Kagome was going toward Edo. That much was clear.

Sesshomaru tracked her scent through the forest, somewhat shocked by her speed. He had run for quite a while, and had yet to catch up with her. She might have been caught by now, but Kagome was propelled by anger and need.

Sesshomaru and Inuyasha were similar, despite what Sesshomaru would like to think. Kagome was sure of that. They were both selfish, and stubborn to no end. She wondered if their father had been anything like that.

The well wasn't far off now. Sesshomaru would try to enter it and be denied. The well did not accept random individuals, only those who were specially connected. Kagome furrowed her brow. She had never quite figured out how Inuyasha was connected, but she assumed it was because they had been connected to one another at the time.

Her thoughts did not dwell long on the hanyou. She could smell the land of Edo, surprised at the rate of travel in such a short time. Her youkai powers were coming in handy.

But Sesshomaru was on her tail. She knew he was. There was no way to lose him except to push herself further. Trees and shrubs swept past as her speed increased. His footsteps distinctly sounded behind her, beat after beat. Her acute hearing could detect exactly how far behind he was. It was not far enough.

Edo was not far, either. What had been accomplished in days of walking was easily covered in a short time by running. Her senses flared. The proximity of the well was increasing. She only hoped that she could make it before she was caught. She could feel his presence, but she dared not look.

Sesshomaru reached out, ready to grab her. A few more feet, and he could drag her back to camp, kicking and screaming as he expected her to go. The woman obviously held family values above most things to go to such lengths for a visit. What would she even do once she reached her mother? She would have to stop, and he would have her.

He burst forward, snatching the edge of her haori. Kagome yelped, tumbling to the ground. The cloth shred, Kagome hit the ground rolling, and kept going, leaving Sesshomaru with a small bit of blue cloth between his fingers. He growled, leaping into another run.

It was very close now. She could tell. It called to her, beckoning her to it. The God Tree was in sight. She jumped, ready to fall into the future.

Sesshomaru leaped after her, questioning why in the world she would jump into an abandoned well. He landed softly on the ground, ready to grab her. But Kagome was not there.

His brow furrowed. He was sure she had jumped into the well. He spun around, checking for any spell scrolls or tricks that might have hidden her. There was nothing but the ancient structure.

"You're not gonna get through the well!" a voice chimed from above. Sesshomaru jumped out, met with Rin and Shippo on Ah-Un's back. Shippo was grinning. "Mama is the only one who can get through the well."

He frowned. "Through the well? Kit, what does that mean?"

"The well is magic. Mama travels through it to go home. Inu- I mean, your brother was the only other person who could go through it without a jewel shard."

Sesshomaru growled, eying the well with distaste. "That miko will not escape from me so easily."

()

Inuyasha drank more sake, happy to have a drink and forget.

"To lose both your lovers is awful," Kyoko sighed, taking the bottle back.

"Kyoko, Kikyo, Kagome. Too many names that sound alike," Inuyasha slurred. He was clearly drunk, but Kyoko didn't feel like putting the sake away. After stealing food from Koga and running like hell, Inuyasha insisted they get a drink. He snatched sake from a house in a village, and they shared it until they both felt they would keel over.

"Yes. Kagome sounds nice, though." She took another pull of sake. "Too bad you were a jerk and she left you for your brother."

"She didn't!" Inuyasha snarled. "She was forced to by that damn flower. If I'd had any say, she'd still be with us, detecting shards and shit."

"Rough." Kyoko wasn't normally one to get drunk, but the sake hadn't affected her as much as it had Inuyasha. She wondered what she was even doing, getting drunk with another hanyou. "If you want her back that bad, go after her."

Inuyasha rubbed his eyes. "What's the point? Stupid flower'll make her think she's gotta stay with my damn brother."

"Fight for her!" Kyoko shouted, swishing the sake bottle. "You have to fight for the ones you love, no matter what." The tigress herself did not know much about love, but she'd heard many stories about romance, and the subject instilled passion in her. "Go get her back!"

Inuyasha considered this, leaning his head against the tree behind him. Kagome had loved him before, but he couldn't be sure anymore. He'd been so cruel to her, pushed her away. If his plan had worked as he originally intended it to, Kagome would not love him. But if she still clung to her feelings, felt a shred of caring for him, perhaps it would be worth it to find her, to convince her of the folly of the Hana no Shukumei.

"Fine, then." He stood shakily, but the sake in his system was already being processed by his strong youkai blood. He would not remain drunk for long. "I'm going to Kagome, and tell her my brother's a bastard!"

"Atta boy!" Kyoko said, giggling. "I'll wait here for you. I wanna meet this woman of yours."

"Sure thing." Inuyasha turned and jumped, flying through the treetops on unsteady feet. He would apologize to her, and hopefully Kagome could forgive him.

()

Kagome climbed up the side of the well, wondering how in the world she would explain her situation to her mother. At best, her mother would calmly listen. At worst, she would have a panic attack.

Hiromi stood in the kitchen, preparing lunch. Her son and father were out finding video games for Souta, but Hiromi didn't expect them back so soon. She was puzzled when the front door opened, and went into the hall to see who it was.

"Hi, Mom."

"Kagome!" Hiromi rushed forward, hugging her daughter tightly. "I haven't seen you in months! What took you so long to visit?"

"It's been hard," Kagome said. "But before we talk about that, there's something I need to explain." Kagome pulled away, brushing her hair back to reveal her crescent moon imprint and pointed ears, smiling sheepishly. "Um, I'm a youkai now."

A few minutes later, Hiromi had tea prepared for both of them, sitting across from Kagome at the kitchen table, and listening while Kagome explained her situation with the Hana no Shukumei, leaving her friends to travel with Sesshomaru, and running away to visit her. Hiromi took it in stride, sipping her tea and leaving her questions until her daughter finished.

"Interesting," she said after she was done. "You're bound to this Sesshomaru, who doesn't sound like a pleasant man, and you've been transformed into a youkai, in order to mate with another youkai without your miko abilities harming him. Right?"

"Right." Kagome sighed. "I'm sorry about this, Mom. It's not like I chose to be a youkai."

"It's all right." Hiromi stirred her tea with a spoon. "I'm not mad at you, though I do wish you could have stayed a human. But you're still my daughter." She smiled, kissing Kagome on the forehead. "I love you, no matter what."

"Thanks." Kagome was flooded with joy, knowing her mother was willing to accept her. "I just wish I wasn't bound to Sesshomaru, of all people." She sighed again.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Kagome shrugged. "It's not like he's a bad person, necessarily. He's tried to kill me, but that was because I was with Inuyasha, and he hates Inuyasha. But he takes care of his young ward, Rin, like she was his own daughter. And he seems to do a good job of running the land. I don't know how much time he spends at wherever he rules from, a castle or whatever, but his system must work." She took another sip of tea, wondering what his subordinates thought of him. "He's cruel, but I think that's how he was taught to be. A lot of these royal families think that kindness is weak."

"In a lot of cases, that can be true," Hiromi said. "I'm willing to bet that his ward, this Rin, has been attacked because she's seen as a weak point for him."

"She has." Kagome remembered rescuing the little girl, how terrified she looked. "But my point is, I'm not sure why I've been bound to him. He seems like the complete opposite of my type. I want someone kind and caring, someone who will protect me even if I'm strong enough to protect myself."

"And he doesn't do that?"

"Well . . ." Kagome remembered the way Sesshomaru had defended her from the youkai when they were trying to obtain the shard, despite the fact that she was convinced she could have saved herself. "Sometimes, but he says it's for his own status. That if he rejected me after I've been clearly marked as his mate, it would smirch his honor."

"Honor is important to a lot of people. But perhaps he will grow to like you."

"Maybe." Kagome finished her tea, wishing Sesshomaru could show kindness to others besides Rin. She wanted to see his kind side, if they were going to be together for life.

For life. Mated forever. The thought scared her. She wasn't ready to settle down. Yes, it would be nice to have someone to love and care for, but she was eighteen. She didn't want to commit to the youkai equivalent of marriage so soon.

()

Sesshomaru thumped to the ground, pleased that the kit was useful for once. Luck was on his side when Kagome dropped her jewel shard container, allowing him to use the shards to travel through the well. The kit had been more than reluctant to release them after finding them on the ground at their camp, but a small threat was enough to force him to relinquish them.

It was interesting to know that the shards had a use other than bestowing power unto the user. Sesshomaru tucked them into his haori, peering above him. Instead of blue sky, there was a roof overhead. He jumped out, looking around the shrine house. The exit point of the well must have been some area where people knew the well's power, and saw it as sacred. Sesshomaru walked up the steps, opening the door of the shrine.

Powerful scents hit his nose like a canon ball. The foul odor was almost overwhelming, something he had never encountered before. He stepped outside, the smell only strengthening. The sights that welcomed him were unexpected.

Tall buildings made of metal, reflective material in small squares around the walls. Metal boxes moving on discolored roads beneath a long set of stairs. Humans, hundreds of them, walking beside the metal boxes, wearing strange clothing that he did not recognize. The way the miko had first dressed when they met made more sense to him now. Female humans wore similar outfits, revealing their skin like harlots.

Sesshomaru stepped back, peering around the raised area that held the shrine house. Beside it was a tree similar to the one near the well back in his own land. And in front of him was a small home, different from the huts he was used to seeing. Inside it, he could detect two scents. A human woman, and Kagome.

He had her now. This must be her family home, and she was in there, visiting her mother. He would take her back to his land, no matter what she said. Wasting precious time visiting people that could survive without her was something he could not afford.

"Perhaps he will grow to like you."

"Maybe."

The voices inside were of Kagome and the woman. Sesshomaru stepped up to the door, listening carefully.

"His priorities are all about himself, though." Kagome sounded frustrated. "And he doesn't believe that I'm strong. I want him to know that I'm capable of a lot."

Was she speaking of him? Sesshomaru didn't wish to hear more, blasting through the wooden door and following Kagome's scent.

She whipped around at the explosion, rising up to protect her mother. When Kagome saw that it was Sesshomaru in the doorway, her mind swirled with a dozen questions.

"What are you doing here?" was the first one to slip out. "You can't get through the well!"

"Miko," he said, removing the shard jar from his shirt. "You left this behind, and the kit was good enough to give it to me. The well was not an obstacle." He put the shards away, watching Kagome's expression give way to surprise and disbelief.

"Crap," she muttered. Turning to him, she said, "Sesshomaru, I'm here to visit my mom. You can't tear me away from her just because you think I'm wasting my time here. I happen to care about my family, and enjoy checking in on them."

"This is Sesshomaru?" Hiromi asked, undaunted by the obviously violent youkai in her kitchen. "He looks like Inuyasha."

Sesshomaru growled loudly. "I am nothing like that hanyou."

"That's a sore spot, Mom," Kagome warned.

Hiromi stepped out from behind Kagome, inspecting Sesshomaru closely. He sneered at the human, but she was not threatened in the least. She reached out, shocking Sesshomaru by touching his hair. "Oh, so silky," she said. "Pretty."

"Do not touch this Sesshomaru." He yanked his hair away and growled again. "Or I will tear your arm off."

"Violent!" Hiromi scolded. "That is no sort of attitude for your future mate's mother. I want to introduce myself properly." She held her hand out. "My name is Hiromi, I am Kagome's mother, and I expect some manners in my house."

Sesshomaru ignored her hand, facing Kagome. "You will come back with me."

"I'm visiting my mom," Kagome said, almost growling herself. "And I won't leave."

He could see that she was not responding to force. And while he would have liked to drag her out and down the well, she would resent him for it. Such resentment could lead to complications.

"Very well. May we discuss this, alone?" Talking might be the only thing Kagome would respond to.

She blinked, surprised. "Um, sure, I guess. Mom?"

Hiromi nodded. "I'll leave you two alone, but I'll be in the living room if you need me." She stepped out, hoping her daughter wouldn't do anything rash.

Kagome plopped herself in a chair, glaring at Sesshomaru. "Why do you insist on taking me away from my mother? All I wanted to do was say hi and explain about the Hana."

"I do not wish to waste time," Sesshomaru said. "Naraku gains ground every day that we do not find him. The more time is wasted, the longer it will take me to vanquish him."

Kagome's eyes softened. "I know you want to capture Naraku. I do, too. But family is very important to me, and something that I don't want to lose while hunting him down." She brushed her hair back to reveal the mark on her forehead. "Just because I'm marked with this doesn't mean my priorities are going to change. I came here while traveling with my friends, and I'll come here while traveling with you. That's that."

She would not budge. He could see that clearly, and forcing her to listen would only benefit him in the short term. For now, it might serve him better to keep her happy. If she hated him, it would give a bad impression to the other lords of the land.

"Very well," he conceded. "I can see that you will not change your mind."

Shocked by his sudden switch in attitude, Kagome wasn't sure what to say. Sesshomaru was one of the most stubborn men she had ever met. "All right," she said warily. "If you say so."

"But I expect your visits to be brief. If they take too long, I will force you to come back."

And there was the personality she expected. Kagome sighed, knowing his change of heart was too good to be true. "Fine, then. I'll only stay here for the day, if that's what you insist on." At least he let me visit, she thought.

Pleased with her response, Sesshomaru turned to leave, without so much as a goodbye, when a loud crash sounded outside.

"You damn bastard, get out here and fight!"

Kagome recognized the voice, and groaned. "Oh, Inuyasha."

()

That's chapter eleven! Hey, all, Mattaki-chan here. I hope you guys liked this chapter. I tried to make it a bit longer than usual.

And so we introduce Kyoko, the tiger hanyou from last chapter. Some of you might remember her from the original story, but she's a pretty minor character there. This time around, I'm going to give her more backstory, and she'll definitely show up more often.

And it seems that Sesshy is finally realizing that being mean and getting Kagome frustrated all the time might not be helpful, ha ha. Hooray for character development.

Happy 4th of July, you guys! I'm not sure how many of you reading this are in America, but I've been hearing talk of fireworks and parties on TV all day. I myself am not going to be doing anything, but that's okay. I hope you guys all have a good day today, and please review! You know I love the reviews!

I'll try and write more soon! Ja ne! :)