She'd never done something like this before. It was new, exciting, and completely unpredictable. All of the sights and sounds made her nerves feel jittery and anxious in anticipation for what would come next. Sesshomaru was with her, assuring her with his silent touch that it would be okay, and she was ready.

Kagome was going to be flying on an airplane.

There were sitting in a small semi-private jet in the first class chairs, but the comfort did nothing for Kagome's tightly strung nerves. In fact, she thought with misery, the luxurious surroundings put her more on edge, because she knew she didn't belong there. She felt like an imposter hitching a ride on an unsafe metal death trap; trouble was sure to follow.

When trouble didn't happen, Kagome just became more nervous. She was clutching Sesshomaru's hand on the chair rest, rubbing her lips together and rapidly sweeping her gaze through the chamber of the plane, to make sure everything was okay.

"Relax," Sesshomaru's deep voice filled her ears and she spared him a flickering glance. "The plane hasn't even taken off yet."

She looked out her window to see the Tokyo airport they were departing from. The plane began to move, and she nervously watched as they moved towards the runway. Trying to distract herself, she chewed her gum quickly and opened the safety leaflet she'd been provided in front of her seat.

She turned to Sesshomaru and blurted out emergency directions to him. "Remember, if there's bad turbulence, we have to get into this position," she pointed at a picture of a man demonstrating the safety procedure by putting his head between his knees. "And the life-preservers are underneath our seats in case we go down over the ocean. There's a gas mask above us for when our plane goes up too high into the atmosphere..."

She regurgitated everything she'd learned from the pamphlet to Sesshomaru twice. Her nervous habit of talking kept her rambling to him. "We have to be prepared—anything could happen!"

Rubbing her lips together as the plane readied itself on the runway, Kagome clenched Sesshomaru's hand harder until his already pale skin stretched white over his knuckles. "There are two exits near those seats in the front, but I think that when our plane goes down over the ocean, we should leave through the door behind us because that's closer. And—"

He interrupted her. "We won't be having any flying trouble today, much less an emergency landing in the ocean. We won't be flying over it."

She blinked at him, and then giggled nervously. "I know, I know, but what if?" A sudden thought caught her paranoid mind. "What if the plane catches on fire?! How would they put it out! What would we do? We couldn't—"

Sesshomaru sighed and let a faint smirk appear on his face. She was so odd when she was nervous… He found it endearing. The strong woman she had proved to be surprised him by being scared by the silliest things… He wondered if she knew he could fly.

"If anything happens to the plane, you have my word I will save you."

Kagome's senseless ramblings were quieted for a moment. Regaining some of her calm self, she looked into his eyes and found what she was looking for. Her heart melted.

"Thank you." Her sentiments were soft, filled with a feeling meant for his ears only.

He kissed her hand, which was wrapped in his own. The plane took off, but Kagome didn't notice. Her mind wandered in his eyes, wondering and curious about the deep feeling that was blooming in her heart.

When he spoke, his voice was deep velvet. "You can plan it now, if you want."

She learned in, curious about what he was referring to. "What?"

"Our honeymoon."

Kagome smiled, her heart full. A honeymoon… Something she'd always wanted. Something she'd always dreamt about. Something she'd thought she'd never have… Until now.

The plane ride was over before Kagome knew it—fast and without any problems. From the airport, they were transported to their hotel—which she couldn't help to notice was incredibly famous and expensive. She still felt like she didn't belong, but the wonderful view outside their room and the perfumed bathroom convinced her otherwise.

Throwing herself onto the bed, she buried herself in the covers. She didn't really want to think of how there was only one bed… those nervous thoughts could be saved for later. Now, though, Kagome was tired, and wanted very much to sleep.

"What are you doing?" Sesshomaru's cool voice penetrated her drowsy mind.

"Sleeping," she mumbled back. For the life of her, she just couldn't open her eyes.

"We have a meeting."

"Ugh," she groaned, and flopped onto her belly. "I have jet lag. Can't go."

"Kagome," he warned. In an instant, she jerked her head out of the sheets, mouth agape. It's the first time he's called me Kagome. Though his expression revealed nothing, she saw the familiar warmth in his eyes, and she began to wonder about their relationship. Their future… together.

After a long pause, he sighed and turned for the door. "Rest."

She relaxed back onto the bed, her face alight with a grin.

After resting a couple hours, Kagome awoke with a pit in her stomach. Something wasn't sitting quite right with her about the mission. She couldn't tell Sango the details, she thought as she reached for her cell phone, but she could at least talk her way into an understanding.

Sango picked up on the first ring. "Hey gold digger, how's the weather in the country?"

Kagome laughed. "Fine. It's beautiful out here. How's Rin doing?"

"She'd an angel," Sango assured her that Rin was acting good while staying at Sango's house for the time being.

"What's up?" Sango asked after a couple more minutes of small talk.

"I can't tell you the details, but I do have a couple things to think about. First thing's first: would you be mad if I lied to you?"

Sango frowned at the phone she was holding in her hand. "Umm… how big is your lie? Because anyone would be mad if you weren't honest with them about an important issue. Duh."

Kagome stifled a nervous laugh at the other end of the line. She wouldn't worry about telling Sesshomaru that secret right now. She'd just never tell him she was the shikon miko, simple as that. "Okay, new question. What's the reason why you would want something?"

Why did the youkai council want the shikon miko? The question didn't sit right with her. Sure, the shikon miko was what Naraku was after… but what use did the youkai council have for her? They couldn't possibly know that the new shikon miko had been given special powers from the jewel—to their knowledge, she was just an average miko. Why were they going to such lengths to find her? Their motives didn't make much sense.

And of course, she wondered how they'd react when they found out she was the shikon miko. If they find out, Kagome reminded herself. They wouldn't, of course.

"I don't get your question," Sango's voice traveled into mute ears. Kagome was lost in her mind.

"Maybe they just want me because they think I'll have more information than they do. I guess that's logical… Try to meet up with someone who'd been there… But they don't know that I'm not Kikyo, therefore not actually the original one. Hmm…" Kagome spoke her thoughts out loud, and accidently into her phone.

Sango was puzzled, but didn't prod any further. "You know what? I think I'll just leave you alone. Bye, Kags."

Their connected ended, but Kagome barely noticed. She burrowed deeper into the bed and snuggled against a pillow, feeling content. Though she didn't know the youkai council's exact reasoning, she was positive it was information-driven. They wanted the shikon miko in case she had any information on Naraku. Their motives were purely harmless—she was quite sure.

Hi, all! Hope you liked this chapter. Please enjoy. ~Gracie

All characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi.