There is absolutely no excuse for my not updating in so long, so I'm not going to give one.

However there is also absolutely no excuse for the rude emails I've beeen getting. Now, I'm not talking about "please continue" or "when are you going to update?" I'm talking about the people who have been cursing at me.

Anyway, the wtory continues...

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Suki had just been married, to the young lord of some or other castle. Even though the younger of the two sisters, the day that she decided it was time for matrimony, it was time to look at her prospects seriously. She had singled out one of the appropriate suitors at a social function, and had set her mind on him that day, her mother agreeing that he was the finest and most desirable catch. Suki set about wooing him, while all the while he thought he was wooing her. It was an advantageous match to both families, and soon they were betrothed, then married this night.

Izayoi stood at the edge of the hall, watching the final hours of the wedding feasting. The new couple had long since left, but the party was still going on. However, she was beginning to tire of it. Glancing around, she soon caught a pair of eyes watching her through a slit in the wall, and made her way to the gardens.

Inutaisho was there, half-heartedly watching the party from the shadows. The night was a refreshing cool, compared to the people filled room inside. The sky was cloudy, but there was a warm breeze.

"I thought you weren't coming," she said, joining him.

"I didn't."

"Well, you didn't stay in your room or leave."

"If I'd done that, I couldn't have spent all evening watching you." She smiled. "Besides, I do enjoy a good party, even if I wouldn't particularly be welcome."

His eyes caught and reflected the light from the lanterns inside. Izayoi looked back to the party in the hall. She started to ask if that bothered him, but she realized that it probably didn't.

"Do you want a wedding?" he suddenly asked her. She must have looked shocked, because he continued, "I never really asked you, you know. I just assumed it didn't matter, because you never said anything."

"I didn't think--do youkai get married?"

"Not really, because a youkai priest would be kind of a contradiction, wouldn't it?" He grinned. "Usually, if you find someone you like, and they like you, you agree to go off together and start your lives and that's that. But if it's important to you--"

"If it was really important to me, I would have said something before now, wouldn't I?" She smiled again. "But going off together sounds like a good idea. No one at the party will miss me."

Izayoi turned and started walking toward her room, not looking behind, but knowing that he would follow.

-----

They hadn't actually spent the night together until several months after he showed her the woods and the valley. Not long after that night, she had her rooms moved to the other wing of the house, adjacent to his. That they were together was apparent to all, even though it was never announced. And while there was the occasional odd or cold look thrown at her here and there, no one had really ever said anything. If anyone disapproved, Izayoi never knew. Whether they were afraid to comment about Inutaisho's affairs, or truly thought it was none of their business, the people of the house kept quiet. If anything, the Kikuchi lord was even more polite and gracious to her, which she found amusing, since he barely tolerated her when she first came. The lady hadn't made a comment one way or the other. Suki had thought it shocking and then thrilling, and Azami accepted it with the same good manners that she accepted everything.

However, whatever unspoken rules governed this place, Izayoi was fully aware of what the rest of the world thought. "Disapproval" was not a strong enough word. She knew that gossip spread like fire, and whether or not it was innocent here, it turned to poison outside of the house and the town. She knew that strangers and visitors knew who she was, for she sometimes caught the whispers of "the youkai's bride," or much worse words to describe her. These things were never said in front of the family, and rarely herself, but the walls were thin.

But she was happy, and she didn't care.

Let the rest of the world wonder about her as they would.

-----

When Izayoi woke up, there was a breakfast tray by her mat. She looked over and saw Inutaisho, already dressed, sitting against one wall. "I knew you would wake up soon, so I ordered you breakfast."

She nodded sleepily. She had long ago become accustomed to the fact that he could tell when she was about to wake up, how long it would take her to go to sleep, how deeply asleep she really was, and if she was pretending to be asleep. He'd said it had to do with her breathing and heartbeats, once, when she'd asked him. Little things that he could discern without even thinking about it.

Izayoi pulled her robe up and began eating her meal, while he did nothing more than watch. She had also become accustomed to the fact that Inutaisho rarely ate, unless he was in the mood for it. While she could see the convenience of not having to eat, there seemed to be something missing about it, since eating was how she timed her day.

As she picked some more rice up with her chopsticks, a sudden stinging on her arm caused them to almost drop them. She set them down, and pulled up her sleeve, but there was nothing there. She moved her robes around, trying to see if there was anything at all.

After about five seconds of unsuccessful searching, Izayoi looked over at Inutaisho, wondering if he thought she'd gone crazy. "Something bit me, I swear it did!"

He looked at her, but all he said was, "Leave her alone, Myouga." There was a slight smirk on his face. Then he held out his hand.

"Begging your pardon, Inutaisho-sama," came a voice out of seemingly nowhere. "But I had to see what sort of company you were keeping. And it was only a small bite, and only on the arm, for who could mar such a beautiful face?"

"Of course." There was amusement in his voice.

Izayoi now saw that on the tip of his finger a small dot had landed. She moved closer on her hands and knees, and saw that the voice had been coming from a small thing sitting on his hand.

"This is Myouga, a flea youkai that annoys me sometimes," Inutaisho said. "Myouga, this is Izayoi."

"Now what sort of introduction is that, my lord? But certainly a pleasure," the flea called to her as he jumped on to her own hand. "And I'm sure you'll forgive me for that little prick? After all, a flea can't help himself."

"Of...course not," she said.

"Any particular reason you're here, Myouga?"

"I heard that you were back in the area, my lord. And naturally, I wanted to introduce myself to your friend."

"Naturally."

"I heard she was a beauty, but the lady has far exceeded even my grandest expectations. In all my years of serving my lord, I have never seen him with a lovelier lady." He made a small bow from the tip of her finger.

Izayoi smiled. "You do pick excellent servants, Inutaisho."

"Myouga thinks flattery will get him everywhere."

"I think it's working so far." Izayoi smiled back at the flea, who she had already decided was charming in his own way.

"Just hope you're never with him in a fight."

She looked at him quizzically.

"Myouga is the biggest coward that ever lived. Aren't you, Myouga?"

"Why, Inutaisho-sama, after all these years of faithful service! After I risk my life to bring you news!"

"So do you bring any news?"

"No, but--"

"Then let's leave Izayoi to eat in peace." He stood up, and Myouga jumped back to him.

Just before the sliding door shut, she heard Myouga call, "Till we meet again, new and lovely lady Izayoi-sama!"

-----

Whether or not Myouga had brought Inutaisho news, they still must have had things to talk about, for Inutaisho was gone for the rest of the day, and when he returned, Myouga had already left. Inutaisho also informed her that he would be leaving the next week, for about a week.

He did still leave, and was gone almost half of the time, acutally. "I can't afford to simply disappear," he'd told her. There was also the minimal concern that if he never left the house, her existence and importance would become obvious. Since many humans knew of their relationship, it was given that many youkai did as well. Many of them didn't care, or weren't in a position to care, but there were some who might, especially if they thought Izayoi was more than a passing interest. "Powerful youkai make powerful enemies," he'd said once.

He made himself seen as he always had been, and insured that everything was as it should be. And there were also things that he had to do still, whether or not he wanted to be seen.

Izayoi also knew that there was another reason that he wasn't telling her, for fear that she would possibly take it the wrong way. When it came down to it, Inutaisho simply couldn't stand to be here all the time, even for her. It wasn't in his nature to stay in one place, or in his nature to be around people and indoors all the time. So she really didn't care that he left, since it was usually only for a few days, even though he did it every few days. And sometimes she went with him, when he just wanted to get out, and didn't have anything specific to do.

Besides, she could overlook it, if only for the presents he brought back to her. From beautiful jewels to interesting rocks, from simple flowers to rare and potent healing (and sometimes magical) plants. She tucked all of it away in a beautiful wooden box, which he had also given her. Though the plants she usually kept part of for herself, and turned the rest over to the Kikuchi lady, after instructing her on their use. There were people who were sick now who could benefit from them, and she would make sure they were distributed properly. Inutaisho also brought Izayoi some things that were obviously magical and of youkai make. Her favorite was an opal colored ring that looked very pretty during the day, but glowed like a tiny orange fire at night.

-----

This night she came to his room, though they merely spent their time curled up together on the mats. It had been a quiet evening, and neither had said much, until he broke the silence.

"There's something that we should talk about."

"What?"

"Any possible children."

Izayoi looked up at him. "What about them?"

"They wouldn't be human or youkai. The would be half, hanyou."

"Is that unhealthy?"

"Not necessarily, but it means that they wouldn't be accepted easily by humans or by youkai. They would be ostracized, and always on the outside. I've seen it before."

Izayoi was silent for a moment. "So what is there to consider?"

"If you want to bring a child into that. If you don't, then we won't have any children."

"It's as simple as that, is it?"

"Yes."

"Well then, we'll have to take the risk, since I'm not willing to give you up."

Inutaisho smiled at that, but then said quite seriously, "I can tell whether or not you're in the time to have a child, so we just wouldn't be together then. If you don't want a child who would always have difficulties, we simply won't have one."

It had never occurred to Izayoi that it would be as simple as having or not having a child. Getting pregnant was always a matter of chance, there was no sure way to know when it would or wouldn't happen (although apparently this only applied to humans).

"What about you?" she asked. "What do you want?"

"I don't need child. For better or for worse, I already have Sesshoumaru. But if you want one, I want one for you. For us."

Izayoi thought about it again. A child that would be half and half. If what he said was true, a child that would have a hard life. But who was to say if anyone's life would be hard? Hardships were always a part of life. And the child would be loved by both of them.

Still, she couldn't find herself saying a definite yes or a definite no. A child wasn't something to pick and choose. A child chose when it would be born.

"What about," she said after a moment, "if we didn't do it either way? If we end up being together then, then don't worry about it. If we're together other times, then that's fine. And I don't want you telling me when is when or finding some reason not to if it is when, all right?"

He nodded.

"If it happens, it happens; if it doesn't, it doesn't. I still have you."

His arm tightened around her waist. "And I you."

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Notes: I have decided that this will not follow movie 3, mainly because I can't accept the fact that Inutaisho was killed by a burning building. It's just not very believable, in my opinion. If he managed to come back from figting Ryuukotsusei (and in the movie, got all those arrows shot into him), a little fire and timber is not gonna do the trick. So, this fic either takes place in manga continuity (yay! manga), or the non-movie anime continuity. (Which exists, since we all know that Inuyasha and Kagome haven't "really" kissed yet. :)