Title: Light of My Life
Author: kazeko
Series: Inuyasha
Rating: M-15 or so
Archive: Sesshoumaru/Kagome
Characters: Sesshoumaru/Kagome, Inuyasha/Koyama, Sango/Miroku
Summary: A powerful prophecy brings mortal enemies together, but prejudice may well tear them apart and spell the end of all inuyoukai.
Disclaimer: No ownership.
Chapter 6: To Journey Home
Sesshoumaru stood and watched as Ah-Un and Jaken approached from the West. Rin was with them, of course, and he could hear her excited squeals as they approached. The humans in the hut were cleaning up and packing, preparing to leave for the Western Palace, while Koyama and Inuyasha were getting the pups ready. Kagome had not slept the night before, worrying about the trip and the pups, and the little female had picked up on her adopted mother's anxiety. Sesshoumaru had inwardly worried about the human's stamina, but she seemed bright and chipper this morning so he had ceased worrying.
Rin jumped off Ah-Un as he landed and wrapped herself around Sesshoumaru's leg. He patted her head as she began to talk in an endless stream of sound, most of which he just ignored. Her voice silenced as Kagome emerged from the hut, the female pup squirming in her arms. She was whispering softly to the baby as she stopped beside Sesshoumaru, holding the pup out to him. "I was trying to explain to her why we were leaving. You might want to try."
Sesshoumaru took his pup, noting Jaken's open mouthed stare and Rin's wide eyes. He sensed the pup's distress and automatically began to nuzzle her. "What is wrong, little one? Are you upset that we are leaving? Do not fear, child; we go to our home. Your mother Kagome will be coming with us to take care of you for a while longer." The female grinned at that, tail wagging ecstatically. Though she could not speak yet, she could understand some of what her father said. She did not want to be parted from Kagome.
Sesshoumaru handed the child back to Kagome and nodded. "Keep reassuring her that you will not leave and she will calm down. Her greatest fear is abandonment from you, whom she sees as her mother. Now that Jaken is here, we can leave as soon as the pups are cleaned and dressed for the trip. Make sure you and they eat something."
To Jaken's immense shock, Kagome, who had always faced off against his lord in battle with her defiant blue eyes, bowed to Sesshoumaru and returned to the hut. Jaken reached forward and grabbed Sesshoumaru's hakama leg, finally realizing that his lord was no longer wearing his royal garb. "Lord Sesshoumaru! That human . . ."
"Enough, Jaken. These humans and my brother helped me and my pups. You will not speak ill to any of them for as long as they travel with me."
"Of course, Lord Sesshoumaru! Can I assume that the lady Matsurika . . ."
"She died protecting our pups. Koyama of the Fire Stripe Clan joined me as surrogate to the males. Kagome is surrogate to the female. They and Inuyasha are members of my pack for the time being and will be treated with the utmost respect. Those pups are your future leaders and will be treated as the princess and princes they are."
"Yes, Lord Sesshoumaru."
Rin tugged on Sesshoumaru's hakama leg. "She is your child, Sesshoumaru-sama?"
"Yes."
"Someone for Rin to play with?"
"When she is a little older, perhaps."
"Yay!" Rin began bouncing around, asking questions about where the pup's mother was and if Kagome-sama would be staying for a while until Sesshoumaru touched her head.
"Go play with Jaken until the pups are ready to leave."
Rin ran off, dragging the hapless toad with her, and Sesshoumaru returned to the hut. He watched Ah-Un follow the child and nodded, knowing that she would be safe in its care. He entered to building that had been his home for three weeks and calmed his sons as the humans enjoyed a quick meal. Kagome ate very little of the cooked meat left over from the night before, walking outside and talking to Koyama as the others began to pack their things. Golden eyes tracked the miko as she took a small bundle from the red-head and vanished into the trees. Intrigued, Sesshoumaru followed.
He found the woman sitting beneath a tree, skewers of slightly-cooked venison from the night before by her side and in her hand. She was tearing into the chunks of venison like a starving inuyoukai, tiny growls escaping between bites. He watched her eat, wondering at the sight, and stepped into the clearing as she finished the last chunk. She looked up at the sound, startled, and wiped the last juices from her chin. "Sesshoumaru-sama?"
"I wondered why you walked away. You crave rare meat?"
Kagome nodded. "Ever since I began nursing her. Koyama explained that the pup would impose her needs on me and that a youkai never notices the cravings as separate from her own. She's been saving me pieces of meat ever since."
"Why do you hide when you eat?"
"I don't want the others to see me eating such raw meat. I'm not youkai and I don't understand why your daughter chose me or why she's changing me."
Sesshoumaru twitched one eyebrow. "Neither do I. However, she did choose you and I am grateful that you have agreed to help her. We will be leaving soon if you are finished eating." He held out a hand to help her to her feet, inwardly surprised that he felt any urge to be kind to the female. She accepted his hand and followed him back to the hut.
"Koyama, you will take Inuyasha and two of the pups, Ah-Un will carry Jaken and Rin, the tajiya and houshi will ride the nekomata with two kits, and Kagome and Shippo will ride with me and the last two. This trip will not take long, so endeavor not to become separated. This Sesshoumaru will lead and Koyama will come last. Is this clear?" Everyone nodded. Sango and Miroku had stopped complaining when Sesshoumaru did not use their names, Koyama having told them that their titles carried more power in the youkai world than their human names. Sesshoumaru watched as the group divided, his pups quiet as they were divided up for the trip. "In inuyoukai society, the female usually creates a list of appropriate names for the pups and lets the father decide if the names are acceptable. I have decided that Koyama, Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo will each name one male pup and Kagome will name the female. Please have your names and their kanji decided by the time we reach the castle tonight. They will be named at the feast that Jaken will prepare in their honor in three nights time."
Everyone nodded, the humans exchanging glances. Sesshoumaru surely had changed over the last few weeks if he was willing to leave the naming of his children in the hands of humans and his hanyou brother. Kagome smiled as she cuddled the female pup in her arms. "I already know your name," she whispered.
The pup giggled.
Kagome sighed as she relaxed in the hot spring, Koyama and Sango having joined her. Three otter servants swam around them, cleaning the women and washing their hair in preparation for the big feast. Koyama growled as one of them moved to clean her breasts, the sound warning the servant to be careful. The girl moved more gently the second time, and Koyama relaxed, raising her tail so the other servant could massage some scented shampoo into her fur. "I so enjoy being pampered."
"Were you not, before?"
Koyama snorted. "Certainly not, Sango. I was Omega, lowliest female in my pack, whose only purpose was to nurse my sister's brats. I had to put up with the worst meat, the dankest spot in the den, and the most questionable and inexperienced young males when my heat came. I certainly never had anyone clean me before."
"Were you always Omega?" Kagome leaned back so the smallest of the three girls could scrub her scalp and clean her hair, wondering if Sesshoumaru had servants to clean him. She was sure that he did, but certainly they would be male.
"My mother and father were Alpha. For the most part, in inu packs, only the Alpha pair breed, but some larger packs let lower females pup once in a while. My parents had accepted a pair of Deltas from another pack, and the female was allowed to have a litter about the same time I and my sister were born. Before joining Fire Stripe, the female had been Omega of her pack, but she had maneuvered herself to mate the Delta male, a move her Alphas had condemned. That is why they left their family and joined mine.
"My litter had two females and three males, but there was a drought that summer and my pack had too many mouths to feed with the Delta's pups. The largest male of their three managed to steal food from my brothers and his own, and all five of them died. For some reason, he befriended my father and Kosame, and the three of us made it through that year. Kosame and I are identical twins, though you may not be able to tell it now, and the Spirit of the Pack chose us. We were both born with the mark, and my father dreaded the day when he would have to choose between us. The Delta pup, Tentei, grow in stature, though he was weak and a poor hunter, and his friendship with my father gave him more power than he deserved. When Kosame and I hit our first heat, she mated him and I chose not to mate. I stayed with my mother and father as they and most of the pack fought a large band of marauding coyotes, holding them both as they died from their wounds. In his final words, my father named me his heir, but only one other member of my pack ever heard.
"When I returned with the other inuyoukai and discovered my sister's mating, I realized that I would have to kill her pups if I took my place as Alpha. As much as I despise that scheming Tentei, I love my sister despite her cold and sometimes cruel nature, so I told her that father chose her as his heir. Tentei asked how he could trust that I would be loyal, so I accepted the position of Omega to ensure her power in the pack. When I started nursing her first litter, my mark faded."
Kagome reached for Koyama's arm. "I'm sorry. I can tell that you would have made a good Alpha. Why didn't you ever challenge Kosame for leadership afterwards?"
"Tentei kept her pregnant and made sure that I only mated very low and weak males so that I would never have pups to challenge his. As time went on and Kosame became more cold and emotionless to her pack, I began to think that maybe my father chose me because he knew that I would surrender the position to Kosame but that she would never surrender to me. In the end, I chose, and I would never have chosen to fight my sister. Now, though, I am no longer a member of her pack and I do not have to surrender to her will. Tentei always feared that I would tire of my position, so he never ceased to show me my place in the pack. He fears that I will return and kill him."
"I didn't know the mark could go away," Sango ventured. "Can it ever come back?"
"I suppose. If my sister is dead. But there can only ever be one Alpha, and right now I am content to be a female of the Crescent Moon Pack. Though as cold as my sister, Lord Sesshoumaru at least has emotions and respects those under him."
They finished their bath in silence as a pair of glowing gold eyes watched from the shadows of the indoor hot springs.
