Kurome walked beside Sesshomaru as he led the way to his camp. She could not figure out what had just happened, how it had happened, or even why. Losing their duel to him earned him a penalty and he chose to use his penalty to force her to join him on his travels.

"Sesshomaru, if you wanted me to come along with you on your travels, you could have just asked." She said, Ryu no Ame strapped to her back with her packs swaying with each step she took.

"Perhaps, but this ensures that you will not run off and leave me behind once again." He replied, coldly, not even looking at her.

She winced at his tone, understanding how much it may have hurt him to leave him like that without ever actually saying goodbye. "'Sho, I'm sorry... I should have said goodbye back then..."

"Why didn't you?"

She looked up at him, seeing the cold glare he shot her way. "I-"

"Lord Sesshomaru!"

Kurome stopped at the sound of the small voice, seeing that they had reached his camp and a young girl- a human girl- came running up to him.

"Lord Sesshomaru, you're back!"

"Hello, Rin." Sesshomaru said, a small smile at his lips.

"Welcome back!" the girl said, then looked over and noticed Kurome. "Lord Sesshomaru, who is that?"

"This is Kurome Komatsu. She will be traveling with us." Sesshomaru said, then looked to Kurome. "This is Rin."

Kurome smiled when the girl cautiously approached her, looking down at the young girl. She looked to be in her late adolescence. "Hello, Rin, it is good to meet you."

Rin looked at her in awe, seeing the icy blue slitted eyes and pointed ears. "You're a demon just like Lord Sesshomaru?"

"Yes, I am a wolf daiyoukai from far to the north. My people lived at Shikotsu Lake." Kurome said. "And what is such a sweet heart like you doing with a grumpy, no fun sour puss like Sesshomaru?"

Rin giggled. "Lord Sesshomaru saved me when my village was destroyed. I've been traveling with him since."

"I see." Kurome glanced over at Sesshomaru, who had gone to greet the ryu youkai sitting on the other side of the camp. "Well, I hope we can get along as we will be traveling together."

"We'll be just fine." Rin said with a smile. "Come, I want you to meet A-Un."

Kurome let the girl lead her to the ryu beast and introduced her. A and Un were the two heads of the ryu youkai, each seeming to have a different personality, but overall a benevolent and laid-back creature. The ryu youkai seemed to take a liking to her- both heads- right away and sniffed at her pack. Giggling, she took out two apples and looked to Sesshomaru.

"Is it alright if we remove the muzzles?"

He gave a curt nod, then watched with interest at how quickly his beast of burden had come to like her. The ryu youkai let his heads drop to their level and waited patiently for the two to remove them, despite Jaken's warnings of him being a monster. Sesshomaru watched and couldn't help but smile a bit when Kurome gave Rin one apple and they each fed a head, the ryu youkai responding with huffs of approvals and rubbing into Kurome for more.

"Perhaps later, A-Un, but for now that's it." Kurome said rubbing each of their heads.

A-Un growled as Jaken approached, so Kurome and Rin apologized to the ryu youkai and asked that he let them return his muzzles. Regrettably, A-Un agreed, waiting patiently until they had replaced the muzzles.

"There's a good boy, A-Un." Kurome praised. "Perhaps when it's time for the next meal I can cook you up something special."

A-Un seemed to purr, earning a giggle from Kurome.

Kurome liked the human girl and the ryu youkai her best friend had been keeping company, though she couldn't say the same for the imp who followed him blindly. She looked up and found Sesshomaru staring at her, making her cheeks burn.

"Kurome, how long will you be traveling with us?" Rin asked.

Kurome met Sesshomaru's gaze once more as she answered, "As long as Sesshomaru wants me to."

Three weeks later...

Sesshomaru looked on from his perch in a tree as Kurome combed through Rin's hair. She had been showing Rin how to fight, just basic skills she should have in case neither himself or Kurome could be there to protect her, and they had just returned from a bath in the nearby stream. He watched as the human child he had all but adopted told the demoness he intended on making his mate stories of her travels with him and Jaken. He smiled as Kurome took genuine interest and started to pull Rin's hair into the partial side pony tail she always kept it in.

After a while, Rin had asked Kurome of her own travels, why she had left the Western Lands. Sesshomaru glanced down and noticed that Kurome had lifted to gaze to him, but she finished with Rin's hair and excused herself, avoiding the question. Sesshomaru watched as she went to sit alone by the stream, dipping her bare feet into the water.

"Lord Sesshomaru?"

He looked down at Rin as she approached his tree.

"Is Kurome OK? She got upset when I asked her why she left the west."

Sesshomaru slipped out of the tree, landing just in front of her. "Rin, you must understand, Kurome is the last of her people. She lost her family, her entire tribe when she and I were both still young, and she left the Western Lands because she was afraid something would happen to those she cared about who remained alive. She believed she was protecting us, but it would seem that those wounds have yet to heal."

"She loves you still, you know." Rin said. "The way she talks about you, it's like how Kagome talks about Inuyasha."

Sesshomaru looked at the young girl, wondering how she could be so astute for so young.

"Do you still love her, Lord Sesshomaru?"

Sesshomaru offered her a small smile. "Perhaps, but it has been a long time since we last saw each other."

Rin smiled. "When you love someone, it never really stops because of distance or time. Look at Kagome and Inuyasha: they're separated all the time by time and distance yet they still love each other and found a way to make it work. Maybe if you talk to Kurome, you'll see it's the same for you as it is with them."

Sesshomaru stood in silence as the young girl ran off, going to grab her basket and take A-Un and Jaken to go find berries and herbs. 'Could she be right?' He looked over at Kurome, a sense of longing and regret singing to him through the youki she had placed in his pendant. He could feel that she did indeed still love him, after all these years, but did he love her? He had intended on courting her, making her his mate, before everything changed and she disappeared, but after so long did he want to pursue her once again?

While Sesshomaru pondered things, Kurome stared into the water and sighed. She loved Sesshomaru more than anything and when he had made his intentions clear to her before everything changed, she had wanted to say yes. But she left him and her life behind, not once looking back, and now she wondered if it was because she was truly trying to protect him, to protect his father and their village, or if she was just being a coward and couldn't cope with the loss.

"What am I doing here..?" She asked of herself. "So much has changed... how can things go back to how they were..?"

A rustle came behind her and she sensed Sesshomaru's presence as he approached. Standing, she turned towards him. "Was there something you needed?"

He looked at her, worry in his eyes. He reached up and brushed something wet from her cheek. "You're crying. What is the matter?"

"I didn't realize-" She stepped away and started to walk passed him. "It's nothing, I'm fine."

"Kurome."

She ignored him and went back to their camp, pulling on her boots.

"Kurome."

Again she ignored him, annoyed by his persistence. She grabbed Ryu no Ame, turning towards the nearest open field.

"You will not ignore me."

She shot him a glare and did not reply, only taking off towards the field to blow off some steam. She hid her youki from him as best she could, but he quickly caught up to her and grabbed her arm, pulling her back into the trees.

"What the hell, Sesshomaru?"

He glared at her, a growl rumbling from deep inside him. "You will answer me when I speak to you."

"Why?" Kurome demanded, meeting his golden gaze with her defiant icy blue ones. "I'm not your puppet, I'm not your subject, I'm not your plaything. I am only here because you won and that was my penalty. You know I am honor bound, but you keep me here like I'm a hostage. I don't want to do this, 'Sho."

Sesshomaru searched her eyes, seeing the defiance leaving and being replaced with worry, sadness, and loneliness. "Kurome..."

Kurome looked at him, her body reacting to his close proximity. "Please, Sesshomaru... I just need some time alone..."

Sesshomaru advanced towards her slowly, pinning her against the tree. One hand found her hip, the other grasped the back of her neck while his thumb titled her chin towards him. "Haven't you been alone long enough?"

Kurome shuddered at his hot breath against her ear as he said that. "What are you doing?"

Sesshomaru kissed her neck, up to her ear and gently pressed up against her. "I once spoke to you of my intentions. I still seek a mate, and after all these years, I haven't found anyone else but you."

Kurome moaned ever so slightly, giving in just a bit as he moved his lips from her jaw to her cheek. "What are you saying?"

Sesshomaru looked at her and smirked. "I want you to stay with me because you choose to. I do not wish to keep you bound by your penalty." He kissed her lips, gentle at first. "Will you stay, Kurome?"

Kurome looked at him, feeling powerless under that golden gaze. "For you, 'Sho, anything."

Sesshomaru's smirk vanished and a genuine smile replaced it as he kissed her once more, this time more urgently as if he needed to make up for all those kisses they never got to share.

Off to the side, Jaken and Rin had been passing by with A-Un with a full basket of berries and herbs when they spotted Sesshomaru and Kurome together. The instant Sesshomaru kissed Kurome, Jaken covered Rin's eyes and shooed her along as she giggled.

"Now they can be happy again."