Disclaimer: The characters of Inuyasha are owned by Rumiko Takahashi, but this story (and Hikari) belongs to me.

All Heck Breaks Loose

or

Sesshomaru's Favor

My Sweet Hikari,

It is a joy to watch you having so much fun with other children. I'm proud that you pick yourself up when you fall down and that you don't let anyone keep you down. You have a fighting spirit, just like your father. He wouldn't let anyone keep him down either.

Every time I see you, I love you that much more. Every day with you is an adventure, and I treasure each moment.

Your Loving Mama

Kagome put down her pen and smiled at the children. At least, she hoped it looked like a smile. It is tough seeing her little girl fall, and instinct called to her to protect her little daughter from all harm. But she knew that she had to let Hikari pick herself back up and keep trying. Of course, she would never let any actual danger threaten her daughter. Not that Kagome really stood a chance of being the first one to reach her daughter if she were in danger. After all, the little girl had a demon for a brother and a half demon for a father. Both were far faster than she could ever be. The phrase "Supermom" did not mean that motherhood gave her actual powers. Dang it. With Hikari, super powers would have been helpful.

It was tough on all of them to not hover like overprotective guard dogs (in some cases, it was quite literal). Kagome wanted to wrap her in soft cotton and make sure she never had so much as a scratch on her. It hurt to know that she had to fight her instincts and let her inquisitive little one explore the world around them. Hikari would not appreciate being treated like a baby. Lately she had grown more determined that she could do things for herself, that she was a big girl. It hurt.

Just a little.

Just a tiny little bit.

Okay.

A lot.

Hikari seemed to be growing up too fast. It seemed like just yesterday she was no bigger than a baby doll. Now she made disgusted faces if she heard you call her baby. How much longer did she even have to be a toddler?

Shading her eyes against the sun, Kagome looked at Inuyasha. His fists were clenched tightly and all his senses were trained on Hikari, even though he tried to appear like he was only just mildly interested. Letting Hikari fall was just as hard on her husband. No matter how many times he told her that Hikari would have to learn to take care of herself and learn to fight against demons and humans alike and that she would have to become strong and tough... Inuyasha still hadn't been able to convince himself. She grinned at him as his ear twitched in her direction. The tiniest boo boo, so small it didn't even require a band-aid, made her poor mate would be sick with fear and rage at whatever hurt his precious little girl. Letting her out of quick grabbing range was difficult.

How would they manage watching her walk into school for the first time?

At least letting her play with Kouga's children let Hikari explore the world in a slightly different way than when she played with Sango's children. And how she played with them was different than how she was able to play with the other strictly human children of her own time, and the village children here. Hikari had to learn to be very careful when she played with the children who did not have demon blood. And when playing with the children from the future she had to make sure that no one discovered that she had unusual ears, and gifts. And though Sango's children were, for the most part, hardy and would start demon slayer training one day, Hikari still had to be very careful when she played with them.

Kagome shaded her eyes and watched as Hikari jumped up and leapt at one of Kouga's sons, (Musha, the oldest... the one who seemed to inherit all of his father's ego...) with the intent to bite his leg.

She missed.

Playing with Kouga's children let her be herself. She could be as fast as she wanted to be. She could be as strong as she wanted to be. Having her ribbons or her ponytails come undone did not mean that playtime had to come to an immediate halt so they could be fixed so those obnoxious parents in the playgroup wouldn't see that she had adorable little fuzzy ears on the top of her head. It also grounded her just a little, made her work a little harder. With the wolf cubs she was not the strongest or the fastest. It could be frustrating, but it was good to keep her from developing a super inflated ego.

It was also good for the cubs. Hikari may be smaller, but she had determination. They may win the races, but they have to work for it.

Her smile faded. Something in the air didn't feel right.

Inuyasha must have felt it too. Suddenly he was on high alert.

"Hikari!" He yelled as even the air seemed to suddenly be charged with energy. "Here! Now!"

Kagome jumped from her seat, startling the she-wolf and caused the newest wolf cub to cry. She took off at a dead run for Hikari. Shippo was already at the little girl's side in full protective mode. Something was wrong.

"What's going on?" asked a voice at her elbow.

"Get the kids!" Kagome yelled at Ayame frantically.

The wolf demon asked no more questions as she bolted towards her own children, yelling out their names. Inuyasha scooped up Hikari and Shippo, and two of Kouga's sons, Kyouko and Bantan, and ran towards Kagome. The miko saw them and immediately stopped in her tracks and began chanting a spell, forever grateful that she had been practicing her spells every day. The first one she learned was the protective barrier.

Kagome was grateful that no one seemed to be panicking. Before Inuyasha would even consider letting them leave their home, he had drilled into them all what to do when they are attacked.

When, not if.

It wasn't the first time they had been attacked, and it would hardly be the last. Things went very smoothly. Kagome was to start putting up a magical barrier as Inuyasha or Shippo (depending on who was closest) would get Hikari into the barrier. After the barrier was solidly in place, Kagome would join her mate in battle. Depending on the situation, she would either stay to his back, or stay in front of the barrier where the children were. Shippo would stay with Hikari to protect her no matter which scenario happened (and Inuyasha had MANY scenarios to go through), and to begin hooking her into a specially made harness. If the barrier was to fall, he was to transform into his pink floating ball form and get Hikari in the air for safety. Unless there were enemies in the air, then he would transform the both of them to look like stones or fallen trees until danger had passed. They only deviated slightly from their plan to include Kouga's children as well.

Ayame had hold of all of her children, save the oldest who seemed to have found a place to hide on his own. Kagome let Ayame and the children into the protective barrier before saying the final words that would seal it off. With the she-wolf demon on the inside, Kagome felt comfortable in joining Inuyasha in battle.

The demon crashing through the trees was furious that he had been detected so easily. It screamed its fury. Another appeared behind him. Then another. And another. They began swarming like ants.

There were so many! She could already see the barrier weakening as the demons filled the air with bolts of energy.

"Shippo!" she yelled without taking her eyes off the approaching enemies, "Take off the necklace!"

"What?"

"Hikari's necklace, take it off her." She turned her attention to her daughter. There were too many demons, and it was too dangerous. They had an escape plan now that they didn't have before, at least that they knew of. "Hikari, sweetie, take Shippo to go see Grandma. Can you do that, baby?"

Hikari looked up at her with solemn eyes, then nodded. She grabbed Shippo's hand, then she looked around and grabbed Bantan's hand as well. He, in turn, took his mother's hand, the one that wasn't wrapped around his siblings. In a heartbeat, there was no one left inside of the barrier.

Kagome sighed with relief. It worked.

She felt lighter as she turned back to the battle. The odds seemed less overwhelming now that the children were safe. They would probably all be eating cake and watching cartoons by the time her first arrow hit its target.

"Where's the cubs?" asked Kouga as he ran to her side. He didn't have the shards in his legs anymore, but he was still the fastest demon she knew. "Ayame?"

"Safe."

He nodded, then leapt at an approaching demon. Kagome frowned at him. Ayame loved her mate dearly, Kagome hoped that Kouga was grateful for her. She hoped he loved her back. She had made peace with the role that was expected of her in their pack. There were very few female wolf demons, and in order to keep their clan alive, children would have to be born. Gaika was less than a year old, and it was obvious that Ayame would soon be adding another cub to their family. At least she had Hakkaku and Ginta to help her keep the kids in line.

She was a bit startled when a demon flew right into Kouga, knocking the wolf to the ground. Kagome looked in the direction he had come from and saw Inuyasha glaring at the wolf demon. It probably shouldn't amuse her that her dog demon was still prickly whenever Kouga stood too near her.

Ah, her beloved jealous hanyou. Oh how she loved him.

She let an arrow fly and cleared a path to her husband. With the children safe, she would fight alongside Inuyasha, who cracked his knuckles with a chuckle as soon as he saw the coast was clear and he could let loose without fearing he would somehow hurt or traumatize Hikari. She almost felt sorry for the demons who dared threaten the safety of her family.

Almost.

But not quite.

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"Surely you did not insult the niece of this Sesshomaru."

"Don't be stupid," snapped Inuyasha. He tried to control his temper, but it was always difficult when he was around his brother. Half brother, he amended. But he needed Sesshomaru's help. He was the only one he could turn to. Plus he swore to Kagome that he would be nice. Feh. "I said Hikari is a dog."

The hanyou lifted his arm, and Sesshomaru lifted an eyebrow.

A tiny little fluffy dog was hanging by her teeth on the sleeve of his robes, whipping her head back and forth to make herself swing. She noticed Sesshomaru and barked. The pup had a startled expression as she fell when she opened her mouth. The bark quickly turned into a cry. Not that she fell far. Kagome scooped her up before she hit the ground and scratched her ears while making cooing sounds. Two young demons had dove for the pup as well.

"Cute!" cried Rin happily from her place behind Sesshomaru.

"It's my fault," said the little monster of Kouga's who was responsible for this whole mess.

"No, it's mine," cried Shippo. "It's my fault! I'm so sorry Hikari!" The brat began to wail in misery. Served him right.

"Can Rin pet the puppy?" Rin asked Kagome, who smiled at her gently and let her touch the pup's head.

"No, it's my fault. I'm supposed to protect her." Inuyasha glared at the little monster. He was inclined to believe it was the wolf cub's fault. And he really wish Kagome wouldn't let people PET the pup!

"I AM! I'm her brother!"

"Nuh uh! You're a fox. She's a dog!"

"Shut up!" Shippo pounced on Bantan, and fists started flying.

"Explain." The word wasn't shouted, but everyone fell silent.

Bantan and Shippo both froze in place, each had a fist drawn back, though Shippo had his teeth in the wolf cub's right leg. It wasn't fair that Sesshomaru had that kind of power. He pointed to Shippo, and the fox kit began to whimper.

The pup squirmed out of Kagome's arms and bounced over to Shippo. She took a hold of his tail with her teeth and tugged. Then she let go and began to run circles around him. Shippo sniffled and wiped his nose on his sleeve. He picked up the puppy and hugged her close to his chest. Rin stood next to him and gently pet the pup's head. Having Rin next to him probably gave Shippo the courage to face Sesshomaru.

"Demons attacked. Lots of 'em. Hikari took us to..." He looked at Inuyasha, who narrowed his eyes in warning. Regardless of how much Kagome wanted Sesshomaru to be a part of their family, he wasn't quite ready to go telling him all their secrets. Obviously he knew about how she could disappear, that really couldn't be hidden, but there was no reason to tell him that she actually traveled time. Even if he suspected, he didn't know for sure. And Inuyasha liked it that way. Shippo gulped and nodded his understanding. "... she took us to her grandma's. HE..." he snarled and pointed to Kouga's son, "... and his brothers were so excited that they all took off in different directions. Hikari ran after them. I should have brought her back to her grandma's, but I followed her instead... all the way to the park." He started crying and buried his face in the puppy's white fur.

Kouga's son Bantan stood as tall as he could, as if waiting execution. Which might not really be that farfetched of an idea, come to think of it. "We were wrong. We should have stopped like our mama said. We never saw anything like the park before. It was new and exciting and we were wrong to go off alone."

"A man yelled as us," added Shippo, "And then he grabbed Bantan."

"And Hikari... she..." He looked down at the pup and started tears started streaming down his face. The puppy went over to him and started attacking his tail and racing around him. "She started snarling... then she... changed."

If Inuyasha hadn't known better, he'd almost think that Sesshomaru was trying not to laugh. But it was a well known fact that his older brother (half!) had no sense of humor.

"It would seem, little brother," Sesshomaru said with a sneer (he was certain it was a sneer!), "It would seem that your daughter is more of a demon than you." He looked at his niece as she started running in circles once more. "Though the form she chose... does not seem to be suited for fighting. Perhaps with time she will grow into a more appropriate demon form."

"We saw puppies like this not too long ago," Kagome told him. At least SHE had finally stopped crying. "They were very cute." She always had such a soft spot for all things cute. His own ears twitched. "Nihon Supittsu, I think they were called. She wanted one, so maybe that's why. Did you choose your demon form, Sesshomaru?"

Inuyasha cracked his knuckles angrily as Sesshomaru ignored his mate's question.

"We gave Hikari lots of love and attention when we went to fetch her from her grandmothers." Inuyasha swore Kagome snickered a little when she said 'fetch'. His mate didn't seem bothered that she was being ignored. But it was making him see red. "But she didn't change back. I thought that she would change back once the threat was gone and she was back safe and sound." He shook his head as Kagome giggled as Hikari attacked Bantan's tail. He had to admit, she was taking 'adorable' to a whole new level.

"Only the weak cannot change at will."

Yeah, this visit was going about the way Inuyasha thought it would go. If it wasn't for the petrifying fear that his little girl was going to remain a feral ball of floofy fluff, he'd show the jerk exactly which one of them was weak.

"Hikari. Change."

"You did NOT just talk to my pup like that," Inuyasha snarled. Hikari whimpered, her tail tucked between her legs. Using his foot and leg he pushed her back towards her mother. Things were going to get bloody.

"You shame your mother and father by your disobedience. You hurt your friends. Change back. Now."

"You're being a little rough on h..."

"Silence."

"NEVER speak to Kagome in that tone of voice. Ever." Inuyasha thundered as his sword swung in an arc. Hikari made a cute puppy. They'd find a way to make this work on their own without that jerk. No one. NO ONE talks to his family like that.

Hikari whimpered. Then the air buzzed with energy and she began to blur and grow. It happened so fast that when he blinked, where the little pup was there now stood a little girl with hair the exact color of his own. The ponytails had not survived the transformation, so her hair hung loose and hid most of her expression. But he could tell that her eyes and ears were both downcast, the sniffle broke his heart. She looked up at him with eyes the color of a stormy day, complete with drops of water.

Tears... he hated tears.

"I'm sorry, Mommy... Sorry, Daddy," she whispered. Then she broke out in tears and threw herself at him.

Inuyasha dropped to his knees and let his sword fall away. He held her as sobs wracked her tiny body, her hands holding on to his hair in tight fists. What was he supposed to say? Did he scold her for disobedience while she was already miserable? Did he tell her that it was okay, when it really REALLY wasn't okay that she disobeyed? Not only did she not turn back human when the asked (begged) her to, but she had ran off from the safety of her grandmother's home. Putting herself in danger was NOT acceptable. He made comforting sounds as he looked helplessly at Kagome. She was comforting Shippo, who also began to bawl. With a sigh she opened up her arm for that rotten brat Bantan when he started crying as well. When Kagome sniffled he knew he had to end this.

He pulled back, keeping his hands on Hikari's shoulders. He stared at her as she wiped her eyes, looking up at him in misery.

He looked to Kagome, hoping desperately that she would come to the rescue. But her own bottom lip was trembling, and he wasn't going to risk that turning into actual tears. Sighing heavily he sat on the ground in front of Hikari and grunted. It was difficult not to grin when she mirrored him.

"Hikari. Your mother and I love you very much. We are proud of you that you were able to take so many with you to keep them safe. But leaving your grandmother's house was dangerous. You could have been hurt. Shippo could have been hurt." He almost stopped there when her eyes filled with tears again and she told Shippo and Ban she was sorry in a voice that was barely a whisper. Unfortunately, the lecture wasn't over. It was torture. "I know when you changed it was fun..." his changes were never fun, but Hikari seemed to get a kick out of hers, "...but when your mother or I tell you to do something, you need to do it. Do you understand?" He would have demanded she apologize, but she already did that. So he gave her a kiss and picked her up, retrieving and sheathing his sword as he stood.

"I'm sorry, unca Sess." She held her arms out to him, but Inuyasha shifted her to his other hip. Purely because he didn't want her to be disappointed when "Uncle Sess" did not return her hug.

He turned to leave, but Kagome was standing behind him with her arms crossed. He looked at her curiously, then she looked over his shoulder at Sesshomaru, then back at him. He cringed. When she arched her brow, he reluctantly turned around and mumbled his thanks to his brother.

Sometimes he really hated "teaching by example".

Hey Pup,

You are a brave girl. And a loyal friend. I just hope your mom and I don't mess you up.

I don't know if you chose the demon form or not, but don't you let anyone ever tell you that smaller means weaker. Just ask your uncle Sesshomaru how he lost his arm.

I love you.

Daddy

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Author's Note:

Thank you all for your reviews, they really do mean a lot to me. I know a lot of you have asked that I update faster, but I really do update when I can. I've been really sick and have had more doctor visits than I can shake a stick at. And I can shake a stick at a lot.

I've tried to reply to some of the reviews, but for some reason I couldn't get them to go through. One thing I wanted to remark on is that someone made mention that they didn't think that Inuyasha would call Sango's kids brats since they were all a part of his 'pack'. I figure since he calls Shippo a brat, and he's like a son to him, then he'd likely call Sango's kids brats too.

Also keep in mind that all this happens after the manga (I tend to use the books rather than the anime for inspiration). Years after. People, demons included, all grow and change. I did try to keep most of their personality, while keeping in mind the passage of time.