Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters.

A/N: We're back at the western palace at the beginning of this chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter Seventeen: Decisions

"Sesshomaru!" his mother bellowed just before opening the door and destroying the peace in his office. She made him want to sigh a lot lately.

It was a little over a week after his encounter with the half-demon and the miko, and there was still no news. But Sesshomaru had a lot of patience, after all.

"Good afternoon, mother," he greeted her, not even raising his eyes from the letter on his hands.

"What did you do?" she asked while closing the door behind her.

"Concerning what?" he continued to keep his gaze on the said letter, not even sparing her a glance.

"Your brother, obviously. I received news he is quite angered with you at the moment. I presume you went to talk with him and said the wrong thing. Your demeanour is not always the most amiable, after all," she concluded, leaning back into the chair graciously and adjusting the mokomoko on her shoulders.

"Look at the pot calling the kettle black." Sesshomaru rolled his eyes inwardly just before answering, "I suppose I should thank you for my amiable demeanour, mother. And I would like to meet these sources of yours one day; they seem to be up-to-date."

She dismissed his last sentence with a waving hand, "It doesn't matter how I know it, son. Now, answer my question. How did it go?"

"I explained to them my... hn... need of an heir. The half-demon wasn't inclined to give in, so I commented on how living at the castle would be beneficial for them. After all, they do live among humans, and sooner or later, they will have to deal with the death of their loved ones. In particular, I am inclined to think the miko will have more difficulties dealing with it; a human heart is such a weak feature. But that is life for humans," he elaborated nonchalantly.

His mother shook her head, not even a little bit amused. He was hopeless. "I should have known you would have dealt the whole matter like this, my son. I thought you knew your brother a little better than that."

"Indeed, I do. The miko will seek me sooner than later," he predicted with a lot of confidence in his voice.

"I won't be so sure if I were you, Sesshomaru," his mother replied. "You practically went there demanding him to be your heir explaining the whole thing as if you were offering him something and not the other way around. Should I remind you that you need this alliance more than him? Right now, they live quite a peaceful life in the village. Why should they decide to come here where they could face, more likely than not, adversities due to their mixed breed? Again, you could have done better."

"Hn. You do not know the miko, mother. She would do anything for Inuyasha. If that means assuring him a place where to live once all of their friends die, she will come and stipulate an agreement," Sesshomaru stated presumptuously.

"She won't come if you keep acting like this, Sesshomaru. You belittle her mate. Why should she come? Try and speak with your little human pet; that's the only advice I'm giving you now." That said, she left again. She had already told him a lot. Her son was once again lost in thought.

Sesshomaru had never in his life had to seek favours, much less from people he had always considered inferior. Now he found himself having to ask his half-brother for one, and Inuyasha was playing hard to get. So why was his mother insisting he come back to them to negotiate his offer a second time? He remembered well how she had despised the thought of a half-demon born of her late mate.

Now, instead, she was at the root of all that mess. If she hadn't been so insistent, and if Sesshomaru hadn't listened to her in the first place, he wouldn't be forced to think about how to get Inuyasha and his family on his side.

Back to the village so soon? Was he supposed to swallow his pride to this extent? Maybe he should pay Rin another visit.

"Look at them! They become more beautiful every day," Kagome said while looking at Emi and Kimiko giggling in their mother's arms. "Miroku will have to be on alert as soon as they become of age."

"It will be fun to watch," Shippo chuckled. He was helping them do the laundry along with little Rin.

"Maybe one of them will fall in love with your son, Kagome-chan. That way, we could become sisters for real," she proposed. Her hands stopped for a moment, and her eyes gleamed.

"I don't think so, Sango-chan," Shippo interrupted her before she could keep dreaming. "Muteki will probably age like humans at first, but that doesn't mean he would reach that maturity as fast as they do. Demons are different; we do not 'marry' so young. After all, we have all the time we wish. Look at Sesshomaru, he is probably centuries old, and he still does not show signs he wants to take a mate. Inuyasha mated considerable young according to demon standards. Marriage won't even be in Muteki's dream when the twins will be eligible," he explained while he was passing Rin other clothes to scrub.

"Really?" Kagome asked, "I didn't know it; Inuyasha never told me," she said thoughtfully. Muteki was quietly napping on her back as she hung the clothes to dry off.

"He probably doesn't know either. It's not like he lived among demons, and we all know how much Myoga is reliable most of the time," Shippo offered. They all nodded sagely.

"Why do you know these things then, Shippo-chan?" Rin asked. "You live among humans too, after all."

"It's different, Rin-chan. At least I lived among demons until my parents died, and my father used to tell me this kind of thing; it does not matter if I was young back then," the fox kit explained again. "Inuyasha, on the other hand, lived with his human mother and then was alone for most of his life. Things like that didn't matter to him."

"It's not like you're much older now," Rin giggled.

He snorted and pouted. Inuyasha was starting to rub off on him. "Yeah, because you are an adult now, humph. Besides, when I leave the village to train with other fox demons, I spend lots of time with them too, and I'm quite the observant type," he stated proudly, puffing out his chest. "I know a lot about demon society. What do you think?"

Kagome patted him on the head. "That's good, Shippo-chan. It means Inuyasha and I will have to rely on you when Muteki grows up, and Myoga is not available," she praised him. He looked highly pleased with the prospect of helping her.

"Speaking of Inuyasha, Kagome, have you seen his brother since last week?" Sango inquired.

Kagome shook her head, and Rin answered for her, "Sesshomaru-sama does not come back so soon, Sango-chan. I usually wait one or two months before he comes to visit again."

"I don't know, Rin. I have the feeling we will see him earlier this time," she winked at her.

Just as Kagome had predicted, one week later, Sesshomaru was spotted at the outskirts of the village, in the proximity of Kagome and Inuyasha's little mansion.

He had visited Rin a few days after meeting with his mother and even made a point of being noticed by the young priestess, but she had shown no signs of interest. She had gone on as if nothing had happened, ignoring him completely, and from what the little girl had later said, the chances of her seeking him out as Sesshomaru had hoped were slim.

Indeed, as soon as Sesshomaru had approached Rin, the child had exclaimed that, just as Kagome had predicted, he had come to visit her very soon. The dog demon had bared his fangs at that thought; the miko had the nerve to think such things about him, trying to predict his actions as if he were a mere human. Yet, as his mother had said, what he had hoped for had not come true. Sesshomaru had indeed returned to the village too soon for his liking.

Now on the edge of the forest that bore his half-brother's name, he was trying hard not to start on the warpath. Inuyasha was already hot-tempered enough for both of them. The dai-youkai had to remember he was doing all this to shake off the council elders who kept demanding an heir from him. Besides, it would be tremendously fun to see everyone's face when he finally presented them one, but different than what they expected.

He smirked at the thought; he could have his fun this way. After all, Inuyasha may have been a half-demon, but he was no longer that whelp who had been sealed to a tree for fifty years. At least he could confirm that he had become more worthy of having the blood of the late Inu-no-Taisho in his vein.

The little family had just come back from the future; they had been dining with Kagome's family to celebrate the end of the school year. Now Kagome had a couple of weeks to relax before the start of the last year of high school, and they will likely spend less time going back and forth between the two eras.

As soon as Inuyasha sensed his aura, he told Kagome to stay inside with Muteki while he dealt with his bastard of a brother. Kagome hoped the meeting went better than the last.

Inuyasha was waiting outside his house, a hand on his sword, ready to attack him, when Sesshomaru descended in front of him with his usual grace. "I thought I made myself clear last time, bastard," he spat out.

"Always so coarse, little brother," Sesshomaru said, unfazed by his show.

"No one asked for your opinion, brother," he replied. "What are you doing outside my house again? I don't want you on my property."

"I came to... Hn... clear our altercation from last time."

"It seemed fine with me. I told you I didn't want to have anything to do with you. I don't see why you saw the need to come and taint the air in the village again."

"Maybe I realized I was a little too, Hn, conceited last time we spoke, and I didn't make myself exactly clear. I want to explain better that agreement of ours..." he went on, ignoring Inuyasha's continuous jibes.

"You spoke as if I've already agreed," he snorted. Inuyasha waited for a few seconds and then spoke again, "Well, then, why don't you speak up then." He made no signs he was going to let him in. At that moment, Kagome approached him from behind with Muteki in her arms and squeezed his arm significantly. "Keh, fine." He stepped aside to let him pass.

"Your son has father's colours," Sesshomaru stated as soon as they all were settled near the fire. It was the first time he had the time to observe him closely. He had the same silver hair and golden eyes from their father side but wore a clearer resemblance to the miko in the face's features.

"Keh, he does. But Kagome's grandfather says he looks almost identical to her father when he was a baby." Inuyasha shrugged.

"Hn," the dai-youkai murmured. The pup kept looking at him curiously, and at some point, he started wriggling in his mother's arms and leant towards him almost like he expected him to pick him up. Sesshomaru eyed him suspiciously.

"And your miko's family did not have anything to say about your, mmm, union?" Sesshomaru pried. Inuyasha shot him a death glare, growling at the implication of his sentence. As if it was expected for him to encounter some obstacles of that kind; as if it was obvious that anyone should oppose him because of his very nature, thus Kagome's family going against their mating. He clenched his fists and prepared to talk back. However, his mate spoke first.

"Yes, my family had certainly something to say..." she started quite angered at Sesshomaru's behaviour. He still didn't want to give up his cockiness. "My mother was very happy when Inuyasha asked for my hand; she had always known we loved each other and approved wholeheartedly. She treats him like a son, and my little brother treats him as a brother, something you should learn to do it too," she jibed, not caring about the death glare the dai-youkai was sending her way. "As for my grandfather, he was the happiest when our son was born. I don't know for sure what did you expect the answer to be, even if I can imagine, but maybe, you should know that not everyone is biased or holds some kind of prejudices towards who is different," she concluded proudly, taking Inuyasha's hand and intertwining their fingers. Inuyasha was smirking now, gazing at her with so much pride that Sesshomaru could have scoffed at his display. Yet, he was not surprised at the miko's way of speaking in defence of his brother; it was not the first time after all.

"So?" Inuyasha inquired, "You said you wanted to clear the air, do it then and stop being an asshole."

Sesshomaru fixed him with beady eyes but spoke again nonetheless. "I know I said I wanted you to become my heir, but that does not mean that you will have to come living at the palace anytime soon. You would be free to come and go as you wish, and if in fifty or sixty years you change idea, there will be no opposition. All I ask is you grant me some time in the beginning. I will have to present you and your family to the court, and people would want to see you, verify your suitability maybe, but they won't have any say in the matter anyway. It would only be to ensure stability and make sure no disagreement arise. Your position as heir requires your presence at the council or court a couple of times per month and your help in battle should we need it. That would, of course, change once I have my own heir and he becomes of age; you will be relieved from your position and will be acknowledged as simply our father's second son. However, in this last case, your position in demon society won't change; no one would be able to undermine your authority or your family's," he explained. He had given them plenty enough to change their idea.

"Who assures me my family's safety within the keep, Sesshomaru?" Inuyasha finally asked after a couple of minutes. "I saw how your kind had always treated me, belittled me, even if I was father's son. That didn't change anything; they simply considered me a mistake. We will be surrounded by demons, and no one guarantees me they won't try to attack or kill us just because we are not full-fledged demons. They could decide to free the world from those abominations. Try and see all of this from my perspective. I'm fine with my life now, become your heir would only place a target on my back."

"The only father's enemies that remained had been destroyed by us. Right now, there would be few ones who would dare to try and go against me. I assure you I already know every one of them, and they are notable inferior to both of us. Your fame is known in the West too, your and your mate's. They know you were the one to destroy Naraku and the sacred jewel, every tale I heard of praises your miko's prowess. If you were to come, no one would be so foolish to try and assault any of you. Besides, I have my trusted allies and guards; you will never be left on your own. I cannot assure you there will be no one who will find faults with the rising of a half-demon, but I guarantee you will be all protected enough."

"Is there any other reason you're asking us to come to the West now, Sesshomaru?" Kagome pried. "When you brought Rin in the village and implicitly asked us to protect her, you showed no sign of wanting any kind of alliance between us. In the year and a half she has lived in the village, you've never acknowledged our presence if not that one time you brought me some shards. What caused this change of heart?" She smoothed her hakama to try and hide her worry for a moment. Muteki had requested to be put in his father's arms after being denied by his uncle, and he was now sleeping comfortably. "And please, try not to lie to us. It's quite clear something else is at stake. If all of this was just because of the need for an heir, you would have asked Inuyasha's presence sooner. You came now, instead. Why?"

"Quite observant," Sesshomaru thought. "You're right, miko, that is not all. While Inuyasha pose as my heir will stop the elders from pressing me into a union I am not interested in, it is also true that an alliance between the both of us could also be helpful in the future. You two are not the same you were the first time we met in father's tomb. You both grew a lot; Inuyasha had mastered the Tessaiga and now has several techniques at his disposal. On the other hand, you have learned to control your powers, which we know are even stronger because there is no seal placed upon them anymore. I also know you keep studying to increase them with the old miko; Rin told me so," he explained.

"I must be dreaming, Kagome," Inuyasha interrupted. "Not only is the bastard speaking a lot of words more than I've ever heard him speak, but he is also appraising us." He turned to his brother and asked, "Alright, I ask again, where is the catch? You're not the type to give compliments away, let alone to half-demons or humans."

Sesshomaru smirked, "I was merely explaining the reason why I think you could be formidable allies." This was certainly the first time he used that word regarding another demon; Inuyasha was right. "But no, I was not finished. Unfortunately, you tend to interrupt people while they are speaking."

Inuyasha waved a hand and signalled to him to continue.

"I also think that in time your son would prove himself valuable, if given the chance and with due training, as I already told you last time we spoke. He may have less demon blood in him, and probably this would mean less strength or endurance. However, I am sure he will make good use of the powers that come from his mother. He and every other child you will have could become worthy assets should a situation arise. Last but not least, I could make good use of your mate's peculiar knowledge in the future."

Kagome and Inuyasha stiffened; he tried to grab his sword when he realized that Muteki was a hindrance to his movements. Kagome was the first to speak, "What do you mean with my 'peculiar knowledge'?"

He smirked again, and Kagome found that she didn't like when he did so. "I may know of your origins, Miko," he answered, enjoying the way he was causing them discomfort.

Inuyasha swiftly passed his son to Kagome and got up. "Bastard! Have you been following us? How do you know about the place Kagome comes from?"

"I may have observed you a couple of times," he explained. He left out that his mother was the first one to do it. "I had all the elements necessary to resolve your mystery. Plus, it is not as if Rin's kept in the dark about the matter." He noticed how ashen they became while he was speaking and waved off their concern. "Do not fret; no one could figure you have been travelling through time."

"We trust Rin to keep her trap shut about that particular matter like we trust our friends who are currently aware of Kagome's origin. However, I can't say the same for you now. Do you have any idea of the ruckus you could create if you let that piece of information slip? Or if the wrong person was to find out?" Inuyasha bellowed.

Muteki stirred, Sesshomaru noticed and commented, "Quiet, little brother or you will wake your son up," he paused and then spoke again. "I think it should be high time you start trusting me; after all, you will have to if you decide to come West with me. As for the other matter, do not underestimate me, Inuyasha." He narrowed his eyes, "I may not be able to travel through time, but I am well aware of what would happen should something happen to that portal or should someone find out. Your secret is safe with me."

"You are telling me to start trusting you?" Inuyasha chuckled, but his laughter held no amusement.

"Then you'd be also aware that I can't give you information about the future, Sesshomaru," Kagome stated. "Should I give you the wrong information, you could also change history, and that can't happen. Both the best or the worst of human history. The future is settled, should just a little thing change, everything else could too. Do not forget that your future is also my past or my parent's past,"

"Understandable," Sesshomaru agreed. "However, I do not ask you to give me information that I could use to change your past. I am asking you to give me enough to assure the demons' existence. For instance, battles or places to avoid. I do not wish to interfere with what may or may not happen."

She nodded, "And you said we can be sure our secret is safe with you?" He tilted his head, acknowledging her, "Ok. I choose to trust you with this one, Sesshomaru, do not disappoint me," she said firmly. She really believed him. After all, they would have to start trusting each other sooner or later, if what Sesshomaru had said in the future was true. They would have to work together once they went into hiding, and her knowledge would be really useful in that case. She sent Inuyasha a significant look before he could protest. They would talk better about it after Sesshomaru left and they were alone.

"Good. I will take my leave now, then. I will talk with the elders about acknowledging you as my heir, Inuyasha. I will send word after that to get a definite answer." He got up and bid them goodbye, "Little brother, miko."

"Ok, bastard, but if we have to do this shit, you'll have to start calling my mate properly; she has a name, you know?"

He nodded and left without another word.

"Well, that was something," Kagome said.

A/N: And that was the beginning of their fantastic relationship together. I'm kidding, there is still a lot to do but at least they are starting to find common ground. Inuyasha isn't totally convinced yet but Sesshomaru and Rin's presence in the future will play a big role in his final decision. Still, even after that Inuyasha and Sesshomaru's relationship will grow little by little, and Sesshomaru's will have to earn forgiveness.

Until then every constructive comment or opinion is highly appreciated.