The girls, Kikyo included, decided to stay in the same room upon arriving at the Tashio fortress. Of course, they were not surprised that the place seemed almost deserted. It was clean, and the grounds, though lush with green and plants, were oddly well taken care of. It was clear that Sesshomaru did not settle here often.
Kikyo explained that it wasn't uncommon until the rightful Lord accepted his position. Clearly, the early demise of his father thought off his rite of passage to take it over, though no one dared treat him as anything less than that of the Lord of the West.
He would take his place in time.
Sango had a sneaky suspicion that when and if Kagome was pregnant, he would.
"I wonder how long we will have to wait," Sango closed the sliding door.
"I am unsure, as I have no record of a human miko and demon mating," Kikyo pushed open a wooded window; it gave way to an inner garden. It may have looked overgrown and forgotten, but there were clear signs that it was meant to look that way.
Meanwhile, Kagome was trying to recall her last trip home; she always went home the first two days of her period, like clockwork, but no matter how hard she tried to count it in her head, she could not come up with the answer because it wasn't something she was worried about at the time.
"Do you think pregnancies are the same?" Sango asked,
"Demons are different in their times; I do believe Inuyasha went over,"
"Nine months?" Kagome asked,
Kikyo raised an eyebrow,
"Humans tend to carry for nine months,"
Kikyo counted in her head using the knowledge of days and time. "Inuyasha took ten,"
Kagome's mouth dropped open.
"His mother was strong in her own right, but human demon pregnancies are not easy; you will gain a lot of weight," Kikyo wasn't trying to be ugly.
Kagome blushed. "Can we please stop talking about this," She almost begged.
"It is better to be prepared, is it not?" Kikyo asked, "You must take responsibility,"
Kagome cut her eyes to Kikyo.
"You have no plan," Kikyo added. "If you are, what is your plan?"
Kagome didnt really have a plan; none of this was planned! "It's hard to plan something unplanned," She said quietly,
"I am surprised he broke control," Kikyo looked back at them. "More surprised that you two would couple in the first place,"
Kagome groaned. "It just happened you wouldn't understand,"
"Would I not?" Kikyo responded,
"Inuyasha and Sesshomaru are different," Kagome said slowly,
"Yes and no, just as we are the same and yet different,"
Kagome took her turn at the window,
"All this because his brother challenged him," Kagome whispered, hurt in her voice.
"That may be Miko, but do you really think someone like Sesshomaru would just lay with anyone due to a challenge? He isn't weak,"
Kagome looks at her. "You are on his side?"
"I am saying that you piqued his interest long before any of this happened,"
"He said he wanted to know,"
"And chose you,"
"Who else was he gonna choose!"
"He trusted you, confided in you, chose you, do you not understand?" Kikyo tilted her head, "It didnt just happen; he just happened to find the opportunity for it to happen,"
"Smooth," Kagome said, looking away again,
Sango snorted, making both women look at her."I mean, for Sesshomaru, it was kinda smooth,"
This made Kagome blush.
"The guy isn't exactly romantic," Sango added,
"Neither is his brother," Kikyo said,
"Miroku is in his own weird way,"
"In their own weird way," Kikyo added. Sango and Kikyo looked at Kagome.
"What?"
"He likes you," Kikyo said
"He is trying," Sango added,
"In his own weird demonic way," Kikyo offered,
"He, likes me?" Kagome raised an eyebrow,
"Clearly," Both women said together,
Kikyo smirked. "It clearly wasn't a one-night stand,"
Kagome's cheeks turned red again, and she just got the last blush to calm down.
"Why are you fighting this?" Kikyo asked. "You clearly want him and have him,"
Kagome swore she was going to get a nosebleed,
"Be honest, Miko,"
"We were enemies, he tried to kill me,"
"And now you are lovers, and he wants to bite you," Kikyo was pushing; it was clear,
Kagome turned from them and covered her mouth. "Inuyasha-
"Was never the one your string was tied to; he was just in the way," Kikyo said softly. "I can feel my bond with him; do you not feel yours with Lord Sesshomaru,"
She could not deny there was something there, something that wanted to be next to him, near him, with him, and the thought of it made her tummy tickle, but how could she be sure it was just another lie, her heart being stupid? She was young and apparently naive.
Kikyo came close. "He isn't wrong; let him guide you; remember they mate for life, and do not take this lightly; they have far deeper senses than we do. Trust me when I say he did not choose you on a whim; perhaps it took bonding with you for him to really understand it, but it was not made in foolishness; he is no fool."
Kagome listened,
"You are everything he fought against, his father's mate, his brother's mate, both human; he has spent a lifetime denying them, refusing to become them, hating them, calling it a weakness, and yet in one night, he threw all that away to be with you, do you not understand he is giving up everything he stood against to be with you? Do you not see that he is also struggling, especially when you deny him?"
Kagome had not even thought about it that way.
"In his own mind, he gave in to weakness, accepted it, claimed it., you are not the only one struggling,"
Kikyo walked around. "I admit, at first, with Inuyasha, I was the same, but he never failed but our resistance, our nervousness, our lack of trust in it ultimately was our undoing, trust him Kagome, because if there is any doubt, any cracks, anyone wanting to do harm will do so, he wants to protect you, let him," KIkyo walked to the door.
"Besides, who said he had to be the one to ask?" She smirked, opened the door, and walked out.
Kagome's jaw dropped. "I'm not asking him to marry me!" She could never!
Sango smirked. "Just ask him to be your baby daddy,"
"SAngo!" Kagome yelled but smiled,
Clearly, Sango was turning into her lover, and clearly, it was time for Kagome to have another talk with hers.