I do not own Inuyasha. Not mine. Never will be.

All Things Come Round /b

(From "Mething Left Undone")

Labor with what zeal we will,

Something still remains undone,

Something uncompleted still

Waits the rising of the sun.

By the bedside, on the stair,

At the threshold, near the gates,

With its menace or its prayer,

Like a mendicant it waits;

Waits, and will not go away;

Waits, and will not be gainsaid;

By the cares of yesterday

Each to-day is heavier made;

Till at length the burden seems

Greater than our strength can bear,

Heavy as the weight of dreams,

Pressing on us everywhere.

… … … … …

Longfellow

Breakfast felt heavy in her belly. The tension in her bow felt overwhelming as she focused in the way Kaede had instructed. There were many ways to focus her energies into her arrows. Purification and sealing were only two and while purification was the most commonly used, the others were also incredibly important to master.

Currently the arrow held so taunt in her fingertips was an arrow of wounding for youkai. It caused damage that did not purify their life force and could be used to weaken an opponent without fear of ending them. The other two she had been practicing had been an arrow of absorption which, essentially, absorbed the energy of a youkai and dispersed it, rendering them powerless and an arrow of deflection which, if properly aimed, carried the possibility of deflecting a youkai's attack. It, next to the arrow of wounding, was the most difficult to master because, while an arrow of wounding required her to focus her energies in such a way that they caused harm without the possibility of purification, the arrow of deflection required her to perfect her skill with her bow.

It was only after several aggravated, angry groans after failing to connect with several of the attacks Inuyasha had thrown at her with his claws that Kaede had suggested she move on to the arrows of wounding. It wasn't because she was a bad shot. She'd deflected many of his attacks with success. It was simply that she was wearing out quickly and that, according to both the hanyou and the elderly priestess, meant that she needed to work on her endurance.

It was nearing lunch now and she felt almost ill considering eating again with the way her stomach felt. Three weeks had passed since they had arrived at Sesshomaru's palace, only two since Kouga had decided to grace them with his presence. He had stepped not five feet into her mate's offices before he insulted the security and safety of the area. He'd only added insult to injury by suggesting that the only thing that would repel Naraku would be his and his pack's presence on and around the grounds.

Inuyasha, who had been sitting, discussing tactics with Sesshomaru that afternoon, had relayed the whole confrontation to her.

Sesshomaru, Inuyasha, had said, was rigid the moment Kouga had entered. He had not been announced, he had simply barged in and smirked at the brothers who, while on better terms than a week previous, were still tense around each other to begin with and always itching for a fight.

"Do you realize I can just walk up to your gates without anyone stopping me? Anyone could make it to your gates without a fight and then what would you have? You'd be repelling them so close you'd never have a chance! Thank Kami I'm here with my pack! We'll strengthen your boarders real quick." The wolf smiled snidely at the Taiyoukai and his hanyou brother. "I'd have thought with Kagome under your protection and within these walls the two of you would have been more careful. Shows how much you care, Sesshomaru. Shows how much the both of you care."

According to Inuyasha, that was where her mate had broken. With the ease and grace only possessed by her beloved, he crossed the room in a blur, enclosed his hand around the wolf youkai's throat, piercing with acid kissed claws, and threw him through the window into the gardens. She had heard the crash and then the screams of Rin on the other side of the palace. She'd run full speed with bow and quiver in hand without thinking twice.

As she rounded the corner, she caught Rin up in her arms. The girl was crying and clearly terrified. "Rin, baby, what's the matter?" She asked softly as she knelt and brushed the grass from the girl's hair. Tears were running down her face, but she wasn't hurt.

"They're fighting!" Her eyes were wide as the words came from her in a shaking whisper.

Kagome looked up as the clash of steel assaulted her ears. She looked back to Rin. "Go to Kaede. Kohaku is with her. Have him find his sister and Miroku, alright?"

Rin didn't respond at first, but with a gentle shake from Kagome, she nodded and ran off quickly in the direction Kagome had come.

Kagome focused and carefully erected the barrier she'd been perfecting earlier that day. Her eyes fell on a furious battle between Kouga, Inuyasha and Sesshomaru. She knew instantly from the way her beloved was fighting and the way Inuyasha was holding himself back that they were not intending to kill the wolf, however the broken window frame scattered through the manicured garden and the crushed rose bushes with a half full basket settled nearby told Kagome instantly the reason Rin had been so traumatized.

Kouga deflected another of Sesshomaru's attacks, but from the glistening of his brow, it was certain he would not hold out much longer. "You will show respect." His voice was icy and filled with a kind of rage she had once been certain was only meant for Inuyasha.

"You don't deserve my respect!" Came his reply with a kind of misplaced chauvinism inherent in his personality. "You can't even protect her properly! She died because you couldn't protect her!"

She saw him tense. It was so brief, so subtle, she was certain only she saw it. He still blamed himself. He still held anger for what happened, but it was anger at his failings. "She is also alive because of me. You will take back your words and show me respect now, mongrel wolf, or I will end you here."

Kouga snarled and spat in Sesshomaru's direction. "You do not deserve the right to call her mate."

His words were cut off short as the flat of Sesshomaru's blade connected with the side of his head, knocking Kouga to the ground in a daze. The Taiyoukai looked down on the wolf as he regained his senses and stood. "She chose me as much as I chose her. That is not the point here, in this moment. You are in my home. You will show me the respect I deserve. I am alpha here. Not you."

"Only because your father died. Not because he chose you." Kouga growled. He did not expect the blow that came.

A flash of white energy threw the wolf youkai back against a large rock formation on the boarder of the garden. He snarled, and then yelped as he was ground into the granite. His eyes flashed up and saw the girl standing several hundred yards away with her hand outstretched. White-hot power flowed from her palm and her normally azure eyes were a pale sky blue, like his own. She was in his thoughts with a painful, piercing force. "Kagome, stop!"

No. You will hear me now.

Sesshomaru turned along with Inuyasha. Her connection with those who had been nearest her since her resurrection were still partially connected to her through the surge of her power, however, until then no one had been aware of it. He approached her and gently touched her shoulder. He could sense her stress and fear through their bond and it worried him more than, perhaps, it normally should have. "Calm, Love."

She blinked and her eyes returned to their mid-night depths. Kouga crashed to the ground from the height she had held him at with a sharp yelp. "He shouldn't have said that." She whispered and leaned against her lover's strong frame. She trembled as his claws ran through her hair. "He had no right."

"You are weak, exerting yourself in such a way." He whispered into her ear. Faint relief touched his mind as he felt the stress and anger fade from her mind as well as her fear. Miroku and Sango rushed toward them with their eyes wide. They had felt her surge of power as well. "She needs to be put to bed." He said softly as the monk approached. Sango and Miroku had accomplished something that, with the exception of Kagome slipping into his heart, no human had done in the greater part of his life. They'd won his respect and trust with those he held most dear.

It was with that trust that he eased the slowly weakening miko into the monk's arms through her protests. He caressed her jaw and cheek fervently and sent mokomokosama to curl around her and bring her comfort. "Shhh, I am with you always."

"I don't want to be fought over."

"It is not you…"

"It is me at the heart of it and you know it."

He sighed and took one of her short silken locks in his hand, twining it through his fingers absently. He met her eyes. "Yes, but they need to accept my authority for other reasons, Love, you know this."

"I still don't want to be fought over. Not by three of the men who are closest to me. Not between my brothers and my mate, I can't take it."

"I cannot end what has been begun."

"Sesshou…"

"Love, you may not want this, but it is yours. All the reason and pleading in the world will not end it."

"But it is silly…"

His lips quirked faintly and his eyes danced in amusement. "You could always construct one of these… Rulers you spoke of, but I doubt they would be up for the challenge." He flicked her nose in the same playful manner she often demonstrated toward him. He found himself delighted when her nose crinkled even as she was fighting off her smile. "However I believe I would not enjoy your method nearly as much as simply beating them into submission."

She laughed faintly and shook her head, sighing as she felt her weariness overtaking her. "Not nearly as satisfying?"

"For you, perhaps. Not for me. This you know. Though, as I promised you with Inuyasha, I will not kill Kouga. He might not walk for a few days, but I will not kill him."

She sighed and shook her head. "There's no reasoning with you, is there?"

"Not in this."

Miroku had carried her to their chambers and Sango had covered her with a soft, light blanket while mokomokosama had curled up at her feet. She'd woken several hours later with her mate curled around her protectively. He'd refused to tell her how the conflict had ended; however Inuyasha had not been so secretive.

"He marked his throat with his acid." The brash hanyou said from his tree branch. Inuyasha had been ordered by his brother to guard Kagome while she trained with Kaede. Though he did not trust the hanyou to completely control his heart, Sesshomaru knew implicitly that Inuyasha would never let any harm come to Kagome. Even if that harm were to come from him. "It's the mark of Omega in his pack."

"Why omega?" She'd asked as she sat against the tree in which her friend was perched as she ate her lunch that the cooks had packed for her that day. Part of what she'd asked from Inuyasha to demonstrate that he was worthy of her trust was that she be given complete honesty.

Inuyasha smirked. "Because he doesn't see Kouga as a threat with regard to you or his base of power. He marked me as Beta because that's as close as someone in his pack could get to him. He wants me this close so he can watch me because I threaten his place in your heart. At least that's what I see it as."

"You realize that isn't true, right?"

He nodded slowly with smoldering golden eyes. His gaze was always hot and passionate, however all of his emotions were held in his stance and face. His expressions told Kagome everything she needed to know and at that moment, no matter how passionate the hanyou's gaze appeared, in truth, he looked defeated. Like a dog who'd been kicked by his master. "I know it better than he does, but… Kagome, you realize that he saw his mother walk away from our father without a backward glance, don't you? I wasn't even a part of the youkai court and even I knew about that. I know our father loved my mother, but his love for Satori was legendary even after he sacrificed himself for us."

Kagome sighed and nodded. She had all of her mate's memories. She knew where his insecurities originated and why he was so incredibly possessive and protective of her. It was often a fear of hers that he would never really be able to trust her heart because of what his mother had done to his father. "Sometimes I wish I had a glimpse into her heart and mind as well just so I could understand why she'd do something like that. I know that it had to have hurt her as deeply as it must have him if she loved him in even a fraction of the way I love her son."

Inuyasha winced slightly and looked away. Kagome had seen, he knew, but he also knew that she understood. When he'd discovered that they had mated and bonded, he'd left the palace and run for nearly a full day. He had not stopped for food or water or even a moment's pause to recapture his breath. Kaede had informed him that Kagome would be remaining in his brother's chambers that day. A quick walk past the doors had confirmed his fears and suspicions. From her scent, even after bathing, he knew full well that there wasn't a morning since that they had not coupled. "Even knowing that might not help him forget and move past his fears, Kagome. He's almost as stubborn as you."

"Look who's talking, Inuyasha." She said with a sad smile. She leaned her head against the bark of the tree and sighed softly. "You know he makes me happy, right?"

He winced again. "I know. I've even stopped wishing that he didn't because, frankly, seeing you this happy makes me happy. I might… It's hard to say this, Kagome, but I have to. I might ache knowing that I can't have you the way he has you, but I'd rather ache forever knowing you have what you've always wanted than see you still wanting and wondering if you have from me what you know you have from him."

"What is that, Inuyasha?"

"His whole heart." He said softly. The wind had almost carried away the sound, but she'd heard him through her heart and the strange, white thread that still connected them and it made her smile.

She focused herself again on the arrow's point. Her mind was so scattered it was making her feel dizzy. Hold it together, Kagome. What's wrong with you? She released the arrow of wounding and felt it fizzle before it hit its mark. If it were the proper energy, she would have known and so would Kaede, however this arrow, while correct, was almost like a sputtering candle.

"What is wrong with ye, child?" Kaede asked softly as she approached Kagome. The girl looked pale and ill. She had all morning. "Do ye have a fever? Ye are covered with sweat."

"I… I'm all right, Kaede. I think I just need a nap." She managed a wan smile as she began to walk toward a nearby tree whose shade had been calling to her for almost an hour. "I just need some water."

Her first few steps were steady, however the next ones began to stumble and tremble. Inuyasha frowned and walked toward her, grasping her by her elbow, steadying her at her waist. "Easy, there. Let's get you sat down and then I'll go and get Sesshomaru."

"No, I'm ok, Inuyasha. I just need to sit down." She murmured, leaning on him heavily for support. Her world was spinning and her stomach was threatening to turn against her. Inuyasha helped her sit against the tree as Kaede wet a cloth to cook Kagome's brow. She trembled and turned sharply away, vomiting to the side. She almost fell into her retching before Inuyasha caught her and helped her lay on her back. He laid the cool cloth over her brow and eyes.

"That's it. I'm going to get him."

"There is no need." Came his brother's voice. Sesshomaru had felt her distress and disorientation across the grounds as if he were standing beside her. He nodded to his brother who quickly backed away from his mate. Kaede remained seated at her other side, checking the girl's pulse and temperature. The Taiyoukai turned his gaze toward the elderly miko. "What is wrong with her? She should not be sick, she shares my vitality now."

"There are signs of one thing in particular, though if it were so, ye would have caught its scent long before now."

"You are correct." He said simply and smoothed his love's short, midnight hair from her brow. She was so pale it frightened him, though he did not emote such a weakness. "Love, can you detect anything that might be wrong?"

She leaned into his hand and shook her head, whimpering as the cloth fell from her eyes. Sesshomaru quickly replaced it. "I can't… Sense anything wrong with me. It just came over me this morning and hasn't gone away since."

Inuyasha perched in a branch and looked down at Kagome. "What if she's carrying but somehow the scent's masked?"

"To mask such a scent, she would have to consciously attempt to hide her pregnancy." Kaede responded softly, caressing Kagome's hand when the girl visibly paled more in fear. "Shhh, child. It's alright."

"I haven't tried to mask or hide anything…"

"I know." Sesshomaru responded gently, leaning to kiss her tenderly along her jaw. He reached for the jar of water that had been brought for lunch and helped her sit up so she could take a few sips. "If you had done so consciously, I would have sensed it as easily as if I had detected a change in your scent."

"What if she did it unconsciously, though?" Inuyasha asked, frowning deeply. "Nobody knows when Naraku will attack. If she were carrying now, it would make sense that she'd want to hide it. If she could sense the baby when it first came into being…"

"That isn't possible." Kaede chided gently.

"The hell it ain't." Came his crass reply. "Look, old woman, listen for a minute, ok? You all keep saying how she shouldn't be able to do a lot of the things she's done, but she did it. Who's to say what she's capable of or what's possible? From what I heard, until Midoriko forged the Shikon no Tama with her soul, there wasn't a person who thought such a thing was possible and there it was, just stirring up more trouble than it could ever be worth. You said yourself she's got some of Midoriko's abilities, so why the hell shouldn't she be able to do what we all think is impossible?"

Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes slightly and looked up to his brother. "For once, I will have to completely agree with you, Inuyasha. However, if such is the case, there is no way to tell."

"Sesshou, I wouldn't… I wouldn't hide it from you if I were, you have to believe me…"

Sesshomaru frowned deeply and looked down at his mate where she was curled with her head against his thigh. He could scent the salt of her tears beneath the cool cloth and it distressed him. So did her fear and increased stress. He drew her into his embrace with mokomokosama curled around her for extra support. He leaned to her and kissed the crown of her head, sending her reassurance that his anger was not toward her. "I know you would not. Trust that I know your heart enough to believe you would not hurt me in such a way as to hide the conception of my heir. But what Inuyasha said is true, Kagome. We do not know what you are capable of. With the treat of Naraku, I could easily understand why you would have hidden such a thing subconsciously, if that is the case."

"Please don't be mad at me…"

"Never. Please, Love… Do not cry. There is no reason for tears." He murmured and kissed her tenderly. He felt the soft rumblings of his beast's presence. Since he had mated and bonded to Kagome, mokomokosama's separate existence from him had almost completely dissipated. There was no more this and that Sesshomaru with the exception of the feral vestiges of his primal side. He felt as if he should know something. As if he'd forgotten the words to his favorite song and was left with only the melody. You work so hard to convince me that we are better as one and now that we are, I do not even have access to your knowledge… Your decisions and actions made independently from me. If she is carrying my heir, I would not be surprised if it was your doing on some level that the truth was hidden from the both of us.

"I'll go and get Miroku. If she's pregnant and she ain't using her miko powers to mask it, most likely he'd be the only one to sense what's really going on considering he found a way to connect to her through her new powers when no one else even realized they were active."

"Yes, please do." Kaede said softly. "If it is her new powers that is allowing her to mask a child, it would go to reason as to why I cannot sense her accessing her miko abilities as well as why she has been so exhausted of late. Not only would she be growing a child, the use of her new abilities have the tendency to drain her considerably."

Once Inuyasha had left to retrieve Miroku and Kaede had walked toward her satchel to create a poultice to help ease Kagome's nausea, Sesshomaru removed the cool cloth and kissed away the girl's reemerging tears. "Please do not cry, Love. It hurts me when you cry and there is no reason to be so sad."

She trembled and opened her eyes, meeting his gaze timidly. "You were afraid of this. We both were, but we didn't stop ourselves. What if I am pregnant and the baby is endangered? It will be my fault."

"Our fault." He countered and kissed her deeply, feeling her tremble against him. He nipped her lips fervently and kissed her brow. "Either of us could have stopped, but we did not want to. I will not regret what has gone between us for a moment and you should not either."

"I don't…"

"Then why do you cry?"

"Because…" She sobbed softly and clung to him with a desperate fierceness. "Because I don't want to lose it. I could endure almost anything except losing you or one of our children. I'd rather die myself than be forced to live through that."

"We made a choice, Kagome." He said with just enough strength to be stern, but not enough to be harsh. He met her gaze to let his full meaning as well as the intense love and devotion he felt for her sink in, as it would not in any other way. As more tears fell he drank them away with kisses. "We made a choice knowing what the outcome might be. We have since continued along the same path and have not ceased in amorous connection since that first morning. Nor do I intend to cease seducing you any subsequent morning, no matter the outcome. We made a choice to be together now and we took a risk in doing so rather than waiting in shallow hope that we would both survive to claim each other once Naraku was defeated."

"I don't regret the choice… I'm just so afraid."

He held her tightly and whispered faintly into her ear as he breathed in the scent of her hair. "So am I. I am terrified of losing you or our child if it is true you carry my heir, but I will not let that fear rule me. I will use it to make myself stronger as I have since the moment I realized how fully and completely you have come to possess my heart. It is all right to be afraid, Love. Only do not let the fear rule you."

She nodded and kissed his neck gently, feeling him tremble slightly against her embrace. She fought to stop her tears and regain her breath. His words had shocked her, not because she did not know that he had such feelings, but because he had admitted their existence. "I love you." She whispered.

He looked up and saw Kaede walking toward them and, at a further distance, Inuyasha and Miroku running toward them. "I love you too." He whispered and gently kissed the juncture of her neck and shoulder, nipping softly before the three arrived.

Miroku approached along side Inuyasha. His eyes were fixed on Kagome as Kaede helped her sip a dark liquid from a small bowl that, even from his distance without youkai senses, he could smell. It was not foul, only potent.

Kagome choked, but forced the rest down, trembling by the time she emptied the bowl. Sesshomaru laid her down again with her head in his lap and stroked her hair as Miroku came closer. "Inuyasha has told you what needs to be deduced?"

Miroku nodded and knelt beside Kagome. He took her hand and squeezed it as their eyes met. "Forgive me, Kagome, but are you late at all?"

She nodded faintly, though blushed deeply. "A few days, but I never exactly was… Well… Predictable." Her blush deepened.

He nodded and smiled coyly. "You would make this difficult, wouldn't you? I thought you would at least have a clue considering it is your body."

She managed a nervous smile. "One would think."

He sighed and placed his hands over her abdomen, though did not yet lower them to touch her. "Skin to skin is better, but since you already consider me a hopeless hentai, I will only place my hands over your clothing."

She laughed faintly and sighed as she felt Sesshomaru's claws run through her hair, along her scalp. "That's alright, Miroku. We both trust you, even if you are a hopeless hentai."

The monk smirked and placed his hands over Kagome's abdomen. He focused carefully on the energies he'd become so familiar with when he'd been attempting to locate her while Naraku had imprisoned her. He'd expected a shimmer. A faint glow where there should have been the swirling energies of life within her. He did not expect to be thrown away from her by a powerful burst of white energy.

"Miroku?" He heard his name as his head slowly stopped spinning. He sat up with Inuyasha and Kaede's assistance. His gaze fell onto where Kagome was sitting up, concern flooding her gaze as Sesshomaru eased her back against him. She suddenly looked so small and pale. With the jolt of energy, he understood why.

"I'm alright." He said and stood slowly before returning to sit beside Kagome and Sesshomaru. The miko looked at him with shame and worry. "Don't, Kagome. What happened was my fault. I should have known to be more careful after seeing what you did to Kouga in a fit of emotion."

"I…"

"He was attacking your mate, Kagome. Inuyasha told me what happened and so it makes sense that your instincts would have gone off. Your new abilities are entirely connected to your instincts. The stronger the instinct, the stronger the response."

"What are you saying, Miroku?" Sesshomaru asked as his arm wrapped around his mate protectively along with his beast.

"I'm saying that when I tried to sense whether or not she's carrying your child, her instincts reacted because, at that moment, I was a threat. I can't tell for certain if she's pregnant or not, but if she is subconsciously hiding the child, it would make sense that any attempt to detect it would be thwarted violently."

"We need to know for certain." Inuyasha said softly from where he crouched nearby. "For her sake and the child's."

Miroku nodded. "I agree. If she is carrying, our knowledge would allow us to divert our energies to her complete defense if it came to that. It would allow us to know if her energies were at our disposal or if they would be entirely diverted to the protection of her child. The only way I feel I could safely traverse the barrier she seems to have erected is if she could use her powers to forge the same rapport with me again that she has with all of us in the past so I could slip through it momentarily and get a good view of what is going on."

"I don't know if I can do that… I've never tried." She whispered. She was so exhausted. All she wanted to do was sleep. The cool hand of her mate roused her and she managed a small, weary smile.

"You can. You must now, Love." He whispered to her and kissed her cheek reassuringly.

Kagome nodded and sighed as she located the white, pure energies where they rested within her highest charka. A sheen of sweat slipped over her skin as she focused entirely on creating a momentary rapport with Miroku. Allowing her instincts to dictate her actions, she managed a frail, weak connection with the monk who wasted no time in his own endeavor.

Miroku slipped along the thread of light and along Kagome's glowing white charkas. He closed his eyes physically so he could guide himself quickly toward her second lowest well of energy where her reproductive organs resided and were nourished. He could sense the barrier and the nature of it. Not only was it masking her scent, it was protecting her womb entirely, diverting more energy from her other charkas as was necessary to enlarge the barrier. The monk smiled as he reached out and caressed the tiny fire hidden behind the barrier and almost laughed as it responded to him in curiosity as well as hostility at his very presence. Definitely their child. He thought as he quickly pulled away from the child's aura and out of Kagome's energies before the rapport collapsed.

He opened his eyes and found Kagome panting and barely conscious. She turned her gaze to Miroku in question. He smiled a bit wider and reached out, caressing her sweaty brow. "Rest, Sister. The both of you are fine."

"Both?" She questioned with shimmering eyes.

He nodded and then looked up to meet the Taiyoukai's eyes. Sesshomaru was barely tolerating the monk's hand against his mate's brow and now, as the realization was setting in that she carried his heir, that tolerance was quickly fading. He returned his gaze to Kagome who was still valiantly trying to stave off sleep. "Yes, both. Rest, Kagome." He stepped back and watched as she began to drift off. Her worry could not deprive her of what her body so obviously craved. Once she had drifted off to sleep, Sesshomaru stood and cradled her against his chest, gazing down at her peaceful countenance. "You should know, Sesshomaru, that, unless she dies again, the baby will survive no matter what. The barrier she's placed around it is so fortified that I doubt anyone could reach it unless she allowed him or her to consciously."

Sesshomaru nodded and, for a moment, Miroku thought he caught the faintest wisps of pride, joy and love cross his gaze as it fell on his mate. "Still, I will not let her anywhere near battle. There is no choice in that now."

"What about Naraku?" Inuyasha asked. He agreed with his brother, but he knew the dark hanyou would never stop until he had the jewel and both Kagome and he were dead.

"We will find another way." He said simply. He knew that it was not going to be so simple. He knew that it would be next to impossible to defeat Naraku without Kagome's power, but he could not endanger their child and he knew she would agree with him. "The child is first now. Vendettas and quests do not matter."

"But they do, Sesshomaru." The elderly miko said in her soft, wise voice. She met the Taiyoukai's gaze unflinchingly even as his rage was threatening to erupt. "They do because, until they are dealt with and completed, the child's life will be in danger no matter how hard ye try to protect them. Ye will find a way, no doubt, but do not allow your fears to rule ye, great Western Taiyoukai. Kagome is strong. She can survive anything if ye give her reason to."

He closed his eyes slowly, then opened them and looked away from Kaede. His heart was churning with so many conflicting emotions he felt like he might drown in them. "I hear you, old woman. But I would rather that she survives with the reasons she already possesses rather than for ones I would have to reconstruct for her. Her happiness is my own."

Kaede smiled knowingly and nodded. "You would not be

worthy of her if it were any other way. Take her to rest. She should not train any more until she has recuperated so we can find a way to harness her abilities without endangering the child."

Sesshomaru nodded to her and then his brother and the monk. He turned away and strode swiftly toward his palace and their chambers with purpose. I knew… And yet did not know. Somehow this barrier is my own doing and yet I cannot place when such an action occurred. Why would I hide such an important piece from myself unless… Unless it was so that the child would be utterly protected in its very beginnings… If Naraku attacked and she was captured, no doubt the child would be killed immediately if he knew. Masking it entirely would at least keep the child safe for a while in such a situation and even further still with the barrier. He would be forced to kill Kagome in order to kill the child and if he did capture her again, it would be most likely as a hostage or bait. I do not understand fully and it bothers me… But as Kagome cannot understand that part of her ruled by instinct, neither can I. Perhaps that is the price I have paid for being whole. I have grown in power, but I have lost my complete understanding of my instinct. I do not know. I hope it is not my downfall.