When Kagome came to she was unsure of what was happening and where exactly she was, much less who she was.
She was currently in the arm of a male with silver hair and strange markings on his face; she could feel something special about him but didn't know what it was much less how she could possibly know something like that about this male. 'Why is he carrying me?' she wondered.
Sesshoumaru wondered why the Miko was emanating confusion or why she was so adamant about moving her legs? "Miko, cease your incessant movement at once before I decide to drop you and you can find your own way back to your pack."
'Pack? Is Miko my name? What am I wearing?' Before she could ponder on any more thoughts they entered a clearing where a female stood, with some strange object in her hand as if to throw it at them and a male held a metal stick at the ready. Off to the side she also noted a small red headed child and a big two tailed animal, both emitting the same kind of feeling that she was getting from the male that was still holding her in his arm.
"Kagome!" they shouted in unison. "Are you ok? Why is Lord Sesshoumaru carrying you? What happened?" each of the three said all at the same time, asking different questions.
Sesshoumaru instantly sensed more confusion coming from the Miko's body. 'It is almost as if she doesn't remember. Hn…interesting.'
Sensing that the male was about to drop her she quickly aligned her body to stand up. Everyone was starring at her as she stood on wobbly legs, as if her legs were numb or something.
Shippo approached her and asked, "Kagome you ok? Mama?" He became more anxious when she looked at him as if she did not know he was talking to her, as if she didn't recognize him.
"I'm sorry little kid but my name is Miko."
Everyone just stood there deadpanned until Miroku couldn't hold in his laughter anymore. "Kagome that is a good joke…finally got tired of everyone not using your name so you go with your title instead! You had us going there for a while."
Kagome looked at him then back to the one that had carried her here, "You called me Miko, is that not my name?"
Sango chose this time to walk towards her friend, her sister. "Kagome are you alright? What happened to your shirt, you have a whole in the middle of your abdomen?"
Still looking to the silent male figure that was just staring at her, "Why is everyone calling me Kagome? Why am I wearing these strange clothes? Why won't you talk to me?"
Placing her arms on Kagome's shoulders Sango turns her to look her straight in the eyes, "Your name is Kagome, and Miko is your title since you are a very powerful Priestess. You dress this way because that is what you wear where you are from, in the future."
Miroku coughed to try and stop Sango from exposing that certain detail in front of Sesshoumaru, but this was serious, especially if Kagome didn't remember anything.
"My name is Sango, I'm a demon slayer. That is Kirara my two tailed cat demon companion." Sango said pointing at the cat demon. "This is Miroku, he is a Buddhist Monk, or so he claims; and this is Shippo, he is a fox demon that you have treated as your own son."
"I'm a Priestess? I have a demon for a son? So that must mean that you are a demon too since you feel the same way these two feel?" Kagome asked Sesshoumaru. He just raised an eyebrow towards her in response.
"You have a problem with me being a demon now Kagome?" Shippo said angrily, he didn't know what he would do if Kagome no longer loved him as her son.
"Should I have a problem with you being a demon?" she asked him innocently. Turning to the woman named Sango she asked, "What do you mean I am from the future? How is that possible if I am here now? And who are you?" she asked turning to Sesshoumaru.
"You Bastard what are you doing in my camp?" Inuyasha jumped in yelling.
"Bastard?" Kagome asked Sesshoumaru, thinking that was his name.
Inuyasha bent over laughing when Kagome had called Mr. Icicle that, and the deadpan look on his face was hilarious.
"Miko, this Sesshoumaru will over look that this time but you have best never use that language towards this Sesshoumaru again if you wish to live."
"Lady Kagome this is Lord Sesshoumaru, he is the half brother of our resident idiot half-breed demon, Inuyasha." Miroku delicately stated to the growing more and more confused by the moment Priestess.
"Oi, why are you acting like she doesn't know who the hell we are? What did she do, hit her head on something?"
"No half-breed, she died and apparently she lost her memory as a side effect." Sesshoumaru stated. "If this woman is not from here it would be safer for her to return home immediately so she would be out of harm's way."
"No we have jewel shards that need to be completed and Naraku that has to be defeated, we don't have time for her to go home again."
"Are your senses that dull half breed? Can you not tell that Naraku has been defeated and Kagome now holds the completed Shikon Jewel of Four Souls inside her body once more?"
While Inuyasha sniffed the air, Miroku quickly removed the beads and fabric that covered his cursed wind tunnel to reveal a smooth flat surface on his hand. "It is done, Naraku has fallen. My curse has been lifted off my family. Sango!" Miroku stated as he swooped Sango up into the air laughing and praising. "Now we can be married and you will bear my children, Sango"
Kagome stood there and watched the young woman blush while her love twirled her around in the air talking about children and marriage. 'I died?'
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY MAMA DIED?" yelled Shippo, angry that no one else was concerned about that part.
Everyone stopped what they were doing and finally allowed all of Sesshoumaru's words to sink in.
"The Miko is the one that defeat Naraku, only after he pierced her through her abdomen with a tentacle."
"That would mean that you…why would you help a human? You hate all humans?" Inuyasha stammered out, not wanting to believe what Sesshoumaru was saying, it would mean that Kagome meant something to him when he himself, his own half brother, meant nothing.
"Well I agree that we should take Kagome back home, there her family can be with her and help her regain her memory. Inuyasha you should take her since you can enter through the bone eater's well." Miroku stated while Sango nodded her head in agreement.
Kagome looked to Sesshoumaru again confused, 'What had Inuyasha meant when he said that Lord Sesshoumaru hated all humans? What did Lord Sesshoumaru use to bring me back to life? I'm so confused and now they are talking about me going through a well called a bone eater? I'm not so sure I should trust these people.'
"My Lord Sesshoumaru I would like to thank you for saving me and helping me." When he inclined his head in acceptance she continued. "Would it be possible for you to accompany me to this bone eater's well that they talk of?"
"You don't need that bastard around; I can protect you better." Inuyasha huffed while Sesshoumaru was intrigued that Kagome would ask him for help when she can't even remember who he was.
"Well apparently you aren't very good at protecting me if I was killed." Kagome rounded on Inuyasha. 'I don't really like him; he is rude, arrogant and loud.' "Are you sure I was in his pack, Mi'Lord?"
Shippo was laughing while Inuyasha had this indignant look on his face, "Why you…"
"Now, now Inuyasha, Lady Kagome cannot be held accountable for what she says; especially since she does not remember us." Miroku diplomatically stated, trying to calm his irrational friend down.
Sesshoumaru hid his smirk well behind his aloof mask as he considered the invitation to travel with this Miko and her pack. "This Sesshoumaru accepts your request, as there is nothing else pressing at this time that requires this Sesshoumaru's attention."
Inuyasha was fuming as he walked in the lead of the group. 'The nerve of the wench; first she wonders off on her own and runs into Sesshoumaru, then she kills Naraku while dying herself just to come back with no memory and doesn't trust me, her alpha, to protect her.'
Sango and Miroku were walking side by side just behind the grumpy half breed. "Do you really think that Kagome will be alright?"
"Yes Sango dear, she will be just fine. It might take a while for her to fully recover her memory but in time she will remember everything."
Shippo, who was currently perched on Sango's shoulder looked back to where Kagome and Sesshoumaru were walking in the rear…he could hear their little conversation, it worried him deeply.
"Are you sure that I can trust them Mi'Lord? I mean the little ones seem nice and all and I feel like I can trust those two but the woman and man were saying that I have to go into a well called the Bone Eater…what will happen if I go in there? How do I know that they aren't trying to kill me as well? And what about the other one…he is so…so rude and I feel like what he says and does is very disrespectful."
"Hn!" Sesshoumaru replied. He honestly found the irony in how Kagome now viewed the half-breed but she was not his concern. His honor stated that he was to ensure that she was safe since he did bring her back to life, but he had already done that by returning her to her pack…so why was he still with her. "This Sesshoumaru assures you, this is in fact the group that you have traveled the countryside with in search of the sacred jewel shards."
"That is another thing…what is this Shikon Jewel of Four Souls?" she asked yet another question.
Shippo wondered how much longer Sesshoumaru was going to keep answering Kagome's questions, or for that matter why he was even answering much less escorting her. Jumping from Sango's shoulder and stood in front of Kagome, causing her and Sesshoumaru to stop walking, and asked, "Mam…I mean Kagome, can I sit on your shoulder?"
Kagome looked at his cute little innocent face and nodded her head. 'I feel comfortable with him so why not.' "Is this something that I normally do?"
Shippo nodded and jumped to her shoulder adding, "Normally you carry me in your arms, but you don't have to if you don't want to."
Once he had said it Kagome reached up to her shoulder that he was perched on and proceeded to pick him up and carry him in her arms. When Shippo and Sesshoumaru both looked at her questioningly she replied, "If it is something I use to do I figured that I might as well do it still, it can't hurt anything…besides maybe it will trigger something in my mind and help me remember who and what I am."
"Well do you feel anything or remember?" Shippo asked hopefully only to get a sad look from Kagome while she slowly shook her head.
"But this is not unpleasant…so if you would like I can continue to carry you like this if you want!" She smiled as Shippo nuzzled his head into her chest.
Sesshoumaru watched the whole interaction, he couldn't figure out why he was so interested in the interaction between the Miko and the kitsune…'Maybe because she might treat Rin the same way…' Sesshoumaru shook that thought right out of his head mentally and continued to walk in silence. 'At least the Miko is quiet now that the kitsune has joined her.'
They continued walking until it was almost sunset. Even Sango was thankful for the rest, she appreciated the old Kagome more now…the one that would force Inuyasha to realize that the humans in the pack needed a rest.
"I will collect firewood and you and Inuyasha go hunt for something to eat." Sango said towards Miroku and Inuyasha.
"But Kagome has a whole bag of food that we can easily have her cook for us instead." Inuyasha whined until it dawned on him that if she doesn't know who she is then how was she going to remember how to cook the food from her time. 'Damn it I knew I should have made Sango pay closer attention to what Kagome was doing.'
They watched as Sango, Miroku and Inuyasha all entered the woods surrounding their clearing. Kagome looked down at Shippo then to Sesshoumaru and asked, "Where would you like to sit Mi'Lord?"
Suddenly a loud boom was heard followed by the earth shaking as a few muttered curse words could be heard in the distance. Kagome looked at her two companions confused; they both had a look of mirth on their face.
"I forgot to tell you Kagome, you can't say the word sit out loud or Inuyasha will land in a crater. Usually you only say sit when you aren't getting your way, or Inuyasha is being completely unreasonable…which is always!" Shippo giggled out.
Sesshoumaru saw that Kagome was looking towards him for clarification on the matter, "When you first met the half-breed he tried to harm you, thinking you were someone else, so another Priestess helped you subjugate him. Though this Sesshoumaru did not think your voice or power would extend this far." 'Seems she not only lost her memory but has somehow unlocked a whole new level of power that was trapped within her somehow, very intriguing.' Sesshoumaru mused.
to be continued...
A.N. I hope you liked the little twist I have put in here! Can't make life too simple for the girl now that she at least has the jewel