Kagome awoke to find herself alone, and made use of the large bed by giving herself a much-needed stretch. Sesshoumaru must have had duties, as he so often did, and she realized that was probably something she would have to get used to. You'd think that being lord, he would get to dictate his schedule, but he took his job very seriously, and she found she loved him all the more for it.

Wait- did she just think that? She knew she had strong feelings for the demon, but was she in love with him? She remembered his ideas on 'what mortals call love,' and wondered what, exactly, he thought he felt for her. She would have to save that thought for another time, as she heard a light knocking at his-their- bedroom door.

"Lady Kagome?" She heard a male's voice shyly ask, and tried to place where she had heard it before.

"Are you decent? It is Kai, My Lady." Kai, that was it. The Western Soldier who had so rudely woken up Sesshoumaru from his much-needed sleep back in Lord Hano's village. That was the first time they had hooked up, and she thought back to the incident wistfully. She pulled the blankets up over her chest, and looked around for her discarded school girl outfit.

"Come on in. It's not like you haven't seen it before," she called out, but he remained where he was.

He held out a robe from between the crack in the door as he spoke, "I would rather not, My Lady. Lord Sesshoumaru has been most gracious about cutting my punishment short, and I should not like to give him another reason to be cross with me."

She rolled her eyes and got out of bed, grabbing the rob and putting it on.

"Okay, you can enter now."

He cautiously came through the doorway, and seeing that she was indeed covered, relaxed his posture. Sesshoumaru had given him the new duty of seeing to the miko in his absence. He had thought his lord would have preferred a female to see to her needs, but was informed that the woman was quite independent, and wouldn't need to be waited on hand and foot. He was simply to answer her questions and help her retrieve anything she might require.

Apparently, the miko was uncomfortable with broadcasting their relationship, especially on Inuyasha's big day. Kai was one of the few already privy to the information, so he was given an opportunity to earn back his lord's trust by seeing to the miko's comfort. He had been instructed to wait in Sesshoumaru's study until he had heard her awake on her own time.

"Are you hungry, My Lady? I will have the servants prepare anything you desire and have it brought to you."

"I'd kill for a funo-yaki! Can your chef's make them?" He was confused at her words. He had been warned that this miko had a strange take on language.

"That will be unnecessary, I am sure they have heard of them."

"Have them throw some blueberries in! Oooh, and anything with caffeine would be great!" She figured she would take advantage of the luxury that had been so hard to come by previously.

"As you wish. Is there anything else you require?"

"I'd love a bath. Are there any springs nearby?" There were springs deeper in his lord's rooms, but he had been instructed to show her to the room of The Lady of the West anyhow. The room was there for her use, regardless of whether or not she would stay with the dog demon.

"Follow me, if you please." He showed her to the door that opened to the adjoining rooms, and pointed her in the way of the spring inside. Before she took off, though, he led her to the closet. It was filled with clothing that had once belonged to his mother. Much of it would be to long for her, but alterations could be made. In the meantime, he was sure she would find something.

"When you are through, pick out anything you wish to wear. My Lord suggested you find something formal for Lord Inuyasha's wedding."

"Thank you, Kai."

"I will put in your order, and return to wait for you until you are finished."

"You don't have to wait for me, I'll be fine."

"Those are my orders," he informed her. "I will wait in the study until you have dressed. You may take your time."

A swipe of his sword was followed by a graceful landing. Seconds later, the heads of three boar demons slid from their bodies, and Sesshoumaru returned to collect them. He threw them on Ah-Un's back, joining the others that lay dead in a heap on top of the dragon.

The feast from the previous night had depleted the reserves, as the hunters had not anticipated having to supply a second feast for the wedding that was about to occur. Instead of sending them back out for more, Sesshoumaru volunteered his brother and himself to take on the task.

They hadn't much time, and the dog demons would make quicker work of the game that resided in the forest just beyond The Western Gates. Also, he could tell that Inuyasha had needed a distraction. His wedding was hours away, and with nothing to keep him occupied, the boy had started to become irritable. Sesshoumaru thought he could put him to use, and help to blow off some steam.

Sesshoumaru was not capable of feeling guilt. Or regret. But when he looked upon his brother lately, he couldn't deny the pangs in his chest. Though his intentions were far from altruistic, he had always looked after the boy in his own way. He had never shown him kindness, but he had ensured Inuyasha would grow strong enough to survive. His was more of a tough love approach; emphasis on the tough.

And his harsh treatment of the boy had worked. It was clear that the half demon appeared to be flourishing. Now that the jealousy and rivalry between the two was all but nonexistent, he was eager to find small, subtle ways of making things up to him. Not that he would admit it to him outright.

The wedding, and the new title were just the start.

"Watch this," Inuyasha demanded, throwing his sword into a boar that stood a few feet away, and impaling it to the tree behind it. It brought up some very old memories that he would rather forget.

Sesshoumaru could sense the boy's discomfort, and made to distract him further, throwing his own sword high into the air, and softly stating, "Heart." Inuyasha fixed him with a confused look, until the sword made its descent back down to the earth, and impaled the boar through the back. When the tip came out his chest, his heart was hanging off the end.

"Woah." His brother was a master with a sword, this he knew. It was still amazing to see him in action, particularly when he was not on the receiving end of his rage. Maybe he would be willing to show him some of his moves in the dojo sometime...

"Next time, I will bring two swords. I could really show you something if I had my other blade." He had only brought Bakusaiga, as he hadn't considered needing the others for this excursion. He didn't really need them, but they had progressed past hunting, and were just showing off at this point.

Inuyasha still held Tetsusaiga, and outstretched the hilt for his brother to hold, "Just use this." Sesshoumaru's eyes widened a fraction. He hadn't thought about the sword in what seemed like ages. It was odd, as for a time, it was the only thing he'd thought about. He had stopped his pursuit of the blade once made clear that Inuyasha needed it to keep his demon blood in check.

He had never really needed the sword himself. It was the principle of the thing. He believed he had deserved the sword; that, as the oldest son, it was his birthright. At one time, he would have done anything to possess the weapon. Those days were over. That his brother saw fit to trust him with his prized possession, it spoke volumes about how their relationship had changed drastically since then.

"You know I cannot," he reminded. He was a demon. That was another reason. The sword had rejected his youkai blood. Only one with human blood could wield the sword.

"I dunno. I think it rejected you because you meant to harm me with it. Now that you don't have the hate in your heart, it may be permissive." It was his sword. Did it speak its owner, as Tenseiga did to him?

Also, 'hate in your heart?' Was his brother admitting that he had indeed had a heart, even if it had been consumed by hatred?

He paused for a moment, then reached out hesitantly. Would it scorch his skin, as it had done in the past? Only one way to find out.

He braced himself as he grabbed the blade, and waited...

Nothing. His youki soared, doing a victory dance while his face remained cool and passive, and he gripped the hilt more firmly. It remained transformed as it was when handed to him, and he gave it a few test swings.

"Okay, okay. So, what were you gonna show me?"

With a sword in each hand, he made his way over to five boars, all gathered together in a defensive position.

"You have mastered the 'windscar,' which makes striking your opponent simple. You still need training in precision. Should your demonic attacks fail you, you must still be able to use your weapon effectively." He regarded the boar demons a moment, and turned back to the hanyou.

"Heart, liver, kidney, lung, brain." He stated simply, and made two cuts, one with each blade. It was done in an instant, too fast to see. He had used the first blade to cut each demon in two, each in a different place on its body. He then used the second to pierce through, respectively, each organ he had named. By the end, Bakusaiga looked like a shishkabob.

"Damn. You gotta show me that one!"

"As you wish," he responded, relinquishing the blade back in his brother's hands. "We can go over some basic moves in the dojo, after your honeymoon perhaps."

The topic reminded him of something he had wanted to ask, but had been a little nervous. "Hey Sesshoumaru, I want to ask you something." The boy sounded serious, and he turned to give him his full attention.

"Well, Miroku is going to perform the ceremony, since he's the only one who can do it and all. But even if he didn't, I still wanted you to be my best man." Afraid of rejection, he couldn't look him in the face.

"I know weddings are stupid, and you probably don't want to, but-"

"I would be honored."

"Really? You will?"

Not one to repeat himself, he simply inclined his head. Inuyasha was grinning ear to ear.

It never occurred to him how much he had longed for his brother's approval. Perhaps a good deal of the hate that he had harbored for the demon had actually stemmed from the hurt he felt at having his only living relative reject him so openly. And despise him so vocally.

The pain Sesshoumaru had caused him in his dismissal had gone a long way in constructing the foundation of the barriers around his heart that prevented others from getting close to him. Kagome and Kikyo had been responsible for chipping away at his walls. And now that his brother seemed to finally be accepting him, they had been reduced to nearly nothing. The two of them had a lot of lost time to make up for, and he could hardly wait to begin.

"I believe we have enough meat to suffice. Shall we return?"

They both sheathed their swords, and headed back to the fortress.

When Kai returned from placing Kagome's food order, he was annoyed to find that she hadn't entered the spring yet.

"Kai?" she called out, having heard him enter the study outside the bedroom.

"Is something the matter?" If anything happened to her while in his care...

"I was wondering, could you go fetch my friends for me? Sango and Kikyo?" He didn't appreciate being asked to 'fetch' something, but that appeared to be his job for the time being. Her wish was his command.

"In my ti- my village, the night before the wedding is supposed to be a bachelorette party. We couldn't do it last night, and since we have some time, and a hot spring, I thought maybe I could give her a spa day before she gets hitched." As the maid of honor- again- it was kind of her duty to the bride. She figured Kikyo might appreciate a little girl time before the ceremony.

Kai didn't really need the details. He could barely understand the weird female half of the time. He wondered what her appeal was to his great lord. But it was his job to make her comfortable. If she wanted him to 'fetch' her friends, he would do it without argument.

"Hai, My Lady," he bowed to leave.

"Kagome is fine. I'm no lady, trust me." No argument there. Regardless,

"I would really be more comfortable-"

"Well, I would be more comfortable if you called me Kagome. You're supposed to do what I tell you, right?" Damn. Was she already getting drunk with power? She could tell he was warring with himself, so she added, "If he gets upset, just tell him I made you, okay?"

"You will back that up?"

"You doubt This One?" She was mocking his lord, and he couldn't help the snarl that escaped involuntarily at the disrespect. Should he tell him?

"Now, now. None of that. Just go get them please. Oh! And make that food order for three. Thanks!"

Gods, he was paying dearly for his crimes. Hopefully soon, if he did a satisfactory job, he could get put back at his old post. Until then, he was to play lap dog to Lord Sesshoumaru's pet human.

"As you wish," he grit out, and made to do her bidding.

Breakfast had arrived shortly before the women did, so when they entered The Western Lady's chambers, they found Kagome had already started digging in. She swallowed her bite before welcoming them.

"Hey guys! There are pancakes if you want them!"

"Ladi Da! Look at you. Not wasting any time moving in I see." Sango remarked, looking around the lavish room.

"I don't know why I was so apprehensive; this is going to be great!"

"He certainly has set you up, hasn't he? You gotta tell me what you do to deserve such fancy treatment."

"I think we've been over that, haven't we? Come on, dig in! After we eat, there is a private spring. I thought we could relax a bit before the ceremony."

"Thanks, Kagome. You're the best. You need to hold on to this one. I think he likes you."

"I intend to. And yeah, I think you're right."

As they sat to join her for breakfast, Kikyo asked,

"What's with the man servant?"

"That's Kai. Sesshoumaru sent him to look after me while he's out. And he's a Western Soldier, not a servant."

"Kai? Was he the one-"

"From the village, yeah, that's him. We're cool now. I think he has to guard me for punishment or something. You know how Sesshoumaru can be."

"Cruel and unusual?"

"Exactly. Now come on, let's eat! I'm dying to try out my new springs!"

A/N: I gotta admit, I'm super nervous about posting the next chapter. I really have no idea how it will be received... It's hard to judge my own work at this point; as I kind of can't see the forest for the trees.