled and tugged his arm harshly as he pulled Kurama away from the gathered Highers. He followed in a bemused manner, taking note of the way Inuyasha glared at him during his exeunt. His arm had just started to go numb when the retainer released him and turned abruptly. The glare on his face was unwelcoming.

Kurama opened his mouth to ask the reason behind the rough treatment before the retainer growled. Eyes closed in irritation snapped open to glare hard at the fox and he took a step back involuntarily. 'What in the world is his problem?'

Onigumo cleared his throat of any rumble before he addressed him. "You tread on thin ice avatar." Kurama tilted his head and cocked an eyebrow; surely a retainer of the great Lord of the West would be uninterested in a lowly avatar's actions. Just as he opened his mouth to object to the statement he continued. "Kagome- miko is well loved among us Highers. Your actions threaten the peace she has achieved and the safeguards we have set up to protect her," another glare sent his way, "we will not allow it."

Kurama scowled. "You, the cunning and devious retainer of the Lord, are protective of a strong and capable miko? It is enough to make any demon laugh." Onigumo's laughter stopped his tirade, ending any thoughts he entertained of his sanity and purpose. Onigumo obviously had none.

The laughter grew, filling the air in the small alcove off the main room. Kurama thought about leaving quietly, maybe inching his way along the stone wall to reach the archway into the hall- But no. Onigumo's laugh abruptly stopped and he was left staring into a demon's eyes- eyes that were cunning and Machiavellian and evil. Kurama stared.

A manic smile found its place on the retainer's lips, and Kurama watched with stunned detachment as it was directed at him. "You, kitsune, are stupid." Kurama bristled. "You have not yet uncovered all the pieces of the puzzle, and yet you try to solve it with your little knowledge of the true circumstance." He giggled. "Kagome is well loved, she is more than loved. We are her family. We are what accept her for what she is- The Miko without Time." Kurama's face showed his confusion, he had no time to hide it. "You will find yourself unwelcome in the gardens of the Central Lands, the neutral lands, if you continue to delve into past that has no concern to you."

….

"He knows?"

"No," A pause in the shadows, "she is safe and the tales were recovered in time. He has no clue as to the extent of her powers or her influence in time. We will have to watch him though, he is too curious for his own good."

A laugh came from the doorway of the room, greeting the gathered males and causing them to startle and turn towards the voice. The miko stood at the threshold. "This sounds like someone we used to know hmmm?"

Onigumo smiled as his companion blushed sheepishly under the miko's gaze. Her open eyes turned to him, smiling at the corners he could see above the Taijiya mask. She came from training then. "We greet you happily miko."

She nodded and took off her mask, letting it loll around her neck to stay. "I greet you joyfully my brothers." She turned to his companion. "Kohaku…do you find something wrong with my choice of companions?" The young man shook his head vigorously and bowed in apology to their friend. Her hand came out to grasp his chin, pulling it gently until he was looking into her eyes and her smile. "Do not bow to me young one. Your sister was my sister; you do not have to bow to anyone."

Onigumo's smile faded and he watched the proceedings; the young man smiled and hugged her, whispering sweet thanks into her ear before leaving them be. She turned to him, sensing the turmoil of his soul even as he tried his best to hide it. "Onigumo-kun."

He smiled sadly, looking at her briefly before he turned to gaze out into Jinenji's lands, hands grasping the stone pillars beside him. Her presence was felt beside him, joining him in his silent revelry of all the Highers had created with her help. "You are unhappy."

"No!" She looked at him markedly and he lowered his voice. "It is not that I am unhappy, it is that I am guilty." Her face softened and a hand came up to hold his cheek as the other went to hold his covered hand.

"We forgave you."

"I never forgave myself."

Her smile was small, but it was there. "That is usually what holds a person back isn't it." The hand holding his drew it up to their gaze between their faces, fingers interlacing in a show of familiarity and strength. "This is the hand that Miroku was cursed with, this is the hand that he lived with to die, this is the hand that you feel guilt for, and this is the hand that I am proud of."

Onigumo startled, turning fully away from the window to face the creature that spoke so sanctimoniously of him. He could almost feel the words of self-damnation on his lips, even as her gaze stilled his tongue and her smile soothed his soul. His eyes flashed. Our miko.

He settled his rush of emotion and turned away in shame. "I do not deserve such praise, from you of all creatures."

Her gentle laugh filled the room, full of motherly reproach and sisterly affection. "It is mine to give. And so I do." The hand holding his cheek turned him to face her again and again he met her smiling face. "Onigumo, Naraku, the bandit, the thief, the child; those are people of the past. You are a different Onigumo now, as much as you stayed the same, you are my brother here in this time."

His gaze was questioning he knew, she was one of the people that could read the emotions so clearly behind his eyes. "You were seeking your place, the place you felt you deserved. You have realized what it brought you; pain and suffering and isolation- none of which you wanted. You were suspicious of everyone and everything, and that was not life. You realized that." She drew him into a hug, and he felt the stirring of the beast as it recognized her presence and exulted in it. He still couldn't believe that this pure and forgiving creature had forgiven him; enemy of all enemies, bane of all existence and hell spawn to her world.

"I…I still…I don't…"

She laughed quietly again. Their entwined fingers were brought up to his view, much higher than her shorter height, and he found himself looking at the calloused hands of the archer and the smooth hands of the scholar wrapped in beads and cloth. "This is proof that you deserved our forgiveness." She looked into his eyes with her star-eyed pools before she glanced back at their hands. "You were so guilty and worried and sorry that you took upon his curse, you took upon yourself the memory of his curse. You wear the beads and cloth to commemorate the life and pain of one insignificant monk- who meant the world to so few." She smiled and kissed his knuckles drawing him out of his contemplations and drawing him into memories of them.

Strong.

Weary.

United.

Lost.

There.

Cursed.

He had watched them fall, he had felt himself fall, and he had felt remorse. Even with his last cursing breaths he had felt remorse. He had not regretted because he had been caught. No; he had regretted because then he understood. The taijiya had kept a balance when the mikos line faded. The lovers had created a bridge between the worlds. The monk had been the laughter amongst the sorrow. He had taken that.

Onigumo smiled at his time ago epiphany, yet she persisted with her eyes closed as she concentrated on memories so much longer ago for her. "You were so remorseful that you wanted to be reminded of the fact that not everything was worth sacrificing a strangers worth for your goals. You took upon yourself the reminder of your deeds, in the form of your worst atrocity."

Amusement laced through him. "My worst atrocity?"

A huff and a tell-tale quirk of her lips before she hit his arm answered his comment. "Generations Onigumo," Her eyes dulled as they drifted with her into memories, the stars fading almost completely from the complete iris of her gaze as her face relaxed to the stoic look he recalled from his memories; of when she would drift into thought of could-haves and should-haves. This was when her age came forth, the age that no demon would be able to reach- The Miko without Time. "Sango was affected, only losing a brother and father and an unfeeling village- she got those back. Inuyasha and Kikyou were influenced, losing what little trust they had with their relationship and subsequent injuries- they are together even now. But generations…" her eyes focused on him, and her voice became more solid as she drifted back into the present. "I have watched generations and there is nothing worse," she choked on the words and her tears, "nothing more disheartening than knowing that your children will live a life of pain and suffering because you were unable to do anything."

He pulled her to him as his throat closed, knowing that if she was telling it that it was the truth. "I am sorry…"

She cut him off as she continued. "And you took that upon yourself!" The tears in her eyes now weren't of sadness. They were of pride and strength and truth. "Every time I look at you I see a great weight upon your shoulders, one you put there yourself, a guilt that you try to atone for with everything you now do." She smiled brightly even as one stray tear made its way down her cheek; over the faint scar he remembered her getting after the alliance had been made. "You took that guilt and made it your own…you-" She choked on the last words, but Onigumo knew. "I am so proud. I am."

Onigumo smiled even as he felt the burning behind his eyes and in his throat and pulled her closer. She knew, she had watched, she… "You know it is all because of you." He sighed. "I can't take any of this pride you so ill place in me, you are the reason I took the second chance, and you are the reason I understand this guilt…and this forgiveness." she shook her head against his chest even as he held her close and whispered the affirmation into her ears. "You are the miko who affected and touched the lives of all; you are the woman who accepted all with no hesitance; you are Kagome, the one who bore up under so much pressure to change the tainted future of many." Onigumo laughed the sound ringing out as she glanced up at him. "You were the woman-child that saved me even as I taunted you with the last breaths of my previous life." Her laugh joined his now reaching out the open window they stood near, crawling down the halls and rooms, echoing through the heart of the very land itself.

Onigumo paused to listen, he always enjoyed it. She was without time, and as such, the lands had grown to recognize her and her soul. They always reacted to her emotions; you just had to know how to listen. Now the land danced with glee, and he could feel the servants of this castle keep pause in their work to listen to the joyful sound.

He smiled.

"You still laugh."

"And you learned to smile without chains."

Onigumo laughed again, rejoicing in the woman that he knew would accept him. Never hate him and always share a smile and kind word. "Hello Kagome…" he whispered. She heard him. Her face turned up to his and a small smile found its way onto her lips as her eyes brightened even as they softened. Watching him as he drifted into memories…

He slowly felt himself drifting into consciousness, and he wondered at the absence of pain. Even during the aftermath of his hanyou night he felt pain, it was always present. To have him waking – when he rightly should be dead – and not feeling any pain at all caused him to be surprised and a little fearful. He never opened his eyes.

Maybe the angel of death waited for him to open his eyes and whisk him away to the hell he rightly deserved, or maybe he was tied to a post to be taunted like the bear the humans jeered. Maybe he would be in nirvana slowly left to his memories until they caused him to cry out due to some self-inflicted torture…

He had seen it.

-In her eyes nonetheless.

As he had fallen from the last blow she had walked up to him. He had spurned her, taunted her, and feared her. She had whispered only a few words to his ears, words that had wrapped around him and embraced his soul, tainted as it was.

'My name is Kagome,' a smile, 'I hope to see you soon. Greet the dawn.'

He dared not open his eyes now, taking note of the soft bedding beneath him and the unfeeling press of bandages across his torso. The air smelt of herbs and medicine, and the bitter and spicy tang filled his nostrils even as the comforting scent of morning dew and pine came towards him.

A jolt of realization.

She was there. She had saved him. She had given him the second chance. One eye opened slowly, expecting his thoughts to be false and his body to start pulsing with pain. None of this happened and he opened the other eye to gaze around in shock at his surroundings.

The hut was sparse but homely, it was lived in. It was clean and it was welcoming. He turned to the other occupant, one who was watching him with a gentle expression and he understood - he understood it all too well now that he actually noticed it - she would welcome him as well.

'Hello, Kagome.'

Onigumo smiled and stepped away from their miko, placing his hands out and letting the smoky miasma that had become his calling card flow from the channels of his magic. She laughed lightly as it engulfed his form, and he took a deep and ostentatious bow before he grinned and the summoned animal appeared on his upheld and covered wrist.

Kagome smiled at a stray thought he could see flitter across her visage, and he had to balance his arm from his chuckles so his summoned could retain its balance. "Yes I know all about your amusement to my pet dear Kagome. Now come greet your Nero."

Kagome's soft musical laugh greeted him and she walked forward only too happily to greet the large bird that perched upon his wrist. Soft coos escaped her mouth as she stroked the bird's feathers and it pushed further into her touch.

Onigumo smiled, enjoying the fact that such a simple thing could cause such great joy in the complex being known as the miko without time. Onigumo's amusement and joy faded as he watched the duo; yes they were enjoying each other's company, but Onigumo could bet anything he owned…and would probably bet everything he claimed as his – his knowledge, his power and all those considered his unearthly possessions – that for Kagome to see Nero would bring her far more joy…if only…

Kagome smiled and pulled away from the large raven. She stepped closer to him and tilted her face down to his hands that he had let drop to his sides along his robes. "Onigumo," her voice broke into his inner thoughts, "you should not regret that which was given freely." And with that she flung her arm out into the air and the shadowy form of Nero vanished out the window into the Central Lands. Her anomalous smile was the last thing he watched of her as she walked away down the cavernous halls, her footsteps echoing down the stone, and the smell of her hair as it swished behind her form as she disappeared from his sight.

'Oh yes, you gave it so freely miko…but at such a great cost.'

.X.

.x.X.x.

AN:

There, I wrote extra just because I was a little late. XP.

I'm rather disappointed that no one guessed all the retainers shifty eyes (Actually I'm very happy that no one could guess! Adds to the mystery you see; it means I am doing a good job.) But I desist and take pity on you.

Onigumo, as explained in this chapter…pretty neat huh?

Kikyou; briefly mentioned in this chapter as well.

Kouga and Inuyasha: I figured that Inu and Kouga would make excellent advisors together- they would argue against each other's points and suggestions that it would be practically impossible to produce any half-baked idea…(of course that's not accounting for their combined stupidity XP).

Kanna; she's always near Kagura anyway; I couldn't just separate the seemingly close sisters.

Jaken and Toutousai were previously mentioned back in the fourth and third chapters respectively.

Sooo, no, Miroku and Sango are not there…actually the way I worked it no humans are really there. Yeah, you'll see. Oo0o0hh she's planning again…heheh.

Anyway that's that. And I had a question about shinobi- they are ninjas. Naruto and the gang are shinobi; and the Taijiya (especially Kohaku with the Shichinintai) have been often mistaken for Shinobi as well. They are entirely different arts, as shinobi use their soul and body and mind and manipulate it to make their art form, while Taijiya use the natural elements around them (like poisons) and their bodies trained to the ninth to combat demons and protect human villages. Both do get paid though… like I am not getting right now…

O yes, almost forgot. I will try to put in; Kagome's blindness, the final battle, the whole miko without time thing, or more of Kohaku and the gangs past in the next chapter…key word here is try.

THANKS FOR READING AFTER SUCH A LONG WAIT!