~InuYasha POV~

It's been a week since Kagura had shown up and attacked my pack then flew off to inform Naraku that Kagome was pregnant with my pups and that my pup's auras were powerful.

I felt so tense and stressed out that I was hell bent on getting Kagome to the Bone Eaters Well as fast as I possibly could not resting for a moment. At night while she slept I kept watch over her, my hand on Tetsusaiga ready to kill off anything that moved and as a result I have not gotten much sleep in a few days which was driving Kagome crazy with guilt and worry.

"InuYasha please! For the last time…stop and rest!" she yelled at me for the fourth time already. Thank goodness that it wasn't a warm day and the air had a bit of a nip to it making travel easier for me.

"I mean it InuYasha" she said from behind me taking hold of one of my ears and gave it a gentle but firm little yank. I sighed, if it wasn't for me holding her…I think she would have 'Sit' me already. I knew that she could feel how tired I was…buy I didn't care about myself; all of my energy was consumed on the goal to get her to safety.

"Kagome, I'm already going at a slow pace…at least slow for me. You know I don't want to jostle you around" I said my demon was upset that she was not being obedient and allowing me to take care of her. I really didn't want to use my power of being her alpha to make her relax but I will if she kept it up.

"InuYasha…..if you don't stop and rest right now I swear that I will never let you kiss me or touch me again" she snapped at me making me growl low and our companions gasp at her outburst regarding our intimacies.

"Kagome…." I said in a warning tone which she ignored.

She growled at me….my mate actually growled at me. I stopped causing the rest of my pack to give us uneasy glances. They didn't know what to make of our fighting. They were still getting use to our new relationship and closeness and the fact that Kagome pregnant with my pups.

"You can't do that Kagome" I said putting her down on the ground gently then turned and towered over her "I am your mate and your alpha and if I say it's not safe for you here then you need to trust my judgments and you defiantly can't keep me away from you"

I gave her a low snarl that came from my chest while I leaned down to nuzzle her cheek softly. I smirked when I felt her melt into me, her aura flared up a bit to caress against my youkai. I placed a hand the small swell of her stomach.

"I will not put you in harm's way" I said with a growl

"Maybe you should have waited until Naraku was dead then" she said then sighed "I know you're worried but can we at least stop long enough for you to at least take a nap? I can feel you too you know, I can sense how tired you are. If we get attacked in your state then you could die…..I will not lose you now that I have you InuYasha"

I was so fuckin tempted to just ignore her and make her submit but I didn't like doing that to her nor did I like the idea of keeping her here but what else could I do? We needed to defeat Naraku and I couldn't do that from the other side of the well and I couldn't just leave her in her era….she needed her mate near her or she'll fall ill and die, her and our pups.

I sighed when she moved to wrap her arms around my waist and leaned her head against my chest. I could feel how worried she was, she didn't like when I pushed myself too hard but she needed to understand that I did it for her.

"Fine, we'll stop for the day and I will take a damn nap IF…you stay next to me" I said pulling away from her to look down at her.

She growled at me again but I snarled and let out soft bark causing her eyes to widen a bit.

"Oh my gosh….I actually understood what you just said to me" she said looking at me, one eyebrow raised "That was…just so weird and I don't care what language you use….don't tell me to shut up" she huffed.

I took hold of her chin and forced her to look at me "You are my mate…mine and I will not have you growling at me. Now listen to me very closely…..you are going to sit down next to me until I finish my nap and that is final"

She bristled at the tone I was using on her but I knew better than to be soft on her. She was just as hard headed as I was and if I showed her any inch of giving in she would yank the whole fuckin rug out from under me.

"InuYasha….I want to go down to the river bank and wash up I think me and Sango are perfectly capable to doing that. You can't chain me to your side you know. I'm still getting use to this whole being bounded thing…I want some time for myself too you know"

Not for the first time today I considered drugging her but I knew I couldn't do that to her either. I may not like it but I understood her point of view but it was hard for me. I sometimes wondered how was it that my brother remained alone for so long was. If I, a half demon, felt the instincts for pack then how did he feel? I have felt what it was like to be truly alone when my mother died when I was nothing but a child and I hated it. The need for companionship grew with time, the need for pack and company was not only something my demon heart wanted but my human one was well.

Unfortunately the life of a hanyou was never easy growing up. Humans feared me, were disgusted that I had demon blood coursing through my veins and were jealous of my strength. Kagome never had to worry about fitting in; she has always been loved and always had a family.

Now that I had my own family to care for all I wanted was to feel both my mate and pups near me. I knew I was being over protective of her but I couldn't help it, it was in my nature to protect what was mine. Kagome on the other hand comes from an era were women have their freedom.

Too much freedom if someone asked me, she was not used to being shadowed, or being told what to do. Well tough shit I thought, she had to get used to life with a youkai. She responded to me like one at times and I knew it was because I fused some of mine into her but she still had too much rebellion inside of her.

"Alright fine" I said when I saw that she was giving her equivalent of what she called 'puppy eyes' damn wench knew how to make me bend to her wishes. I growled down at her and leaned down and gave her neck a small bite "I will sleep when you get back"

"But…" she started to say but I bit down on her neck a bit harder forcing her to shut up.

"I'm compromising" I growled out "When you get back I will take my damn nap until then I'm going to keep a nose and ear out for you. It would be just your luck that I fall asleep and some damn demon attacks you"

"Oh ha ha InuYasha" she said making a face a me "Because I'm such a magnet for trouble"

I snorted into her neck "You are, there is not arguing that. Now go, the sooner you get back the sooner I can sleep knowing you're where you belong….next to me"

~Kagome POV~

"Honestly that over baring DOG! Ugh! I don't understand how I can love him dearly and yet feel the need to rip his head off!" I said as I took my wish cloth and started to scrub my arms.

"It's call hormones Kagome…but don't kill me when I say that I understand where he is coming from" said Sango with a shrug "You have the realize that you and the babies are his whole world Kagome, the thought of any threat to you will drive any man to act a bit crazy…plus half of him is ruled by demon instincts which are stronger than human ones. Honestly, I have to hand it to him. InuYasha has matured a lot ever since you two mated and became pregnant"

I grumbled then signed…I knew that, the old InuYasha was always a bit of a hot head and always causing trouble. My InuYasha now was much more of a man…he kind of reminded me a bit of Sesshomaru but without the iciness. He was super over protective of me and I appreciated it but there are times when it got on my last nerve.

"I know what you mean..but I come from an era where women don't really need men to take care of us. We manage just fine on our own and that's what I've been doing, until InuYasha claimed me and impregnated me"

The cool water felt really nice as I took some water and raised my arms that I decided to just jump in.

"You know what, I think I'm just gonna take a full bath" I said taking off my kimono top and hakamas. I was not going to take a bath in my underwear so I took a thin white yukata and put it on and made my way to the water.

"Careful" said Sango as I made my way to the deeper part of the river and found a large boulder and sat on it. Taking some water in my hands I started to wash my legs and neck but after a while of bending over to gather water I was starting to feel an ache in my back.

"It's getting hard to bend over without feeling like I'm squishing the poor kids" I said with a huff then giggled while I rubbed my growing tummy. I sometimes couldn't believe that I was carrying InuYasha's babies….and two of them!

I heard Sango laugh "You are growing rather large for only three months"

"Well let's hope that InuYasha will still find me attractive when I'm so huge that I can't see my feet" I said.

We laughed while I shampooed my hair talking about how cute it would be if I did have twin girls and how hilarious it would be to have InuYasha over ruled by female hormones.

"Then again, maybe you should have boys and be over with it" said Sango looking at me "At least that way you wouldn't have to worry about being pregnant again for some time" she said making me almost fall off the boulder I was on.

"What!?" I squeaked.

"Well yeah…most demons want their first born to be male" she said then frowned at my shocked expression "You know….their heir and all that"

"Ah crap" I said miserably then looked down at my swollen belly "One of you better be a boy" I said talking to my tummy then looked at Sango then sighed "I guess it shouldn't surprise me though, InuYasha has always wanted a family"

"Especially with you" she said with a grin.

I stuck my tongue out at her when I felt a cold chill run down my spine. I sat up and looked around trying to pin point the location of the two jewel shards I was sensing.

"What is it?" said Sango getting up with Hiraikotsu ready to kill any threat to us.

"Jewel shards" I said tilting my head then groaned when I realized who they belonged to "It's Kouga" I said then looked around for InuYasha.

"Oh oh" said Sango then snickered "this is not going to end well"

~InuYasha POV~

'Maybe I should go and take a dip in the river too' I thought to myself 'I need a bath anyways' I looked at my hair and sure enough I could see some dust from the day on it. I hated having my hair dirty; it felt gross and matted when it was like this.

"I'm gonna go take a dip in the river too" I said getting then looked at the little fox kit "Come on Shippo, you need a bath too"

Shippo grumbled got up and started to follow me.

"Do I really have to?" he said "I wanted to take a nap too" he whined a little.

"Take one once Kagome is back" I said sniffing the air making sure that there weren't any demons around.

"Wont lady Kagome be angry that you followed her?" called out Miroku after me.

I shrugged "What's the worse she can do?" I said "Sit me?"

I started walking to where my mate was when a bitter stench reached my nose. My demon erupted in angry growls, my vision took a red tint and my claws itched to come in contact with wolf skin.

"InuYasha? What's wrong?" I could feel Shippo pull in my pant leg.

"Kouga" I growled out then picked up my kit and started to run to the river.

"Mama!" said Shippo worried "What will Kouga do when he finds out that mama is having your pups?"

"I don't know pup but I'm not going to wait and find out" I said running to where my mate was taking a bath. Damn wolf, I was going to chop off his head if he so much as looks at Kagome while she's undressed.

I felt my mate's aura reaching to me, wondering where I was and if I knew who was making his way towards her. When I came to the clearing where Kagome was bathing I found her sitting on a large boulder that was almost in the middle of the river.

"What the hell are you doing?" I bellowed out to her "You know those rocks can be slippery you idiot" I said marching up to her taking off my red haori and wrapped it around her shoulders since the thin white yukata was a bit see through.

"You're lucky I don't 'it' for that" she said between her teeth.

"Keh" I said the pull her behind me and took our my sword "Mangy wolf is going to feel the end of my sword if he so much as lays eyes on you while your bathing"

It wasn't very long before a small tornado made its way across the river.

"Thought I smelled my woman in the area" said Kouga.

I growled at him "Well then you need to take another good whiff you stinking piece of fur, maybe then you'll notice that she's now mine"

Kouga growled but sniffed at the air "What the fuck is this!" he yells, I could feel his youkai rise in anger "How dare you mate with my woman you damn mutt. I had prior claim to her and you know it"

"In your fucking dreams in you stupid excuse for a youkai" I snarled back "Kagome is and always has been mine. You were just too brain dead to see it"

"That's it half breed" sneered the wolf "Your head is mine"

"Not fuckin likely" I said then looked at Kagome "Go to Sango and stay with her"

I felt Shippo land on my shoulder in a crouch, growling at Kouga "I'll get him with my fox fire….I need a target to practice on" he said making me chuckle at the little kit.

"Go protect your mother pup" I said "You need to learn to protect your brothers and sisters soon"

"Okay" he chirped and jumped behind me to land on Kagome's shoulder instead.

"Go with Sango" I said to Kagome. She hugged me for a second before I head her splashing towards the shore.

Kouga's attention was on Kagome; he was sniffing the air and watching the way she was carefully making her way towards. Growling I stalking around the water, glaring at the wolf who wanted to take my mate from me.

"Leave" I said pointing Tetsusaiga at him "Leave and I won't take your head off. You know the youkai laws, Kagome is rightfully mine….her and our pups"

"Your filthy half breed scum" he snarled cracking his knuckles "You defiled my mate" then he charged straight at me.

~Kagome POV~

My heart lurched to my throat as I saw someone who I once called friend attack InuYasha.

I could feel Sango pulling me gently towards the safety of the trees along with Shippo who I was clutching in my arms.

"Don't worry mama" said Shippo looking up at me "InuYasha will send that Kouga running with his tail tucked between his legs"

"You seem to have a lot more faith in him now Shippo" said Sango as she positioned Hiraikotsu in front of us for added protection.

"Yeah well…" mumbled Shippo. I smiled at him softly "Your starting to see him like a father….aren't you?" I said recalling the different times were Shippo and InuYasha had interacted recently and how much it's changed.

Shippo turned bright red "Don't tell him…not yet"

"Why not?" I asked perplexed, why would he want to keep it a secret?

"Because I'm not sure how he would react" he said.

We all looked up when InuYasha let out a growl so loud that it even gave Sango goosebumps.

"We have to stop them" I said with a sigh "I don't want InuYasha to hurt Kouga just because he's a stubborn fool who can't accept defeat"

"I wouldn't interfere if I were you" said Miroku "InuYasha is fight for the right to be your mate, if you interfere then Kouga will think it's because InuYasha can't protect you. In the youkai world, it's disgraceful for the female to aid her mate when fighting for mating rights…..InuYasha's claim over you will be forfeit"

I sighed, groaning to myself 'How can I just sit here and do nothing?'

I could hear Kouga throwing insults as InuYasha, calling him inferior for only being half demon making me seethe in anger.

"That's enough Kouga!" I yelled at him causing him to stop mid attack "I've just had about enough of this! I never wanted to hurt your feelings, you are a friend but I'm through with being nice to you. I would have never been your mate to begin with. I never loved you, nor will I ever love you. I wanted to with InuYasha from the moment we met; he's my choice and will always be my choice. So you can either back the fuck off right now or take my friendship…. I'll let InuYasha blast you into nothing but ashes if you try something stupid"

I breathed harshly as I looked at Kouga with determined eyes, I didn't waver in my gaze at all as I willed him to believe my words and admit defeat.

He scoffed then looked at InuYasha "You don't deserve her" he said in a low voice "But I will back off. It's obvious that she will never see me like she sees you" he looked over to me "I don't want to lose your friendship so I will turn the other way"

"You don't have much of a choice" I said sarcastically "and I want you to apologize to InuYasha for the insults you were throwing at him" I said crossing my arms to my chest.

Kouga's eyes widen "You got to be kidding me" he said to me then looked over at InuYasha who was still growling at him "I'm not apologizing to mutt face"

"Fuck you" muttered my mate.

I stepped past Sango and Miroku, my eyes narrowing on Kouga while I formed my barrier around me.

"You will apologize wolf, or I swear I will purify your ass from here to kingdom come" I spat at him.

"I don't need his fuckin apology" said InuYasha behind me.

I turned and glared at my husband "And you!" I said pointing my finger at him "I will not sit back like a twit while I watch you fight for me. I'm not a carnival prize to fight over" I then rounded over to Kouga "and as for you…..you're very lucky that InuYasha was holding back in the first place or else you would have been food for the vultures by now"

Everyone went deathly silent but I didn't care….I was angry, scared, tired and hungry and damn it I just wanted this to end.

I watched as Kouga grimace then straighten up and cross his arms to his chest "Fine…..I am sorry for calling you those derogatory names"

I looked on to my husband and glared at him to behave and just take the damn apology.

InuYasha sheathed Tetsusaiga "Keh…fine whatever" he said and walked into my barrier and pulled me into his body, his hand going to lie on my swollen stomach.

Kouga saw this and scoffed "So you're really having his pups then?" he said in a low voice no doubt just noticing my slightly swollen belly.

"That's right and if you insult them I will purify you…friend or no friend, no one insults my babies" I said in a huff. Damn hormones…..they were making bitchy as hell.

I felt InuYasha nuzzle the back of my neck for a bit then bit down making my body relax against him.

"Alright koi….that's enough. Your too high strung and you need to relax" he said then picked me up and paused to glace over to Kouga "Leave now, you heard my mate. She's mine and she acknowledges it"

"You sure you can handle her puppy?" said Kouga making me roll my eyes but I looked up to see the cocky grin on InuYasha's face.

"I've always been able to flee bag" he said then turned and headed back to our camp.

Once we got back I was placed in my sleeping bag while I watched InuYasha sit down next to me, Tetsusaiga resting on his shoulder and his hands in the sleeves of his haori.

"I said I would sleep if your next to me" he said his eyes closed "Once I rest up for a bit I think it would be a good idea to head back to your time for a bit. I don't want you to stress out so much…plus we need to restock"

"Okay" I said then looked over to our friends "Thanks for keeping watch for us, wake us up if any trouble comes"

"Sure thing lady Kagome" said Miroku.

Letting out a breath of relief, I closed my eyes. It's been a draining and stressful couple of days.