Chapter 13: Feelings Determined

It was nightfall as Kagome and Sesshoumaru leapt out of the well. The full moon was large and bright, its white glow reflecting onto Kagome's pale skin, making her looks ghostly, but also angelic.

Sesshoumaru let go on her waist when they landed and both just stood in the moon's glow, taking in the scenery of feudal Japan. Sesshoumaru took a deep breath, letting the sweet clean air fill his lungs.

It was utterly refreshing.

Sesshoumaru was glad to be back. Oh yes, he had missed this place immensely. All the sounds and smells from the other side were gone, and now all that filled his sensitive ears was the sound of Kagome's heartbeat.

Sesshoumaru had decided, he would never be able to live in Kagome's time unless he were human.

Kagome smiled as she looked at the stars and the large moon. It felt good to be back in the feudal era of Japan. It was a calm relaxing place compared to home. Even with the threat of demons and Naraku.

"Sesshoumaru!" Kagome suddenly exclaimed. "I sense Shippou in the village! That means my friends are here, can we please see them real quick?" Kagome looked up at Sesshoumaru and put on her pleading face.

'Oh Kami...' Sesshoumaru silently groaned. Not only did the thought of being near Inuyasha annoy him, but also the fact that Kagome's pleading eyes were actually getting to him. 'No, I will not give in!' He though to himself, however his head nodded a 'yes' instead.

"Oh thank you Sesshoumaru!" Kagome squealed. "I'm so excited!" She skipped happily towards Kaede's hut and Sesshoumaru inwardly sighed. What was becoming of him? Letting this human girl actually get the best of him?

What a softy.

They reached the hut and Sesshoumaru could hear the conversation before they actually got inside. "I wish Kagome was back, she'd know what to do." He heard the monk say with a sigh.

"If Kagome was here none of this would be happening." Sango, gave an identical sigh. What was happening, exactly? Sesshoumaru wondered. But he wouldn't ask any questions. He would know soon enough.

Kagome gave a dramatic entrance as everyone shouted her name with joy. "Kagome!" Her friends leaped up from where they were sitting and ran to the miko, each throwing their arms around her.

"We've missed you." Sango said her voice a little teary.

"I've missed you too, guys." Kagome sighed and then pulled away from her friends. "Come on, let's sit. Tell me how everything is going!" Kagome smiled as they all sat around the fire in the middle of the hut.

Well, everyone sat except for Sesshoumaru. Kagome lengthen the chain for him so he could stand and lean his back against the doorway, as he would have preferred to do. He crossed his arms and kept his eyes on Kagome, half listening to their conversation, half listening outside for any intruders.

"Well..." Miroku looked into the flames when it all got quiet. "I don't know how to tell you this but... for the last week, Kikyou has been traveling with us." Everyone stared at the flames now. They all knew how much it hurt Kagome when Inuyasha and Kikyou were together.

"Are you serious?" Kagome asked, trying to look her friends in the eyes. When none answered, Kagome blew up. "I cannot believe how foolish Inuyasha is being! Doesn't he know that Kikyou WORKS for Naraku? I mean she is the enemy! How could he just put everyone's lives in jeopardy like that? Not to mention she would probably take the last shard straight to Naraku! I mean, damn, she was the one who gave him the majority of the jewel in the first place!"

Her friends exchanged nervous glances. "We tried to tell him this, but he only got angry." Miroku said with a desperate sigh.

"And he tried to say that we need Kikyou because she can sense the shards," Sango's gaze slid over to Sesshoumaru, "And since you and Sesshoumaru were out 'fuckin' around' as he put it, someone had to find the shards." Her gaze went back to the fuming Kagome.

"Fucking around?" Kagome repeated through gritted teeth. "What the hell does he think Sesshoumaru and I have been doing all this time? I mean yeah, sure we went back to my time for a day but that's it! I mean if I can't sense the last damn shard, then I can't sense it. What the hell does he want me to do about it?"

"Well we told Inuyasha that we were going to stay here until..." Miroku's serious gaze fell on the chain as he trailed off. "And of course he got mad saying that it wasn't right we weren't willing to travel with him just because you weren't here. And it's not that Kagome-"

Kagome shook her head and held on her hand to silence him. Her angry eyes soften at Miroku distressed face. "I know, Miroku. Inuyasha knows that too, he just doesn't want to feel guilty about being an ass."

Shippou, who had remained silence through it, put his tiny hands on Kagome's knees. "You're the only one who can get through to him, Kagome." Shippou said and Kagome patted his head affectionately.

"Where is he now?" Kagome looked back at Sango and Miroku.

"We don't know. We recently told him all of this and he stormed out about an hour ago, we haven't seen him since." Miroku closed his eyes, remembering the fight.

"He's nearby." Kagome stood. "I can sense his aura. And I'm going to talk to him. Maybe if I sit him a couple of times something will register in his thick-ass skull." She turned and walked out of the hut, Sesshoumaru close on her heel.

Her friends stood in the doorway and watch the interaction between Sesshoumaru and Kagome.

"Do you want me to come?" Sesshoumaru's voice was low as he spoke to Kagome. She gave a large grin and shook her head.

"No, Snookums, your lover can handle herself." She gave a soft laugh at her sentence. "Grow three-hundred feet." New links began forming and Kagome met Sesshoumaru's gaze. "Seriously though if I need you, I'll just make the chain return... I mean... you know, I'll do my thing."

Sesshoumaru gave one nod and watched her walk into the forest. The thick leaves weren't letting any moonlight shine through and soon Kagome had disappeared into the darkness.

The second that change began to shorten, he would be go to her. His golden orbs fell from the spot where Kagome disappeared to the chain, waiting for the links to begin to disappear.

The friends in the doorway of the hut, forgotten. Although utter shock was written on their face. What was happening between Kagome and Sesshoumaru, they all wondered.

Something was.

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Kagome eyes shifted in the dark forest. The moon, laden behind the leaves, made the dark shadows of the trees seem twice as large. It was scary, and her skin began to prickle.

She could feel Inuyasha's aura stronger now, she knew she was getting closer. Now she just needed to know what the hell she would say to him. But she was thinking along the lines of 'Sit you dumb bastard.' Yeah... that sounded good.

As she got closer, she began to hear voices. One of Inuyasha, the other one... Kikyou. She slowed her pace and crept along and stood behind a tree. Peering around, she spotted Inuyasha and Kikyou, hugging in the middle of a clearing.

Kikyou and Kagome's eyes met.

"Inuyasha..." Kikyou's lips twisted into a dark smile. "What does Kagome mean to you?"

"Nothing." Inuyasha whispered huskily.

Kagome's mouth dropped as Kikyou's mouth curved into a sadistic smile. 'That bastard! Nothing? Oh I'll show him nothing!' Kagome thought angrily as she sprung from the forest. "SIT! SIT SIT SIT SIT SIT!" After the last 'sit' Kagome was panting.

Inuyasha's body laid in the newly made crater. Kagome hovered over him, her anger exploding. "NOTHING! I mean NOTHING to you! What the hell Inuyasha! I mean for the last year I've collected shards, made you breakfast, lunch, and dinner, cared for your wounds, and Kami knows what else and you're going to say I mean NOTHING!"

"The least you could have said was, 'She's just a shard detector', that's better than NOTHING." Kagome fumed. Inuyasha slowly got to his feet. He couldn't look Kagome in the eyes, so instead he stared out the ground.

Kagome shook her head with frustration. "Dammit Inuyasha. I just thought we were friends. I mean I wouldn't deny our friendship to anyone. If Sesshoumaru asked me what you meant to me I would say-"

"Kagome it's just-" Inuyasha cut her off but then Kagome interrupted him.

"It's just too bad, Inuyasha. Listen I don't care if you made some promise to Kikyou to go to hell with her. But don't expect your friends to follow. They didn't choose to give up their lives for this wench." Kagome said in a low tone with a hint of disgust.

Her angry sapphire orbs slid over to Kikyou's silent form. "And you." She spat with disgust. "We are suppose to mikos, Kikyou. Pure of heart and soul. And just because you don't have soul doesn't mean you need to go all bitter and work with satan himself! I'm ashamed you are even apart of the miko clan." She shook her head and then looked back at Inuyasha.

"Have fun with your choice, I couldn't give a damn." She said with a shrug and then walked into the forest.

When Kagome was a ways away from the clearing, she stopped and let out a long breath. Her legs were sore from all the shopping she did today and her energy was completely drained.

Sitting down in front of a tree, Kagome hugged her knees and rested her head on them. So much has happened in the short time that she came back. So many things were floating around in her mind.

But nothing was going on in her heart.

It was shocking, it truly was, but Kagome didn't feel any hurt or pain. Annoyance, yes, she was annoyed at Inuyasha that he couldn't stick up for their friendship. And she knew that he didn't mean what he said to Kikyou but still, the bastard.

And at this moment in time Kagome knew how she felt towards the hanyou. It was simple. She didn't love him, she never really did. It was more just an infatuation or a simple crush...not love.

Inuyasha didn't really know Kagome. He didn't really know all of her ins and outs and the little things that made her Kagome. In fact it was because of Inuyasha that Kagome never felt she could actually be herself. She always felt she had to be a mirror of Kikyou. And that was all she could be.

It was weird, the sensation she was feeling. It was almost like she was floating. She had just ran into Kikyou and Inuyasha alone together and she felt nothing... now, why was that?

Kagome wouldn't let herself answer that question... she was almost afraid too.

"Ugh..." Kagome moved head against the tree. She was so tired. After walking around all day and then having that outburst with Inuyasha, the girl was drained. And the last thing she wanted to do was walk two-hundred more feet to Sesshoumaru.

A wry smile twisted at her lips.

Why walk? She had the power to bring Sesshoumaru directly to her. "Return to three feet." She commanded and then got on a sad face, she put her head back on her knees and looked forlorn.

Sesshoumaru was there in seconds, his hand firmly grasping the hilt of Tokijin. "Kagome what's wrong?" His voice low and cold and he searched the dark trees. Slowly Kagome lifted her head to meet his golden orbs.

Her eyes were pleading and her face held no smile. "Sesshoumaru." She said softly. "Can you carry me back to the Western Lands..." Her voice was almost childish and Sesshoumaru shook his head with disbelief as he let go of Tokijin's hilt. "It's just I'm so tired and..." She looked away as she began her plea. But soon stopped and was utterly shocked when Sesshoumaru didn't hear a word of it and just scooped her in his arms in mid-sentence.

"Let's go." He grunted and they ascended to the clouds.

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Sesshoumaru landed on his balcony outside of his room at his castle. He looked down at the sleeping girl he held tightly in his arms. Not too long after they took off, Kagome had fallen asleep. Now she laid peacefully in his arms.

Walking to his door, Sesshoumaru skillfully opened it without dropping Kagome. He walked into his large room and went straight to his bed. Gently he laid her down on the soft bed and nearly smirked when she whimpered from the lack of warmth.

Ever so slowly he took off his armor and then got in next to her. Within minutes, her head was on his lap. But this time, he picked it up so he could lay down, and then placed her head on his chest. She snuggled close to him and he felt his arm wrapped around her tiny frame all on its own.

What was this Kagome becoming to mean to him? He couldn't let himself answer that. He didn't want too. He didn't know what would change if he did. Right now she making him want to do one thing: sleep with her in his arms. It was just all too tempting.

Closing his eyes, he let the sweet intake of her scent calm him. The rhythm of her breathing began to sooth his mind and soon he felt it drift away, the shores of sleep finally taking him.

The youkai was asleep.

End of Chapter

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Moonchild: So... as I was making the title of the chapter, I was a tad worry that my readers, you, would be mislead into thinking that the feelings between Kagome and Sesshoumaru were determine when really...

Kagome: It was my feelings of Inuyasha that were being determined. He's a pig.

Inuyasha: And you're a-

Kagome: Sit.

.Thump.

Sesshoumaru: Well this fic is moving right along, ever so slowly.

Moonchild: Yeah... sorry about that... school. School should die.

Sesshoumaru: School is a thing therefore it cannot die.

Moonchild: Shut it, they know what I mean and yes it can.

Sesshoumaru: Listen wench...

Moonchild: Anyways did anyone notice the classic 'clearing scene' was in there?

Kagome: I did!

Inuyasha: The what?

Moonchild: You know the clearing scene where Kagome always sees you and Kikyou together and then she runs off into Sesshoumaru?

Inuyasha: Oh yeah, that.

Moonchild: Yeah that, well I added the clearing scene, REMIX! Tehe. First, Kagome told them off, and second, she called Sesshou to her because she was tired. Hehe.

Kagome: Yup! The Clearing, Remix style!

Moonchild: I like that. Oh and doesn't Sesshoumaru seem like the kind of guy who would sleep with his shoes on? I think so, lol. Anyways thanks so much for you reviews! Thanks for all of your lovely words of encouragement and please continue to send them! But no flames! They give me writer's block.