Sango peered into the dark night sky, smiling as she saw the tall silhouettes emerge. They beamed back at her, prompting Sango to hug her husband and her armor clad daughter. Miroku informed very proudly that Akina was improving her skills greatly. Akina blushed modestly, then bowed before her parents. They excused her and as she left, Sango grasped Miroku's hand, walking with him farther away from the hut.

Miroku allowed his wife to drag him outside, his countenance clearly expressing worry. Sango finally halted, her hands coming together and fidgeting excessively. Miroku gently cupped her trembling hands, his dark eyes searching hers for any kind of evidence leading to the reason of her distress. Sango smiled at him then, but had to look down when tears welled up.

"Sango? What's the matter?"

Her eyes made the sparkling heavens envious. Such horrid pain and yet, bliss swam together in those troubling pools. Miroku reached out to draw her into his embrace, but she stopped him with a gentle push and he noticed her tears had finally escaped its confinements.

"You're… not going to believe… what I have to tell you about my day."

Usually husbands feel like gouging their eyes out rather than listening to his wife ramble on about her day. Miroku was an exception, actually he found it a blessing to be able to hear her voice. There was a time years ago when he lost hope for living beside this beguiling woman. What with the looming battle with Naraku and his unrelenting womanizing, it was a miracle to him that she now wore his ring and mothered his children. When he thinks about an alternate ending, in which a life with her was impossible, he felt a cold dread wash over him.

Of course, and he feels saddened as he thought this, he wished things could've ended more amicably. It was such a shock when Kagome's life was lost that all four of them just didn't know how to go on. Their lives felt empty without their little priestess there to make them whole. Inuyasha was the worst out of all of them, he loved Kagome so completely that when she died, a part of him went with her.

Shippo at the time was a little kid and his grief ran a little deeper than the rest. Kagome was the only one to take him under her wing and nurture him and protect him like a mother did with her young. To lose her was like feeling orphaned again. He cried and pleaded for them to not bury her, thinking that if they just gave it some more time, then maybe by some miraculous chance, she would come alive again. Miroku and Sango informed him that Kagome was not going to live by their sides, but in their hearts and everywhere around them. It seemed to ease Shippo's broken spirits meagerly, but as the little boy grew up to become a strong demon, they could all see the pain in his eyes.

"Miroku?"

Miroku came out of his reverie, smiling at his wife. "Yes Sango, please tell me about your day." Sango reached up, her index finger touching below his eyes. He was surprised to see a tear had leaked during his thinking. She appeared worried, but he only smiled. "I was just thinking about Kagome."

"Kagome? So, you knew?" Sango asked, her voice slightly shrilly.

"Knew what my love?"

"That… she's alive."

Miroku was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

Sango closed her eyes, a few tears pouring out of her eyes again. When they opened again, she was smiling. "She's here Miroku. She's really here."

Sango then gripped his hand, leading him inside his house. Miroku surveyed his surroundings, seeing Keiko and Hiroshi together, walking to the dinner table. Sakiko, Akina, and Amaya were already seated at the table, waiting for the other occupants. Kisho wasn't inside at all, which was surprising since he was always the first one to sit at the table. Other than that, there wasn't anything else out of the ordinary.

From the side, he heard one of his doors slide open. He looked to the left and almost fainted at ferocity of his shock. Kagome stood near the door, wearing one of Sango's kimonos and actually alive. He blinked, thinking this wonderful hallucination would vanquish, but she remained. Kagome met his eyes, smiling but he could see it was forced.

"Miroku!" She exclaimed, walking slowly up to the couple. "It's nice to see you again."

Miroku walked forward, drawing the petite girl into his arms in a friendly hug. Kagome froze, but then reciprocated the embrace meekly. Sango noticed her friend's peculiar behavior. Miroku too could sense the uneasiness emanating from his friend, compelling him to pull away.

"Kagome… how…"

"I was revived like… Kikyo."

Her words and the reminder of the way Kikyo was after being resurrected using Urusuae's dirty tricks depleted all of Miroku's elation. "Are you…"

"You don't need to worry about me." Kagome said suddenly. "I'm fine. It's not like I'm the walking dead or anything. I have all of my soul and I feel incredibly alive."

Miroku reached for her hand, feeling a bit of a coldness but not nearly as bad as Kikyo. "You still feel kind of cold."

Sango then touched the skin of her hand, almost jumping at the cold sensation. "He's right. Maybe that kimono isn't warm enough for you."

Sango went to pass her friend with the intent of seeking a more apt attire to go with the chilly evening. Kagome stopped her though with a smile. "It's fine Sango. So, are we going to eat?"

Miroku bellowed a laugh. "Of course our little Kagome must be starving after her twenty year sleep."

Kagome nodded, forcing a smile. Miroku and Sango turned their backs, walking hand in hand to the dinner table. It was mind boggling for the couple that Kisho was the only absent member. Still, they sat down with the rest of the family. Kagome joined them too, but she didn't eat. She didn't feel hungry at all and luckily, nobody questioned her why she wasn't indulging in the delicious food because Hiroshi and Akina interrogated her about her story and how she became such a dear friend of their parents. Even Amaya, though she kept mostly to herself during the meal, appeared interested as well.

"I never got to ask, but… how is Inuyasha?" Kagome asked, her hands clenching at her sides.

Miroku and Sango dropped their chopsticks. Kagome felt as though her heart had been ripped out of her chest again. She may had been dead for two decades, but she remembered enough about her friends to know when a tragedy has happened. Out of fear of knowing the awful truth, she wanted to take back the words. Millions of possibilities plagued her mind, many of which meant heartbreak for her.

"Inuyasha… he was killed." Sango said softly.

Kagome's eyes bulged, out of all the possibilities she expected to hear this was the least and the worst. "H-How?"

"A demon attacked us, asking for the Shikon jewel. The jewel was wished away though, Inuyasha wished for it to disappear." Sango replied, grateful for the comfort of Miroku's hand stroking hers. "We told him that and he… he told us that he wouldn't be alive right now if the jewel truly was gone."

Kagome gasped at the similarity of those words with another vivid memory.

"You lie, for if the Shikon's existence truly has been vanquished, then I would not be sustaining any air in my lungs."

She scowled. Saigen, he killed him. HE KILLED INUYASHA!

As though her mind wanted to torture her further, she thought back to the sight of his face the night he took her. The utter love and adoration in his eyes. The strength of his arms around her. She found it ludicrous that someone so strong could be cut down by a mere demon such as Saigen. It wasn't right. It just wasn't right. Inuyasha…

Kagome swore then to hunt down Saigen. This was no longer a quest for the Shikon jewel, this was personal vengeance. She could be with Inuyasha right now, rekindling their love and beginning something that ended all too soon years ago. Was this a sign that they were not meant to be together? The thought made her insides curl in a painful turmoil. She expected the tears to show, but they never did, much to her surprise. Perhaps she wasted it all when she first saw Sango or maybe this pain hurt too much she couldn't muster up the tears.

Finally, Miroku broke the tense silence by the clearing of his throat. "I wonder why Kisho has decided not to join us?"

Sango shrugged. "I don't know."

Miroku stood, bowing. "Excuse me, but I feel I should find him."

Kagome abruptly rose from her seat, thankful to have a legitimate excuse for leaving the dinner table. "No Miroku, stay and enjoy your meal. I'll look for him."

Kagome bowed and left the kitchen before anyone could retort. They all looked at her full plate, piled with so much food left untouched.

_ _ _

Meanwhile, the winds howled a precarious tune. The grass surrounding the Bone Eater's well swayed to the left, as though pointing to the danger lurking behind the trees. A tall figure emitted from the forest dedicated to the half demon who was currently now at rest.

His eyes spotted the tree with a gash, almost like a scar, where the half demon had been pinned.

Saigen observed the Sacred Tree for a minute until he heard shuffling from behind. Akito, Haruka, and Takeshi sauntered up to him. Akito looked at the tree then back at Saigen, his eyes questioning. Saigen scowled and moved over towards the well, known as the Bone Eater's well. He peered into the dark depths, his eyebrow raised.

"How can you be so sure that this is a portal linked to another world?" Saigen questioned.

"Naraku talked of it." Akito replied back.

Akito walked up to the Bone Eater's well, studying the inside of it as well. He closed his eyes and gently laid his hand on the wood that bordered around the lip. A magenta aura seeped from his fingers, engulfing the well in a brilliant light. Saigen squinted while Akito remained still except for a small smirk of victory passing over his lips.

Then, he stepped away, the light fading into tiny orbs of light. Akito smiled. "I have the power to transcend time."

"Transcend time you say?" Saigen questioned, his hand on the wood as well. "Thought you said this is the link to another world."

"I did indeed, but to be precise, the future."

"The future?" Saigen scowled. "Why would I need to see the future?"

"That is where the Shikon no Tama resides. When Inuyasha wished for it to disappear, it disappeared into this world."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Would you rather go see for yourself than stay here arguing with us? At least you have a lead despite how ludicrous it must sound to you." Takeshi snapped, his arms folding over his chest to show his impatience.

Saigen reluctantly admitted to himself that Takeshi was correct. Before he questioned what he should do, Akito leapt into the well. He watched as the demon was engulfed in a pale blue aura. He saw the demon's head once before it vanished. Saigen lingered over the lip of the well, still hesitant. Finally, Takeshi huffed and jumped into the well, as though he was silently accusing him of being a coward.

Haruka touched his shoulder so feather light, he almost missed it. He glanced at her and she gestured with her head to the well. He glared at it a moment longer, prompting Haruka to take his hand and walk him with her to the well. She bowed to him then jumped into the portal, she disappearing before his eyes as well.

Then, without hesitation, he leapt into the well. He felt an icy feeling in his chest and a pull at his stomach. He saw he was, just as the others were, encased in a blue glow. He saw the floor of the well meeting with his feet, then suddenly, it gave way. He found himself traveling through space, without any idea of how to go his own way. Then suddenly, he felt the ground underneath his feet. He looked up to see Haruka's beaming face, her hand grasping his. They both leapt out of the well, surveying their new surroundings.

Before he was surrounded by tall trees and grass. Now, it was just dark but he could barely see the wood around him. Akito walked up to the shrine doors and throwing them open. Saigen looked outside, his eyes wide. This was a new world indeed. A new world of new sights, smells, and hearings.

"Where on Earth are we? Are we even on Earth anymore?"

"We… are in the future."