A/N: Okay, let's see if I can't come up with something to keep this story going shall we? Please R&R
Kagome woke to the sun shining in through her bedroom window. She rolled over and groaned, not wanting to wake up just yet.
"Kagome, sweetie. Breakfast is ready. You and Shippo should eat before you head back." Furuka said from downstairs.
Kagome groaned again before sitting up. Her movements woke Shippo. He sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.
"Kaa-san? Are we heading back today?" Shippo asked with a yawn.
"Yeah we are baby. Come on, let's go get something to eat. You might even get to meet my bro-" Kagome stopped. Souta wasn't her brother anymore, he never was. But Furuka said they still thought of her as a part of their family. But did she still think of them as hers?
"Kaa-san?" Shippo asked slightly worried about his mother.
Kagome snapped out of it and smiled down at her son.
"It's nothing Shippo, let's go eat." Kagome said getting up and slipping on a dark green t-shirt and a pair of skinney jeans. They both went downstairs only to be met by the smells of bacon, eggs, sausage, grits, and toast.
"Auntie, you did all this?" Shippo asked as he took a seat before the counter. Furuka smiled and set a plate down before him.
"I sure did sweetie." Furuka said with a smile before turning to look at Kagome who had stayed by the doorway.
"Kagome?" Furuka asked slightly worried.
"I'm fine. It's just...different now that I know." Kagome said in a small voice as she walked into the kitchen and sat down next to Shippo and started to nibble some of the bacon off his plate, knowing he wouldn't eat it all.
"I know it is, but know we still love you like one of our own." Furuka said going over to the sink to do the dishes.
"How can you say that? I'm not even yours?" Kagome said finally losing it. She just couldn't understand how Furuka and the others could say they loved her when she was never really a part of their family to begin with. Her entire life had been a lie.
"Kagome, it doesn't matter to us if you are ours or not we still love you as if you were." Furuka said turning to look at the destraught teenager before her.
"How though! You only took care of me because my parents asked you to! My own parents didn't even want me! How do I know that you guys do? How do I know you're not just lying to me until I leave? How!" Kagome asked with tears streaming down her face.
"Kagome. Your parents gave you up because it wasn't safe for you in your time, not because they didn't want you. And the reason I took you in wasn't because the note your parents left asked me to, I did it because I wanted to. I couldn't just leave a helpless child to fend for themselves. No matter if they were a youkai." Furuka said enveloping Kagome in a hug. Kagome wrapped her arms around Furuka in return and cried into her shoulder.
"Kaa-san?" Shippo sarted but Furuka cut him off with a shake of her head. He went back to eating. After a while Kagome had finally calmed down and pulled away from Furuka.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said what I did." Kagome said wiping her tears with the back of her hands.
"Don't worry about it. You needed to let it all out. Kagome, no matter what we will always love you like one of our own. You'll always have a place here with us, if you still want it that is." Furuka said.
"Of course I want it!" Kagome yelled and Furuka smiled.
"Glad to hear it." A voice said from the doorway. Everyone turned to see an elderly man and a young boy around Shippo's age standing in the doorway to the kitchen.
"Gramps, Souta." Kagome said standing up. She ran to the elderly man and wrapped her arms around him.
"You should know by now how we feel about you Kagome." Gramps said.
"Yeah. You may not be my sister by blood, but I still think of you as one." Souta said with a smile.
"Guys. I love you so much." Kagome said starting to cry again.
"Dad, maybe we should let them eat. They do have to head back today." Furuka said setting down two plates for her father and son.
"You're right Furuka." Gramps said as he wiggled his way out of Kagome's arms and went over to his plate of food. He and Souta started eating. Kagome wiped her eyes again before taking her seat next to Shippo. They all ate in silence before Furuka took all the dishes and put them in the sink to soak. They all followed Kagome and Shippo outside to the well house.
"So you're really going back sis?" Souta asked. Kagome smiled at the fact he still called her sister.
"Yeah, I am."
"What are you going to do now Kagome? Now that you know the truth I mean." Furuka said.
"I'm not sure." Kagome said truthfully. "What am I supposed to do now?" She asked slightly confused.
"Well, your parents originally planned that when you found out for you to return to the East and take your rightful place as heir to the lands. But since you've been gone for so long, and you still look like a human your subjects might not accept that you are the lost daughter of the East." Furuka said.
'Gee thanks, not making me feel bad or anything. Not at all.'
Kagome thought.
"Don't worry about it. You're still young Kagome. Go back and think about it. You don't have to go back at all if you don't want to, or you can go back when you've decided you're ready." Gramps said. Kagome smiled and gave him a hug.
"Thanks gramps." She said before giving everyone else a hug and turning towards the well. She turned to look at Shippo.
"Ready to go back home?" She asked her son.
"Hai kaa-san." He said with a smile which made Kagome laugh.
"Alright, let's go." Kagome said picking Shippo up and jumping down the well. Once the lights had dimmed down and the auras of both were gone the three standing next to the well all smiled sadly.
"She has a lot to deal with now that she knows." Furuka said.
"Sis now has to deal with being a youkai and all that comes with it?" Souta asked.
"It would seem so." Furuka's father said responding to both. They all looked back at the well one more time before heading inside.
OoOoOoO
"Why are we heading towards that wolf's den?" Inuyasha asked annoyed.
"Because Inuyasha, the last time we talked to him he said he had a lead on where Naraku's location might be." Miroku said trying not to snap at his hanyou friend.
"Keh, why didn't you just say so?" Inuyasha said as he sped up the group's pace.
Miroku slowed down so that he was instep with Sango who had Kilala on her shoulder.
"It's like he doesn't even care that Kagome's not here anymore." Miroku said in a whisper too low for Inuyasha to hear.
"That's because he thinks she's in her time. He doesn't know that she's left us." Sango said sadly. She still missed her sister, but she knew it was probably for the best that she wasn't around Inuyasha anymore. The hanyou was rash and at times just stupid. His obsession with the dead priestess will wind up costing them. But that didn't mean she missed her sister any less.
"When he does find out he won't be too happy." Miroku said bringing Sango out of her depressing thoughts.
"Yeah. And when he finds out we knew and didn't tell him..." Sango trailed off, but she didn't need to continue for Miroku to know what she was thinking. Inuyasha would yell at them and call them horrible friends for keeping the truth from him. Miroku tensed when he sensed the presence of the dead priestess.
"We'll stop here for the night." Inuyasha said, no doubt having smelled Kikyo. He started to head off in the direction of the priestess.
"Where are you going Inuyasha?" Miroku asked though he already knew.
"I'm going to...catch you guys something to eat." Inuyasha said before speeding off into the forest. Sango and Miroku went about setting up camp. Miroku gathered firewood and started a small fire to keep them warm. The nights had started getting colder, indicating that winter was on it's way. Sango had gone out with Kilala to catch their dinner since they all knew that's not what Inuyasha had gone off to do. After eating Sango and the others settled down for the night. Kilala was curled up in her smaller form next to the fire and Sango was snuggled into Miroku's side. Both had realized their feelings for one another long ago when they both had been trapped in the mountain. Though they promised they wouldn't do anything till they wed, and they wouldn't wed until Naraku was dead and Miroku was free of his curse.
"I wonder what Kagome's doing right now?" Sango asked outloud as she stared into the embers of the fire.
"Hmm, she is probably sitting around a fire of her own with Shippo curled up next to her." Miroku said with a sad smile on his face. He too missed their miko friend. She had become somewhat of a sister to him as well.
"Knowing Kagome you're probably right." Sango said as she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. Miroku looked down at the beauty curled up against his side.
'Wait a minute, she's asleep. Maybe I can...'
Miroku thought as his hand started to travel across Sango's backside heading towards her bottom.
"Don't even think about it monk." Sango mumbled before snuggling closer to him. Miroku sighed and brought his hand back up to her shoulder. He smiled again and sent a prayer up to the kamis to keep them all safe before falling asleep himself.
OoOoOoO
"Kami, I haven't even been back all that long and I'm already being attacked by a demon." Kagome said as she jumped out of the way of the boar demon that had attacked her and Shippo as soon as they jumped out of the well.
"Kaa-san!" Shippo yelled as the boar demon charged at him. He managed to scramble up a tree before the demon could get him.
"Hold on Shippo, I'm coming." Kagome said as she got up and ran towards the boar demon with her katanas out and ready. It turned on her just as she lunged for it. It's tusks cut into the skin on her legs and she fell to the ground, but didn't give up. She rolled to the side trying to pin the boar demon down, but it was stronger than Kagome had originally thought. It kicked her off of it and she went crashing through several trees. She finally stopped when she crashed into the bark of a big Cedar. Her back stung from the impact, but she ignored it and looked around for the demon she had been fighting. She couldn't see it anywhere, but she could sense it. It was coming right at her from the right. She crouched down, building her power into her legs, then jumped right before the boar demon's tusks ran into the bark of the tree where she had been just a moment ago. The demon flailed it's arms trying to get it's tusks out of the tree, but having no luck. It roared and Kagome jumped down from her place in the tree and landed on the boar demon's back. She drove one of her katanas into the boar demon's skull and the other into it's heart. It roared once more before everything went silent. The boar demon fell to the ground and Kagome rolled off of it still in a crouch ready for anything. When she sensed that the demon before her was dead she straighted back up. She walked over to the demon and pulled out her katanas.
"Kaa-san?" Shippo asked climbing down from his place in the tree across from the clearing. Kagome didn't say anything, she just wiped the blood off her katanas and pulled out her dagger.
"Kaa-san?" Shippo asked again this time right next to Kagome who was knelt down next to the boar demon.
"Shippo I need you to go get some firewood for the night. We'll camp here." Kagome said as she started to skin the boar demon.
"Okay, but what are we going to eat?" Shippo asked though he had an idea.
"This." Kagome said holding up a piece of the boar demon's flesh.
"That's alright for me to eat, but you can't eat that kaa-san." Shippo said looking hungrily at the flesh Kagome held out to him. It had been a while since they ate breakfast and he was hungry.
"I'll explain it to you later Shippo, but right now I need you to find some firewood."
"Okay." Shippo said turning to head into the forest to find what his mother asked him for.
"Shippo." Kagome called and he turned around. She tossed him the piece of flesh she had been holding and he caught it. He looked from it to her in confusion.
"To hold you over until you get back." She said with a smile. Shippo smiled back before taking a bite out of the offered food his mother had given him. Kagome watched as he disappeared into the forest and went back to skinning the demon before her.
'I will be alright eating this right?' Kagome asked her inneryoukai who had been surprisingly quiet of late.
'Hai, if anything it will further awaken your demon side.'
'Oh, okay then.'
Kagome said as she finished skinning the demon. She then set to cutting the meat into equal sized portions for her and Shippo to eat later. When she finished she sat back and waited for Shippo to get back. Then something Furuka said popped into her mind.
'Hey, I have a quesion.' Kagome said to her inneryoukai.
'What is it?'
'If I'm inuyoukai why do I look human?'
'Finally noticed that did you?'
'Yes, I did. But I can't understand why.'
'It's simple really.'
'Oh?'
'Yes.'
'Care to enlighten me?'
'I might as well seeing as how you're now willing to accept what we are.'
'Hn.'
'Okay. The reason you still look like a human though you are a youkai is because every youkai has a humanoid form. Even Sesshomaru. Yours is in constant use, that's why you look human though you are youkai.'
'That makes sense, but even Sesshomaru's human form has demonic attributes, how come I do not?'
'That is because you have been living your life as a human. Your parents made it so that you would not have demonic attributes in your human form until you took on the role as heir of the Eastern lands.'
'What! Wh-'
'They did it so that none of their enemies could track you down.'
'Oh.'
Silenced followed her beast's explanation. She wached as the sky darkened and the stars started to shine through.
'So, the only way I can get my demonic attributes is to go to the East and claim what is mine?'
'Yes.'
'I don't need a mate to be able to do this do I?'
'No, though it would be easier if you-'
'No mates! Besides, I don't think there's anyone in this time period that I could ever love anyways.'
'I see you have finally given up your feelings for that half-breed.'
'Yes, Yes I have.'
"Kaa-san! I've got the firewood." Shippo said as he walked over towards her.
"That's great baby. Go ahead and get a fire started so we can eat, I'm starved." Kagome said picking up the pieces of meat beside her and spearing them on sticks for the two of them. Soon the fire was ready and the boar meat was cooking. After Kagome and Shippo ate they settled down for the night.
"Kaa-san, where are we going tomorrow?" Shippo asked as he tried to fight against his heavy eyelids to stay awake.
"Towards the East." Kagome said as she played with Shippo's auburn hair.
"Why the East?" Shippo asked and Kagome could tell he was asleep, but she still answered anyways.
"Because it's my home."