Chapter 5

Morning Sickness

Sesshomaru

I woke up to an unpleasant sound that I had hoped never to hear. The moment I heard it, I shot up in bed to find Kagome missing. I was hoping she would be able to skip this part, but I guess the Kami decided against it.

I swung my feet over the bed and made my way to the bathroom. The sight before me broke my heart. Kagome was on her knees, hunched over the toilet. Tears ran down her face as she vomited up any food she had left in her stomach.

I kneeled beside her and gently grabbed all of her hair, holding it in one hand while the other rubbed over her back. I hated seeing her like this, and honestly, it made me feel somewhat guilty. When her stomach was empty, I quickly grabbed a rag and handed it to her. She took it and wiped her mouth before leaning back.

"I'm okay." She whispered.

"I know, but that does not mean I like seeing you this way." I replied, letting go of her hair and watching it spread out across her back.

"It does suck, especially since I'm really hungry, but I also know I won't be able to hold food down right now." She scoffed, reaching up and pulling the handle on the toilet. "Although I feel a little better since you walked in."

"I am glad to hear it. Do you think you can stand?" I asked, putting my arms on her shoulders and rubbing them.

She gave a quick nod and I helped her stand to her feet. I moved my hands to her waist and guided her to the sink so she could brush her teeth. She did so before leaning on to me as I helped her to the bed.

I had to admit she looked terribly ill. I laid her in the bed, helping her get comfortable. When she rolled to her side and closed her eyes, I pulled the blanket over her so she could go back to sleep. I gently pushed an unruly piece of hair out of her face, trying not to focus on the way she looked.

There was no way I was letting her go to work like this so I grabbed my phone and informed Father of just that. I was glad when he said I should stay too because I really didn't want to leave her side when she was like this. I wanted to be here to take care of her.

Setting my phone on the nightstand, I took one last look at my sleeping mate before curling up beside her. It's my fault she was feeling sick and I will do my best to keep her comfortable. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her as close to me as possible.

A few hours later, I was woken again to the sound of retching. I looked at the clock to see it was about mid-afternoon. I didn't like how ill Kagome was and I desperately wanted to help her, but I wasn't sure how.

I quickly pushed myself to my feet and walked into the bathroom. I just about lost it when I saw her. This time, she was curled up into a ball, her hand on her stomach. She was very close to sobbing and I hated the sight. I knelt down beside her and pulled her up slowly so I didn't cause her to get sick again.

I leaned her against me, shushing her and rumbling deep in my chest to try and comfort her. I was a little shocked when she suddenly pulled away from me and leaned over the toilet again. I instantly grabbed her hair but soon realized that her body was just going through the motions. She no longer had anything left to vomit.

"Oi, I'm coming in." InuYasha said, knocking on the door. I didn't say anything as he walked to where we were. The look on his face told me he could smell everything that was going on.

"How bad was Kikyou's morning sickness?" I asked, rubbing Kagome's back.

"Nowhere near this." He replied, kneeling down beside me.

"Why are you not at work?" I asked, wincing as Kagome groaned over the toilet. I was surprised she wasn't saying anything, but I assumed her dry heaves weren't letting her.

"Pops has been calling to check on Kagome, but no one answered so he sent me. You may want to talk to him and Ma. I'm not exactly sure how yokai pregnancies go, but I know hanyou pregnancies can be tough." He said, filling a cup with water and handing it to Kagome who gladly took it. She didn't get three swallows down before she was ejecting it from her body.

"I'm fine, guys." She said, her voice hoarse from the punishment her throat had been through.

"You're not fine. You can't even keep any water down." InuYasha replied, looking just as worried as I did.

"I will call the doctor and ask her what we should do." I stated, trying to help Kagome stand. I slowly guided her back to the bed and helped her to lay back down. I pulled over a trashcan and placed it within arm's reach.

"I'll call Pops." InuYasha said, leaving the room.

"I'm sorry." I whispered as I sat beside her. I ran my hand over her hair, trying to soothe her in any way.

"It's not your fault." She whispered, giving me a smile. I kissed her forehead while closing my eyes.

I will never understand how this woman can be so strong. Even now, she was crying herself to sleep because her body was rejecting anything she takes in. She was most likely starving, yet she smiles at me as if this was simply a common cold.

My determination to make her feel better flew through the roof as I looked at her shivering form. I quickly grabbed my phone and called her doctor, praying for some answers. When I realized my prayers were not heard, I couldn't help but crush my phone in my hands.

The doctor only said that this was normal. I could tell from her tone of voice that she believed me to be exaggerating which was infuriating. In that moment, I seriously wanted to find someone else to birth my pup. My mate was so sick, she couldn't move, yet this doctor believed it was all in my head.

"I called Pops." InuYasha informed as he walked back into the room. He glanced at my phone before smirking. "I take it the doc wasn't much help."

"No. Apparently my fatherly fears are making this seem worse than it is. What did Father say? Where is Kikyou?" I asked, hoping there was someone who could help.

"He said when he gets off work, he will pick up Ma and come over. Kikyou is making something for Kagome to eat. It was about the only thing she could keep down when she was pregnant with Sakura." He answered, making my shoulders sag.

"What am I supposed to do? I just want to help her, yet I cannot." I growled almost pitifully as I looked towards my helpless mate.

"Right now, just support her." Kikyou said, coming into the room with a tray. She walked past InuYasha and myself, setting the tray down on the nightstand. I looked at the bland looking substance in the bowl and felt like vomiting myself.

"I hate that stuff." InuYasha mumbled, getting a glare from his mate.

"It is disgusting, but it goes down easy. It has a lot of nutrients and it doesn't take much to fill you up." She snapped. I could tell she was worried about the woman she was so close to, and her worry just made mine spike.

"Sit her up, please. I know she just fell asleep, but she needs to eat. If she doesn't, she will begin to lose weight. She's already so skinny as it is that it won't be healthy for her or the pup." Kikyou informed, making me inwardly grown.

I gently shook Kagome, waiting until she let out a small groan and opened her eyes. I explained to her that she needed to try and eat, and all I received was a small nod. I helped her into a sitting position and watched as Kikyou began to spoon-feed Kagome.

It wasn't long before Kikyou decided she had eaten enough. I helped Kagome lay back down and, ignoring the others in the room, I laid behind her, rumbling in my chest. I was trying to do what Kikyou said and give her the support she needed.

We all sat in the room in silence, hoping, waiting, to see how she was able to hold down the food that Kikyou prepared. We didn't have to wait long before we were disappointed. Within forty minutes, she was once again emptying her stomach.

"This isn't good." Kikyou said, changing out the bag in the trashcan. Kagome was once again laying on the bed, curled into my chest.

"No shit." InuYasha snapped, his own worry easy to see. "I'm going to call Kaede to see if she can keep all three children tonight. Shippo and Rin don't need to see this, and I have a feeling we are all going to be too busy to take care of Sakura right now."

I just simply nodded as he left the room. InuYasha was her best friend so I knew he was just as frightened as I was. It probably hurt him, just as it hurt me, to see her in such a fragile state. I felt just as miserable as she probably did because I couldn't help her in any way. What kind of mate was I if I couldn't even help her when she needed me?

"She'll be okay, Sesshomaru." Kikyou comforted, even though it didn't help.

"I have never seen her look so helpless, except..." I trailed off, flashes of my dead mate in my arms flying through my mind.

"That won't happen again." Kikyou declared, her hands tightening up into fists. "Kagome would never let anything happen to her pup which means she won't let anything happen to herself."

"I called Kaede. She agreed, but she also told me something kinda…shitty." InuYasha interrupted, his hand on the back of his neck. I could smell his distress and I knew I wasn't going to like what he had to say.

"Spit it out!" I barked, my arms instinctively squeezing around the sleeping Kagome.

"Well, she made a good point, although I hope she is wrong…" He started. It was easy to tell it was going to be difficult for him to say. "Youki and reiki have always been opposing forces. Nobody has heard of the two coming together to create a life. It could be…"

"Don't say it!" Kikyou burst out, tears running down her face.

"Explain." I ordered, even though I could feel my heart breaking. I already knew where he was going with this, but I needed to hear him say it.

"It could be that your youki and her reiki are fighting each other inside of the pup. Kaede says if either side wins…the pup…it won't…I'm sorry." He trailed off, covering his face as he walked out of the room.

I was frozen. When I had wanted to pup her, I never took into account the fact that we were technically enemies because of our birth. Our energies despised each other. What did that mean for a pup created by those two energies? Could it even be possible? Could we lose another pup, just to learn that we could never have them?

I could hear Kikyou crying as she ran out of the room. I looked down at my sleeping mate and placed my forehead to hers. I closed my eyes and pressed my fangs together in a silent snarl. Why could we never catch a break? All we wanted was to be happy. We wanted to have a family, raise our pups, and see them have their own families. Once again, that was being taken from us.

Three hours is how long I stayed like that. The only time I released her was when she had to regurgitate. She was now once again curled into my chest, sleeping. She looked so pale and weak that I wanted to howl out my sorrow and frustrations.

When I heard a small knock on my door, I turned to see Father standing in the doorway. He motioned for me to follow him. I looked down at Kagome for a second before doing as he asked. When I was in the hallway, he turned around and hugged me so tightly, I knew InuYasha had told him. At his embrace, I felt any control I had snap.

I wrapped my own arms around him and cried. I was ashamed of myself for letting out any emotion like this. I hated that it was being seen by my father. I hated that I even needed to feel this way. Kagome and I should be able to have as many pups as we wanted, but instead, we may lose another one.

After a few moments, I pulled away from him and looked in a different direction. I quickly wiped my face, hiding that I had ever showed any weakness. I watched as he did the same thing before turning and making his way downstairs. I could feel the entire pack in the living room, minus Kouga and Ayame who were in a different country, and I knew we were going to have a family meeting. Reluctantly, I followed him.

I didn't look at anybody as I sat down in a chair. I could feel their eyes on me, and it just angered me. I didn't want anybody's pity. I just wanted my pup. I wanted it to be born safe and healthy, but it appears I wouldn't get that.

"Have you told her?" Sango asked, leaned over on the couch. She had her elbows on her knees and she looked just as upset as the rest of us.

"No. How can I tell her she may lose another pup? Naraku killed our first two. Now our energies are taking the third. If this is indeed the case, it means we can never have pups. How can I tell her that?" I asked, closing my eyes as I looked away.

"She has a right to know. I know you don't want to hear it, but she should be warned before…" Izayoi started, but trailed off as a look of sadness overcame her. Father put a hand on her shoulder in reassurance.

"It doesn't make sense." Miroku interrupted, looking thoughtful.

"How does it not make sense? Don't get me wrong, I wish it didn't, but it does." InuYasha argued.

"The fighting energies makes perfect sense, for a miko who does not have the control that Kagome does." Miroku started. "Plus the timing is off."

"Explain." I demanded, looking for any form of hope I could grasp on to.

"Well, first things first. When you got her pregnant, you didn't know. You should have smelled it at least the next day, right?" He asked.

"Normally, yes, but because my beast took over, I knotted with her. It was not a claiming tie." I admitted.

"Which means you tied with the intentions of getting her pregnant. The only way your beast would have released her was if you smelled your seed take hold or if you grew tired." Father finished before looking thoughtful again. "Obviously your beast assumed that she didn't conceive and gave up because she was able to surprise you with it."

"Because she hid her scent. One thing I had wondered was why you weren't suspicious." Izayoi butted in. "If she hid her scent, you wouldn't have smelled her at all."

"I did smell her. I noticed her fertility was late, but I assumed it was because of stress. But I was able to smell her like normal." I argued.

"Which means she blocked only certain scents." Miroku stated, making all of us look at him. "Do you realize how much concentration that takes? Even I cannot block my scent and hold it for more than an hour. She, on the other hand, was able to filter her scent. She was able to decide what you could and could not smell."

"Not to mention she was able to keep that going for a few days. She told me she waited until the height of her ovulation to make sure there was no reason why it wouldn't take." Izayoi added.

"So let me get this straight. Kagome is strong enough to not only filter her scent, but to hold up the barrier for days at a time, even while sleeping?" Miroku asked. At our silence, he continued. "How is it that, all of a sudden, she cannot tame the reiki in her child?"

"Because it is not her reiki?" Sango questioned.

"It doesn't matter. The reiki is inside of her. At the moment, it is essentially a part of her." Miroku argued, shaking his head as he thought.

"Kaede said if either side wins, the pup will die." InuYasha interrupted, making me flinch. That was the first time anybody had said the actual word.

"True, but if Kagome can push back the reiki enough so that the youki doesn't feel threatened, the fighting should stop." Miroku explained, making my eyes go wide.

"Then we need to tell her! She may be able to save our pup!" I exclaimed, leaning forward in the chair.

"I believe she already is." Miroku stated, making me tense. "At the moment of conception, she would have felt the rise of her reiki. That is why I said the timing is off."

"In other words," Kikyou started. "Why has this waited almost two months to happen? Kagome would never allow anything to happen to her child so she most likely knew and just didn't tell anybody."

"That also means, even now, she is holding off the pup's reiki." Father added. "She would use up all of her energy before she gave up."

"So then why is this happening?" I asked, my shoulders slumping again as I put my face in my hands. "What is happening to my mate?"

"Am I interrupting something?" A new voice asked, causing all of us to look up. I let out an annoyed growl at the sight of my mother. This was the last thing I needed at the moment.

"Satori, this is not the time." Father growled, his own anger evident. His eyes glanced in my direction to gauge my reaction.

"Kagome told me to meet her here. I had not realized she planned on me meeting everyone." Satori said, looking over the crowd.

"I forgot that was today." I snarled.

"Oi, Wench, I don't know who you are, but you have been told to leave. We don't need any trouble right now." InuYasha said, walking up to my mother. She reached out a hand and grabbed his chin, receiving a growl from every inu in the room.

"You are Kenta's pup." She said, looking him over before releasing him.

"What of it?" InuYasha asked, crossing his arms.

"I can only imagine how horrible your mate's pregnancy was, Kenta. You must not love her to put her through such a thing." Satori replied, looking at Father. Instantly, my brain began tumbling over her words.

"Actually, my pregnancy wasn't that bad." Izayoi answered. I stood up and pushed InuYasha out of the way so that I could stand in front of my mother.

"What do you mean by 'horrible pregnancy'?" I asked, trying to hide my shaking hands.

"Why do you think many yokai do not mate humans? A hanyou pregnancy is hard on the mother." She stated with a wave of her hand.

"Explain!" I snapped.

"Calm yourself, Pup. The more youki the child possess, the more it requires from its host. Depending on the strength of the sire, it could be disastrous. Your father is a daiyokai. His youki is strong which is why I am a little surprised that the human mate did not have a difficult pregnancy." She answered, her eyes trailing to Izayoi at the end of her sentence.

"My youki could be doing this to her?" I asked, more to myself than to her.

"I see Kagome is having a rough time." Satori said with a sigh. "It saddens me to hear. The girl was growing on me. She was feisty."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" InuYasha bellowed, his hands clenching into fists.

"It means she may die." She answered, making just about everyone gasp. "A human's body is not designed to hold that much power. It is why many hanyous do not live till birth. Did you not know this? Kenta, you should have at least known this."

"The only pregnancies I was a part of were Izayoi's and Kikyou's. Izayoi never had this problem and Sakura has hardly any demon in her." Father replied through clenched teeth. I fell back into a chair, suddenly not able to hold myself up. My mate was going to die.

"But that is wrong, too. We just talked about this. Kagome holds just as much power in her body as Sesshomaru." Miroku stated. "She should be the one person who can have a hanyou with no problem. We have already discussed how strong her reiki is."

"She is a miko?" Satori asked, looking legitimately surprised. "The monk may be right. She is almost two months pregnant…I believe a week away. If she did not have immense strength and control, the reiki and youki present would clash almost immediately."

"So then what the fuck is wrong with my mate!?" I snarled, losing my control. I pushed off of the chair and began pacing around the floor, trying to think of anything that could be wrong.

"Sesshomaru?" A soft, weak voice called. I looked up to see Kagome standing in the hallway, her frail arm resting on the wall in an attempt to hold her up.

"What are you doing?" I exclaimed, flash-stepping to her side. The moment she was in my arms, she leaned against me.

"I'm hungry." She whispered.

"Of course you're hungry. You haven't been able to eat today." Kikyou soothed, walking over to us.

"You don't understand. I feel like I haven't eaten in days. I'm so hungry, it hurts." She whimpered, placing a hand on her stomach.

"That's the problem!" Satori hummed, a look of relief flashing in her eyes. Why does it seem as if she cares for my mate?

"Explain." Father demanded, not taking his eyes off of Kagome.

"Sesshomaru, set her down on the couch. I can show you how to help her." Mother informed, ignoring Father. When I growled at her, she rolled her eyes. "I do not want the girl to die. As I said, she is feisty, and that is intriguing. Trust me, Pup."

"If she ever wants to get on your good side, she won't hurt Kagome." Father agreed, looking just as tense as I did. I knew his words were also meant as a warning for Satori. She just waved her hand and made her way to the couch before looking at me.

I looked down at Kagome who nodded at me. Reluctantly, I picked her up gently and placed her on the couch. I kneeled down beside her and held her hand in mine. Satori also crouched beside her before gently lifting up Kagome's shirt.

"I am surprised, Little Human. You are showing quite quickly. Even if you were a yokai, you would not show this much. Are you by any chance having twins or more?" Satori asked, running her hand over Kagome's slightly swollen stomach.

"No, the doctor has checked. She just assumes the pup will be large like its father." Kagome answered weakly. Satori gave a small nod before a green glow began to grow under her hand. I instantly growled in warning.

"Shush, Pup." She reprimanded, making me growl again. "Does that feel better?"

"Actually, yeah." Kagome confessed, looking confused. "I don't feel as sick, nor as hungry."

"Explain?" I asked, my voice much gentler. I was just happy to see some color returning to Kagome's face.

"Since you are being so nice." Satori teased, still running her glowing hand over Kagome's stomach. "First, give me your hand, Sesshomaru." I hesitated but did as she asked. She pulled my hand next to her glowing one, and I instantly realized the green glow was her youki. "Now, concentrate. You need to summon your youki, but just the energy portion of it. I know, being a male, you normally would never do something this gentle, but I will not always be here to do this. Keep in mind, if you do this incorrectly, you will hurt your mate."

I looked at her for a second before nodding. I could do this if it meant I would help Kagome. I summoned my youki into my hand but, using Kagome's idea, applied a small filter. None of my harmful and harsh youki could pass through, leaving only the energy portion of it. Instantly, my hand glowed a bright green and Mother smiled.

"You are a quick learner. Now, place you hand to her stomach." She ordered softly. Without hesitation, I did so and couldn't stop my eyes from widening. It was as if something was pulling my youki into Kagome's abdomen.

"What is this?" I asked as Mother pulled her hand away from Kagome. I noticed that the pull was slowing down until it came to a complete stop.

"You may remove you hand, Sesshomaru. The pup is full." Satori said, once again ignoring a question.

"I get it." Father said, smiling. I looked to Kagome who looked immensely better.

"Well, I don't, and neither does the father of the pup, so someone explain it." InuYasha snapped.

"When a female yokai is pregnant, she feeds her pup in more ways than one. She takes in her nutrients from the foods she ingests, which is all humans would normally need to do." Satori started, standing back up. "However, a yokai pup also feeds off of youki. It is what is used to make it strong."

"I have no youki to give which is why I was so hungry all of the time. I wasn't able to feed my pup like I needed to." Kagome whispered, understanding what Mother was saying.

"Indeed, Child. You grew as sick as you were today because of how hungry your pup was." Satori agreed.

"So I just need to give Kagome my youki, just like you did, and she and the pup will be fine?" I asked, feeling as if a giant weight had been lifted from my shoulders.

"Correct. Every two to three days, you will need to repeat what I just taught you."

"What about InuYasha? I never had to do that with Izayoi." Father asked, making me worry again.

"InuYasha was not strong." Mother started, receiving a glare from said hanyou. "Do not give me that look, Boy. You carry the blood of the great Inu no Taisho. You are strong just from that, but you were not strong enough to handle any more youki which meant you did not need to take any from Kenta."

"What does that mean for my pup?" I asked, squeezing Kagome's hand as she began to sit up.

"It means the pup is going to have a strength never before heard of. The pup will be a mixture of two evils, combined into one. Its power will surpass even yours, Sesshomaru." Mother answered, making me look at Kagome who was worried

"You two can handle anything so wipe those worried looks off of your faces." Father said, taking a step towards Kagome and placing a hand on the side of her face. "You had me worried, Little Daughter. Do not scare us again."

"I'm sorry, Daddy." Kagome apologized as Father pulled away.

"Your pup's powers will not reach full potential until it reaches maturity. You will have time to train it to control its reiki and youki." Satori added and I was able to finally relax completely.

"My dear Kagome, I must know. Did you know about the fight between the two energies?" Miroku asked. I looked towards my mate, also curious. I knew the answer just by the way she lowered her head, refusing to look at anyone.

"Please don't be mad. I didn't want to worry anyone. It's easy to control, and it won't be a problem." She whispered, her hands twisting together. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her into my chest.

"Kagome, do not keep these secrets from me. I do not care if it is something you believe does not matter. I want to know. No more secrets." I stated, growling my approval when she nodded her head before nuzzling into my neck.

"At least the girl knows inu instincts. I will return to you at a later date, Little Human. I believe we still have some things to discuss. Try not to die before then. I would not be happy." Satori stated with a wave of her hand before leaving the room, and then eventually the house.

"I do believe she likes you Kagome." Father said, his high amount of shock evident on his face.

"I guess if anyone can break through to her, it would be our daughter." Izayoi laughed, making the others chuckle as well.

"Guys." Kagome interrupted before sitting up to look at everyone. "I really want tacos."

"I'll go buy the whole fucking store!" InuYasha yelled, running out of the house. Kagome busted out laughing, the sound of it washing away any stress and tension still in the room.

"I love you, Mate." I whispered with a large smile on my face.

"And I love you." She replied just as I pushed my lips onto hers. This woman would always hold my heart.

-sSs-

So I know my teaser said something about Kagome showing Satori something. That will happen, just not in this chapter or Chapter 6. This chapter ended up way too long so I broke it down into two. Chapter 7 will be about Satori and Kagome. Please don't hate me. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, please review.

Teaser: Chapter 6: Guilty: Why does Sesshomaru feel so guilty? How can Kagome help him? Continue reading to find out.

I do not own InuYasha.