Days progressed one right after another until I finally noticed we weren't going in the same direction. We had been going North by Northeast and now we were heading West by Southwest. At first I couldn't figure out why we had changed directions; had we gotten a different clue? Then I finally realized, after a week of finally figuring out we had changed directions; we were heading into Sesshoumaru's territory. I cursed myself for not remembering what was in the west, but I lost my train of thought suddenly when I felt something hit me.

"Oh…" I moaned as I stopped walking.

Sesshoumaru rushed to my side in an instant. "What is it?" He asked as he scanned the trees for some invisible threat.

"It's not out there…" I panted as I tried to find the spot where I had felt the hit. "It's in here…" I ran my hand along the bottom of my swollen stomach trying to find the spot I had felt the pain in, only to find it when I was hit again.

Sesshoumaru finally looked down at me and realized what I had meant. "The baby…?"

I nodded weakly and slid his hand in place where I had felt it, the tiny hand, and waited. I smiled at Sesshoumaru's shocked face when the tiny fist hit against his hand. He began to growl until I smacked his arm. "Stop that, he's just a baby."

His growling stopped but he stared into my face, amused. "He…?"

I blushed. "So…?"

"You think it's a boy?"

"He's not an it!" I snapped, blushing more.

Sesshoumaru just laughed as he pulled me against him.

"Sesshoumaru-sama…?" Rin asked as we ran up to us. "Is something wrong?"

I pulled away from Sesshoumaru's embrace. "Nothing's wrong Rin. Your little sibling just wanted to say hi." I smiled at her.

Jaken grumbled something incoherently; I shot him a dark look.

"Shall we continue…?" I asked as I looked up at Sesshoumaru again.

Sesshoumaru blinked. "Yes of course."

Rin fell back with Jaken as I walked with Sesshoumaru, keeping my hand against my bump, wondering if he would keep hitting me.

After several hours and several hits and kicks later I finally gave up on walking.

"I don't think he wants me walking anymore…" I murmured as I pressed my hand against one of his little feet.

"Is he still hitting you…?" Sesshoumaru asked as he slowed his pace with me; I nodded. "Would you like to rest for a little…?"

I shook my head. "We have a lot of daylight left… We should keep going until we can't go anymore."

Sesshoumaru gazed down at me and sighed. "You're such a stubborn woman…" Suddenly I as air-born while he moved back to Ah-Un and set me down on the dragon's back. "You're not walking anymore, but since you're insisting that we continue moving then you're riding."

I glowered at him but he didn't change his mind. So I sat there, on the back of the dragon, while I tried to make my baby as comfortable as I could.

So the days progressed in this manner, I would walk until the baby told me not to and Sesshoumaru would stick me on Ah-Un's back until the evening where I would get off, eat, then fall asleep curled up against Sesshoumaru; repeat. Everyday it seemed that my time walking was slowly regressing until I felt like I was hardly walking anymore.

One day I didn't even get a chance to walk; Sesshoumaru seemed quite triumphant by this time.

"You know…" I growled as I sat on Ah-Un's back. "It is healthy for me and the baby to actually walk."

"Yes but he doesn't like to walk." Sesshoumaru answered back as he fought to keep his face smooth, it was obvious to see the smug look.

"Yes but sometimes he doesn't get a say in the matter." I snapped back.

Sesshoumaru stopped walking as he looked around. "We're close…" He murmured.

I shut up and started paying attention to my surroundings, even the baby didn't kick. "How close…?" I asked quietly as I ran my hand over my swollen stomach. I had stopped growing and I knew it would only be a matter of time until he was going to be born.

Sesshoumaru caught my movement from the corner of his eyes, his face tightened. "How soon…?"

"Days…" I murmured as I gazed down at my protruding bump. "Weeks maybe… A month if we're lucky…"

He scowled slightly as he walked through the trees once more. "That doesn't give me much time…"

"Much time to do what…?" I asked, but I found the answer. As we entered a clearing in the forest a large dilapidated palace loomed before us; I knew this is what he meant by little time… He was going to repair this place. "Who did this belong to…?"

"It was my father's… This is where my mother lived until she passed away. After that my father abandoned it and took me with him when he traveled."

"Oh…" I murmured as I gazed at the abandoned palace, trying to imagine it when Sesshoumaru was little. I slid from Ah-Un's back and walked slowly to the home. Gingerly I walked up the steps and onto the main floor of what use to be the large, open, main entrance. I was surprised to see how well it was holding up from the inside, I guessed that Sesshoumaru's father had had someone place a spell on the interior to keep it from falling apart. "It's held up quiet well inside…" I whispered; I knew Sesshoumaru had followed me inside.

"It has…" He answered as he followed me through the main entrance.

I slid open the still covered partition that led outside, I gasped. The palace made three walls around a large courtyard that now was completely swallowed up by a rainbow of colors; flowers were blooming everywhere. In the center of the rainbow field was a large gazebo that was also nearly swallowed up by the rampaging blossoms. "It's beautiful back here…"

"It pales in comparison to you…" He murmured as he brushed a strand of hair from my face; I blushed.

"I'm not pretty." I retorted. "I'm bloated."

Sesshoumaru laughed, it made me smile.

A scream broke our bubble of happiness.

"Rin!" I cried as I turned and ran back through the home.

"Wait…" Sesshoumaru hissed as he caught me by my arm. "Stay in here…"

"But Rin—"

"You can't do anything without endangering the baby… You will stay in here."

There was no way I could argue with him when he put it that way. "Don't die…" I murmured as I gripped his arm tightly.

"I won't…" He answered as he pulled himself free gently.

Suddenly everything was quiet, as if I couldn't hear what was happening outside the protective walls of the castle. I stood there, shaking nervously, as I strained to hear anything.

Then there was sniffing.

I stiffened at the sound, was there someone inside with me? Slowly I backed away from the sound, towards the rainbow garden. The sound stopped abruptly and I stopped moving; until I heard someone hissing. I turned and ran from the dilapidated building, out into the courtyard, just before the sound of crashing wood echoed from the place I had been standing.

"I know you're here!!" A voice screeched from inside the palace. "You who smell's like the Lord… I WILL get you…"

My eyes widened in terror as I stumbled over the broken stone path. Thorns from some of the flowering plants tore into my kimono as I ran for the gazebo. I tripped and fell, turning my body so my side slammed into the jagged stones just at the door that led into the garden from the main entrance exploded out into the flowers.

A tall, thin demon stood in the now gaping hole. His long legs didn't compensate for the length in his arms, as they nearly dragged on the ground themselves; he sniffed. "I know you're out here…" he hissed as he scanned the field.

I held my breath as I looked around at the flowers, I was completely submerged. I sighed quietly with relief; if I just stayed hidden he wouldn't be able to find me.

The demon dropped into the flower garden and began to walk around. "You can't hide forever…"

I looked around fervently for a path I could crawl through without disturbing the flowers, but there was nothing. Pain abruptly shot through the arm I was laying on as it finally hit me that I was bleeding. I gazed in horror as my blood slowly seeped into the flower bed below me; he would smell me as soon as he got close enough. I scrambled to dredge up enough magic to throw a shield around me, but I was too panicked; I only succeeded in pulling up enough to hide my appearance.

The sniffing became louder as I scrambled to change me into something else. "Ahh…" The sigh came from my left. "I can smell you…"

I pulled the magic around me tightly, opting for my mother's appearance than my human guise… I left out the wings. I was on my back in minutes as I stared up at my tracker.

"I found you…" He hissed.

I back peddled as fast as I could, scrambling to get away from him, my hand fall on a jagged rock and I sucked in a sharp breath.

"Now, now…" He chided. "Don't run away… You'll only make this harder for yourself…"

I stared up at him with wide eyes. "Stay away from me…" I choked.

He laughed as he waded his way through the flowers. "But I can't stay away…"

I wrapped my injured hand around the jagged rock it had fallen on as I waited from him to get closer.

"Now…" He said as he raised his arm above his head, his hand warped into a scythe. "Hold still… It will be over in a minute…"

I flung the rock at him, relishing in the fact that it sunk into his chest, and scrambled to my feet as I ran to the far side of the garden.

The demon yowled as he ripped the rock from his chest. "You… wench!" He screamed as he dove at me. I screamed as I ducked out of the way, his scythe narrowly missing the back of my neck.

I ran in a different direction, still trying to reach the end of the garden. As I approach the end I realize that I've ran out of places to go; a wall blocks my only means of escape.

The demon laughs. "Looks like the little bird as reached the end of her cage…"

I spun around to face my attacker. His eyes widened as he finally got a good look at my body then they narrowed. "This is the end of you and that creature growing inside you…" He snarled as he raised his arm above his head again.

I turned my head away from him, closing my eyes; I didn't want to see my death.

The demon's arm descended, making a whistling noise as the scythe at the end of his arm came down.

"Oh no you don't!" Someone shouted, and suddenly I was airborne.

I opened my eyes slowly and saw red; I quickly moved my head up and saw the face of my savior. "InuYasha…?" I asked as relief flooded through my body.

InuYasha glanced down at me as he landed next to a hole in the wall a few feet away; it looked like he had made it himself. "Do I know you…?"

I nodded vigorously then stopped as I remembered I had covered what I looked like. "It's me, Kaori." I answered.

He gapped at me. "Kaori…?"

"You really think I could only disguise myself with one look? I'm not that incompetent." I snapped.

He set me down gently. "What's with the huge stomach then…?"

I opened my mouth to answer then shut it again. "Set me down…" I muttered.

"What, did I offend you?" He teased.

"Set me down unless you don't want your hands to fight that demon." I snarled.

As I had spoken the demon charged us. InuYasha dropped me almost instantly and grabbed his sword to block the blow that would have sliced my head off.

I stumbled and nearly fell, only to be caught by Miroku.

"Don't worry…" He said as his hand slid down my back. "You're safe."

"If you move your hand down another inch you won't have to worry about Naraku's curse, you won't have a hand left…" I hissed.

Miroku's eyes widened. "Uh…" He stuttered.

"It's me, Kaori…" I growled as I finally stripped myself free of the magic.

"I knew that…" He blushed.

I glowered as I pulled myself free of his 'helpful' hands.

"Oh wow…" Kagome murmured as she caught sight of my stomach.

"You say anything and you'll never come back to the era ever again." I threatened; her mouth closed.

The demon screeched and wailed suddenly causing all of us to turn and face the sound; it had been stabbed from behind and was now sizzling on the poison that seeped into his body.

"Sesshoumaru…" I whispered as I caught sight of the green whip around the creature's neck and the sword in his stomach.

"Kaori…?" He asked as the demon fell motionless to the floor of flower.

"Sesshoumaru!" I cried as I ran over to him.

"Kaori…" he sighed in relief as he wrapped his arms around me. "I'm sorry… I shouldn't have left you…"

I shook my head. "Is Rin safe…?"

"Rin's fine…"

I sighed. "Good…"

I felt Sesshoumaru look over at his younger brother. "I guess I owe you… For saving Kaori…"

I could almost see InuYasha's eyes widen. "Well…" He cleared his throat. "She was in trouble…" He trailed off.

I gripped Sesshoumaru's shirt in my fists as I suddenly felt liquid running down my legs, I moaned.

"Kaori…?" Sesshoumaru asked as he grabbed my arms; I could feel everyone behind us move a little closer.

"Remember how I said we had days…?" I panted, he nodded. "We have minutes…" I groaned.

"What…?" I could hear the shock in his voice.

"Sesshoumaru…" I whispered as I nearly crumpled over in pain. "That baby is coming NOW!!"