AN: And this is the ending of the story I had in my head. It opens up for more sequels, but I like it how it is. Thank you for reading, and I'm glad that you guys enjoyed! Look for more of these - My muse is running rampant, so I've got another story in the works!

There was a tense moment where nothing moved. Maaya stared around Kagome's pants, Shippo stared and stayed as still as he could, Inuyasha remained crouched with his hand out, and Kagome had her hand resting on Maaya's hair. She knelt and wrapped her arm around the young girls waist before smiling. "How about we go together?" The nod from her daughter had her gathering her into her arms and standing, carrying her over towards Inuyasha.

When he stood, Maaya tucked her face shyly into her mothers shirt, peeking out at him through her bangs. Kagome wanted her to meet her father, but wasn't going to force the issue. Instead, she moved and reached out ot Inuyasha with her right arm, taking his hand and drawing him into her side. The raven haired woman grinned before she returned the kiss that he pressed against her lips. It brought him close enough that Maaya reached out to touch the pale forlock of hair. "Pretty..."

Kagome grinned when she looked, watching the girl run her hands through his hair. "It is pretty, isn't it? Just like yours, only a different color." At the nod, Inuyasha shook his head and let more of the silken strands fall over her, which brought about a round of giggling.

"It tickles!" As Maaya laughed, Inuyasha continued to shake his head not unlike the dog he was before small hands reached up and gently touched his ears. When they flicked back, Kagome watched Maaya yank her hands back before grinning.

"Here.. watch!" The woman reached up and gently grabbed the left ear, rubbing her fingers over the soft fur. What surprised her was the way Inuyasha reacted, groaning and tilting his head into her hand. Maaya's hand reached up and she did the same with his right ear, except she used both hands. "Aren't they soft?"

"Yea!" Her fear of her father having disaapated, the young girl moved and reached out for the half demon. When he took her into his arms, Kagome watched an expression of wonder cross his face. Maaya reached up and held his face in her hands, staring him down with the confidence of youth. "Papa!" After the acceptance was made, she threw herself into him and hugged him.

Having stepped back, Kagome smiled, tears gathering in her own eyes as she watched her hanyou mate wrap his arms around their daughter, his head pressing into her hair. "Maaya..." The word was spoken so softly, she almost didn't hear it. She didn't miss the shine and sparkle of tears that fell from his eyes into the dark strands of their daughters hair.

She was more than happy to watch the two together. Maaya was running her hands over Inuyasha's face, and he was staring at her as if she was the most important thing in the world. Perhaps she was.. After all, to Kagome, Maaya was the most important thing to her. It warme her heart to watch Inuyasha with their daughter.

Off to the side, Shippo's eyes weren't free of tears, and she grinned, crooking a finger at him and moving into the kitchen to start dinner. When the fox demon followed her, she wasn't surprised to see his bright fang filled smile. "Kagome.. she's beautiful." Opening the fridge, Kagome pulled out ingredients for beef hotpot and smiled.

"She really is.. Thank you Shippo."

"I wish my father had been around longer."

"You still miss him, don't you?" She set out bowls and started to separate the ingredientes, grabbing a cutting board and starting to slice the beef into thin sections so they could go into the bowl and marinate for a bit.

"Every day.. but it got better after you and Inuyasha helped me avenge him." Memories of the Thunder Brothers had her smiling, some of her favorite memories were of the shard hunt after all.

"I'm glad we could help, Shippo.. Will you help with dinner?"

"To eat your cooking, Kagome? I would love to!" She listened to the soft voices in the other room, smiling when Maaya's laughter set off Inuyasha's. The woman finished slicing the beef and started in on the marinade. Shippo was cutting up the remaining vegetables. Though, she did give in to one desire.. and reached out to slide her hands through the fur of his tails. "Kagome!"

"Sorry, Shippo... I had to know if they were as soft as your baby tail." The flush across her face had him laughing before she poured the mixture into the bowl and covered it to put in the fridge so the meat could absorb. Inuyasha came in, Maaya held tightly in his arms as he reached out towards the woman who was busy with their dinner.

"Oy, Wench." Kagome turned, finding herself wrapped up in his arms, and pulled against his chest. She looked up at Maaya who was curled up high on one shoulder, beaming at her mother with tiny fanged icisors and holding onto a piece of Inuyasha's hair. "You want to try for another?"

She laughed, but the blush that crept up her face said volumes about how she felt about that idea. "Didn't we already try, Inuyasha?" The sound of a bowl dropping had her looking at the suddenly red faced Shippo.

"Sorry! Sorry.." He cleared his throat, and she grinned, looking back at the molten gold eyes of her hanyou.

"We did...but I need a million of these." He slid his free hand up and around the back of her neck, fingers tangling in the strands of hair he found there. The demon tilted her head back just slightly, and she felt her pulse speed up.

"A million of what?" The words came out breathy and just on this edge of a moan before he leaned down, his lips barely touching hers as he spoke the answer to her question.

"Kids, Ka go me.. A million. Better get busy, Wench." He pressed his lips to hers, and she felt not for the first time, the heat that came with her dog demon mate. Kagome slid her arms around his waist and smiled up at him, then turned her smile to Maaya as she also grabbed a handful of Kagome's hair.

"A million it is."

"Yay! More siblings!" Kagome laughed when Maaya's exhuberance overflowed and nodded to her.

"As many as you want, Maaya. Upstairs! Bath before dinner!" The girl released Kagome's hair but didn't let go of her fathers.

"Papa? Play with me?" Inuyasha shot Kagome a look before he returned his gaze to the girl and headed towards the stairs.

"Sure, Princess.. I'll play. You gotta show me how ta work the bath though!" Kagome smiled as they dissapeared upstairs, shaking her head with a bemused grin. 'Princess' huh? Well, she supposed it fit.. considering his mother was a princess herself. There was a bit of royalty in that bloodline.

"Allright, Shippo! Let's get dinner done!" Kagome turned back to the counter, knowing that this is how her life was going to be for the remainder of what she had left. She hoped that Inuyasha could teach Maaya things she didn't understand herself.. And knew that the sound of feet running was certainly going to be a commonplace sound in the coming years.

If there was one thing she hadn't thought about, it was that she would have had Inuyasha return to her.. and not only him, but Shippo as well. It was the beginning to the rest of her life that she hadn't expected to find. But one she was more than happy to embrace nonetheless.