Chapter 11

Kikyo scowled at the letter she had just received. It seemed that her sister was not missing as Princess Yukami had told her. Apparently she was gallivanting around in the Western Kingdom with prince of all things. Kikyo wanted to be happy for her younger sister. She did. But she had married a minor lord who had died in a skirmish with peasants. Widowed before thirty was not what she had envisioned for herself.

But here was her little Kagome, being courted by the heir to the throne of the West. Kikyo made a decision. "Akiko." she said to her maid. "Pack all I will need to travel to the Western Kingdom. I wish to see my sister."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The council left a week after the banquet. They made no promises about their decision, but Mitsuko's demeanor gave them heart.

Things settled down at the palace and Kagome divided her time between training with the archers and being with Sesshomaru. When her prince was occupied with his duties, Kagome got to know Tsubame and Sanyen from the guard.

On a particularly nice day, she was sitting on the ground in the garden reading a book. Sesshomaru glided out of the palace and over to her. "Dragons?" he asked, seeing the title of her book.

"Yes, dragons." Kagome replied and leaned in for a kiss. "What have you been doing all morning?"

The prince made a face and Kagome giggled. In the time that she had been with him, Sesshomaru had been letting more and more of his personality show. "Father and I were reading through documents from the East. We are trying to establish some form of alliance with them against the North. First though we have to assure them that the South isn't going to turn on us because I turned Yukami down."

To Sesshomaru's surprise Kagome burst out laughing. "They won't. Prince Yuri will not let his sister's thousandth rejection put his land in jeopardy. He's a great leader."

"Then I will tell Father not to worry." the youkai sat down on the bench and Kagome leaned back against him. "That is enough about political things." Sesshomaru said. "Tell me of the dragons."

"I'm sure you know more about them than I do." Kagome remarked.

Sesshomaru stroked her hair. "There is a certain legend about the origins of dragon youkai. It is said that centuries ago dragons roamed this land. They were enormous in stature and very fierce. Youkai and humans alike feared them and devised ways to kill them. Before long there was only one left. He was the biggest and meanest of them by far."

"And let me guess, they killed him too." the young woman quipped.

"Hush. What would be the point of this story if that is what happened? No more interruptions. Now, as I was saying, the remaining dragon was called Amakekeru. He roamed around destroying villages and taking his revenge on those who killed his brethren. Amakekeru went on this way for years until he met her. She was a miko of extraordinary power and beauty. Her name was Midoriko and in her gentle way she soothed the dragon's fury. The two of them became inseparable. Sadly after several decades Midoriko was dying as humans must. Amakekeru loved the miko greatly and when she finally left this world, he caught her soul and bound it within his own so they would never be parted. The kami smiled on his action and from the union of miko and dragon, they created dragon youkai, the rarest of us all."

Kagome had tears in her eyes when Sesshomaru finished his story. "That was beautiful."

"Even with all the killing in the beginning?" the youkai teased. "I heard that story from Kuisotenboru. It is passed down from the elders of the dragon clans and they tell it to each succeeding generation."

"It's a good story to tell." the young woman said. "Now that I think of it, there is a story like that that my mother used to tell me. Would you like to hear it?"

Sesshomaru nodded and slid from the bench to the ground to join his beloved. He adjusted their positions so that she was sitting between his legs and resting against his strong chest. "Storytellers should be comfortable." he offered in way of explanation.

Kagome giggled and snuggled into the youkai prince's warmth. "Okay, so there was once a great and beautiful miko called Midoriko. She lived in a peaceful village of demon slayers and would heal the villagers when they would come back from battle. Things worked well this way for years. But when the miko was approaching her twentieth year of life, things changed. All the villagers who could fight had been called away to fight a great monster. While they were gone, the village was attacked by bandits. Midoriko did what she could, but in the end all the children and elderly were killed by the bandits. Seeing her family and friends laying there in death enraged the miko and she destroyed the human monsters using power she didn't know she had."

"Hmm." Sesshomaru mused. "I wonder if it is the same Midoriko from the dragon's tale."

Kagome smacked his arm playfully. "If you'd be quiet maybe I could get to that part."

The prince smiled one of his rare smiles and chuckled. "My apologies, please continue."

"So Midoriko had killed for the first time and couldn't believe what she had done. Without waiting for the slayers to return, the miko fled. She traveled for days without stopping and soon collapsed from exhaustion."

"Well of course she did, humans cannot travel like youkai can." Sesshomaru interjected.

"Miko are made of stronger stuff than regular humans." Kagome retorted. "Even youkai fear their powers of purification."

"And how do you know all this, little one?"

Kagome shrugged. "My mother was of miko blood."

Sesshomaru was silent for a time, thinking. Finally he kissed the girl on the cheek. "I am sorry for that interruption. Please, go on. Midoriko had collapsed from exhaustion..."

Confused about what was going on in her prince's head, Kagome picked her tale back up. "She was discovered by a large hungry dragon. The beast made to eat her, but stopped when he smelled the purity radiating from her. Even though the miko had killed, she was still untainted. Instead of eating Midoriko, the dragon curled up around her to keep her safe.

"When she awoke, Midoriko was frightened. She had never seen such a large dragon before and did not know what the intentions of this one were. She reached within her for her purification powers but stopped when a deep voice rumbled through her head 'Stop.' it said. 'I mean you no harm.' From that moment on Midoriko and the dragon were friends and they traveled together."

"Is that the end?" Sesshomaru asked when Kagome stopped talking.

"Mmmhmm." she replied. "At least that's all my mother told me. There could be more."

"I find it interesting that youkai believe in the union of miko and dragon easier than humans do. The same goes for youkai and human unions as well." a female voice called from above them.

Kagome looked up into the branches of the sakura tree that was behind them. Sesshomaru didn't need to look to know that it was his cousin disturbing them. "Tsubame." he murmured. "Isn't there something that you should be doing?"

"Nope." the demoness replied. She leapt from her branch and landed next to the couple. "Besides, Kagome likes me, even if you don't."

The young woman giggled. "Yeah, I do."

Sesshomaru rolled his eyes. "Fine then." He got to his feet in one graceful movement, managing to catch Kagome and set her on her feet at the same time. "I should go work on my swordplay before it gets later. Kagome, will you do me the honor of joining me in my rooms after the evening meal?"

"Of course." She stood on tiptoe and kissed him gently on the mouth.

Tsubame grimaced at their affection, hiked up her skirt and skipped away. Kagome grinned at her prince and took off after his cousin.

Sesshomaru shook his head and walked in the opposite direction towards the practice yards. When he arrived at the sparring area, Inuyasha was already there stretching and warming up. The hanyou didn't look up to acknowledge his brother's presence, he just continued with his routine.

The youkai had to admit that he was impressed by his brother's level of discipline. He stripped off his shirt and moved to do his own warm ups. As he moved through familiar stances, Sesshomaru remembered the first few times that he had sparred with Inuyasha. The hanyou had been brash and just jumped into battle without thinking. Some of his defeats had humiliating to say the least. That had been before their father had given him the honor of being Captain of the Guard. With that appointment had come a new Inuyasha, a more measured and calculating one.

"Little brother." the prince said before he really knew what he was doing.

"What?" Inuyasha barked.

"My usual sparring partner is not here it seems. You shall take his place."

Inuyasha blinked at his elder brother stupidly, until he heard the sing of metal that indicated Sesshomaru had drawn his sword. The hanyou backed up and drew his own weapon. "What's the catch?" he demanded, hefting the large blade.

"There is no catch half breed. I wish to spar with you. Now get ready or be thrashed." Sesshomaru moved to engage his opponent.

Inuyasha raised his sword just in time to catch the youkai's attack on the blade. "And I'm saying there's gotta be a catch. The likes of you never come down here to spar with the likes of me."

"Silence yourself and fight." Sesshomaru bit out. He whirled around and slashed at the hanyou. The brothers fought for over an hour and by the time Sesshomaru drew first blood, they had attracted a small crowd, including their father.

The king clapped when they broke apart. "It is good to see the two of you mock fighting instead actually trying to kill each other." He turned to address his youngest. "You have improved greatly. Soon you will be matchless."

Inuyasha sheathed his sword and bowed. "Thank you, Father."

"He is correct, Inuyasha. Your potential is boundless." Sesshomaru agreed. "I do not say that lightly."

The hanyou reddened at the praise. He gave his brother a curt nod and turned to head back to the castle. Sesshomaru caught the gleam of brown eyes and Kagome smiled at him before she and Tsubame took Inuyasha's arms to congratulate him.

InuTaisho clapped his eldest son on the shoulder. "I'm proud of you, Sess." he said. "You too have improved greatly. I do believe that Kagome is to thank for it."

"I do not know what you are talking about." Sesshomaru replied stoically. But as he walked off to get cleaned up for dinner, he had to admit that he had changed. And it was something that he was not unhappy about.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"I'm very proud of you, Inuyasha." Tsubame said to her cousin. "I always enjoy seeing Sesshomaru getting put in his place."

"He still won." Inuyasha called.

He, Tsubame, and Kagome were in his room, with the girls sitting on his bed as he cleaned up in the private hot spring.

"But you put up a wonderful fight." Kagome protested. "I've watched Sesshomaru fight plenty of times. He isn't that much better than you."

"But he's still better." Inuyasha emerged, dressed for dinner. Ever since the banquet with the council, he had been eating at the head table with his father and brother. "Come on, we'll be late."

Dinner was a quiet affair, and afterwards, Sesshomaru stood and took Kagome's hand. They exited the dining hall and walked up to the prince's room.

"Kagome?" Sesshomaru asked once they were in his bedroom.

"Hmm?" the young woman took off her shoes and reclined on the bed.

"I want to paint a picture of you. I feel the most important women in my life should be immortalized."

"Sesshomaru..."

The youkai cut off Kagome's protest with his lips. He kissed her deeply, trying to convey his feelings about her since she still seemed so reluctant. "I love you." he murmured when they broke for air.

"I love you too." the young woman replied. "But..."

"Tell me, have you ever felt this way about anyone else?"

"No..."

"Will you ever feel this way about anyone else? Is that your reluctance? That you want to keep your options open?"

"No! Of course not!" Kagome exclaimed. "I...guess I want your options to be open. An entire region will feel the impact of your choice of mate."

"Kagome, we have been over this. I do not want anyone else. I never will. I want you as my mate and wife. My decision has been made."

Warm brown met deep gold, as Kagome stared into Sesshomaru's face. She searched for any chance that the prince might not be as sure as he sounded. The young woman was overwhelmed by the strength of the love that she found there. It matched the love that she felt in her heart. In that moment, Kagome made her own decision.

"Okay." she said. "I accept."

"You...accept?" The prince repeated. He had honestly expected to have to do more convincing. "You...accept...?"

Kagome laughed. "Yes, Sesshomaru. I accept. I mean I know that we'll have to do the courtship thing, but after all that, I would love to be your mate and wife."

Hearing the words from her mouth snapped something inside Sesshomaru. He pounced on Kagome and began kissing her with renewed vigor. No one had ever accepted him for who he was before. It was always for his looks or for the power that came with his position. That put him in charge of the accepting. The prince had never sought to gain anyone's approval. It was never needed. He hadn't realized how much it meant to him until Kagome accepted his proposal.

"Thank you." he said. "Thank you, thank you, thank you."

Kagome giggled. "You're welcome?" She gasped as Sesshomaru trailed kisses down her neck. "Um...Sess-sho-maru? Aren't we getting carried away?"

It took a tremendous effort for Sesshomaru to regain control over his instincts. He pulled back from the girl and drew a ragged breath. "I apologize, Kagome. That was..."

"Exhilarating." the young woman finished. "But um wrong. Very wrong."

"Indeed." Sesshomaru concurred. "We have to officially declare our engagement before such things are considered proper. And even then we have to be careful not to go too far."

"Ah the stipulations of being a noble." Kagome sighed.

"We will find ways." The youkai responded. "That I promise you."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

A/N: Ahhh love. This chapter started out as a filler, but then morphed into this. I wanted it to address the question about whether or not Kagome was a miko. That will most likely resurface in later chapters.