The first thing Kagome comprehended was the feeling of her, of what made her who she was, come back into her body. Then she had her body reminding her that she had to breathe to survive so she started gulping in as much air as she could as fast as she could. Once the fear of dying left her she had more time to notice other things, for example, she felt comfortable and safe. Which she idly thought was strange considering some part of her knew she just avoided death.

She finally got the strength to open her eyes and all she could see was the most beautiful face she'd ever seen looking down at her worriedly, she realized she was lying on the ground but wrapped in his arms and something very fluffy and comfortable was cushioning her. A second later she was able to comprehend that it was Sesshomaru and he was saying something to her but she couldn't really make out what. He must have been able to read the confusion on her face because he stopped talking and instead pulled her close. She felt herself relax as his growls soothed her. She absently thought about how insane it was that the growls of a vicious predator were able to bring her comfort, but they did, so she didn't worry too much about that. Plus, she knew that Sesshomaru would never hurt her, in fact, she was pretty sure that he'd do everything in his power to keep her safe.

That's when she remembered what was happening before she lost consciousness. That demon sorceress was trying to take her soul so that Kikyo could live again, she remembered feeling it being torn from her piece by piece, she remembered realizing she wasn't going to win the fight, and she remembered thinking she should give up so she could finally rest. Did she give up? She couldn't remember that much. She supposed it didn't matter, she was here now, safe.

Sesshomaru pulled back just enough so that he could look her in the eye, their noses were almost touching, "Kagome?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you alright?"

"Mhmm, at least, I think so. I'm still not sure what happened." Kagome paused to try to sit up and look around but Sesshomaru held her in place, "Is everyone else okay?"

Sesshomaru wasn't able to hold back the scoff, she was the one who went through something traumatic and still, she was more worried about others. "Everyone is well, now rest."

"What happened?"

"I killed them both."

Kagome couldn't stop a gasp at his words, she understood who he was but it was still a lot to handle for her. She was never one to use violence if there was any way around it and she knew Sesshomaru was definitely not the same in that regard. She wanted to get mad at him, wanted to tell him not to hurt other people because of her but she thought that might be useless, she had a feeling that Sesshomaru was the type of being to do whatever he had to, to keep the people he cares about safe. She decided to think about that more later, everyone was safe and so was she, so she'll be grateful for now and think about all the other stuff later.

That was when Kagome realized that not everyone was okay, at least not everyone that Inuyasha cared about. Sesshomaru said he killed them both, so that must mean Kikyo was dead too. She knew that she's been gone for a long time already but she had a feeling that wasn't all so clear for Inuyasha. She went to sit up again and this time Sesshomaru didn't try to stop her. She looked around and saw Kaede was standing near a pile of broken clay that she realized must have been Kikyo. She looked around to find Inuyasha but he was nowhere to be found. She felt a pang of pain and sympathy, what must he have been going through right now? She wanted to find him and see how she could help but knew him well enough by now to know that he needed some time for himself.

Shippo, Rin, Jaken, and Ah-uh landed in the field they were all in and the children ran over to where Sesshomaru and Kagome were and jumped on Kagome, "Kagome are you okay? We were so worried!" Shippo yelled.

"Oof, hey guys, don't worry, I'm fine, Sesshomaru saved me."

"Rin knew Sesshomaru-sama would help!" She leaned down to hug Kagome too.

Kagome smiled softly and wrapped her arms around the children, they always made her feel better. Still, though, she couldn't get Inuyasha off her mind, she felt terrible and she wished there was a way she could help him but what could you do to help someone who just lost the woman they loved for a second time?

It didn't take long for everyone who was still in the field to head back to the older Miko's village. By the time they made it there, the sun had set and it was time for the children to get to bed, Kagome was so worn out she followed into the land of dreams not far behind them, While Sesshomaru sat against a tree and sat vidual over his pack.

They didn't see Inuyasha again for a while, almost a full fortnight. And when he came back Kagome couldn't help but think he was only a shadow of himself, he was dirty, tired, and he lost some of the sparkle he had in his eye. It was clear he didn't want to talk though so she didn't push him. It was not like they stayed still when they were away from him, they traveled far and won a few shards in the meantime.

Kagome was working hard not to be worried about Inuyasha, when he finally returned to the group he didn't say anything, he just landed from his most recent jump into step with them and kept walking. He's been different since then, Kagome could never think of Inuyasha as the silent, overthinking type but that's how he's been acting. She promised herself not to let herself worry about him too much and get too wrapped up in his feelings, first, he didn't seem like the type to appreciate that, and second, she didn't want to give Sesshomaru any reason to get upset. He'd never admit it but she could tell that something about her interactions with Inuyasha made him uncomfortable and even angry. She wasn't sure if it was because of their relationship or something to do with the demon and inu in him. Heck, for all she knew, he'd react the same way with any male she seemed close to, they hadn't been around other males other than Shippo, Souta, and her grandfather long enough for her to know for sure.

It seemed Kagome wasn't the only one who noticed and was worried about how Inuyasha was doing because as they were sitting for a break and Inuyasha was standing far off from them looking at the distance, Shippo jumped on her shoulder. "Look at him, I've never seen him act this way before."

"No, neither have I," Kagome replied.

Apparently, Inuyasha's withdrawal was too much for Shippo to take because he jumped off of Kagome over to Inuyasha with his arm raised back, when he made it to the half-demon he slapped him as hard as he could on the back of his head. "Take that!"

Kagome could tell that the hit barely hurt Inuyasha but he was pissed all the same, "Bad move!" He grabbed Shippo who was already back in Kagome's arms and bonked him on the head.

That didn't stop Shippo though, "What's the matter with you? We're supposed to be looking for the jewel shards! You're slowing us down, snap out of it!"

"Get off my back, even a guy like me needs some time to think every once in a while."

"Yeah, that's what's worrying me."

"Worry about this!" Inuyasha pulled back his hand to hit Shippo again but apparently, that was the line for Sesshomaru, he sped over to them with speed only a tai-yokai could have and grabbed Inuyasha's wrist as it was swinging down on Shippo.

Inuyasha looked at Sesshomaru, then his wrist being held, then back at Sesshomaru again, "You will not hit the kit again." Sesshomaru said in a deathly calm voice.

"He started it!" It was clear that Inuyasha's calm from earlier was gone, he was yelling brashly now. "He started it!"

Kagome couldn't hold back the scoff, what was he five?

"He's a pup, your job is to teach him, not punish him or let him get to you. What am I saying, you're nothing but a pup yourself, I was foolish to think otherwise." The disdain was clear in his tone as he let go of Inuyasha's wrist. Inuyasha's ears flattened at the reprimand but didn't let himself feel bad long, getting angry was much easier. "Yeah? What do you know? It's not like you were there to help me grow and learn."

Sesshomaru paused in his strides away from Inuyasha for a moment before picking back up as if he didn't hear what was said to him. He wasn't going to waste his time by explaining the truth of things to the welp when he wouldn't be believed anyway.

Kagome knew bits and pieces of the truth of their past from both brothers so she felt bad when they fought over it She didn't know why Sesshomaru didn't just tell Inuyasha the truth of his childhood but something inside her, probably the still incomplete soul bond that was pulling them together, made it clear which brother she had to support in this situation. She gave Inuyasha a harsh look before stomping away from him and towards Sesshomaru. She had to hold back a giggle when she saw out of the corner of her eye that Shippo, who was on her shoulder again, was mirroring her look while staying at Inuyasha.

"Is everything okay?" She asked once she got close enough to Sesshomaru.

"All is well, dear one, fear not."

She breathed a sigh of relief, she didn't like the thought of him getting hurt because of his brother, especially because Inuyasha didn't know the truth of what happened back then. She knew Sesshomaru wasn't as made of stone as he wanted everyone to believe. She learned that a long time ago when they first started their strange form of dating, there was no way someone so passionate could be emotionless. Even when passion wasn't involved and when his face was as blank as stone, she could see the emotion and fire behind his eyes, no matter how hard he tried to pretend it wasn't there.

"Good, you can't take what he says too seriously, especially with what he's going through now, he just lost the woman he loved."

"She's been dead for over half a century."

"He was asleep for most of that."

"Yes, though that fact changes nothing."

"What do you mean? It changes everything, his grief is still new and he just had her waved in front of his face only to have her be ripped away again, by his brother no less. It ripped off the scab of his grief that was just barely healing."

He growled and when he turned around his eyes were red, "You think I do not know that? Do you think I want him to be in that pain? It was you or her, there wasn't even a choice in my eyes."

Kagome gasped at the intensity in his voice and eyes, she remembered Shippo was on her shoulders when he gasped too. He cleared his throat, "Uh, I'm going back to play with Rin and Ah-Un."

They both ignored him, well as much as you could ignore a child who was under your care, Kagome nodded but didn't take her eyes off of Sesshomaru. Kagome took a few steps closer to him, "Sesshomaru…"

"Kagome I…" He trailed off when she jumped into his arms and kissed him with all the intensity and emotion she could manage.

She felt her body heat up in passion and love. She felt a jolt at that realization, she loved him. She always read stories of the righteous kind knight in shining armor ready and willing to do whatever it took to save the fair maiden. Sesshomaru might not be all those things, kind wasn't the first word she would choose for him but he was always kind to her. And the only person that'd describe Sesshomaru as righteous is Sesshomaru himself, but he was her knight, and he'd do whatever he had to, to make sure she stayed safe. He wasn't one to wear his emotions on his sleeve, in fact, she'd go as far as to say that he did everything he could to push those pesky emotions down, hoping to drown them out completely but when they were alone he let who he really was come out and she loved him. It was kind of freeing when she finally admitted that fact to herself.

When they broke the kiss, they stared into each other's eyes and Kagome could see everything he couldn't say out loud in them. "I love you."

Oops, she didn't mean to say that to him, not yet anyway. She saw something change behind his eyes that made her wish she could take it back. She felt like he hid himself behind a brick wall that she didn't know if she'd be able to break. She knew she had to say something and fast because even though he didn't seem the type, she thought she might have actually scared him. "You don't have to say anything back, I know you don't feel the same way. This all has happened so fast, and our being together has less to do with choice and more to do with fate. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to overwhelm you, like I said, you don't have to say anything. Heck, I didn't even mean to say anything, it just slipped out."

Sesshomaru stared at her so long she couldn't help but fidget. He didn't want to upset his miko, he just didn't know what to say to help her. He didn't know what love was and didn't know if he ever would. Yokai never cared about such things. In matings the only important things were social standings, what one could do for another, attraction, and if you could stand to be around the other for a long amount of time. Over time fondness and maybe even affection could grow, he saw but it was nowhere near a necessity. For Sesshomaru, the attraction was there, obviously but it was more than that. The fondness and affection were there too, and of course the possessiveness. Did all that equal love though? He didn't know and wasn't sure how he'd find out. He didn't want to hurt his little mate to be so when he realized she was moving to pull away he held on tightly.

This was the first time in a long time he had trouble choosing his words and maybe the first time ever he wasn't sure what he was even trying to say."Kagome, I…I care for you, more than I care for any other, I do not know if that is love, I know not what love is. Other than an emotion that more times than not brings pain to the one that feels it, and often those that do not. I know I crave you, I think about you consistently when we are apart, and I always think of ways to make you smile, your smile enchants me and sometimes I feel as if as long as I see that smile on your face, all will be well. I—"

He was cut off again by her lips ferociously attacking his own and he wasted no time in pulling her even closer. He grabbed her up by her waist and she eagerly joined in by wrapping her legs around him. She gasped into his mouth when she felt his hardness pushing against her center. She knew he did not know much about love but to her anyway, what he described sounded a lot like it.

She followed her instincts and used her legs to lift up and down, it gave her the friction she was aching for. She had the absent thought to be thankful for how much Sesshomaru pushed her during her training sessions because she didn't think she'd have the leg strength to keep up doing that otherwise.

The growl from Sesshomaru's throat sent goosebumps up and down her whole body. "Sesshomaru, I—I'm ready."

His eyes darkened in lust, and yes she was ready for that too but that wasn't what she was talking about. She knew she was moving fast but the only thing that was holding her back from finishing this whole bonding thing was she wanted to be sure that they could love each other and be happy together, now that she was, she didn't see the point in waiting.

"No, not that, well, yes that, but I was talking about the soul bond."

Sesshomaru's hands that were exploring under her shirt froze for a few moments before continuing their ministrations. Before he was giving her all his attention but at her words he looked off into the sky, thinking things over, considering if he too was ready to claim her. Kagome was starting to get nervous, thinking she said something she shouldn't have. That was, until his thumb flicked over her nipple and she moaned at the sensation, she was so sensitized right now, that she decided to give as good as she got. So while he was looking off thinking, she leaned in and attached her mouth to his neck, nipping and sucking how she learned Sesshomaru liked. She guessed it did the trick because with a groan he was back in the moment with her.

He turned her around so that she was sandwiched between her and a tree before moving his hand down from her breasts and slipping underneath her panties. He skimmed her slit barely penetrating it, teasing her while he mouthed her breasts through her shirt. It was so stimulating but at the same time nowhere near enough for her. She let out a whine of displeasure and his response of a husky chuckle did nothing to make her feel better. He pulled another whine out of her when he took his hand out of her underwear completely in order to get a taste of the wetness he gathered by shallowly exploring her.

"Sesshomaru, please…"

His beast beat against his cage at the pure need in her voice but he had no intentions of letting it out. Though she said she was ready he wasn't going to take her the first time by rutting with her up against the tree. His Kagome deserved more than that. Though now that he got her acceptance, it was taking all the willpower he had not to mark her right here, right now. He managed though and instead, after moaning at her taste on his fingers, he slipped back into her underwear and let his thumb circle her clit the way she enjoyed while he entered her with one finger. It didn't take long before she was rocking against his hand using him to get her own pleasure. He enjoyed watching her use him and he shivered when he added another finger, she was so tight he couldn't wait to feel her wrapped around him. He knew he had to prepare her more so slowly he added a third finger. When her face made signs of some discomfort he ran his thumb over her clit hard and fast feeling himself slip in much more smoothly after she became more wet. It wasn't long until he felt her tighten around his fingers and with one more stroke over her clit she came with a moan.

He slowly took his fingers out of her one by one as she came down from her high and when he pulled them out from her underwear he couldn't help but taste her again, he held back a moan of his own at her taste and had to stop himself from laying her on the ground, ripping her panties off, and getting himself the real thing instead of just the remnants left on his hands. Unfortunately, he was able to hear the others, some were wondering where they were and some, Inuyasha, were mouthing off and annoyed that he and Kagome were taking so long.

When she finally came back to herself she looked at him with confusion in her eyes and even some disappointment. Why? He knew he'd made her cum, he wasn't one to leave his woman wanting.

"Uh, aren't we going to…?" She trailed off with a blush on her cheeks.

Oh, now he understood. "No Kagome, not here, not against a tree. I will take you away from the pack the next time we stop by the Miko's village, my line has a place where mating occurs, it would be dishonorable not to do the same with you. You are to be the lady of the west, and should have every honor bestowed on you that title brings."

Her eyes opened wide, she knew he was a lord, and for a while now she was getting used to the idea of mating him, or marrying on her terms. Still, she realized she never put the two realizations together when they tied the knot, or whatever yokai called it, she'd have to take a place in the demon hierarchy. Was she really ready or willing to do that? "Um, what's involved in being a lady?"

"Nothing you should be worried about like I see that you are. I will be there to teach you everything you need to know. There are tedious things involved, I leave most of the day-to-day work with my underlings, I prefer roaming to keep my lands safe."

"Oh, okay." Kagome wasn't sure how she felt about all that but she did know she loved Sesshomaru and had no intentions of changing her mind. She stood up straighter, she knew she was up to the task, she was strong and wouldn't let something like the unknown change her mind.

~~~~

They were traveling down another road, this one was alongside a steep mountain. Sesshomaru was not with the group today, he left early this morning to go back to his Shiro to check and make sure everything was running properly along with checking any new scrolls that had come in. He was waiting for word from the northern lord, as a lord himself, it was customary to let it be known when he was entering another's territories. He'd do it even if he was denied entrance, but he preferred to keep the peace. Especially because he was on good terms with the Northern lord and they had many treaties between the two.

Inuyasha was in the lead while Kagome was walking beside Ah-Un and the children who were riding the dragon. She realized her shoe was untied so she bent down to tie it while the others kept walking, normally it'd be no hardship for her to catch up to them. Today would have been no different if it wasn't for the fact that the next thing she knew she was being lifted by something. She turned her head to see she was being held up in the air by something she couldn't even describe correctly even if she wasn't currently terrified. It was long and yellowish with eyes and a mouth, she was being held by its teeth. She opened her mouth to scream but a hand clamped over her mouth.

"If I move my hand, do you promise not to scream?"

Reluctantly she nodded her head. Just then she heard screams from Inuyasha and the rest of the pack when they realized she was gone. Unfortunately, this creepy blob thing could move fast and they were already a good distance away from her friends. He moved his hand from her mouth to grab onto her shoulder and lifted her up. The problem was, whoever this guy was, he was human so he didn't have super strength. If it wasn't for her climbing up the blob she would have fallen off, probably to her death. She took a few seconds to catch her breath and calm her heart rate from the fear and adrenaline coursing through her. Then she looked at her captor and her eyes opened wide, he was a monk! A man of Buddha, how could he be involved with kidnapping someone?

"Who are you?" She asked angrily. She wasn't sure how her miko powers worked on humans but she was willing to give it a shot if she had to defend herself. Then again, she was really high up in the air so maybe that wasn't such a good idea.

"Fear not, young lady. You have no reason to doubt my intentions I am not but a simple monk, a monk who desired a shard of the sacred jewel and got himself a young woman in the process."

That made Kagome angry, she wasn't a fan of being kidnapped, it had happened a few times already since she'd gotten to the past but it really got her mad that it was always for the jewel shards and never for her. She knew that didn't make sense, it made her sound crazy, even to herself but that didn't make it any less true. "What am I, some kind of consolation prize?"

He didn't answer the question because they were landing. Kagome had to hold in a yelp of surprise when the big blob turned into a yokai that might have been a squirrel… badger? She wasn't sure and she supposed it didn't matter. She jumped away from them and let her reiki build up in her hand, switching her aim back and forth between the monk and the yokai. "Stay away from me! Don't come any closer! You're not taking me anywhere else."

The monk just shrugged, as if that was completely fine with him. It confused Kagome but she decided not to question her good luck. "No problem, my lady. Have a great day." The monk climbed back on when the yokai turned into the yellow thing again. Kagome held in a shiver, that was a creepy-looking blob.

"Kagome!" She heard being yelled from a distance by different people in her group. She ran over to the ledge of the mountain they left her at and saw the group chasing after the monk. They probably thought she was still on there.

"Inuyasha, Shippo, Rin, I'm up here!" She yelled and once she was positive they saw her she stepped back and waited for them to come. While she was waiting she was thinking over what just happened and was wondering why. What was the point of that? Then she remembered he told her what he wanted, he wanted the jewel shards but he never got them from her. She felt her stomach drop when she reached to where they were normally around her neck to find them missing. She didn't know when he took them but he had.

Kagome moaned in annoyance because she wasn't looking forward to all the yelling Inuyasha would do when she told him. His head still thought he'd get the jewel once it was completed even though both she and Sesshomaru told him that it wasn't happening. She sighed, oh well, there was nothing she could do about it now, he was going to find out anyway, might as well be prepared, if he got too annoying she'd just get angry back at him. She'd come to find that was the quickest way to get the attention off of her when it came to Inuyasha.

When Ah-Un landed the kids jumped off him and ran over to Kagome. Rin wrapped her arms around her legs and Shippo scurried up to hug her. "Kagome-sama, Rin is so happy you're okay!"

Kagome had to hold back another sigh, she'd told Rin a thousand times to drop the honorifics with her. "Yeah, 'Gome, we were scared, and you should have seen Inuyasha, he was cursing up a storm and promising your kidnappers a slow painful death if you were hurt at all."

Kagome looked at Inuyasha to see a blush dusting his cheeks, he looked away quickly, "Yeah well."

"You were worried about me?" She asked in almost an astonished voice. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry you."

He jumped and looked at her, "What? I wasn't worried about you, I was worried about the jewel. Plus, the fluffy bastard would kill me if you were hurt. Well, he'd try to anyway."

Kagome laughed awkwardly and put her hand on the back of her neck. "Yeah, well, there's something I got to tell you. He, uh, he might have maybe taken the jewel from me."

"What!?" His yell was so loud Kagome could swear she saw the trees and ground rumble and she saw birds go flying in different directions.

"Don't yell at me. I don't know if you noticed but I was flying hundreds of feet in the air, fighting for my life. How about being happy that I'm okay?"

Inuyasha's ears flattened against his head and Kagome knew he regretted being so harsh with her. "Yeah, alright, Kagome, whatever. Let's just go get this bastard already, we're wasting valuable time."

Kagome sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that day, that's the closest thing she'd ever get to an apology from Inuyasha so she'd take it as a win. She went to jump on Ah-Un but Inuyasha stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. She turned to look at him.

"We're in a rush, hop on my back, we'll go ahead and they'll catch up to us." He didn't wait for a response, in his head it was a directive and Kagome should listen. She wanted to fight just because she didn't like being told what to do but she knew in this situation, he was right.

So she helped Rin back onto the dragon before going to their heads and petting them nicely, "Hey Ah-Un, thank you for coming to my rescue, can you follow us again? I'm going to go with Inuyasha but I'd feel better if you were right behind us, I don't like the group separating."

Both Ah and Un nodded their heads and she smiled brightly at them in thanks. She made a mental note to give them a treat when they stopped for the night. She walked over to Inuyasha and climbed up onto his back, he made sure she was secure before running in the direction they saw the monk and the yokai go.