Chapter Twelve

"You feel the same as Kouga, don't you? I mean, you are jealous of Inuyasha having such remarkable sons."

Sesshomaru only sent a glare in response.

"Did you mean to say that you are simply above such primitive feelings as jealousy, especially where it concerns Inuyasha? You can glare at me all you want, but I can continue to make all kinds of theories and annoy you even further. The trip to the Northern Lands is quite long, isn't?" Kagura tormented further, amused by her monologue.

"For what obnoxious reason can this Sesshomaru be jealous of Inuyasha having sons?"

"Because all men want to have sons just like them. To boost their ego even more, as it seems."

"All women want to have daughters."

"I am not denying that, so the topic won't be closed. I am actually quite amazed at how the parents' traits can unpredictably mix in their offspring. Yasha is level-headed, but uses a sword like his father, and Ryou is the hot-headed one, but his weapon is the bow – like his mother. Don't you need to be composed to use a bow well?"

"Your assumptions are based on stupidity."

"What?" Kagura exclaimed, offended by such blunt insult.

"Stupidity and lack of facts. Ryou discarded his hair so easily, because he doesn't need it since he is an archer and doesn't rely on his physical strength. On the other hand, he was born with no youkai side."

"How is that possible?"

"Yasha was purified upon his birth, but Ryou did it himself in the womb. He inherited his mother's spiritual abilities. He'll grow the hair back by the time of his mating by will alone. As for Yasha, he would've been dead a long time ago because of his recklessness during exterminations if it hadn't been for the haori and his comrades."

"So the coin has two sides, hah? You have a lot of interest in the sons of the step-brother you supposedly hate. Why is that, I wonder?" Silence was her response, which wasn't a surprise for Kagura. She learned to interpret them as something Sesshomaru didn't want to talk about, something that must be hidden from the eyes and ears of the bystander, who she definitely wasn't, even if in her eyes only. That's why every time Kagura tried to work out the mystery behind the silence and make the taiyoukai admit her rightness.

Contemplating yet another mystery, Kagura came to a shocking revelation. So shocking that her grip on Sesshomaru loosened (even if there was no need to hold onto him in the first place, Kagura made a habit to hold onto his sleeve whenever they were flying). "They are your only blood relatives! Your only true family! Inuyasha is the next Lord of the Western Lands! Not that he will take upon the role anytime soon…"

They landed on a meadow in the middle of the forest. The place seemed to be perfect for spending the night. Kagura began to collect firewood right away; their recent camping trip gave her a lot of strange habits that no proper lady should possess.

"Kagura."

"Hm?"

"Inuyasha is going to become the Lord of the Western Lands sooner than you anticipate."

"How come?" Kagura asked indifferently, concentrating on getting as much firewood as possible, because she doubted Sesshomaru would let her sleep by his side. She can risk an attempt later though…

"My existence will be ended in less than fifteen years."

The sticks tumbled to the ground. Kagura slowly turned around to face Sesshomaru who was sitting under a tree in a relaxed posture as if he hadn't said anything out of the ordinary the moment before. "What?" she asked in a hollow voice. "You are going to die? 'Will be ended' as in you are going to be killed? How is that possible? No one can kill you, can't they? You. Can't. Die."

"I have my weaknesses."

"You can't die!" Kagura screamed at the top of her lungs as if the high volume could make it more real.

"Why are you crying?"

Kagura touched her cheek to find out that she was indeed crying, shedding tears for a heartless bastard. How more pathetic could she get? "You won't understand. With all your hundreds years' wisdom you won't be able to understand!" she spat, her face contorting in pain. That evening Kagura remained by her small fire, too emotionally drained to move to gather more, she wasn't cold during the night however.

During the whole ordeal of finding the villages' healer and helping with the administration of the medicine no word passed between Kagura and Sesshomaru. He wasn't even present most of the time, proving once again his distaste towards humans in general, but Kagura took it on her own account. She was only a human, even with his blood in her veins. She was nothing special, so she had no reason to care about his upcoming death or him. Thankfully she was distracted by a sweet handsome healer, who was very friendly and helped her with everything she asked for.

The returning flight a week later was also silent. The two seemed to be complete strangers. Upon the landing Kagura started to walk towards the inn where Rin was supposed to be without a single word of farewell. And she didn't care if she offended the taiyoukai or hurt his feelings (which was basically impossible) or wouldn't see him for eternity.

When she entered the room where Rin should be staying, all her thoughts about her conflict with Sesshomaru flew out of the window as she saw Rin curled on the futon, crying her eyes out.

"What happened, itoshigo?" Kagura asked, hugging the young woman tightly. "He didn't, did he?"

"He left. Yukito left me!" Rin managed between wails. "Said he wasn't worthy of me, that he couldn't give me anything, couldn't provide for me. But I don't care about all this! I love him! Isn't it enough?"

"Sometimes it isn't. Did you confess to him?"

"He didn't let me even say anything! He told me to move on and that we would remain friends if I so wished. He went to travel to get a name for himself and become stronger, but what for?"

"If he loved you as much as you did him, he would've stayed."

"So you deem him unworthy too?" Rin blew with anger, moving away from Kagura to demonstrate her protest for her foster mother's opinion.

"All I want to say is that time will mend your heart and there will be another man for you to fall in love with. The best man in all aspects."

"If you believe in that then why are you crying?"

….

~Two years later~

Kagome was a frequent visitor of the cemetery since firstly her friends passed away and then their children then the children of their children. The reason of quick deaths was mostly the career of youkai slayers that was taken by the third of the Miroku and Sango descendants. It was the same with children of Kohaku and Rin, but the death rate seemed to be a lot less. Kagome wondered if it was because of Sesshomaru's protection. She brought flowers to the grave of one of Miroku and Sango's daughters and her husband, but discovered she was not alone on the cemetery.

"Kagura? What are you doing here?"

Kagura stood up, leaving the fresh picked flowers on the grave covered in dust since it hadn't been visited for a very long time. "Came to pay my respects. Also to find some answers."

Kagome neared the tombstone to find out it was Rin and her family's grave. "Did you?"

"Not really. I am getting married, Kagome," Kagura stated flatly.

"Really? Who is he?" Kagome asked cheerfully, obviously feeling happy for the other woman.

"The healer from the Northern Lands. He came to Naruki's three months ago saying he had been searching for me these two years since he fell in love with me at first sight. We are having a double wedding ceremony since Rin was also proposed to."

"I don't know about Rin, but you don't sound happy at all," Kagome remarked with a frown.

"I am just not used to the idea of being a wife. I had a fiancée a long time ago, but… things didn't work out so I basically gave up on the whole idea of marriage. But then even if I wanted it as any other woman the idea was so surreal I couldn't grasp it."

"But now it is real, and you are afraid that it won't work out again."

"No! No! Hiasaki is a wonderful man," Kagura protested, but the strain of dread pierced her every word.

"Why are you here, Kagura?" Kagome asked, certain that she was not telling the whole truth and Kagura's doubts were not ordinary wedding jitters.

"If Sesshomaru dies will he be buried here?"

"What? How can he die?"

"Just as a possibility. Is it possible for him to be buried here? Together with his family?"

"I don't see why not, but what brought this question? And where is he, by the way? I haven't seen him in quite some time."

"I don't know. Maybe Rin knows, her fiancée was approved, she couldn't have gone on with the wedding otherwise."

"You mean, you don't know and she does?"

"And why should I have any privileges?" Kagura spat defensively.

Kagome was taken aback by Kagura's sudden anger. "You seemed to be close."

"Do you believe your own words, Kagome? You who know him for a hundred years! You can't be close to Sesshomaru in any possible way. Only she was."

Kagome followed the finger Kagura was pointing at the tombstone with to see the familiar name of a human girl who managed to befriend the taiyoukai.

"Oh and the first Kagura of course," Kagura mocked. "But she managed to die before he tossed her aside."

"Did he toss you aside?" Kagome asked cautiously, seeing the devastation and panic Kagura couldn't mask with impassiveness anymore. She was really hurting, but Kagome didn't know how to help her.

"I saved him the trouble. Rin and I will be living in different towns so I doubt our paths are going to cross. I am not in his pack, never was actually." With that Kagura stomped away, confusing Kagome even more.

Kagura's words and feelings were contradictory to the point that it was impossible to determine if she wanted to be with Sesshomaru or never see him again in her life. If it was the latter then all the conditions were fulfilled by her marriage, but what if it was the former?

….

The wedding was wonderful. The grooms were perfectly groomed, the brides were beautiful, everything seemed to be perfect. Both grooms were respected members of the community so quite a crowd gathered to congratulate them on their acquiring life companions. The same crowd threw suspicious glances at the guests from the brides' side, meaning Inuyasha's pack which included his sons and their future mates. Naruki and Hitomi were also present with their son.

Even if everything seemed to go smoothly, Kagome kept fidgeting beside her mate, looking around as if searching for someone.

"What's with you?" Inuyasha whispered into her ear, sending pleasant shivers down her spine.

"It's Rin's wedding, Sesshomaru is bound to appear."

"So what?"

"He and Kagura had a messy break-up. I understood as much."

"And since when were they together to have a break-up? That's your fantasies only. What are you afraid of? Of Sesshomaru in a jealous rage disrupting the wedding? Please! This is utter nonsense."

"Remember what he did with the possessed guy? Killed him on the spot because he almost killed Kagura with his beatings."

"You do have a point here, Kagome, but let's just wait and see."

They didn't need to wait long. Just as the ceremony ended and the procession headed towards the house of the head of the town where the reception was to be held, all with the youkai blood, including Kagura, turned their heads to the beginning of the main road on which a figure in white appeared. Nobody moved entranced with the royal gait of the newcomer. Everybody cleared the way however when he was close enough to walk through the crowd of guests.

"Sesshomaru-sama! You came!" Rin greeted her former guardian joyfully.

"Welcome, Sesshomaru-sama," her husband, Kyoukei (respect) said with a deep bow. "Rin told me a lot about you."

"Rise," Sesshomaru ordered, Kyoukei obliged. The taiyoukai stepped closer to the man and looked into his eyes. Sesshomaru didn't see any fear in there, a bit of apprehension maybe, but the human man in front of the youkai wasn't afraid, even in the deepest part of his heart, even if he was only an inn keeper, who must've seen all kinds of types of people in his business.

Sesshomaru brushed his claws against Kyoukei cheekbones leaving two thin red cuts. Rin was taken by a remarkable man, a man of power in his own right. The circle had had another turn.

While Rin pressed a handkerchief to the cuts to stop the bleeding, Sesshomaru turned towards another newlywed pair. Kagura's face was impassive, as if she was at some other time and space.

"Omedetou (congratulations) on your marriage, Kagura," Sesshomaru uttered and bowed for the first time in his eight hundred years existence.

Even if Kagura had had any reaction he would've had not seen it since Sesshomaru disappeared right away, ignoring Rin's invitation to come visit them soon.

"I heard, that he visits all the families connected to him at least once a year, why does he do that?" Hiasaki asked Kagura upon Sesshomaru's leave.

"He watches other people's happiness unable to have his own. Coward."

Hiasaki looked astounded at his wife. The way she spoke of the youkai he knew to be one of the most powerful youkai left roaming the lands was one of not despise but pity, regret and mortification. She wasn't afraid of him at all. Even if Hiasaki knew beforehand that something connected Kagura to the youkai, she hadn't told him anything as if nothing happened, as if that page of her life was cleansed.

The procession proceeded towards its previous destination since nothing was deterring it anymore.

"Why do you think he did it, Inuyasha?"

"What do you mean, Kagome?"

"Don't be your usual baka self! I mean Sesshomaru of course!" Kagome hissed frustrated. "It looked like an admittance of defeat to me."

"Like he lost Kagura to that healer guy?"

"No, like he lost to Kagura."

"But what could that be? She is only a human woman after all."