AN: Yeah! Finally, another chapter! Let me just say...real life sucks buckets. Not that anything really bad has occured, it just doesn't let up. Anyway, I appreciate everyone's patience, and just because it's been so long I'm going to let y'all know that I've got the next chapter close to completed. It should be up sometime later tonight. As always, the reviews from all my wonderful peoples are at the end of the chapter!

Disclaimer: Despite all efforts to the contrary I do not own any of Rumiko Takahashi's characters or story devices. And I'm certainly not making any money off of this. If I were I wouldn't have to put up with the juvenile antics of my second shift Shift Lead or make her cry when doing my managerly duties in setting her straight. Sigh...where is Sesshomaru and his poisoned claws when you need them?

Reunion

Lord Sesshomaru, Great Taiyoukai of the Western Lands, most feared demon in Japan, if not the world, was not happy. Usually this was a state that would leave all around him either trembling in fear or dead. His displeasure had been known, in the past, to make kingdoms crumble and the most stalwart of warriors soil their armor before turning to flee. Apparently the present was very, very different from the past. Amazing, considering that yesterday hadn't seemed that long ago.

Right now no one was trembling, no one was running screaming, and nothing was crumbling. Except, maybe, for the Lord's control. It was not a welcome development. Instead, they were sitting in a rugged circle as Kagome went over the tale of what exactly had happened to her for the second time. Since he had already heard the tale before he failed to pay attention, instead deeming it much more important to attempt not to growl.

The rest of her friends had arrived not too long after Kagome had 'sat' Inuyasha, as she called it, making a sizable crater with the hanyou's face. The Lord had to admit he was rather impressed with her ability to stop his half-brother in his tracks like that. He imagined it was an ability that came in handy quite often. He wondered idly if she could teach him how to do it.

When the rest of their group arrived Inuyasha had managed to pull himself to a seated position and was staring dumbly up at Kagome, who was still scowling angrily at him and yelling something about how he never used his head and thinking before acting and what did he think he was doing almost killing her? Sesshomaru had been rather impressed at her eloquence and verbosity, realizing that he had only a small taste of her anger earlier. It was really quite amazing.

He watched as, unlike the hanyou, the rest of the group had approached cautiously, giving him weary looks and Inuyasha and Kagome confused ones.

Not too surprisingly, it had been the kit that had first recognized Kagome for who she really was. Sesshomaru had watched them all as they approached and saw the kitsune cock his head to the side from his perch on the firecat's back as he regarded the angry woman. As the others were still trying to assess the situation he had hopped down and made his way over to Kagome. Sesshomaru watched as he regarded her, then sniffed at her a few times before blinking and his jaw dropping open to reveal a set of baby fangs.

His tug on Kagome's kimono had cut her off mid rant and she looked down at the little demon who barely came to her knee.

"Kagome?" the kitsune had asked, his voice slightly uncertain but strangely full of hope.

Kagome had blinked and then beamed down at him with a smile that had Sesshomaru's heart stuttering against his will.

"Shippo!" Before the kitsune could respond, she had swept him up into her arms and damn near squeezed the life out of him.

"Kagome!" the kitsune wailed and flung his little arms around her, bawling his eyes out. Normally Sesshomaru would be appalled at such a display from a youkai, but considering that the kit couldn't be even a quarter-century old, he was willing to forgo that. After all, allowances must be made for children.

The kit, apparently named Shippo, was now very comfortably and enviably seated in Kagome's lap as she continued with her story. The kit wasn't the problem, despite his most privileged perch. A small blessing in a sea of issues…first and foremost being that he had considered his seat in Kagome's lap to be both enviable and privileged.

Actually, a majority of the problem sprung from that same place. Ever since Inuyasha had first shown up Sesshomaru had been at constant battle with himself. First he had nearly ripped the fool's head off when he had insulted Kagome. And only an iron will had kept him from doing so when he had actually i attacked /i her. Part of it, he knew, was his own protectiveness towards her which was half vow, half spell. The other part was the fact that deep down, he considered it a betrayal of Inuyasha's own vow to protect her…and he had just gone over just what a heinous thing that was.

Then, after her identity had been revealed to the others, he had faced another challenge. The monk. He had heard of the lecherous monk's perversities but had yet to see it first hand. It amazed him that someone with such a strong holy aura could be so…so…sick. During the rather rambunctious reunion Kagome had hugged everyone, including the monk. Whose hands immediately drifted to her backside. A growl had erupted from his chest but before he could act both Kagome and the Slayer had responded with seasoned actions that bespoke much practice and the monk quickly sported two handprints on his face.

He wasn't sure whether or not he liked the fact that their actions were so well practiced, despite how much he told himself he shouldn't care.

What was more, the possessive, angry growl had drawn the attention of Inuyasha who had recognized it for what it was. None of the control in the world could have stopped the hanyou from looking at him suspiciously and then smelling Kagome for himself. Since that point the bastard hadn't left her side. And that's where one of the biggest problems stemmed from.

If Inuyasha didn't realize what the change in her scent meant then he had a decent guess. All the while Kagome had been going through what had happened he had sat close enough to her to send Sesshomaru's Inu into a near rage. It wasn't so much the closeness, though, as it was the way he damn near hovered over her, touched her briefly and almost casually, and continually glared and growled at Sesshomaru.

He really needed to get a hold of himself. These reactions were getting absolutely ridiculous. He really shouldn't care, he told himself. Consciously, he didn't…save for the fact that the hanyou was obviously ill equipped to protect her properly and considering his own vow, this was enough to make him grumpy.

So here he was, leaning against a tree, almost completely outside the so-called circle, fighting off protective and possessive growls. It was absolutely ridiculous.

"And then you guys showed up," Kagome said, apparently finishing up her tale. For a few moments there was a stunned silence over the clearing while the others absorbed the information.

"Wait a minute," the slayer, Sango, said, sitting up straight and breaking the silence, "why would Massoumo think that changing your form would affect Lord Sesshomaru so much? I mean, you may be Inuyoukai and there's no doubt you're very beautiful, but I would think it would take more than that."

Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed dangerously. Was she implying that it did not? That he was truly that weak? She had absolutely no idea what he was going through. How dare she make assumptions.

Apparently, Kagome had seen Sesshomaru's eyes narrow dangerously at that and rushed to keep her friend from being slaughtered, verbally at least. Like he would actually waste his time killing her. But it seemed she didn't think Sango really realized just how much her presence was affecting the Taiyoukai, either.

"It's the scent," Shippo said and all eyes turned to where he was ensconced in Kagome's lap. Even Sesshomaru's, who almost tipped a brow at the kit. He may be young, but he was observant. More so than a certain hanyou more than three times his age.

"What do you mean, 'the scent'?" Sango pushed.

"Her scent changed," Shippo said, almost as though it should have been obvious. "I'm guessing it was the hair Massoumo used to change her with, but her scent is now infused with Lord Sesshomaru's."

Everyone just kind of blinked at the confident little kitsune for a moment, completely blank, save for three. Sesshomaru was regarding the kit with a cool that belied the interest in his eyes. Inuyasha was scowling so hard Sesshomaru wondered if it might stick that way and improve his looks. And the Firecat...well, Firecats didn't really have many expressions, she just nodded her head a little as though agreeing.

"And why would that mater so much?" Miroku asked.

Shippo turned to the monk, his gaze completely lacking of any childhood insecurities, shining with the confidence of knowledge. "Because this type of mingling only tends to occur from a full blood-mating."

"What is a blood mating?" Sango asked, trying to ignore the low growling coming from Inuyasha.

"For someone supposedly so well trained to hunt and kill youkai, you are woefully ignorant," Sesshomaru interrupted, his voice coldly scornful, almost like a teacher scolding a child for not studying their numbers enough.

"Forgive me, Sesshomaru-sama," Shippo said, turning his eyes calmly to the Lord that had had him trembling in his fur so many times in the past, "but it's not something many humans know about at all. They don't take mates like we do and the subtleties are complex. Sango-chan cannot be expected to know them since they are only very, very rarely shared and differ so much between the clans."

Sesshomaru blinked slowly at the kit, refusing to show his surprise at not only his forwardness but his comfort in speaking to him in such a manner. And he had done so with the utmost politeness—that must be Kagome's influence. Though he still couldn't quite understand why the kit felt comfortable enough to speak to him like that.

"There are different types of mating, Sango-chan," Shippo explained, "and depending on the type the strength of the bond between the couple varies. A simple rut for pleasure is the absolute weakest, there is no bond. It's not even really considered mating. A blood mating is one of the strongest, surpassed only by a soul mating, but those are very, very rare. Blood mates are life mates, they will be joined until separated by death...even then the surviving mate is usually quick to follow." Shippo looked down for a moment. "That's what happened with my parents...my mother died in a flood and then the thunder brothers came and my father..."

Kagome hugged Shippo closer to her and rubbed her cheek against his. Sesshomaru watched as she comforted her Ward. She rubbed her cheek against his hair, stroked his tail, and he wondered if she realized she was emitting a low, soothing growl. It was like she was comforting her own pup...that was probably why the kit seemed so at ease with him. His scent marked her as his mate, and if the kit looked to her as a mother then he would instinctively look to his mother's mate as a father. Sesshomaru sighed inwardly, as if this situation wasn't difficult enough as it was.

"Sooo..." Sango started slowly, her eyes darting back and forth between the Great Lord and her friend. "Sesshomaru considers Kagome his mate?"

Several things happened at once. Shippo nodded, Sesshomaru's Beast hummed in contentment at the thought, Kagome gasped as her eyes shot to his full of shock and question, and Inuyasha exploded.

"Like hell! She's not his mate!"

"That is correct, little brother," Sesshomaru said coldly, keeping his eyes on Kagome's startled blue ones. They seemed to be the only thing to keep the rage of his beast in check at his brother's pronouncement. He continued talking to Inuyasha, but never one did his eyes leave hers. "It is not possible for her to be my mate because I have neither lain with her nor marked her. We have shared not blood nor power nor pleasure." He had to fight from biting his lip as he watched an adorable blush rise on Kagome's cheeks at that last part. Damn, he loved it when she blushed...well, on some level he did. "Consciously, I know this and I do not recognize her as my mate. But my Inu, my Beast, my Instincts do. And they respond to her as such. It is most disconcerting."

He saw Kagome's eyes narrow angrily at that and really wasn't all that surprised. Well, it was true. More than. Having to fight with oneself over something that one knew to be untrue on one hand while the other part insisted it wasn't was a discomfort he wouldn't wish on his worst enemies. Well, maybe his worst…or his courtiers. The Gods knew they deserved some kind of discomfort for all the annoyance they provided him over the centuries. But not over something like this…abomination.

Whatever the woman was drawing breath to say to him, however, was cut off by the startlingly fierce growl the emanated from the general area of her lap. All eyes were once again on the young kitsune and even Sesshomaru had to blink at the suddenly dangerous glare on his face that completely belied his size. The Lord's eyes narrowed slightly as he took in the sudden rise in the kit's youki. It was shockingly strong for one so young. In fact, now that he thought about it, the kit shouldn't be able to hold such a refine shape at such a young age either. He truly couldn't be more than twenty-five summers. Most younglings weren't able to gain such control so early…unless they came from powerful bloodlines. But how could this one? Surely, if he was of noble birth, than even orphaned he should have had some kin to go to. Instead he traveled with Inuyasha and his strange little Pack. It made no sense.

Then again, what did make sense these days?

"Shippo?" Kagome asked, surprised as she looked down at her little Ward.

"It's just so…so…wrong! How could anyone do anything so evil? Not even Naraku would dare something as heinous as this!"

Perhaps an arguable point in Sesshomaru's estimation. Probably the only reason that particular thorn in the Western Lord's paw hadn't attempted something like this was because he didn't know about it or just how it could affect him. After all, the ways between different youkai surrounding mating varied widely. Inuyoukai didn't exactly go shouting around about it. For one, it was uncouth to speak of something so private like that. For another, well, when do the details of mating rituals really come up in civilized conversation? Much less with someone who routinely attacked you? After all, Inu knew what Inu did, and who wanted to talk about it with a spider?

Which brought up an interesting notion. Just how in the world did this little Kitsune seem to know so much?

"Calm yourself, Shippo," the monk said soothingly to the irate little youkai. "While admittedly this is an awkward situation, I would hardly call it evil."

But the kit shook his head fiercely in just the way Sesshomaru wished to do to the monk. Awkward? Fool. He didn't know from awkward. Until the day where he had to fight himself from burying his manhood within his own mate because she i wasn't /i his mate, where he became painfully excited just from the mere glancing touch of a creature he should by all rights despise, where he had to fight from decapitating his own kin for sitting too close to the same innocent creature, i then /i they could discuss awkward.

"You don't understand, Miroku," the kit growled. "Mates are sacred. Full blood-mates even more so. It's a joining at the deepest level. To bind to another in such a way, in complete trust and love is supposed to be a beautiful, treasured thing. Do you know how rare it is? That two beings can come together so completely? Why do you think that you rarely see youkai so fully mated? It's not something that should ever be taken lightly or used as any kind of tool. Massoumo obviously knows this or he wouldn't have done it. To trick Lord Sesshomaru's Beast into believing that that is what Kagome is to it, fully intending to have her betray what should never be betrayed, it…it's just…wrong!"

ooOoo

Everyone was staring at the kit with wide eyes and dropped jaws as he worked himself into a near frenzy of rage, so agitated he nearly knocked himself off of Kagome's lap. Even Inuyasha's near constant growling at his half-brother was abated as the kit raged and he, too, stared at him in shock. That, at least, Kagome was grateful for, since it was really starting to get on her nerves. Perhaps it wouldn't have seemed like much before, but with her more sensitive hearing it was really starting to annoy her.

For herself, Kagome was an interesting mingle of shock, embarrassment, and ire. She hadn't really understood just why Sesshomaru was affected so much by her or how deeply. Now she did. And the urge to choke the stupid lizard until something went 'pop' was really starting to grow. She was starting to debate what she had told Sesshomaru earlier about not being able to hate Massoumo for what he had done. To intentionally cause the type of strife that was now apparent really was evil.

Almost as shocking, however, was the fact that out of the stunned silence, it was Sesshomaru that spoke first. And not in his usual tones of boredom or ice.

"Calm yourself, kit," Sesshomaru's voice almost rang through the silence in one of the most soothing tones Kagome had ever heard. She looked up from Shippo, who was actually trembling in rage, to see the Lord looking at the little kitsune in her lap with almost a warm, comforting gaze. Shippo looked up and Kagome could see his little brows drawing together.

"But…"

Sesshomaru shook his head slightly, his expression reminding calm. "Massoumo will pay for what he has done and your Kagome will be restored to you," he continued in that tone that was so strange to hear coming from the dangerous Lord, especially towards one of their party. "Your sense of honor is commendable, but there is little purpose in agitating yourself over what has already been done. Instead, turn your mind towards what may be done to correct the injustice."

Yet another shock on top of so many. As he spoke, the Lord's voice wasn't cold or hard or commanding like it had been so many times in the past. Instead, it was soothing, oddly enough, reminding her of her mother when she was trying to teach Kagome a valuable life lesson. Patient, calm, damn near gentle. Weird.

Shippo took a deep breath and visibly relaxed before fixing his gaze on the Taiyoukai. Kagome watched, slightly amazed as their gazes met and something almost seemed to pass between them before Shippo nodded. Even more strange than the way Sesshomaru seemed to be trying to calm the kit…when did Shippo stop being afraid of Sesshomaru? Kagome distinctly remembered several times where she had held her little charge while he trembled at the mere sight of the dangerous and powerful Lord. Then again, with the way her world kept going sideways perhaps she shouldn't have been too stunned.

And apparently Kagome wasn't the only one who was turned stupid by the weirdness of the last few moments. Everyone seemed to be staring between Shippo and the Western Lord like some sort of demented tennis match. Whack. Shippo being comfortable with the demon Lord that terrifies him. Whack. Sesshomaru being reasonable. Whack. Shippo, normally so calm and chipper, getting so pissed he was vibrating. Whack. Sesshomaru, whose normal mode seemed to be intimidation and fear, being kind and calming him. Whack. Shippo actually being calmed. Whack. Sesshomaru smiling at him with something that looked vaguely like approval…

Silence reigned for a moment before Sango shook her head as though to clear it and broke the strange match that had been going on.

"Sesshomaru-sama is right," she said with a little nod. "What we need to be focusing on is what to do now."

Kagome bit her lip. Yes, that was the real question, one whose answer she had yet to find.

"What can we do?" Inuyasha humphed. "I mean, we can't even track this guy. I could only sent him when I was right on top of where he was, and even then it was so faint I could barely get a read. How are we supposed to find him and make him reverse this if we can't even track him? Huh?"

"It occurs to me," Miroku said after a few moments of contemplative silence, "that perhaps he has given us just that way."

Everyone turned to look at the monk and Kagome dared feel the first vestiges of hope. If anyone was likely to think of something, it was Miroku. He might be a complete lecher, but he did have a keen mind. Probably all that studying he'd done. Well, when he wasn't trying to get his 'cursed' hand up some kimono or another.

"What do you mean, Houshi-sama?" Sango asked.

"I mean, dear Sango, that traps are only truly effective when the prey does not know about them. I propose that we use Massumo's own trap against him."

"And just how are we supposed to do that?" Inuyasha asked, his brow screwed up like he was trying to figure out just what the monk was talking about. Frankly, he wasn't alone. Everyone looked confused, and Kagome was glad it wasn't just her. Not that there was much in the way of expression on Sesshomaru's face, but his head was tipped ever so slightly to the right.

Miroku turned to him. "Massumo has taken great efforts to put this plan into place. One assumes that he will want to check upon the progress. That means that he will have to come to where Kagome and Sesshomaru are. We will not have to track him to find him, merely know where he will be. You did mention that you could sense when he came near, did you not, Kagome-sama?"

Kagome nodded, but frowned. "Yes, but only in a vague sort of sense. I can't pin down an exact location. I just know he's near."

"How does he do that, anyway?" Sango asked. "I mean, I wouldn't think there could be anyone outside of Naraku that could so effectively hide his scent from Inuyasha, much less Lord Sesshomaru, and he has to use a full barrier to do that. Massoumo couldn't move around nearly as much as he does with a barrier in place. Maybe if we can figure out just what he's doing then when he's near we can break it and find him."

"He is a Chameleon."

Everyone turned to where Sesshomaru was leaning against his tree. Kagome blinked. How did he know that? Wait a minute…

"Sesshomaru," she started slowly, "is there something you're not telling us?"

She didn't imagine the twitching to his lips as he failed to hide a slight smirk of amusement. "Many things."

Kagome shot him a look. What was it about Inuyoukai that was just so damn infuriating? Was it just part of their nature, or was there just something wrong with these two brothers?

"About Massoumo," she gritted through her teeth.

He stared at her for a moment and she stared right back, narrowing her eyes. As their eyes held she watched his golden ones start to soften and warm as they regarded her. It wasn't much, and anyone else might not have noticed it, but his entire posture relaxed ever so slightly as she held his gaze. It seemed almost involuntary. Probably the spell thing, she mused to herself.

"Oi, bastard," Inuyasha growled at him, "if you know something about all this…"

Kagome sighed as Sesshomaru's gaze ripped from hers and landed on his half-brother's. This time there wasn't anything soft or warm about it.

"You will watch your language, hanyou. I will no suffer such rough speech." Sesshomaru's tone was just as cold as his eyes, if not colder.

"I'll talk however the fuck I want to, you asshole!"

A small gasp, so slight she probably wouldn't have heard it without her enhanced hearing, caught her attention and Kagome turned towards the source. Rin. The little girl was sitting at Sesshomaru's feet, staring at Inuyasha with wide eyes and red cheeks. She also heard a very slight growl coming from the demon Lord as he shifted ever so slightly towards the girl.

"You will curb yourself," the Lord said dangerously.

"Go screw yourself. I don't fuckin' care what you want you dickle…"

"Sit." Whumph!

Kagome looked down at the prostrate hanyou beside her disapprovingly. "Inuyasha," she said reprovingly, "please watch your language. Shippo may be more used to you talking like that when you're angry, but Rin isn't. She's just a little girl and Sesshomaru is right to ask you not to curse in front of her."

"So you're taking his side?" Inuyasha sputter from the dirt and Kagome sighed.

"No, I'm thinking about Rin. Besides, it's hardly the first time I've sat you for your potty mouth."

Inuyasha opened his mouth a moment, then snapped it shut and crossing his arms, hunching down angrily and muttering to himself. Kagome sighed and turned to the Lord. He was looking at her speculatively before he nodded ever so slightly.

"Now," Kagome said to him, "you were about to tell us what you knew of Massoumo?"

Sesshomaru nodded. "His is a Chameleon youkai, a very rare breed. I do not believe they are originally from Japan. This Sesshomaru first heard of them when I was but a small pup of ten. There was a settlement of them somewhere in the Shirakami mountains, to the north, and they were causing…problems."

"Problems?" Miroku asked, looking interested.

Sesshomaru nodded ever so slightly. "Chameleon youkai have a few very special abilities, the most troublesome of which was their ability to completely conceal their presence. They can…blend…into the surrounding area and effectively become invisible to all senses. They used these abilities to their benefit, acting as spies and assassins. At first they were for hire, but later they used their roles to gain power for themselves. They became…uncontrollable. It was not long before it was decided that they had to be stopped. If they were allowed to gain any more power there was the distinct possibility that all of the Courts of Youkai would be threatened."

Kagome's brow furrowed as she realized the implications of that. Yes, creatures with those kinds of abilities would make the perfect spies and assassins. Who could hide information from someone they could not detect? Just imagine what certain governments in her time would be able to do with creatures like that. The thought alone was frightening.

"What happened?" Shippo asked, leaning forward. Kagome looked down at him and couldn't help but smile at the rapt look of fascination on his face.

Sesshomaru looked at the kit and Kagome could swear she saw a slight smile on his lips, his golden eyes holding a strange sheen. They looked deep and wise and knowing, but at the same time alight with…amusement? That was when Kagome realized that Sesshomaru was enjoying himself. The stoic, ultra serious Taiyoukai of the West was enjoying telling a tale to his rapt little audience. Huh, who would have thought that the fierce warrior was a fireside story teller at heart?

"I recall the Taiyoukai of the North, a great, white Wolf, coming to our home to seek the aid of my father. A most memorable event."

"I would imagine so," Sango said with a slight nod. "It's well known that Ookami and Inu do not get along."

Sesshomaru granted her a slight nod. "Indeed. Ookami tend to be far too...rough…for our tastes; too ill-mannered, uncivilized, and simple-minded. Though this Sesshomaru recalls that the Taiyoukai seemed to be the exception."

Kagome felt her brows raise to her hairline and couldn't miss the snort that came from her side. She glanced over at Inuyasha who for once seemed to hold an expression of agreement with his half-brother. Was that why Inuyasha and Kouga never even came close to getting along? Then again, it wasn't like Inuyasha was the picture of refinement himself.

"It was decided that my father," Sesshomaru continued, "would seek out the Chameleons and destroy them. We Inu have far more sensitive noses than any other race, and while the Chameleons can disguise themselves almost completely there is one tell, their scent. It lingers, ever so briefly upon what they tread. It is faint, so faint that only an Inu's nose could detect it."

Sesshomaru paused and looked down, his brow furrowing ever so slightly. "I do not know all the details," he said, "I was but a pup. I recall that somehow my father managed to befriend one of their leaders, enough so that he dropped his guard long enough to release his scent. He used it to discover the hidden location of their settlement, which was consequently destroyed. All were thought to have been killed."

"Well," Inuyasha drawled, "at least one survived."

Sesshomaru turned cold eyes on his half-brother, his expression blank save for a slight bit of sarcasm in his eyes. "Obviously."

Kagome bit her lip as Inuyasha snarled at Sesshomaru, who in turn looked away with a bored expression. There was something to what he had said, something that was tickling her brain.

"Sesshomaru," she started hesitantly and all eyes turned to her, "Massoumo said that your father betrayed him, that he never should have trusted him. Do you think…do you think that he was the leader that your father befriended?"

Sesshomaru looked at her for a moment thoughtfully and Kagome fought the urge to squirm. Yeesh, how in the world could someone's eyes be so frickin' intense? Was it something he practiced or was it natural? She could see it now…Intense Staring 101: How to Intimidate with a Look.

"It would make sense," he said softly after a few moments.

Miroku let out a puff of air, breaking the tension. "Well, no wonder he feels the need for such a form of vengeance. He undoubtedly felt betrayed in the utmost by your father, a betrayal that led to the massacre of his people."

"Do you claim him to have the right, monk?" Sesshomaru asked dangerous, sliding narrowed eyes over to calm young man. "Do you think it excuses what he has done?"

Kagome wasn't sure whether Miroku was extremely brave or extremely suicidal as he met Sesshomaru's burning gaze head on without a flinch. If the demon lord had looked at her like that she would have promptly wet herself before running screaming behind the nearest mountain. The houshi, however, just gazed serenely back at him. Kagome looked around at the others and found she wasn't the only one holding her breath.

"Of course not," Miroku said in his soothing tone, seeming not to notice the tension that had sprung up around them. "What he and his people were doing was wrong, and your father did what he had to do in order to protect not only his people but all those Massoumo's threatened. I am merely saying that it makes his actions more understandable. That does not make them acceptable. But understanding ones adversary is the first step to defeating him."

Sesshomaru stared at him for a moment before nodding ever so slightly. "Then the question becomes, how do we defeat him?"

Silence reigned and Kagome felt herself start to deflate. That really was the question, wasn't it? How were they supposed to fight someone they couldn't find? How the hell would they even fight? It seemed hopeless.

"Actually," Miroku said after a moment, "I may have an idea."

AN: And that's another one in the bag! Yes, I know, damn me and my cliff hangers! Truth to tell, this chapter was originally much, much longer...but it began to annoy me that the damn thing wouldn't end! So I split it and put it in the next chapter. It should be up sometime tonight, as I think I said before. So hold on to your vegitables, it's on its way!

Reviewer Response:

pure-sweet: Thanks for the advice about the anonymous reviewer thing, I hadn't even thought of it. And the status is already changed! I'm glad you like my little yarn (not so little anymore, though, is it?) I wanted to do something just a little different from the things I'd read before and I'm glad it's working that way. . I just want to know one thing...what in the world happened to A Single Spark?

darkwolfslayer: Thank you, doll. It always makes me feel good to know people actually like what I do. And the grammer thing...I know, that bugs the crp out of me too so I try to do it correctly. Though I think that has more to do with my AP Englishteacher pounding it into me for four years than anything. xx And don't worry, next chapter's actually going up quick this time!

Megan Consoer: I'm glad you like. And I'm sorry for the evil delays, but I'm getting them up as quickly as RL and my muse will let me. Friggin' muse, always goin' on vacation to Bora Bora and not taking me with him...

Lraine: You know, tend to hate Kagome-gets-turned-to-demon stories too...well, for the most part. Actually, that's what led to this. I know people are trying to get around the whole Sesshomaru-lives-a-looong-time-and-Kagome-doesn't dilema, but sometimes it just irks me. I started wondering if there was a way to do it that was somewhat believable...and then this popped up. Believe me, it perkalated for a long time before it made it to cyber-paper...and you won't believe just how long it goes on in my head. But I make no promises about the cliff hangers...they just come to naturally to me. Yes, I'm evil, it's been mentioned before.

PlayingWithDemons: THANK YOU! No, I don't write professionally...yet. It is a dream some day to actually get published, but I don't think I'm quite good enough yet in some areas. That's why I write in fanfic, I use it to develop my skills so that I'll be able to create a whole, cohesive, original plot one day. It's so much easier to write in someone else's world that to make one up oneself, so it's the perfect vehicle for developing skills in areas like charater development, plot formation, personal voice, etc, etc, etc.

JeanB: (GRIN with lots of teeth) I never said I was a good goddess...merely accidental. Personally, I think Sesshomaru was probably too friggin' pissed at Inuyasha to do much in the way of talking. And I didn't want a whole lot of dialogue distracting from the action. I do enough of that with my whole internal naration thing. I hope you like what happened with the rest of it, and don't worry, for once the next chapter should be going up pretty quickly.

highpockets: Thank you and I'm glad you're enjoying it. I hope this chapter met standards! 0.

hellspixie18: Yes, I am evil...believe me, it's been mentioned before. GRIN. There's a reason why I've been called the Queen of Cliff Hangers before!

BrucesGirl: (Rolls eyes) I'm sure you're not that bad. But thank you. And I'm glad you're enjoying it. I'm having a lot of fun with it and the different things I get to do...the struggle against oneself, the desire to give in, the desire to fight...slipping on a snowy hill in front of the really hot guy and landing on your ass. Oh, wait, that was me.

AnimeAngelz: Thank you! I'm always glad when things come out funny, I'm never truly sure if they do. I mean, I crack myself up, but I've been told before that I'm wierd. Glad to know I'm not the only one!