The Reason Why...
...Kagome appeared, and how she became Uzumaki Kanna's godmother.
Kagome was washing in a stream when her senses tingled.
Both of her senses. Her 'pervert' sense and her 'demon' sense.
(Her pervert sense always flared in Miroku's presence, so she was well used to that. But with her demon senses tingling, it was either Inuyasha or someone else.)
She waded over to her clothes, which hid her bow and arrows, and hurriedly dressed. After she was done, she drew an arrow out of her quiver and loosely fit it as she expanded her senses, trying to pinpoint exactly where the demon was.
If it was Inuyasha, a warning shot would do.
She found the demon, and it did not have Inuyasha's unique youkai. She aimed a near it, and fired without using her miko powers.
There was a loud swear. The demon's youkai vanished.
She turned, frowning - only to stop and stare at the demon glaring at her.
Old - very old - red eyes stared at her; matching red hair pulled up in a ponytail completed his look of arrogant bastard; at least he showed how he felt rather than acted like Sesshoumaru. Or like an idiot such as Inuyasha.
"Why did you shoot at me, woman?"
At least he didn't call her wench.
"You were spying on me bathing, that's why," Kagome said, glaring at him. "Be glad I didn't purify you."
Amusement flashed on his face. "You're a Miko. I see now. You would not have been able to purify me, anyway."
He said it with arrogance, but Kagome doubted he was lying. Still, she backed up, her feet getting soaked almost immediately.
"Kagome!"
The demon scowled, vanishing.
Like, completely vanishing.
Inuyasha barreled into the clearing.
"Finally, you're done! Come on."
He was ready to drag her, but Kagome gave him the most deadly glare she could.
Wisely, he thought better of it.
~:~
Taking a break, the demon the furthest thing from her mind, Kagome was walking with her friends in her present time; she spotted the redheaded man again, walking to her school entrance with purpose.
She paused, indecision warring within her.
"Hey, Kagome! You coming?"
She was already distant with her few friends as it was.
"Yes," she called, walking forward.
Her eyes absentmindedly passed over the crowd as she followed her friends, and she saw...
...herself.
Eyes met eyes; both Kagomes stared at each other for the fraction of a second.
Kagome inwardly flinched at her own eyes as she looked forward and forced a chuckle as everyone else laughed, her mind racing.
"Kagome!"
Her own voice entreated her to look at her copy.
But she didn't want to meet those eyes filled with anger and rage and knowledge.
~"~
When she reached her home, exhausted and dragging her feet, her mother was standing there with a sad smile on her face.
"Get some rest," she ordered her daughter quietly. "Inuyasha is going to be by in the morning, yes?"
Kagome nodded gratefully.
Her mother cooked her favorite food for dinner, packed her bag. Lightly; no junk food, with a few pictures. Kagome trusted her mother, after all.
~:~
"- I love Kikyo," Inuyasha finished. Kikyo blinked at Inuyasha.
"I know that already," Kagome said flatly. "I just want to know if she's willing to finally defeat Naraku." Naraku, the bane of her existence. Of all their existence.
"We're all here to do that," Kikyo said coolly.
And wasn't that a miracle? The scattered remnants of the demon clans had rallied with Kagome - some who she knew and had battled, others she had known were friendly.
The wolf demons had rallied the neko clans, and so on.
And then the kitsune clan had arrived, the redheaded demon Kagome had met at the lake at their head, his red, red eyes locked on hers.
She shivered to herself.
"Shall we devise a battle plan, miko?" Sesshomaru questioned, settling down. At his words, the demon leaders appeared, ready for battle.
Shippo curled himself up against Kagome with a shiver as the redheaded male came close to Kagome.
"Kurama, restrain yourself," the leader of the nekos said, her voice a whip.
"Matatabi, you're so... Uptight. You need to get some sex." Kagome's face flared up, and Kurama smirked at her.
"Restrain yourself from attempting to have sex with the miko until the battle is over, Kurama," rumbled the leader of the turtles. His skin was pigmented green, and he seemed to walk a bit slower than the others.
According to Kouga, Isobu was among the fastest of the demons, including himself when he had the speed.
Also according to Kouga, none of the demon leaders would fight Naraku.
Well - none of the nine demon leaders.
"Perhaps later, Miko?" Kurama asked, leering at her.
Kagome glared at him.
"Not on your life!" Inuyasha proclaimed, glaring at Kurama. "She's not -"
"Sesshomaru -"
"Sit, boy!"
Inuyasha paled, but he was shoved into the dirt facefirst.
Kagome massaged her forehead. "We'll begin by pretending it's just my group and Sesshomaru," she began, looking over Naraku's castle. "Kouga will keep Kagura busy..."
All through the briefing, she could feel Kurama's stare acutely.
~:~
Kagome winced as she patched her wound up. Naraku had seemed to expect them; how, she was sure Kanna had shown him. Kanna - the child with the mirror.
As she bandaged her arm, Kurama appeared, wrapping her arm up.
"I will help. Sesshomaru has agreed to my price."
"What price is that?" Kagome demanded, suddenly afraid.
Kurama smiled at her.
"You'll find out soon enough."
~:~
Kagome stared at nothing in particular as she relived the past. How Sesshomaru had practically given her up, the last few times she'd seen her mother and tried to warn herself away... How Sesshomaru had lied to her.
Naruto exited her bathroom. Kagome had grown quite fond of the youngest unofficial member of their demon clan; so much so she invited her to this official gathering.
Well, mostly. As the jinchuuriki of Kurama, Naruto did have sway in the demon world. Even more so now that she was a hanyou like Kagome.
Even though she had responsibilities in the human world, Kagome wanted to put Sesshomaru in his place for the final time.
"Ready?" Kagome asked politely.
"Yes," Naruto said, looking at ease. She switched genders, a peculiarity Kagome knew was hers and hers alone.
Kurama could switch genders, but it was rare that he chose to do so.
Imaris appeared, his dark eyes staring at his mother and fellow clan member. Kikiya was the next to appear, the hundred-year-old demon still a brash moron.
"I hate you," she greeted Naruto with a sour look. "But I'll carry you - waaaiiit a minute, you're a dude? Wanna ba-"
Naruto jumped back. "No. No. Sorry, but no. Kinda married." He showed his ring off. Kagome looked at her bared finger with a hint of sadness.
The four walked out. In the Summon Realm, it was night; this meeting was secret.
They walked to the cave where the meeting was.
Two dog demons stood out, and Kikiya and Imaris were sent there.
This was between Kagome, Inuyasha, Sesshomaru, and Kurama.
Her tightly coiled anger coiled in her gut.
"Why did you call this meeting?" questioned Sesshomaru. "We have the next Demon Summit to contend with."
"My disagreement with you could not wait another three hundred years." Kagome glared at him. "You used me to get Kurama on our side then."
Inuyasha looked at Sesshomaru, shocked.
"I told you that wasn't a good idea!"
"And it's not a wonder he didn't listen," Kagome replied coolly. Kagome at least liked Inuyasha. Aversion to hanyous was not in her personality description, though she had not been speaking to Inuyasha with kindness since she became a demon.
Kikyo was long dead, being only a half-life. Inuyasha had moped, but in the end loved Kagura the wind demon; Kagura had surprisingly returned his affections after Sesshomaru told her flatly he didn't love her.
"If you do anything like that again, Sesshomaru, I will call hell upon you." Kagome's long-thought dead miko powers swirled up. "I will purify your ass if you try some shit like that again."
Sasshomaru looked unimpressed. "Will you not keep a lid on your wench?" he questioned the male kitsune in the room.
Naruto leaned back against the wall.
"Nope." He grinned at them. "Kurama really enjoys seeing Kagome all fired up. Address all your concerns to Kagome; he's busy."
"Soare you a hanyou now?" Inuyasha asked out of nowhere. "As well as, you know. A demon holder."
"Yep," Naruto nodded, switching genders and becoming a she. "I must say, having this ability again is quite... Intoxicating."
"You're a woman, too?" Inuyasha looked excited by the prospect. "My mate and I, Kagura, were looking for a three-"
"SIT, BOY!"
Kagome clapped a hand over her mouth as Inuyasha was shoved into the dirt.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha whined.
Kagome couldn't control the laughter that escaped her at his predicament.
Naruto looked horrified. "I'm mated and married," the woman informed the other half-demon. "Why does everyone proposition me?" She buried her head in her hands, her face as red as ever.
"Because you're hot as a guy, and amazingly beautiful for a teenager," Kagome replied, glancing at the seventeen-year-old's body.
"I'm officially twenty-seven!" the woman snapped, taking her hands off of her face. "Unofficially, I'm..." she flushed again. "I'm thirty-seven."
Kagome tilted her head. "I am confused."
"You know I... Died." Kagome nodded. "Well, I was used as an Edo Tensei for ten years. I turned twenty-seven ten years ago, technically, but... The sun goddess Amaterasu gave me life again, giving me breath as a seventeen-year-old, the age I died at."
There was a stunned silence in the room.
"Apologies," Kagome said, her eyes wide.
"Don't," Naruto smiled. "I'm fine now."
"That is impossible," Sesshomaru said.
"Yes, well, two children and another on the way says an entirely different story," Naruto snapped at him, then turned to Kagome. "I was wondering if you wanted to be godmother. Makes more sense to me, I think."
Kagome smiled. "Of course! Yes!" She hugged the young hanyou with happiness.
Inuyasha turned to Sesshomaru.
"If you ever do that again, I'll kill you," Inuyasha said to him before joining the hug.
Not a minute later, Kagome's yell echoed through the cave.
"Sit, boy!"
Apparently he was a pervert now.
"What will you name them?" Kagome asked.
Naruto smiled. "Kurama said it's a girl again, but both Neji and I are thinking of naming her Kanna."
Kagome's eyes widened. Kanna the mirror girl had died in that final battle.
"Beautiful name," she whispered after a moment.