The next several months were hard, but it was the good kind of hard. Life was difficult because there was an abundance of honest, meaningful work to be done. The coalition came out of the mountains and took residence in Naraku's mansions. First one and then another and then another. The houses were Kagome's by right since her dearly departed step-father had failed to leave a will, and she didn't even have to think about what to do with them. She opened them freely to those that needed shelter, sanctuary, and a place to call home. Each one was almost like a miniature town, with a family in every bedroom, living room, and gazebo. Lines for the bathroom were ridiculous.
Kagome had also inherited the Warehouse, and she spent a lot of time there at first. She went from cage to cage, hearing stories, offering food and blankets, making sure that if she gave freedom it wouldn't be returned with revenge.
After several weeks, once she was as certain as she felt she could be, she released each demon, cage by cage. Most joined the communities that had risen up in the wake of Naraku's death, lending their own unique talents to it, starting schools and baking pies and mending clothes. But many fled to the wild or elsewhere. Occasionally Kagome read or heard about deadly attacks from rouge demons and tried not to think that they were caused by demons she had freed. She focused instead on the ones who had stayed and the ones who were still coming day by day.
Kouga ran the guard detail at the main house and appointed wolves he trusted to run similar operations at the others. He was a natural born leader and he trained his squads with a firm but encouraging hand.
Sango and Miroku remained in the infirmary for a time, but as the weeks went by and the outside world left them alone there were fewer and fewer patients in need of critical care and the pair was able to ease off, rest, and start thinking about the future.
It surprised no one when they announced their intention to marry, though Sango blushed as though she thought it would. They were given one of the better bedrooms in which to live and start a family should they choose.
Then there was Inuyasha. After a lifetime of abuse and slavery, he now had respect and a place to belong. There was hardly a moment that he wasn't by Kagome's side, lending her his strength and protecting her whenever the need arose. Shippo was a shadow to both of them as well and despite his initial annoyance with the fox, over time Inuyasha somewhat accidently took on kind of a mentor role with him. He was a gruff and reluctant mentor, but a mentor nonetheless. The three of them lived in Naraku's old room. It was the largest but also the most initially repulsive because of the stench and the morbid collection of possessions.
In reclaiming the room, they found many things to turn their stomachs. Locks of Kagome's hair, pictures of her as a child, an urn that may or may not have contained her mother's ashes. They also found implements that revealed the true sadism of Naraku's heart, as if they needed further proof. His shelves were filled with instruments of torture, many intended for slaves but some meant for humans as well. Both Inuyasha and Kagome shuddered to think how he would have used each of them if they had been in reach when he had dominion over Kagome.
Most of Naraku's things they burned. The things that were useful they either gave away or tried to repurpose for different uses. Then Kagome stripped the paint, re-upholstered or replaced the furniture, and generally redecorated the room into something that was more her style. The walls were sky blue and every end table was covered with vases of flowers whose lives had been magically prolonged. It was the kind of bright and open feeling that Inuyasha had always suspected Kagome would give off if she were only afforded the chance.
Their romance was slower to build. When Kagome returned from her confinement they began sharing a bed immediately, but it wasn't sexual. In fact, Shippo shared it, too. They just needed the intimacy, the closeness, the warmth. For both of them, it made healing a little easier.
Despite the slow build, their bond was always strong and sure, and it was only a few months before Inuyasha finally mustered up the courage to ask Kagome whether she would have him, hanyou blood, slave past, grumpy moods and all. The smile she gave him as she threw her arms around his neck melted his heart, and it was the sweetest moment in both of their lives.
But there was always more to do, always more to save, always more to heal and fix and grow. With friends and family behind them and each other to depend on, Kagome and Inuyasha built a steady, loving revolution. Just like they'd talked about that day in the woods not long after they had first met, they were saving the world. One life at a time.