Chapter Seven: A Change of Mind

Kagome hadn't sensed it at first, but a crackling in the air caught her attention. It was a demonic aura unlike she had ever sensed before and it sent chills up her spine. She felt her heart race and her stomach turning at the thought of what they may be fighting up there. Even Naraku had not come up with a spawn as potent and dangerous as what she could feel while hidden inside the hut. She opened her mouth, finding it hard to breathe through her nose. Was this the demon that wanted her dead?

Kagome looked down to Shippo, who had woken up and began covering his ears and shaking. She took the boy in her arms and held him close. His entire body was shaking and he held onto her so tight. That feeling brought Kagome's arms tighter around him. She needed him to feel safe and she couldn't provide that right now. She and Kaede were the only ones left in the hut. When Kagome looked up to Kaede, she could see beads of sweat sliding down her face. Seeing Kaede so affected by this scared her most of all. She glanced out the hut window and then to Shippo, realizing that he was not safe and that would not do.

"Kaede." Kagome called her name, but got no response, so she called out again.

"Y-Yes, child?" Kaede spoke as calmly as she could, but knew she was not hiding her fear well.

"Do me a favor, please?" Kagome asked.

"Anything, child. What do you need?" Kagome moved onto her knees and walked over to Kaede. She placed Shippo in the old woman's arms, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Take him." Kagome begged.

"Wh-What?" Shippo asked in shock.

"Kagome, why?" Kaede's eye widened.

"You know why. We can all sense it and it's after me." Kagome said with a tear falling for each word struggling from her labored breathing, "Take him, take a horse, and run."

"Kagome, I can't do that." Kaede shook her head.

"Kaede!" Kagome grabbed Kaede's shoulders, "Shippo is the most important thing in my life. He is my son and he is not safe here. Neither are you. I am asking you to take my son to safety."

"Momma, no." Shippo jumped out of Kaede's arms and into Kagome's, "Please, I don't wanna go."

"Shippo, sweetie, you have to." Kagome said and looked into his eyes. She remembered all the things he was forced to watch and how he always had her back. He had gotten hurt before, risked his life for her, and would end up doing such a thing again. "I love you, you know that, right?"

"Y-yes!" Shippo said, wiping tears away as he was placed back in Kaede's arms.

"Then go with Kaede and I will either be with you again, or I won't. If I am, then great, but if the worst should happen," Kagome's face distorted for a moment as she held back tears and took a breath, "Know that you are the best thing that has ever happened to me and that I want you to grow up big, strong, and with a good heart. Always stay kindhearted."

"O-Okay." Shippo shook as Kagome kissed his forehead.

"Now go." Kagome demanded of Kaede and then she yelled again when Kaede hesitated, "GO."

Kaede got up and ran out of the hut, heading the opposite way of the battle and toward the village stables. Once they were gone, Kagome buckled over herself and began sobbing heavily. She had to cover her mouth to make sure no one else could hear her, but the fact that she was forced to send her son away so soon after they became Mother and Son was crushing the spirit she was trying to heal. The only thing she knew had to happen here was that Shippo was sent to safety. He survived so much, but this demonic aura she sensed was nothing to be trifled with. She won't ever risk her son's life. Not again.

It took her a minute or two to regain her composure and calm down enough to stand. When she did, she stood up and started out of the hut. She stopped at the door and looked back to her bow. She reached out to grab it, but stopped. This demon was powerful and this bow was useless in her hands no matter how much she had been practicing. Her powers were gone and so she did not grab it. She walked out of the hut without a weapon in hand and began walking up the stairs and toward the sound of fighting.

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This demon didn't say a single word to Sango or Inuyasha. It rushed forward as fast as lightning, a speed that only one other demon Inuyasha knew to have. It's first target was Sango, who had no time to react to such an attack. Inuyasha brought himself between Sango and their attacker and unsheathed Tetsusaiga just in time to use the large blade as a shield. However, he was still pushed back into Sango and both of them went flying. They landed with a hard thud and rolled before stopping.

Inuyasha was the first to his feet and was once again forced to shield Sango with Tetsusaiga. A little more ready for the strength this time, he was able to stop it without being blown away. He yelled as he pushed back and the demon jumped back away from him. He rapidly shot out a Windscar, not wanting to give the demon another time to attack. The Windscar was about to strike him, but he jumped in the air and somehow changed his trajectory midair and shot toward Inuyasha.

Inuyasha jumped out of the way and the demon's claw hit the ground. The ground beneath was turned into a crater that spread far enough that Sango also had to jump away. The debris crumbled into dust and the demonic aura turned the grass and stone to ash. Inuyasha and Sango looked on in horror.

"This power… I've never even heard of such a thing." Sango said as she took a few steps back. Her movement seemed to catch the demon's attention because he looked over to her, his smile widening and showing off his elongated fangs. The look in its eyes sent shivers all over her body. She braced herself and put the hiraikotsu up like a shield, "Who are you and why do you want our friend dead?"

"Hm?" the demon raised an eyebrow and tilted his head, showing the first sign of understanding they had seen, but then just smiled and charged Sango again. The dash closed the distance before Inuyasha could get there, but the hiraikotsu took the brunt of the damage, a chunk of the bone-made weapon being broken off. Sango was sent flying. Midair, she lost her grip on the hiraikotsu. It dropped to the floor and she continued rolling after landing hard.

The demon was ready to charge Sango once more and finished the job, but Inuyasha interrupted his movement with a well-aimed swing of his blade. Unfortunately, this demon's reaction time was higher than expected and it dodged the Tetsusaiga with little effort. However, the attack did get its attention back on Inuyasha, which is where Inuyasha wanted it. Since Sango was hurt, the only one that could fight this thing was Inuyasha himself. Inuyasha took a few steps to the side, putting himself between Sango and the demon, who seemed to find the attempt amusing because he sneered and smirked.

"You gonna answer the question or not?" Inuyasha said, but didn't really give time for it to answer before firing out another Windscar. He expected it to dodge, but that's not what happened.

"Heh…" the demon breathed out as the Windscar hit and over took him. It only lasted a few seconds. Once it was revealed again, the demon stood without a mark on him.

"He took the full brunt of the Windscar and nothing happened?" Inuyasha shouted frustratedly, "Damn you. What kind of monster are you? And what problem do you have wi-… K-Kagome?"

The demon saw the sudden fear in Inuyasha's eyes, but knew that the fear wasn't sparked by his presence, so it looked back to see what exactly Inuyasha was looking at. When he looked back, he saw Kagome standing there. She was a young black-haired woman with strange clothing. He looked back at Sango, then at Kagome, then at Sango again, and then pointed at Kagome as if he had some sort of epiphany.

"Ah." The demon nodded and went to charge Kagome, but Inuyasha once again stopped his attempts with a Windscar. This time, the demon was struck by it, but wasn't harmed enough to stop him completely. He felt the searing pain on his back and looked to Inuyasha, his eerie blue eyes narrowing angerily. Suddenly, his demonic aura flared up, lightning striking at a farther range around the battlefield, and he ran toward Inuyasha again. His speed must have doubled because Inuyasha had no time to dodge. The pain was sudden and unbearable. The demon's hand shoved completely through his chest, a wound he had before, but when the lightning this man had struck down from the sky and shot throughout his entire body, he could only yell in pain. The shock kept coming and coming and coming.

"STOP IT." Kagome screamed at the top of her lungs and the lightning stopped.

The demon looked toward her, a curious expression on his face. He dropped his arm and Inuyasha slowly slipped down and off, blood splattering everywhere. The demon began walking toward Kagome, holding a hand out as lightning began to form in the palm of his hand.

Kagome was frozen in fear. Sango was down and Inuyasha was unconscious. She had no weapon and no power to use it even if she did. She was able to see the speed of this demon and knew nothing could save her from this fate, but that did not stop her from trying to think of something. As the demon approached, Shippo, Sango, Miroku, Kaede, and Inuyasha's safety came to mind. She saw times with them flashing through her head, felt the love and pain they had experienced together. There was a high chance that people she loved were going to die here today. She doubted this wild demon would stop with her. There was only one idea, one thing that came to her mind to stop this demon.

"S-Sesshomaru… P-Please." She choked the words out in desperation, through tears brought on because of the fear of death, as the demon raised his hand and shot a powerful bolt of blinding yellow lightning at her chest, "Save us."

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Miroku ran off a different direction than his friends with a different mission on his mind. He could sense where Sesshomaru was standing. The demon wasn't moving and he was going to speak with him. As he ran out of the village and into the forest, he stopped for a moment when he sensed that demonic aura spread over the land. He hesitated, but forced himself to continue forward, having to trust his friends to take care of themselves for now.

Soon, Miroku came upon Sesshomaru, who seemed to be waiting for him. The moment Miroku saw him, a rage overwhelmed his heart and he removed the prayer beads from his hand and opened the Wind Tunnel without a moment of hesitation.

Sesshomaru could sense the monk on his way, so when he was close, he faced him and expected to be bombarded with more questions. He didn't even draw his blade. However, he was not expecting the immediate release of that blasted Wind Tunnel. For a brief moment, his eyes widened and he grabbed Tokijin and slammed it into the ground to brace himself.

"You did this, didn't you?" Miroku shouted angrily at him, but got no answer, "You've been sending demons at her to get rid of her? To hide the evidence of an act that you're ashamed of?"

"I am ashamed of nothing!" Sesshomaru shouted back over the howling wind, his foot digging into the dirt as he began being drawn in.

"Bullshit! You can't kill her or us yourself because of that damn mark, so you're sending others to target her for you, aren't you?" Miroku yelled, demanding answers as he walked closer with Wind Tunnel going to make the force trying to suck Sesshomaru in even stronger.

"Enough of this!" Sesshomaru commanded as he slipped into a kneeling position, sinking a claw into the ground and forcing Tōkijin deeper into the ground. He realized that this Wind Tunnel may actually work.

"I thought you were better than this, Sesshomaru!" Miroku yelled, "This is the devious act that only an evil human would commit! It's pathetic and was something I thought beneath you. I guess even a demon like you could get desperate, can't you?"

"I am NOT desperate."

"THEN WHAT DO YOU CALL IT?"

Miroku and Sesshomaru glared at each other, testing the others will. Sesshomaru was the one to take a deep breath. He closed his eyes and Miroku took that as a sign of defeat. He withdrew the Wind Tunnel and reapplied the prayer beads. This action surprised Sesshomaru and the demon stood up and was tempted to attack Miroku now.

"You stopped. Why?" he asked.

Miroku was silent for a moment, contemplating the answer. He just shook his head.

"I don't know." He said and looked through a few trees and toward the village. He could see a few huts down the hill they were standing on, but most of all, he could see the battlefield and sense the demonic aura that made his skin crawl, even from this distance. He rubbed his arms to lessen the goosebumps. His eyes widened as he walked through the trees. "Oh god, no." he said as he stepped through and saw Sango down and Kagome walking up the stairs, "Kagome, what are… She's going to sacrifice herself."

"Mm." Sesshomaru said, startling the monk that didn't think he had followed.

"What?" a familiar voice caught the two's attention. They turned back to see Shippo and Kaede on a horse. Shippo jumped off the horse and ran over to them.

"Shippo, no." Miroku grabbed the boy, but he squirmed out of Miroku's arms to look anyway. The child immediately began trembling and went to jump down the hill, but Miroku caught him, "No."

Kaede came up behind them just in time to see Inuyasha get impaled through the chest by the demon's arm. The old woman watched the scene, tears washing over her left cheek.

"S-Sesshomaru, c-can you help them? P-Please." Kaede begged desperately and Shippo and Miroku both looked up at him, "I know you don't get along with your brother, b-but that's a huge part of my family down there and I don't want to out live them. I don't want to bury another person I love."

Sesshomaru stayed quiet, not moving a muscle as he watched the battle. Inuyasha's scream could be heard from their location and a few moments later, so could Kagome's. That scream caused Sesshomaru to flinch, something Kaede and Miroku both saw. They looked to the battle again. Miroku tried to cover Shippo's eyes, but was bitten. Miroku hissed in pain as the boy tried running off again, but Miroku dove for him and pulled him into a tight hug, mostly to keep him in place.

"M-Mommy…" Shippo said as he started crying in Miroku's arms, trying to get free, struggling against Miroku with all of his might, "Mommy!"

Sesshomaru let out a short huff of air when he heard Shippo call Kagome out as his Mom. He could feel Miroku's eyes on him and glanced down. Suddenly, he felt an overwhelmingly strong pull on his mind, heart, body and soul. Every ounce of his being shifted and he took a step forward.

.

.

"S-Sesshomaru… P-Please." She choked the words out in desperation, through tears brought on because of the fear of death, as the demon raised his hand and shot a powerful bolt of blinding yellow lightning at her chest, "Save us."

Kagome blinked as the light overtook her vision and she expected them to never open again, but when she could feel herself standing there and nothing struck her, she opened her eyes to see the back of a familiar demon. She gasped and Sesshomaru looked back at her to see the surprise.

"You came." Kagome muttered and took a step to the side.

Sesshomaru stood there with Tōkijin out. The sword was smoking, the demon blade having absorbed the lightning that was meant for Kagome. The girl he just saved collapsed and just stared up at him in disbelief, completely awestruck, as if she had just seen an angel perform a miracle.

Sesshomaru said nothing to Kagome and focused on the battle. His own demonic aura began over taking the area, but Kagome sensed something different about it. It was stronger than she had felt before, even stronger than when he would turn into his large dog form. She knew he'd win.

The win did not take long either. The demon saw Sesshomaru standing there and suddenly became irate and wild. He howled at Sesshomaru and began firing blast after blast of lightning, all attacks that Sesshomaru's Tōkijin was able to absorb without problem. With each failed attack, the demon became more and more enraged and began a close quarters strategy. He charged Sesshomaru, who dodged, but Sesshomaru found that the demon being that close to Kagome wasn't something he liked. Sesshomaru grabbed it by the neck, his poisoned claws leaking their acid into the demon's skin before he threw him opposite of everyone. The demon slammed against the side of a hill, making a large indent.

However, it wasn't hurt. It stood up and charged Kagome instead of Sesshomaru, but the silver haired demon blocked the wild blond again, this time using Tōkijin. Sesshomaru swung his blade in a single swift swing and sliced the demon in two. His body fell to the ground, but was somehow still breathing. He looked up at Sesshomaru, eyes filled with wild anger.

"Y-You… trai…" the demon tried to speak, but was cut off by his own death.

Sesshomaru sheathed Tōkijin and looked back to Kagome. He walked over to her, grabbed her by her shirt, and lifted her to her feet. Kagome tensed at first, but when she saw the look in his eyes, she calmed down. He looked strange and she couldn't place it. Tired was the closest she could guess.

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One moment Sesshomaru was there and the next he was gone. Miroku had been able to mostly follow Sesshomaru's movements in previous battles, but not this time. He looked across the way toward the battle and saw Sesshomaru standing like a shield for Kagome, having stopped his friend from dying. He continued to hold Shippo, refusing to tell the boy anything different until he knew things were okay.

"Ha." Miroku smiled and began to laugh, which confused Shippo, so he turned the boy to look, "Look. Sesshomaru saved them all. The demon is dead and Kagome is just fine."

"Let's go." Kaede was quickly helped onto the horse. Miroku jumped on as well, holding Shippo as they raced back to the battle field.

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.

"Thank you, Sesshomaru." Kagome said sincerely. She was still in shock, but she was grateful.

Kagome looked over to Inuyasha and Sango. Inuyasha was still unconscious, but Sango was able to watch it all. Seeing her friends like that focused Kagome's mind for a moment. She began running toward them, but suddenly felt very weak and tumbled forward as her vision blurred. She would have hit the ground if it wasn't for Sesshomaru wrapping an arm around her and holding her up. Her breathing was labored and she was sweating profusely, but he knew she'd be alright. He brushed her hair out of her face and watched her closely for a moment. He noticed something at the edge of his keen sense of smell and leaned in to Kagome. He took in her scent; a pleasant aroma filled his nostrils. She didn't smell like the humans he was used to, which left him curious about what type of life she led.

Sesshomaru looked up to see that an extremely confused Sango was watching him with wide eyes and a slightly tilted head. He narrowed his eyes, causing Sango to look away with a fake innocent expression, but she looked back a moment later to see he was still staring at her. Sesshomaru placed Kagome down on her back and as he stood, he heard footsteps making their way over. He smelled the monk, child and old woman he previously left on the hill.

The three got to the top and Miroku ran by Sesshomaru and Kagome to Sango. The monk slid along the ground to stop by her side and began examining her to see how hurt she was.

"Sango, are you alright?" he asked in a panic and helped her into a sitting position. Once she sat up, she suddenly slapped him across the face, leaving a solid handprint on his face, a moment that entertained Sesshomaru from where he stood. "Ow… why did you hit me?"

"Where were you?" Sango shouted at him, tears in her eyes, "You left me!"

"Sango, I'm sorry. There was something I really, really needed to deal with." Miroku said, lowering his head, "I know you got hurt. I was scared I was going to lose you…"

"You almost did!" Sango shouted again.

Miroku leaned into Sango and pulled her into an embrace, giving her a gentle hug.

"I'm so sorry, Sango. I hope I never have to leave your side again." Miroku spoke sincerely as the fear he once held faded from him.

"Mi-Miroku?" Sango watched him with her cheeks a deep red, but a realization came to mind. She grabbed his hands and pushed them away. "Don't even try it, lecherous monk."

Miroku sat down and stared at her, saying nothing. He looked away, toward the forest with sadness in his eyes. Sango saw this and became concerned.

"Miroku, are you okay?" she asked.

"No, I'm not." Miroku said and sighed, "I know I deserved that, but caressing you was not my intention. I can't get mad at you because I do it all the time, but in this situation, it would be very inappropriate and besides," Miroku looked down to his hands, "After what happened to Kagome, I don't feel right doing it anymore. It's why I haven't done it in so long. It feels… wrong. I just wanted you to be okay."

"I see…" Sango said and kissed Miroku's cheek suddenly. He blushed quickly and blinked at her, but she just smiled and pointed toward Inuyasha, "Please, check on him. He took a really bad hit."

Miroku nodded and went over to Inuyasha. He pulled open the red cloak and checked on the wound. It was bad, very bad, and seeing it made him worry. Inuyasha came back from these before, but it was the repeated lightning strikes that worried Miroku the most. Miroku could still sense bits of lightning coursing through Inuyasha's body. The fact that Inuyasha was still breathing and his pulse was strong gave some promise, but he'd need time to heal.

"I'm sure he'll be okay." Miroku said, but his confidence in the statement wasn't strong.

"K-Kagome." Inuyasha struggled to speak as he came to. The last thing he remembered brought him shooting up into a sitting position. "K-Kagome!" he yelled, looking around. He saw his brother standing over Kagome and tried forcing himself to his feet, willing to fight, but Miroku stopped him.

"She's fine, Inuyasha. Calm down. Your injuries are bad."

"Sh-She is?" Inuyasha dropped to a knee and looked over to Kagome.

Kagome's eyes slowly opened to a nightmare she had many times. Sesshomaru was standing over her and all she could do is freeze. He sensed her labored breathing and increased heartrate, so he looked down to her, raising an eyebrow. He kneeled down and brought a struggling Shippo to hang over her.

"Let me go, you monster!" Shippo yelled, having been struggling against the older demon's grip ever since he tried to tackle Kagome's unconscious body with a too much excitement.

"Shippo?" Kagome said and the boy calmed down.

"Momma!" Shippo said excitedly and reached out, running in the air since Sesshomaru didn't let him go.

"Shippo!" Kagome sat up and pulled the boy into her arms, Sesshomaru finally letting him go and standing up, "I'm so sorry. I didn't want to send you away, but you had to be safe."

"I know, Momma." Shippo just laid his head on Kagome's shoulder and closed his eyes, "I love you."

"I love you to, Shippo." Kagome blinked, her first tear of joy falling from her eyes.

Inuyasha was delighted at the scene. He took a few quick breaths as the pain began to return; the adrenaline caused by not knowing whether Kagome was safe was wearing off. He looked up to Sesshomaru, who looked back at him. The two stared at each other, Sesshomaru's demeanor not shifting at all. Inuyasha, however, pushed up a grateful smile and nodded in thanks to his older brother. Obviously, Sesshomaru had saved them all. He'd want to know why, but for now, their safety was all that he needed to see.

The gesture surprised Sesshomaru. He couldn't remember a time that Inuyasha smiled at him and he knew the nod meant was to show gratitude. He was unsure of how to reply, so he didn't. Instead, he watched his brother fall to the ground in a pool of his own blood.

"Inuyasha!" Miroku returned to his friend's side, his calling out catching everyone else's attention. Kagome and Shippo ran over as well, leaving Sesshomaru there to watch silently, stuck with his own thoughts.

Kaede stepped up to his side, her hands held behind her back. There was silence for some time, but after some thought, Kaede figured out what she wanted to say to him.

"When was the last time ye' were part of a family?" Kaede asked him curiously.

"What?" Sesshomaru replied, appalled by the question.

"When was the last time ye' were part of a family, Lord Sesshomaru?" she repeated politely.

"I have no family, old woman." He said bluntly.

"He doesn't hate ye', ya know?" she said, motioning toward Inuyasha.

"That is his problem."

"Aye, true. With how many fights ye' two've had, his hating you is expected, but he doesn't."

"Am I supposed to care?"

"Maybe. This world is full of loneliness and despair, Lord Sesshomaru." Kaede said, lifting her shoulders as she took a deep breath and then sighing it out, "Ever since ye' rescued Kagome, ye've been around more and more. Ye do not have to hide in the forest to watch over her."

"And why would I watch over her?" Sesshomaru asked.

Kaede tapped the side of her own neck, symbolizing that she knew what the scar on Kagome's neck actually meant. Sesshomaru stared and then closed his eyes.

"The others do not know, but I do." Kaede assumed, unaware of Miroku's deeper knowledge of Kagome's situation, "For the first few days, she was scratching it all the time, but it stopped pretty soon. They believe it to be a scar from the attack, but it's not just a scar, is it?"

"No, unfortunately, it is not."

"Is there a way to remove such a mark?"

"Not that I know of."

"I see. I guess ye' are bound to each other." Kaede said and sighed sadly, "Ye' two are in a precarious situation and if not handled carefully, everyone's life will be ruined, and I don't just mean this groups."

"What are you implying?"

"There is a lot about that young woman that ye' do not know." Kaede turned to Sesshomaru, her demeanor serious as she looked to him with her one eye, "She's more special, more powerful, and stronger than even she knows. It would be smart of ye' to stick around and learn about her. Whether ye' like it or not, ye' are strongly bound to her and that won't change, but ye' can try to make it work."

"How do we make something like this work?" Sesshomaru asked, irritated.

"It already is."

"What?"

"You saved all of us today, Lord Sesshomaru, and when I suggested ye' make a relationship with a human work, ye' did not insult her. Instead, ye' asked how. I see this as progress."

Sesshomaru stared at the old woman, eyes narrowed, but not in anger. He was thinking about his situation and what he had been feeling. He thought on his actions and how he saved her even though he was the one that sent the demon to kill her. He also thought back to that strange surge of power that came when Kagome was in danger. He wasn't disgusted by her presence the way he used to be and didn't walk away the moment things were done. It sickened him, but most of all, it confused him. He looked up to Kagome and the group as they tended to Inuyasha's wounds.

"How powerful is that damn mark?" he thought.