Behind the Silk Screen

by eien-no-basho

When a twist of fate brings the common-born priestess Kagome to serve Inuyasha, Divine Emperor of Japan, will she be able to help him claim his place on the throne and bring order to their country? Or will court intrigues and their own burgeoning feelings tear the two and their nation apart? A historical romance set in Japan's Heian Era.

38. Of Fire and the Future

All history/context notes can be found at the end of the chapter to avoid minor spoilers. Enjoy!

---

The dim light of the lantern left much in shadow, but there could be no doubt now that she was this close. The man's eyes were such a deep brown that they were nearly black, the perfect compliment to the ink black river of unbound hair that hung past the middle of his back.

But the robes…her gaze narrowed in on the haori she clutched in her fist, the distinctive red of it unmistakable.

And these were Inuyasha's chambers. The Tennō's chambers! There was no reason for him to be here. No reason for anyone save Inuyasha to be here…

Her breathing seemed too loud in her own ears, her thoughts thick and slow like mud as she attempted to wade through them. There was a thought, an inane, impossible thought, hovering just out of reach, but the mud was quickly sucking her down, down where the thought could not reach her.

Releasing his robe, Kagome sat down hard. It was not a conscious decision, simply that her legs refused to support her any longer. Still her eyes never left the man's face, though as her lantern fell with her he was left largely in shadow.

For a brief moment the wild light in his wide eyes told her he might flee. Slowly, ever so slowly, he knelt down before her.

"K-Kagome, I…"

He spoke in Inuyasha's voice. Inuyasha's robes. Inuyasha's chambers.

But this was Toga. Toga, who had been so rude to her. Toga, who had been so kind to her. Toga, in whom she had confided so much. Toga, who had promised to protect her. Toga, who had pleaded with her to stay, speaking strange words and kissing-

No, no, no. She had chosen not to think on that, not to go back there. Toga was her friend, her ally, but she could not return to him because she could not understand him. He was too secretive, too incomprehensible, too close-

Too close, far too close. Blessedly he was not making any move towards her, that same wild, frightened look of an animal caught in a trap in his eyes, but it was still far too close. Kagome scrambled back, some small part of her certain that if she could just get enough space she could think this through clearly.

Several moments passed, though, and nothing became any clearer save the pounding of her pulse in her ears.

"Why?"

She was entirely uncertain what why she was seeking, but it was the first word she could manage.

"I…"

It seemed he was not much better off than her, barely managing to choke out the single syllable before his voice petered out. He swallowed heavily, shaking his head in a helpless gesture.

Abruptly he sat back, his expression crumbling beneath a wash of tears. The sight of it was so sudden and so terribly vulnerable that it felt as if she had been struck.

Instinctively she reached for him, but his hand came up to keep her back even as he swiped his sleeve angrily across his face to hide his expression.

"Go," he bit out. "Just…go. It's so…I've fucked everything up…"

A kind of understanding settled over her like a blanket wrapped too tight, first comforting and then nearly suffocating. Her hands shook even as she reached for him, even as she took his hands in hers and forced them down from his face.

The man who met her gaze was both painfully familiar and terribly foreign to her. Every feature undoubtedly human, unbearably open, and yet still him.

Wordlessly she leaned forward, nearly falling into his lap as she wrapped her arms around him. He tensed, but made no move to pull away.

"I'm here," she said, and felt a shudder go through him. "I'm here."

He sucked in a breath and she felt as he held it, felt that last vain struggle he waged against the feeling before at last the cracks grew too large and the dam burst. He pressed his face against her shoulder, wrapping almost the whole of himself around her so tightly that the sensation bordered on pain.

"I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry. I failed you," he ground out, the words muffled against her shoulder. "I failed her. I swore I'd protect you both and I couldn't even-"

The rest of the words broke off around a wracking sob, his entire body rigid as he bit back the sound of it. Still the dampness on her shoulder told the story clearly enough and she bit her lip against the answering sting of tears that pricked at her eyes. She held him more tightly.

"Let it out," she murmured, cradling his head against her shoulder. "I know it hurts, but you have to let it out, alright? I'm right here with you."

"Kagome. Kagome."

The words were the last that he could manage for some time, even his voice stolen by the force of the feeling that followed. He did not sob openly, did not wail, but merely clutched at her as the tears overwhelmed him. She held him as tightly as she could, occasional hiccuping sobs escaping her as the enormity of the last few weeks caught up with her at last.

Eventually the worst of it subsided, the two lapsing slowly into drained silence. Distantly Kagome felt a thousand thoughts clamoring for her attention, but they were muffled beneath the weight of their combined grief.

"Tell me about her," she murmured, resting her forehead against his shoulder. "Remember her with me."

"Kagome…"

"It's alright," she said softly. "I…I feel like I failed her, too, in so many ways. There are so many things I wish could have been different. But we can't change them, however much we wish it we can't undo what Naraku has done. So we have to find a way to live with it. I think we should remember her, should keep every good memory we have of her alive with us."

He was silent for several long moments and she worried he might pull away, might retreat once more into the depths of his suffering alone.

"She hated me, you know," he said, the words almost startling in the silence. "From the moment the engagement was announced, she fucking despised me. And I hated her for hating me, for looking at me like every other fucking courtier ever had."

"But then she lost them. Lost almost every fucking person she'd ever cared about, had them ripped away from her one by one. She lost her place in the court, her place in the world, and all the sudden she was as much an outsider here as I was. And I-I…"

She felt him shake his head, felt the press of it along her collarbone, as a small, bitter sound escaped him.

"I thought no one deserved that. No one deserved to be that fucking alone. So I promised I'd stick with her if she wanted me to, promised I'd protect , I should've left her alone. If I'd just left her alone-"

"You don't know that it would have been any better that way," Kagome said softly. "You can't know that."

He said nothing to this, merely shaking his head once more.

"She wasn't nice even after that," he said instead. "I could tell maybe she didn't hate me anymore, but she sure as shit didn't trust me. She didn't trust anyone anymore. But she kept on coming around. I learned she was reading every scroll and scrap she could get her hands on about the court's history and laws. Sometimes she'd bring them to me to read, telling me which parts she thought were important."

"And she took over all the social shit, all the events and celebrations that she knew I couldn't stand. They had to see us if we wanted them to respect us, she said, and she could be the face for both of us if I hated it so much. She…she wasn't nice, but she was kind when she wanted to be."

"...she loved you," Kagome rasped, hot tears spilling over once more.

"No," he said lowly. "At least, I never thought so. I always thought Kikyou and I were alike in that. We were both so used to being alone that it was just a relief not to feel that way when we were together. She…she was determined. Driven by this need to bring order back to the court, and us getting married was the way she thought it could be done."

"And I…I admired her for that. She was strong. Whatever the court threw at her, she kept her head up. She defended me, even when I didn't give a shit about being Tennō or anything else. I wanted to protect that, to protect her, but I-"

He paused, and she heard his throat working against the force of the feeling. She bit her lip, the sting of the sensation pale against the confused rush of sympathy and pain sweeping through her.

"I wanted to do right by her. I swore I'd stick by her for as long as she wanted me to," he rasped. "And I did and I would've fucking done it 'til the end, but it wasn't…Then right before the wedding she suddenly told me she loved me and I…I thought if I just tried hard enough…"

He lifted his head, pulling back just enough to meet her eyes.

"But it doesn't work like that, does it?"

The words, barely above a murmur, swept over her with the force of a wave intent on pulling her out to sea. Or perhaps it was the look in his eyes as they met hers, the awful, aching openness in them that she had convinced herself so many times before could not be there.

It was the same way that Toga had looked at her on that last night before she had left the court, pleading with her to stay even as he condemned himself for going to her. The same way he had looked at her when he had kissed her…kami, he had kissed her…

It was more obvious on these features, somehow closer to the surface than it had ever been before, but now that she had truly seen it it echoed across countless other memories. It echoed in his eyes as he fiddled with the nenju, in his lingering gaze as she lay beside him in the darkness of their hut, in the glare he gave her when grumbling about her taking on too much, in the look he had given her when he told her the court wanted her to be Empress. And kami, he had kissed her…

There was a dull roar growing steadily in her head, the rush of her own pulse and a thousand memories all tumbling to the forefront of her mind all at once. She felt at once too hot and too cold, felt rooted to the spot and felt the fierce, twitching desire in all of her limbs to flee. Was she breathing? Has she always had to remind herself to do that?

How many times had she brushed this look off? How many times had she turned away and reminded herself of the utter impossibility of it? How many times had she twisted it around in her mind, forcing it to fit the shape of a world that she could understand?

But here it was before her again, so unguarded and open that she could not look away. And amidst the swirling chaos in her mind, some quiet voice whispered that she had known it. That she had known it and feared it and that she was still so, so afraid.

"You were wrong, you know."

The words were a lifeline, dragging her momentarily up from the torrent of her thoughts and forestalling the overwhelming surge of feeling that she could feel welling up from the very soles of her feet.

"What you said the other day," he pressed on. "About me going on if I…if I lost you. I couldn't. This, with Kikyou, it fucking hurts. It hurts so much that it feels like I'm being gutted over and over and over again, but even that doesn't feel like enough because it doesn't bring her back. But as fucking awful as it is, I'm still moving."

"If I lost you…I can't lose you, Kagome. I can't."

"Inuyasha…"

"I want to cancel the engagement."

Simple as they were, it took several long seconds for Kagome to make any sense of the words.

The engagement. It felt like an eternity had passed since that night, though truly it had been only a matter of weeks. But those weeks had been such a whirl of first the strain of putting into motion their plan to draw out Naraku and then the pain that followed after that she had pushed away the thought with both hands every time it attempted to surface. The thought was simply too heavy, too much to be dealt with in the midst of all of the rest.

But now the memory surfaced with all of the vibrancy as if she were living it again. Inuyasha's outline against the silk of the screen that was the only thing left separating them, dried blood still staining her hands as she pressed them against the cool silk.

"Yes," she had said, her knees nearly buckling beneath the weight of the word as it left her. "My answer is yes. I want to become your Empress. I want to stand at your side."

For several long seconds there had been silence, save for the pounding of her pulse in her ears. She had said it. She had taken that last step off of the path of the familiar, the possible, and now an entirely new world was unfurling rapidly before her.

A terrifying, thrilling world where the wrongs of the past could be righted if they were strong enough, where they carve out a future that gave chances to everyone who sought them if they worked hard enough. A kinder world than the one either of them had known, but one where they could not afford to fail.

A world where she could stand at Inuyasha's side.

She had nearly shrieked as the silence was broken by the crash of the screen being flung back so forcefully that it almost shattered against the nearest wall.

Inuyasha's eyes had been wide as they met hers, so bright it was like staring into two twin suns. There was something so childlike about his expression, so filled with wonder, that she felt a laugh bubbling up in her throat at just the sight of it.

"You're serious?"

"I'm serious."

A small, disbelieving laugh had escaped him, scarcely more than a puff of breath. An answering smile had tugged at the corners of her lips, the enormity of it all momentarily made small by the look on his face.

"Kagome, I-"

He had cut himself off as she reached up to push back an errant lock of her hair, his gaze fixing on the dried blood that still stained her hands. She had glanced at it, as well, grimacing faintly at the reminder of the horrors of the day.

"You should get cleaned up," he had said, and she had been disappointed to watch the light in his expression dim. "I…we can talk about the rest later. It shouldn't be on a day like this."

Kagome had acquiesced, pushed well past the point of exhaustion by the day's events, and that had been that. She had had a bath prepared, thinking all the while that she would go to their spot later that night to see if he would be there, only to fall asleep in the tub and find herself tucked into her futon in her chambers the next morning.

The very next day they had been summoned by Sesshoumaru and Kagura to begin putting together their plan to stop Naraku, and from then on they had scarcely had a free moment to discuss the agreement any further.

The most they had been able to speak about it after that had been when deciding to start the rumor of Inuyasha's engagement being announced soon without saying who the prospective bride was to be. If they played everything correctly they knew that Naraku would assume that Inuyasha had forsaken her for another woman, while they would plan in the background to use the opportunity to announce their engagement once Naraku had been taken care of.

Of course, even that had fallen by the wayside in the awful aftermath of that night.

But not for him. She could see the grim resignation in the set of his features, could feel it in the tension in his frame as he began to pull away. This was not a hastily made decision. He had been thinking on this.

"You…you've changed your mind?"

His eyes slid closed and he shook his head.

"I get it now, Kagome," he said lowly. "I get why the idea of becoming Empress scared you so much. I get why you ran from it. I'm…I'm not strong enough. Not to protect Kikyou, not to protect you. And I have to find a way to live with that, but you don't. I won't keep putting you in harm's way. We can…we can figure something else out, but I won't risk you like that and I won't force you into a dangerous position with someone you can't trust."

"...can't trust?" she echoed through lips that felt as if they had gone numb.

He was pulling away, disentangling himself from her bit by bit, and she was watching it happen as if from a great distance.

He grimaced, still unable to meet her gaze as he sat back so that they were no longer touching.

"I know I'm not great at picking this shit up, but even I can see it this time," he said. "And I don't blame you. I let you be used as bait, Kagome, and I wasn't even there when you needed me. What that bastard put you through…I get why you can barely stand the sight of me most of the time. And now you've even seen this…"

His gaze fell to his hands, a faint noise of disgust escaping him at the sight of the blunted human nails at their tips. He shook his head.

"I never wanted you to see this, to see me as weak," he said. "But I guess it was too late for that even before this. I…thank you for this, Kagome. For trying to be there for me. But I don't deserve your kindness. I think it's better if you go."

A clear dismissal. He shifted as if to stand, casting her one last lingering look. There was a finality there, a pained resignation and a farewell. With awful certainty she understood that this would be the end of them. Any connection between them from here onward would be that of ruler and subject, nothing more.

No.

Instinctively her hands shot out, grabbing both of his forelocks and tugging hard. He was forced back down, eyes wide as they met hers.

"Ow! What in the seven hells, Kagome?!"

"My thoughts exactly!" she snapped, the anger surging up abruptly and fiercely. "You truly think you can just drop something on me like that and I'll simply accept it without a word? Especially when I've just finally realized how you feel!"

Inuyasha stared, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. His face was so close that she could feel his soft, surprised exhalation warm against her anger dimmed slightly.

"You love me."

The words, more question than statement, hung heavy in the air between them. A part of Kagome regretted them immediately, wished she could reach out and snatch them back, but the larger feeling was that of certainty. She had wasted so much time running away in the name of protecting him and herself and everything that they had built together.

Only it hadn't been protection at all. It had been fear, fear of the enormity of it and of all the ways it could be taken away or fail, and in the end that fear had only served to hurt the person she most wanted to protect. Come what may, she was done being afraid.

Inuyasha's face reddened so rapidly and so deeply that for a moment she worried he might pass out. His mouth, gaping even wider now, worked soundlessly for several moments before a small, strangled sound escaped.

"I..I-!"

Abruptly his brows furrowed, an almost comically exaggerated scowl dragging down every feature. Kagome blinked, some of the certainty leaving her in a wash goosebumps all along her skin.

"Idiot!" he snapped. "Stupid! Dummy!"

It was Kagome's turn to gape, the barrage of childish insults the last response she had anticipated.

"You mean to tell me that after all the shit we've been through together, you just figured that out?! I asked you to marry me for fuck's sake!"

Kagome spluttered, anger rearing its head once more.

"A marriage of convenience! You needed an Empress and-!"

"Oh, believe me, Kagome, there's nothing convenient about you!" he snapped. "You're stubborn and dense and frustrating and you just never stop and I like you so much it makes me sick to my stomach just fucking thinking about it!"

And like a guttering candle the anger was extinguished once more. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes, warmth expanding in her chest so rapidly that she half feared she might burst with it. Inuyasha blinked, the ferocity going out of his face at the sight of her.

"Why didn't you say anything?" she said, the words scarcely above a whisper.

He huffed, but there was no real heat behind it.

"As if you'd let me!" he said. "By the time…by the time I could even begin to think about saying anything, you bolted like a spooked horse every time I tried. I was worried I'd scare you off completely if I pushed too hard. And then, ever since Naraku…I, the way you look at me sometimes, I thought you'd changed your mind. And I…I don't blame you if you have."

His gaze fell to the small space between them and a pang went through her. A gentle tug on his forelocks was all it took to bring them forehead to forehead, her eyes locking on his as they darted back up.

"I need you to hear me when I say that I never once blamed you for that and I never will," she said firmly. "And I…I am so sorry for the way I have been acting. The truth of it is that I have been struggling since that night. He wore your face and I…even knowing it wasn't you, that you would never do anything to hurt me, it hurt me in ways I am still struggling to understand. I thought I could deal with it on my own, could keep from hurting you by not saying anything, but I'm so sorry for hurting you more."

Inuyasha's eyes fell shut, a faint grimace twisting his lips. He leaned in, his forehead resting solidly against hers.

"I want to kill him," he murmured. "I want to bring him back to life just so that I can tear him apart limb from limb, slowly so that he feels every bit of it. I never should have put you in that position."

"As if you had a choice. We had one way forward and we took it. That much I won't ever regret."

Inuyasha sighed. His eyes slid open, searching hers for several long moments.

"I love you."

"I know."

Her lower lip trembled, tears leaking out without her permission. The feeling was too much, too beautiful, overwhelming and overflowing. She gripped his forelocks tighter, some small part of her terrified that he would simply vanish if she did not hold on to him.

He reached up, swiping gently with a knuckle at the tears tracking down her cheeks.

"I'm serious, you know," he said softly. "I'm done hurting people I care about, you most of all. I can't lose you. We can cancel the engagement-"

With one last tug she closed the final distance between them, pressing her lips to his. The kiss was clumsy at best, salty with the tang of her tears and overly forceful with the pressure of the emotions surging through her. Still he did not pull away, and the feeling of his hands coming up to cup her face sent a spike of joy through her so sharp she nearly cried out.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Kagome pulled back just enough to meet his eyes.

"You can cancel the engagement if that is what you truly wish," she murmured, her lips close enough that they still brushed his as she spoke. "But hear me when I say this, Inuyasha. I will not be tucked away. I vowed long ago that I would stand at your side, that I would support you and everything you are trying to do, for as long as I still draw breath."

"Send me away if you like. I will fight my way back to you every time. Put me in confinement and I will find a way to break out again and again. If you need me to live, then I will do my best to live for you. If you do not feel strong enough, then combine your strength with mine. So long as you want me, I will never abandon you. Never."

He drew a soft, shaky breath, his pupils vast and dark as he met her gaze. He could not look away, the earnesty in her gaze an irresistible force. He swallowed, and she could see his jaw tighten against the force of some feeling.

"And what if I said I don't want you?" he said, the words stilted as if he had to force each one out.

Kagome searched his gaze, felt the faint trembling in the hands that still cupped her face. She lifted her chin, meeting his eyes squarely with every bit of challenge that she could summon.

"Then prove it," she said, relieved to find that the words were steady despite the hammering of her heart against her ribs. "Let me go right now. I will walk away and make certain that you need never see me again."

From this close she could see that flash of panic as it widened his eyes, could hear the small huff of breath that escaped him as his chest tightened. She could almost hear it as he grit his teeth, struggle evident in every hard line of his face. His jaw worked around words that he could not force himself to voice.

At last his eyes fell shut, his shoulders sagging, and Kagome released breath that she had not known she was holding.

"I don't think I deserve you," he said, so softly she almost missed the words.

She frowned, tugging lightly at his forelocks.

"Well, too bad," she said. "Because I do. We've both made mistakes, Inuyasha. We've both fumbled around trying to do the best we knew how with the world we were given, and we've hurt people and each other in the process."

"But not being perfect, not being the strongest, doesn't make you unworthy of loving or being loved. So how about, from here onward, my problems are yours and yours are mine. I share all of my worries with you and you share all of yours with me. And maybe that way it won't all feel so heavy. Maybe that way we make each other better, and we atone where we can."

Inuyasha sighed. She felt the last of the tension go out of him and a profound sense of relief swept through her.

"...are you asking me to marry you?" he said, a faint quirk lifting one corner of his lips as his eyes slid open to meet hers once more.

A startled laugh escaped Kagome, a flush that was equal parts joy and embarrassment heating her face. After a moment she smiled, her fringe brushing against his as she shook her head.

"I suppose it is my turn," she said. "Seeing as you have done it twice now. So, what do you say?"

To which he said nothing at all, simply leaning in to press his grinning lips against hers as he pressed her down onto the floor.

---

Hours later she lay at his side in the almost total darkness of his chambers, watching the faint flickering light of her nearly spent lantern play across his features. He watched in her in return, a softness to his expression that made her chest feel so full that she was sure her heart would simply burst.

In their eagerness they had failed to make it to his futon, even now reluctant to part long enough to move from the haphazard scattering of cushions on which they still lay tangled. He had somehow found a blanket to toss over them, though the warmth of his skin where it still touched hers was almost enough to make it unnecessary.

Sleep tugged insistently at her, eyelids heavy and her vision swimming in and out of focus, but she was determined to resist it until the last. Part of her feared that this was the dream, and that surrendering would mean waking back up in a world where the past few hours did not exist.

She reached out, brushing her fingertips lightly along the ridge of his cheek to assure herself once more of his solidity. His eyes followed the motion, the mix of tenderness and affection in them turning them nearly liquid.

Kagome smiled, continuing to trace idle trails until she reached one of his ears. Abruptly several thoughts occurred to her at once that had been lost beneath the weight of their earlier conversation.

"This…" she ventured slowly, fingers tracing the shell of his distinctly human ear. "How…how did it happen?"

A faint frown furrowed his brow, his hand coming up to cover hers. He offered a small shrug.

"It's been like this as far back as I can remember," he said. "The new moon comes around and I'm left like…this. There are so few hanyou around that even my old man wasn't entirely sure why it happens, just something to do with hanyou blood."

"And in the morning you just…go back to normal?"

He nodded.

"What…what does it feel like?"

Inuyasha scowled.

"Fucking awful," he said. "I can't hear or smell for shit. This body is weak as hell and it's like…like everything is too much. Like my whole body is one big open wound and everything just…just spills out all at once."

Kagome fought back a grimace at the gruesome imagery, her gaze fixed on his face. The explanation made sense of the shift she had seen in him this night and of a number of her memories of Toga.

Though she knew he felt deeply, normally Inuyasha struggled to convey even a portion of the emotion that she had seen from him tonight. Something about becoming human, about being temporarily stripped of all of his defenses, broke down that barrier and forced all of his feelings to the surface.

"I'm so sorry," she said. "I can't imagine how frightening that must feel."

Inuyasha blinked, brows lifting faintly as his eyes shifted back to her face. It lingered there for several long moments, thoughtful.

"Yeah," he said quietly. "I guess…I guess it was. Only…I never minded it that much on the nights that I was with you."

A smile tugged at the corners of Kagome's lips, dimming as the words brought forth the question she was most hesitant to ask.

"Why didn't you ever tell me?"

Inuyasha winced.

"I never told anyone about it," he said. "When I was little my mother hid me, made me swear I'd never show myself to anyone when I was like that. When I got older, I figured out why. When my body's like this, I'm easy prey for anyone looking to get rid of me. And my whole life there's been nothing but bastards looking to get rid of me."

"So I hid. Played sick, made excuses to keep anyone from figuring it out. And then…then I ran into you that night. And at first I lied because that's what I've always done when I've been caught, but then…then I realized that I could talk to you, really talk to you without any of the other bullshit getting in the way, when you thought I was Toga. We weren't Tennō and servant and we were just…just us. And I didn't want to lose that. I'm sorry, Kagome."

Kagome sighed, shifting until her head rested against his chest. She listened to the thrum of his heart, heard it speed up slightly under her touch.

"I understand," she said. "And I forgive you. Truthfully those nights got me through some of the hardest times I went through here in the court."

"But you stopped coming."

Kagome frowned, angling her head back to look at him as she tapped an accusatory finger against his chest.

"Because Toga kissed me!" she said. "And I happened to be in love with someone named Inuyasha and that made things awfully confusing for me! I only intended to stop coming for a bit, to get my thoughts sorted out, but, well, with everything that happened there was just never time for it."

Inuyasha winced at the mention of the kiss, his expression darkening rapidly.

"I…I never meant to do that," he said lowly. "To go there that night or to…to kiss you. I meant to let you go, to put distance between us. I thought maybe…maybe with time we'd both forget. But then the thought of you forgetting, of us becoming just…just nothing, I couldn't deal with it."

Kagome frowned, hearing the regret thick in his voice even after all this time. To realize that he had been struggling against himself in much the same way that she had for so long was a deeply bittersweet feeling. Her eyes fell shut against the force of it.

"I love you," she murmured. "But I still wish it could have been different. For all of us."

She did not elaborate, but she knew that there was no need to. The guilt of it was something that she knew would never be lifted for either of them, only borne with time and tears. It was something of a comfort at least to speak it out loud and to know they could bear it together.

Silence descended, the sound of Inuyasha's heartbeat beneath her ear lulling her as one of his hands descended to stroke absently over her hair.

"Did you like him more than me?"

Kagome blinked, the odd question pulling her back from the brink of slumber.

"Him?" she echoed.

"...Toga," Inuyasha mumbled. "Did you like him? Do you prefer…this?"

He waved a hand vaguely over the length of his body. Kagome levered herself up enough to cast him an incredulous look.

"You're the same person!"

But there was something in the uncertainty of his expression that told her it went far deeper than that. If she had preferred Toga, preferred him in this wholly human form, it would mean something to him.

Kagome's expression softened.

"Toga was a dear friend," she said. "But as I said before, I am and always have been in love with Inuyasha. Whatever form you take, that will always be the one that I love because it is yours. And if you're in need of more convincing, I am more than happy to wait here with you until sunrise to prove it."

A slow smile spread across Inuyasha's face. The warmth in his gaze as it met hers was almost childlike, like a beam of sunlight breaking through after a long storm. Quickly the expression shifted, though, the smile turning almost devilish as he rose up to meet her.

"Why wait until sunrise?" he said, arms snaking around her to pull her in close. "If all of me's what you want, then I won't say no."

She yelped as he dragged her into his lap, though the sound was quickly muffled as he sealed his lips to hers once more.

Despite the eagerness she could feel in every slide of his hands along her skin, he was careful to make certain that they were joined as the dawn arrived. As his hair that fell in a curtain all around them shifted strand by strand to pure white and the eyes that peered into hers warmed back to a molten golden she made sure to lean up, pouring every bit of herself into that kiss as he shuddered inside of her.

In the aftermath he tangled himself around her, refusing to lose contact for even a moment as he dragged the blanket back over them. She lay cocooned in his warmth, boneless and floating and so deeply content. She wanted desperately to stay awake, to hold onto this moment with both hands and never let go, but the pull of sleep was relentless.

As the haze of sleep began to blur the world around her, though, she heard the murmur of his voice against her ear.

"I think I was born for you, Kagome, and you were born to meet me."

---

For the next four days Kagome rarely saw the world outside of Inuyasha's chambers. This was one confinement, though, that she was more than happy to be subjected to.

Each day felt like an opportunity to make up for all of the time that they had lost-lost to uncertainty, to Naraku, to pain, to fear, to hesitation, to struggle. And they wasted not a moment of those four days making it up in words and touches and long looks.

Not all of it was easy. There was joy and mourning by turns. Even in the midst of the improbable, halcyon happiness that they had managed to fumble their way to, there could be no forgetting that the path behind them was strewn with losses and the one before them was still uncertain. Nor would they have forgotten if they could.

In the course of several talks they decided to go to the outside Fujiwara residence as soon as they could find an opportunity to. If they could offer nothing else to Kikyou and the others who had perished there, they could at least offer the final rites and their prayers that their souls would find peace. Kagome also suspected that, painful as it might be, Inuyasha desperately needed the chance to say the farewells he had been denied to the woman who had stood at his side for years.

Talk of the final rites led to another question that they had avoided since that awful night. After Naraku's death, what remained of his body had been unceremoniously dumped into a wooden vessel, the vessel then sealed and brought to the wing of the Chūwain reserved for those bodies needing to be stored until they could be laid to their final rest.

Kagome and Midoriko had taken the extra precaution of placing a barrier around the vessel. Upon his death the half of the Shikon jewel that Naraku had held onto had shattered further into so many hundreds of shards buried grotesquely amongst his mangled remains, and as none among them were eager to dig through the gory pulp to retrieve them the barrier was erected to prevent anyone from accessing the body unnecessarily.

Kagome was also of the mind that it was preferable that the jewel never be made whole again. Though Midoriko cautioned that even fractured the jewel likely still carried some of its former power, in Kagome's spiritual sight it appeared to have gone completely dormant. She was happy to keep it that way. Besides, with the pieces scattered, the temptation of a wish was put forever beyond any hands like Naraku's that might seek it out.

The question remained, though, what to do with the body. Inuyasha was quick to assert that the bastard could rot there in the dank dark of that room for all he cared. Naraku had brought nothing but pain and suffering to every life he had touched, and if whatever ragged piece of his spirit still remained was doomed forever to be trapped there then it was still less than what he deserved.

Kagome, for all that a large part of her agreed with him, could still not entirely forget what Kagura had once told her of the little boy who had been dragged from his home and into the court only to be shunned by all as he watched his mother slowly waste away. It could never excuse the harm he had chosen to inflict on so many afterwards, but beneath all the hatred and rot she could not help but wonder if some small shred of that boy had persisted still.

Thus she put to Inuyasha the suggestion of holding the final rites for him. It would be as much for them as for the memory of that boy, she explained, allowing them to purge from the world with flame the last of Naraku's looming shadow while also disposing of half of the jewel so that its temptation would be beyond the reach of anyone who might still desire its power.

Reluctantly Inuyasha agreed, though she suspected it was more for her sake than anything else. They agreed that they would hold a small ceremony within a week just outside of the walls of the court to avoid drawing attention and to put the stain of Naraku's spirit outside of the walls. They would invite only the small handful of those who had known of his existence to be in attendance if they so chose.

Inuyasha also made a point to send a servant each day to check in on the situation at the Tachibana residence and to bring a report back to him each evening. Kagome was surprised and grateful to find that he did this without her even needing to mention her concern, though she was sure he sensed it from her in the quiet moments between them. When asked about this he offered no more than a gruff shrug and the succinct explanation that he, too, wanted to make sure that they were alright.

Thankfully there seemed to be little need for concern on their part. Miroku appeared to be recovering more and more of his strength each day and Sango still infrequently left his side. Midoriko made certain to check in on him as well as Kohaku each day to ensure their smooth recovery.

While Kohaku still seemed to be largely unresponsive to much of his surroundings, he had at least begun eating one to two meals a day. When Sango was not at Miroku's side she was at his and she had formed an alliance of sorts with Shippou and Kagura to make certain that he was rarely left on his own. Occasionally a little girl would also accompany Midoriko on her visits to the Tachibana residence, often planting herself at Kohaku's side and remaining there for long stretches at a time.

Kagome made certain to take time to pen a few notes to send to Sango, Miroku, and Shippou as well, checking in on them and letting them know that she would be back to visit them as soon as she was able. She kept the explanation of her absence vague for lack of any idea of how to explain all that had transpired in the space of anything less than a novel's length of a missive, saying instead only that something of the utmost importance had come up that was keeping her occupied in the Dairi and that she would be back to visit them as soon as she could.

Inuyasha, hovering just over her shoulder, had teased her endlessly for this. Since he was so important to her, he said, he would be happy to "come up" for her any time she would like. He had followed this up with a demonstration that somewhat mollified her embarrassment at the teasing but left her equally as flushed.

In the aftermath he had asked, somewhat timidly, what her companions knew of their relationship. After some thought she had told him that, while they likely had some suspicions after the way he had left the court to save her, they knew little beyond that.

While she had confessed to them both her feelings for a certain courtier some time ago, she had been careful to avoid naming him as the courtier for fear of her friends thinking that there was anything improper in the relationship between them. And as their relationship had been strictly that of ruler and servant prior to her return from her mission to the court, she had not since had a chance to inform them otherwise.

Not that she would have had any intention to until agreeing to the engagement. While she loved and trusted them deeply, she had had no desire to let anyone know of what she had assumed to be merely a series of trysts that would come to a stop as soon as he found a worthy candidate for Empress.

Inuyasha had scowled at this, but thankfully had opted to refrain from once more going down what was quickly becoming the well trod path of chastising her for her willful blindness in failing to see that he had been so stupidly in love with her that he hadn't been able to hold himself back any longer. Instead, after a beat and with all of the nonchalance he could muster, he had asked if she was going to tell them.

Sensing a hint of insecurity, she had hastened to tell him that of course she intended to tell them of their relationship. She was of the mind, though, that soon after should come the formal announcement of their engagement to avoid any potential scandal that word getting out of it might cause.

He was still reluctant on this point, all too aware that the announcement of her as future Empress might make enemies for her out of those who had hoped for the power of that position for themselves or their clan. On this point, though, Kagome was unwilling to budge. If there were truly to be no more barriers between them going forward, then the last barrier to be removed would have to be this one.

Over the course of several extended discussions Inuyasha conceded this and they were able to begin to make plans for how to go about it. There would need to be a ceremony and the whole of the court would need to be invited.

At first they discussed potentially combining the ceremony with one held in honor of the return of the last members of her mission, but after some consideration Inuyasha reluctantly advised that for such a big announcement it would likely be considered crass to do anything but make it its own big event. Much as he would rather not be forced into the stuffy formal robes and kanmuri more often than was strictly necessary, for this there would be no avoiding it.

They did not discuss the ceremony itself in too much detail, occupied as they each were in discovering new ways to make the other go completely to pieces as often as their bodies would permit, but did at least resolve that they would ask for the assistance of Sango and Midoriko in the planning as soon as they were would base the date for the ceremony on how quickly the two women advised that it could be put together.

They also began to discuss the concern that had weighed on Kagome almost as heavily as that of Naraku for the past nearly two months-the question of the servants within the court. What had been done to Rin and what she had seen within the walls of the Abe clan house continued to eat at her, making regular appearances within her nightmares.

She shared this with Inuyasha and he was quick to agree that something needed to be done in order to ensure the protection of the servants with the court. He suggested that they start by using Chūsei's servant network to report back any findings or suspicions of abuse within the court. Any clan reported would be subject to further investigation by a trusted branch of the Ministry and if that investigation proved them guilty then he would assess a punishment.

Kagome agreed readily to this course, but both were of a mind that more would likely be needed in order to truly improve the lot of the servants within the court. Neither were entirely sure, however, what this might look like, and so Kagome resolved to speak with Chūsei to get her thoughts on the matter.

On the dawning of the fifth day, Kagome, both happier and more sore than she could ever remember being before, woke with the certainty that it was time to emerge from the blissful bubble they had created in Inuyasha's chambers and get back to work.

Inuyasha, initially deeply resistant to this idea, was eventually persuaded by two reminders: one, that he was the Tennō and the court would start crumbling at some point without his intervention and, two, that they had all the time in the world.

This second reminder had brought a smile to his face that Kagome wished she could somehow take and tuck away to keep with her forever. In lieu of this she had kissed those smiling lips, murmuring against them once more the words as if it were an incantation she could cast around them both.

They had all the time in the world.

---

As soon as Kagome mentioned that her first intended excursion back out into the outside world was to check in at the Tachibana residence, Inuyasha was quick to advise that he would be going, too. While Kagome initially suspected that this might be due to a reluctance on his part to be parted from her, his explanation that it was his duty to check in on them and offer his thanks for all of their efforts also held up under scrutiny.

They agreed to meet up outside of her chambers and make the journey there together. This allowed Kagome enough time to make a visit to her chambers, requesting of one of the servants there that a bath be prepared for her. While she knew that not all youkai were as keen of nose as Inuyasha, she also knew that she had spent enough time in Inuyasha's chambers that Shippou or Kagura would likely be able to catch his scent on her with little to no effort if she did not take care to conceal it.

After a thorough scrubbing and a little bit of scented oil for good measure, a serving woman helped her to tie back the length of her still-damp hair and got her a fresh set of robes to change into. Not long after, a servant entered to advise that the Tennō was there and requesting her presence. Thanking both women for their assistance, Kagome hurried out to meet him.

Inuyasha immediately pulled a face as she emerged, his nose twitching as he caught the scent of her. Kagome shot him a warning look, silently urging him to keep his feelings about her covering up his scent to himself as two of the appointees passed by and greeted them both warmly. Thankfully he seemed to heed her, keeping his commentary to himself in favor of offering a brief greeting to the women.

No amount of warning looks could keep him from reaching for her hand as soon as they entered a quiet section of the Dairi, though. Not that Kagome could muster too many objections, the feel of his hand curling around hers warmer than the most perfect of spring days. It was with the greatest reluctance that she slipped her hand from his as they reached the outer gate of the Dairi, offering him an apologetic look.

They made their way from the Dairi to the Tachibana residence relatively undisturbed, the early hour and the heavy gray clouds that hung low and threatened a sudden spring shower keeping most of the courtiers indoors. To the few they did meet they offered their greetings and their apologies for not being able to speak at length as they had urgent business at the Tachibana residence. This explanation was accepted quickly, knowledge of Sango's return and Miroku's injury having spread quickly about the court.

At the Tachibana residence, their welcome was quick and far more elaborate than Kagome had been hoping for. She supposed nothing less was to be expected when the Tennō was involved, but it took no small amount of convincing on hers and Inuyasha's part to assure the servants and their hosts that no special fanfare was necessary. They were simply there to check on the houshi's condition and to offer their thanks for all of their efforts outside of the court.

They were seen to a large sitting room and offered all manner of food and drink while they waited. Not long after the servants departed to fetch the requested refreshments did Sango arrive, bowing before entering the room and sliding the shoji closed behind her.

Sango bowed once more upon turning to face them, her forehead nearly touching the tatami in a show of deference befitting a personal visit from the Tennō. She rose once Inuyasha gave his acknowledgement, and her eyes went immediately to Kagome's.

Kagome could barely stifle a gasp at the sight of her. On even her worst of days her friend was a sight to behold, but there was a radiance to her now that was almost mesmerizing. It was as if every bit of her exuded a gentle light, the glow of a perfect full moon on a clear night.

Happiness. It was as if she had become the feeling incarnate, Kagome realized. At the thought a smile stretched so widely and powerfully across her face that it almost hurt.

Sango's brows rose slightly as she studied her in return, her eyes sliding consideringly over her features before darting to the hanyou at her side. Her brows rose almost to meet her hairline, her gaze darting back to Kagome and fixing on her with all the sudden intensity of a predator sighting prey.

"Tennō-sama, my apologies for my rudeness, but might I borrow Kagome-sama for just a moment?" she said, her gaze never leaving the younger woman. "I just remembered that there is an urgent matter that I am in need of her advice on."

Inuyasha's eyes slid from Kagome to Sango and back again, a clear question in his gaze. Kagome could only offer a surreptitious shake of her head, equally as uncertain as he was of what the noblewoman was alluding to. Sango had not mentioned any urgent matters in any of the notes that they had exchanged in the past few days.

"Uh…sure, I guess-"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than Sango's hand darted out, grasping and fairly dragging Kagome out of the room behind her. Kagome shot Inuyasha an apologetic look as the shoji slid closed behind her, mouthing that she would be back soon before she was hustled off down the hall.

Sango's pace did not slow until she reached a far corner of the residence where she slid open the shoji of a relatively small anteroom, almost shoving Kagome inside before closing the door behind them. In an instant the older woman was upon her, her hands clamping down on Kagome's shoulders in an almost vice-like grip.

"Tell me everything immediately," she said, giving her a small shake.

"E-everything? What do you mean-?"

"Oh, no," Sango cut in. "No, no. I know you, Kagome-chan, and you will not be putting me off with that innocent act today. I mean, look at you! You are fairly glowing and-!"

"I thought the same of you!" Kagome said, grasping her forearms. "You look absolutely radiant, Sango-chan! Has something happened? Oh, please tell me it's what I hope it is!"

Sango blinked, some of her momentum lost as a flush suffused her face.

"I-I mean, it is nothing of any great importance," she mumbled, her eyes falling to the floor between them. "Kohaku's condition has been improving steadily-though I am still trying to reconcile myself to the oddity of finding Taira Kagura in my home and actually attempting to be of help to someone. The kami only know what occurred in our absence to inspire that sort of change. And Miroku-sama…"

Her voice vanished into scarcely more than a whisper at the end, so soft that her words were entirely incomprehensible. Her face had gone the red of Inuyasha's favored color of robes and it was Kagome's turn to give her an excited little shake.

"What of Miroku-sama?" she pressed. "Has something happened?"

"I…well, I mean," Sango hedged, looking everywhere but at her. "The day after the healing he…you see, I thought it had all just been some dream I had had, but when I went to check in on him the next morning he…"

She cut herself off, shaking her head and covering her face with her hands as if to hide the mixture of embarrassment and elation warring for dominance there. Kagome only just held back a shriek, practically bouncing in anticipation.

"He pulled me in and kissed me."

The shriek did escape this time, muffled only by her desperate desire for her friend to continue. Sango peeked at her from behind her fingers, her eyes bright.

"At first I was so surprised I nearly hit him," she said, shifting her hands to press against her flaming cheeks. "But then he told me…he told me he needed me to understand that he meant what he had said. That he had truly said it, and that…that he needed me to know that it had long been how he had felt. He said he loves me, Kagome."

Unable to contain herself any longer, Kagome nearly leapt upon her friend, wrapping her in an embrace so tight it almost hurt her arms. Sango returned it in kind, nearly lifting her off her feet in her joy.

"I was so stunned at first that I ran away without saying a word as soon as a servant arrived to bring his morning meal," Sango continued, the words now pouring forth in an excited torrent. "I could hardly calm down. I almost managed to convince myself that I had hallucinated it! But then I forced myself to go back and he asked me to stay, to hear him out."

"He explained everything, Kagome-chan. Everything. How his fear about the difference in our statuses had held him back at first, and then how the curse had come to be put upon his family. How he was so terrified at the thought of involving me, of dragging me down with him, that he had chosen to lie and tell me he felt nothing for me rather than to risk it."

"He apologized and told me he would understand if he had hurt me too much for me to forgive him. He said if he could only ever live as my friend then even that fate would be more than he deserved, that and the memory of that kiss to keep with him."

Sango swallowed, the feeling of it welling up once more.

"We have talked all of it through again and again the last several days," she said, her voice thick with feeling. "And I am so happy I feel as if I am in a dream all of the time."

"Oh, Sango-chan, I'm so happy for you! For the both of you! Ah, to finally see the two of you together! Nothing could be more perfect!"

"Well, together might be a bit of an overstatement…"

Kagome pulled back enough to catch the sheepish expression eating away at some of the elation in the older woman's expression. Her own excitement faded.

"Oh, Sango-chan, I'm sorry. I had just assumed…But if you no longer reciprocate his feelings…"

Sango shook her head hastily.

"No, no, it's nothing like that," she said. "It's only…it's just been so overwhelming, I suppose. I have spent so much of my life hoping that somehow we would reach this point and now that we are here I just…I don't know how to put the true extent of what I feel into words."

"Most of the time I can scarcely do more than stare at him while he speaks and feel astonished by how happy I am, how beautiful it is that we are together and that there is a future before us where we can be together. I will tell him how I feel in return, I promise I will, only for now I'm just so relieved to feel like we finally have time."

Faintly Kagome heard the echo of her own words to Inuyasha in Sango's. They had time. They all had time now. She pressed a hand to her chest as if she could hold the warmth of that feeling there forever.

Sango blinked, her gaze suddenly sharpening once more on Kagome's expression. Her hands shot out to grasp Kagome's own, the gesture at once sisterly and meant to thwart any attempt at escape.

"There!" she exclaimed. "That look! You've gotten me to confess, now you must tell me what's happened to put that look on your face!"

Kagome gaped, stunned at the sheer perceptiveness of the woman. While she had every intention of telling her friends of the relationship between herself and Inuyasha, she had thought she would have at least a few days to get straight her own thoughts before sharing the story.

Without a doubt she knew, though, that Sango would not be put off. This was a woman that she had watched on multiple occasions wrestle youkai twice her size to the ground, after all. Holding her captive would be no more to Sango than wrangling a willful child.

Kagome sighed. It seemed the time had come.

"Well, you remember the courtier I once told you about…"

---

"The Tennō-sama?"

"Yes."

"The Tennō-sama?"

"Yes."

"The Tennō-sama?"

Kagome sighed. Since she had finished telling the story Sango had been unable to do more than repeat the words over and over. She doubted any response she could provide would help her friend digest the admittedly winding and unbelievable tale.

She had done her best to explain it all in a way that made sense, confessing that the courtier she had been in love with had always been Inuyasha and that she had simply been too worried about tarnishing the title of the Tennō to name him.

She had explained her reasoning behind leaving the court and trying to accept Kouga's advances, her return to the court and the fallout that had occurred in the wake of the Empress' departure (this with no small amount of pain in the recalling), and the improbable series of events that had led up to Inuyasha asking her to become Empress.

The only things she had left out were the details of Toga (that secret was Inuyasha's to tell to whom he chose) and the more physical aspects of the trysts between herself and Inuyasha (some details were just a bit too intimate for her to put to words).

With every word Sango had sunk down a bit further until at last they were both sitting on the floor, Sango now only propped up by her hands against the tatami as she attempted to process everything.

"Kami," she said at last, a welcome break from the refrain of the Tennō. "I…"

"I'm sorry," Kagome said. "I know it is a lot to throw at you all at once. There were so many times while you were gone that I wished I could talk to you, to tell you everything."

Sango grimaced, reaching out to grasp her hand.

"I wish I could have been here for you," she said. "To have dealt with all of that on your own…kami, Kagome-chan, I wish I could have been here. I could have stood by you, protected you, something."

Kagome shook her head, offering her a small smile.

"You needed to be there for Kohaku-kun," she said. "I would never have asked otherwise of you."

"I know, I just…" Sango groaned, shaking her head. "You almost died! Twice! I swear, I am never letting you out of my sight again. And, kami, I had heard word that the Empress had departed and that the marriage had been declared void, but now I understand why all of the servants had been so hesitant to tell me about how that came to pass. That woman-!"

"Please," Kagome broke in. "I know it seems strange, but I cannot bring myself to believe that she was truly behind what happened. I may not have known the former Empress that well, but no part of me can reconcile the woman that I did know with what happened. Besides, she will always be an important person to his Majesty, so I would rather not speak ill of her."

Sango did not look entirely satisfied with this, but she refrained from further comment. After a moment her expression darkened, her eyes going to the tatami between them.

"I still cannot believe she was there," she said lowly. "Whatever she might have done, she did not deserve that end. I wish…"

Kagome squeezed her hand, her eyes closing against the pang that the reminder brought.

"I agree, but it was neither your fault nor his. Naraku hurt so many people and I…I am just grateful that he cannot hurt anyone anymore."

Sango squeezed her hand in return and silence settled over them for several long moments.

"...so?"

Sango glanced up at the tentative word, a question in her eyes.

"What do you think?" Kagome clarified sheepishly. "About the Tennō-sama and I?"

Sango's eyes widened. She scrambled abruptly to her feet, hauling Kagome up with her. In a motion that was almost too quick to follow she wrapped her up in her arms, lifting her and spinning her around as if she were a small child.

"Oh, Kagome-chan, I am so happy for you I could burst!" she exclaimed. "I know how long and how deeply you have loved him, and to see you glowing like this is everything I have ever hoped for you!"

A breathless laugh escaped Kagome as Sango set her back down. She stumbled, dizzy both from the spinning and with relief at her friend's staunch support. Sango reached out to steady her and she threw herself back into her arms, hugging her for all that she was worth.

"I am sorry it took me a moment," Sango murmured against her hair. "I was simply struggling to wrap my head around it all."

Kagome laughed.

"Understandable," she said. "Even having lived it, saying it all aloud for the first time feels as if it's too fantastical for it to have truly happened."

For several long moments they simply stood there, wrapped in one another's embrace and in the warmth of their shared joy.

"I am serious, though, about protecting you," Sango said at length, pulling back enough to meet her eyes. "I know that this is not a step that you took lightly and that you are well aware of the weight that it carries. Know also that I will have your back every step of the way. My weapon, my clan, whatever you might require are yours and his Majesty's to command."

Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes and Kagome blinked hard against them, offering her friend a wobbly smile.

"Thank you," she murmured. "You are the truest, kindest of souls and I would never have made it here without you. I only…do you think I am capable of it? Truly?"

"Of being Empress?" Sango said, and Kagome nodded. "Well, in truth, any woman married to his Majesty is capable of being Empress, but I think for many that is all that they would wish to do. Be Empress. Fill the role. And perhaps there would be no harm in that for most, but there would be little good, either."

"You, Kagome-chan, feel deeply the responsibility you have to others. You have a desire to help those you can, to make fair what you can. At the end of the day, the position of Empress is a tool, but a tool in the hands of someone with no idea of how to wield it is at best useless and at worst destructive. I think you know how you want to use that tool, that you want to use it to build something beautiful if you can."

"So, for all that I am certain the Tennō-sama's choice had a great deal to do with the fact that his Majesty is madly in love with you, I think his Majesty also made one of the best possible choices for an Empress that could have been made."

Kagome was near to tearing up again at the sweet sentiment when a sudden thought occurred to her. Her eyes went wide and she hurriedly disentangled herself enough from Sango to grab the woman's hand.

"His Majesty!" she said, flinging the shoji open. "We forgot all about his-!"

She let out a startled 'oof' as she ran straight into a wall of red, saved from falling only by two sets of arms reaching out to steady her. She blinked, sheepish golden eyes meeting her own as the two set her back upright.

Inuyasha took a hasty step back from her, his gaze darting away from hers.

"There you are," he said woodenly. "I was just coming to-"

"Were you listening in on us?" Kagome cut him off, recognizing instantly the guilty tilt of his ears as they nearly disappeared against his hair.

Inuyasha flinched, a faint flush creeping across the ridges of his cheeks.

"No! I-I just have good hearing! And besides, you disappeared for so long, what was I supposed to do?!"

"So you were listening in! Why did you not just say something? And how long were you-?"

"Ahem."

The none–too-discreet sound of Sango clearing her throat brought them both up short.

"My apologies, Tennō-sama, for my discourtesy in dragging her off so suddenly and for so long," she said, stepping forward to stand at Kagome's side. "And my apologies for the discourtesy of this, as well."

Before either of them could so much as blink she had lunged forward, wrapping her arms around him in an embrace so tight he was nearly lifted from the floor. Inuyasha's eyes went round as full moons, his entire body going rigid from the tips of his ears to his toes.

"Thank you," Sango said feelingly. "For making my friend so happy and for working so hard to protect her."

Abruptly the hug shifted and Kagome could have sworn she heard the sound of bone grinding on bone as the noblewoman tightened her embrace a bit further. Now she did lift him slightly off the ground, her gaze meeting his squarely.

"I trust that you will treasure her as she deserves to be treasured," she said lowly. "And if you should ever do anything to purposefully hurt her, trust that I will be there to show you why that is not a good idea."

Inuyasha gaped. Kagome gaped. Sango smiled. Her point made, she released him and stepped back far enough to dip into a low bow.

"My apologies again, Tennō-sama," she said with a sincerity that was stunning in its contrast.

"Uh, no, it's…fine?" Inuyasha said, wide eyes darting to Kagome in askance.

Sango straightened up, her smile widening.

"Thank you,Tennō-sama," she said. "Truly, I appreciate your Majesty's understanding. Now, shall we visit with Miroku-sama and share with him the joyous news?"

Before either could answer she had clapped her hands together and started off down the hall, a spring in her step.

Inuyasha and Kagome looked at one another, left dumbstruck in her wake.

"Well, you said you wanted her to know."

"Kami, she might've bruised a rib…I think I like her."

---

"The Tennō-sama?"

"Yes."

"The Tennō-sama?"

"Yes."

"The Tennō-sama?"

"For kami's sake, I'm sitting right here!"

Kagome might have laughed at how closely Miroku's reaction to the tale had mirrored Sango's if she did not fear that Inuyasha might soon pummel the man.

Miroku's finger was still pointed rather disrespectfully at Inuyasha, his eyes darting from Kagome to the hanyou and back again so rapidly that she feared he might make himself dizzy. Sitting just behind him on the walkway they had chosen overlooking one of the more spectacular gardens of the Tachibana residence, Sango's eyes glowed with mirth as she pressed a hand to her lips to suppress a laugh.

At Sango's insistence and even some slight urging from Inuyasha, Kagome had shared the story once more the houshi. She had touched as delicately and as briefly on the parts concerning Kikyou as she could manage out of consideration for Inuyasha's presence and, while there had been obvious pain in his expression, she had been grateful that he had managed to bear up under it.

Reaching out, Kagome batted away the offending finger. Vaguely she wondered if she should be concerned at how informally her friends treated the sovereign of their nation. Miroku had served him directly for a number of years, she knew, and both had unknowingly been traveling companions to him on that expedition to eradicate the youkai nest near the Fujiwara residence.

They had also met him again when he had come to save her from Mount Hakurei, though that meeting had been brief at best. Perhaps it was all of that that had combined to breed a certain sense of familiarity.

Or perhaps it was her. Perhaps learning of her close connection to him and her feelings simply opened a path between them all that even his status could not obstruct. There was a sense of naturalness, an ease, between them all that she could not quite explain, but that left her with a warm feeling nonetheless.

Mentally she shrugged. Inuyasha did not seem to have any true objections to it, so she would not worry herself over it either.

Miroku leaned back, his eyes still on them but his body angled carefully so that he was well within Sango's space. He made no move to touch her, but when he turned his head to look at her his face was close enough that a flush swept over hers.

"What do we think about this?" he said.

"W-well, I have already given my approval," Sango said. "His Majesty has already gone to great lengths to protect Kagome-chan and I think both of them have given great thought to the matter before reaching this point. And besides, only look how happy they look."

Miroku swung his gaze back to them, dark eyes appraising as he took them both in once more. Slowly he nodded to himself, a thoughtful hum punctuating each shake of his head. Out of the corner of her eye, Kagome could see Inuyasha flushing faintly under the scrutiny.

"Why does it feel like I'm here asking for your parents permission or something?" he muttered lowly to her.

"Well, I suppose that is not far from the truth," Miroku said. "As the one who brought Kagome-chan into the court, I feel a unique responsibility for her. And Sango-sama is both her dearest friend and capable of single-handedly killing a man. It is our duty to ensure that anyone that seeks her hand is worthy of it."

"I…I'm literally the Tennō."

"A fair point," Miroku said. "However, as you well know, your Majesty, it is no mere question of status. But as Sango-sama has deemed you worthy, I must agree with her assessment. I trust, however, that she has given you ample warning as to what will happen should you ever hurt Kagome-chan in any way?"

"...she threatened me already, yeah."

"Good, good," Miroku said, nodding and smiling as if they were discussing something as innocuous as the weather. "Then I will save you the same lecture all over again. Not that I am much of a threat any longer, but do trust that I would do my best if the need arose."

He held up his now ungloved, uncursed hand, flexing it in the bright light of day even as he maintained vaguely threatening eye contact.

Kagome was thankful for the interruption provided by a servant advising them that food had been laid out beneath one of the newly flowering sakura trees in the garden as requested. Miroku rose at the announcement, thanking the servant and offering a hand to Sango as if he had not just been menacing the ruler of their nation a moment ago. Bashfully Sango accepted the proffered hand and the two of them started off, leaving Kagome and Inuyasha dumbstruck in their wake.

"What in the seven hells?"

"I'm sorry."

"Are your friends insane?"

"Perhaps?"

"...I like them."

---

They passed a few more hours together agreeably enough, though this was in large part due to Inuyasha being distracted by food and Miroku and Sango being distracted by one another. Whatever the cause, Kagome was deeply grateful for it and for the almost inexplicable ease with which they all seemed to mesh together.

At length they landed on the topic of Sango's clan's extensive weapons collection and her extensive weapons training. Inuyasha's eyes fairly lit up at the subject and in an even more inexplicable turn of events the noblewoman managed to coax him into accompanying her to view the collection.

Miroku's eyes lingered on Sango as the pair headed off and Kagome smiled to herself. He was still paler than usual, his features slightly wan with the lingering weakness of the ordeal he had suffered, but even so there was a radiance to him. Almost the entirety of the time they had sat together his gaze had been solely fixed on Sango, a warmth in his eyes that would have thawed the deepest of winters.

"Be careful now, Miroku-sama, or I will have to tell Sango-chan that you have a crush on her," she teased.

Miroku blinked as if waking from a dream. He offered her a crooked smile, one shoulder lifting carelessly.

"I pray that you do," he said. "For I have done nothing but that since I have woken and to little avail. Though in fairness, I have hurt that woman too many times to expect anything else."

"And yet she has remained by your side nonetheless," Kagome said. "Perhaps give yourself a bit of grace and her a bit of time."

"Time?" he echoed, a brow lifting. "Ah, time. Yes, I suppose I have that now. Thanks in no small part to you."

He reached out, grasping her hand and squeezing it with his now ungloved hand. The rosary was still looped about his wrist, but the sight of the disparity between the pale skin that had been so long hidden beneath his glove and the tan on his wrist and fingers almost brought tears to her eyes. She clasped his hand in return.

"I am so happy for you."

They spoke the words in unison, their eyes widening as they heard themselves echoed. Miroku raised a brow and Kagome laughed.

"I have missed you so much," she said, her throat tight. "When Sango-chan brought you back, I…"

"You saved me," he said, shaking his head. "Both of you, in more ways than one. I wish…a part of me wishes his death could have been at my hand. But I know what it cost you, and I will forever be in your debt for that, for giving me even the faintest hope of a future with her. I cannot help but think that it is a kinder fate than I will ever deserve that brought me to you."

"I could say the same of you," she said. "Though perhaps if fate has been this kind to both of us, we should be a bit kinder to ourselves."

Miroku's smile widened.

"Perhaps we should."

---

Before leaving the Tachibana residence, Kagome wanted to be sure to pay a visit to Shippou and check in on Kohaku. Miroku, still suffering the lingering effects of having ingested such a massive amount of poison, begged off as he had reached his limit for the day and needed to rest.

Sango, still not comfortable with the idea of leaving his care entirely to someone else, went with him, bidding them farewell and insisting that they return soon so that they could begin discussing the details for the ceremony announcing their engagement. This last bit was directed primarily at Inuyasha and Kagome raised a brow at him as she realized that at least part of their weapons excursion had already involved talk of Sango helping to plan the ceremony.

There was no longer a guard at the door when they arrived at Kohaku's quarters. Sango had explained that between the bit of progress that he had been making and the near constant presence of either Shippou, Kagura, or herself there was little need for one anymore.

The shoji door to his chambers and the one opposite it that opened out onto a small courtyard were both wide open, allowing the warm spring breeze to fill the room that four figures occupied. Shippou, Kohaku, and Kagura made up three among the party and the fourth was the little girl that had been mentioned in the servants' reports.

It took Kagome several moments to place the girl in her memory and when she finally did she nearly gasped.

It was Rin, but unlike the filthy, bruised waif she remembered, the little girl before her was practically the picture of heath. Her hair, still a bit unruly by its nature, was nonetheless neatly brushed and partially tied back, her dark eyes shone as she listened intently to a story Shippou was telling, and there was a fullness to her face that spoke of a child well cared for.

If she remembered the suffering and horrors she had endured, there was no sign of it in her manner now. Kagome bit her lip against the surge of feeling that rose up in her, deeply grateful to be able to see the drastic change.

Kagura was the first to catch sight of her and Inuyasha, one brow lifting at the sight of them. Her gaze slowly drew Rin's and Shippou's, as well, prompting a pause in the flow of the kitsune's story telling. Kohaku, though his gaze did slowly follow that of the others, showed no real sign of recognition beyond that.

At the sight of her Shippou immediately lost track of whatever he had been saying and launched himself into her arms. She caught him with a laugh, lifting and spinning him around.

"Kagome! I missed you! Where have you been? I-"

He paused as his eyes met Inuyasha's, his nose twitching. Inuyasha blinked, clearly uncertain what to do as the boy's stare continued unabashedly.

"Why do you smell so much like Kagome?" he said at last. "And like something else. What is that smell?"

"Yes, do tell about that unique musk you have to you right now, Tennō-sama," said Kagura, smirking as she rose to join them. "I think we would all love to hear more about that. In detail, if your Majesty pleases."

It was only with great force of will that Kagome managed to keep from kicking him, settling instead for glaring daggers over Shippou's head at the hanyou. He had said he would be sure to bathe before leaving the Dairi as she had, but clearly he had failed to do so.

Inuyasha's face was the red of his haori. His gaze darted from Shippou to Kagura and the growing panic there might have been comical had Kagome not been fairly boiling with her own embarrassment.

"I…It's…"

"A new bathing oil," Kagome ground out. "I believe his Majesty is now using the same one that they have been providing in my wing of the Dairi."

"Bathing oil?" Kagura echoed, her voice thick with wicked mirth. "Is that what they are calling it now?"

Kagome leveled a glare at her, silently begging for the sake of every child in that room that she not press any further. It was humiliating enough to be caught out by the Taira woman without having to attempt an explanation of adult intimacy to children on top of it.

"Ahh, yes, bathing oil," Kagura said after several long, torturous moments. "Somehow I had forgotten. Come now, Shippou, it is not polite to interrogate others about their bathing habits. Especially not the Tennō-sama. Why, we must offer his Majesty our gratitude for the gift of his presence and of this…lovely little tidbit of conversation."

She offered a bow that was more mocking than respectful and Inuyasha glared, his face still scarlet. Shippou regarded him suspiciously, settling deeper into Kagome's embrace, but offered a small bow nonetheless.

Kagome blinked, faintly surprised at the gesture from the kitsune. It seemed Kagura was having a larger influence on him than she would have expected. Silently she wondered if she should be worried about that.

"Would his Majesty and the O-Miko-sama care to join us?" Kagura said, the same faintly teasing lilt in the use of their titles. "We were just sitting down to tea."

An arrangement of tea and small snacks were laid out on the low table around which the four had gathered. While Kagome was not particularly hungry after the meal that they had just shared with Miroku and Sango, it did seem a good way to check in on Kohaku, Rin, and Shippou.

She glanced at Inuyasha in askance and he offered a faint shrug. He had no pressing duties to attend to for the day and he was not one to turn down food.

"We would be happy to join you," she said. "Though for someone who protested so thoroughly the idea of being a nursemaid, you do seem to be collecting children rather quickly."

Kagura offered her a slight glare as the four of them settled themselves at the table, Shippou still planted firmly in Kagome's lap. Rin offered a wide smile in greeting and even Kohaku blinked languidly at their arrival.

"I have never held much interest in children," Kagura said bluntly. "But perversely they seem to be drawn to me like moths to a flame. I will admit, though, that they make for infinitely better company than many adults I have known in my long life."

Rin's smile widened at this and Shippou puffed up a bit, as well. Despite the bluntness of her words, there was a grudging fondness in the youkai woman's gaze that Kagome had only ever seen her regard Kanna with before.

"They say children are attracted to kind souls," Kagome said lightly.

Kagura shot her a sharp look.

"I will not stand to have my reputation impugned in such a manner," she said, though with little real venom. "Take it back immediately."

Kagome laughed, reaching for one of the spare mugs. Rin scrambled to her feet, releasing the hold she had been keeping on one of Kohaku's hands to instead pour some of the still faintly steaming tea for both Kagome and Inuyasha.

"Thank you," Kagome said, offering the girl a smile.

Rin smiled wider as if in answer, though her eyes continued to range searchingly over Kagome's features. Her eyes darted to Kagura, a question in them.

"Rin…knows?" she said, her voice faint and hoarse as if from long disuse.

Kagome stifled a gasp, startled to hear the sound coming from the little girl. Last she had seen her Rin had been completely mute, communicating only through gestures. Shippou glanced up at her as if sensing her surprise, patting her hand.

"Rin-chan is still new to talking," he said. "We are teaching her and Kohaku, so we need to be patient."

"You have met before," Kagura replied to Rin. "Do you remember her?"

Rin blinked, her eyes returning to Kagome's face for several long moments. She frowned, slowly making a gesture that appeared to be neither denial nor confirmation. She offered Kagome another smile, smaller than the last, as her hand grasped once more for Kohaku's where it rested atop the table.

"As Shippou said, we are still working with Rin-chan on her speech," Kagura said. "She suffered an…accident, but has been working to recover her words as well as her memories. Each day she has been recovering more and more."

Rin beamed as if she had received enormous praise, though the words had been spoken matter of factly enough. Kagura shot Kagome a glance that said clearly enough that nothing was to be said of what had happened to Rin.

Kagome offered her a small nod of acknowledgement, more than happy to leave the girl as unburdened as she appeared to be at the moment. The memory of her lying broken in the streets was still fresh, and it was a balm to see her so healthy and carefree as she sat among them.

Shippou proceeded to launch into a series of stories about what they had been occupied with in the last few days, everything from picnics to playing pranks on unsuspecting members of the Tachibana in residence to learning how to write a few characters from Kagura. Kagome was more than content to listen, pleased to hear how smoothly he was settling back into life in the court and how well life in the Tachibana residence seemed to be suiting him.

Initially she had thought to see if Shippou might be interested in moving to join her in her quarters in the Dairi, but as he spoke she became more and more convinced that for the time being his place was here with Kohaku. She also decided to postpone the sharing of the news of her engagement, reminded again in the flow of his speech that the kitsune still had more than his fair share to deal with at the moment.

No, she would need to ensure that Shippou and Inuyasha had time first to get to know one another before disrupting the boy's life any further with that sort of news. Sango and Miroku were sworn to secrecy on the topic and there would be time enough to allow the two to bond before startling Shippou with that sudden shift, though the occasional unprovoked glares he shot at the hanyou told her he might have some inkling that Inuyasha was more to her than simply someone who shared the same sort of "bathing oils".

Throughout their conversation Rin's hand remained firmly wrapped around that of Kohaku's, though she seemed to draw as much comfort from the gesture as she sought to give with it. No one elaborated on how the two had come to be so close, but there seemed to be the air of kindred spirits about them that defied the need for any further explanation.

Both were without words, without memories, and both had been casualties in the path of the same monster. It seemed fitting that they should find one another.

Nothing was explicitly said of Kohaku's progress either, but it was clear enough to see. Occasionally he made faint sounds as Shippou spoke as if in reaction and with the insistence of Kagura and the assistance of Rin he even managed to eat a few of the tea snacks laid out before them. A bit of the color seemed to be returning to his face and though he still seemed too thin, there was the faintest hint of him beginning to put on weight in the subtle rounding out of his cheeks.

When at last they excused themselves to return to the Dairi as the sun began to dip low in the sky, Kagome departed with a sense of peace so deep that nothing short of catastrophe could shake it. Unlikely as the quartet was, they were healing one another. Slow as the progress might be, Sango and Miroku were finding their way to another.

They had time. All of them.

---

"I said I'm sorry, alright?"

"'Sorry' hardly makes up for the embarrassment of Kagura-sama practically accusing us of…of fornicating!"

"Fornicating?" Inuyasha echoed, choking back a sudden laugh despite the force of her irritation. "Fornicating?"

Kagome flushed, wishing immediately she could recall the word. But what else was she supposed to call it?

"You know what I mean," she ground out. "You said you would bathe! What if it had been someone else that had caught the scent of…of it on you?"

"Fornicating," Inuyasha choked out once more, almost collapsing back onto the futon beneath them. "What are you, a thousand years old?"

Kagome scowled, thumping him lightly on the shoulder.

"I am serious!" she said. "What if-?"

A sudden reversal of their positions cut her off, Inuyasha rising up to press her down against the futon.

They had resumed meeting in their place that evening for the sake of keeping some semblance of propriety and avoiding detection by either guards or servants. The only light in the small building was that of one guttering lantern, the shadows it cast over his face distinctly wicked.

"What if what?" he said lowly. "What if the court had learned about our 'fornicating'?"

"I am serious," she said, resisting the curl of heat she could feel unfurling low in her belly at the closeness of him. "We are not wed yet, nor even officially engaged. Were we to be discovered now, it would be hard to escape the rumors that I seduced you somehow into the engagement. I would rather not start the rumors swirling once more about me being some sort of…of social climbing bed warmer for nobles."

Inuyasha's expression sobered.

"I…sorry," he said. "I didn't think about…sorry. I just…part of me felt like if I washed it off, it would all be gone, like the last few days would just…"

He trailed off and she reached up, placing a gentle hand on his cheek. She offered him a small smile, meeting his eyes squarely.

"The last few days aren't something that can be rinsed off in a bath, Inuyasha," she said gently. "I won't simply vanish."

He leaned into her hand, into the warmth and solidity of it.

"I know," he said. "Or part of me knows. I just can't shake the feeling that anything good…somehow I'll fuck it up, or lose it. I just…I want to be done hiding. I want them all to know, to make it real."

"Is that why you were in such a hurry to talk to Sango-chan about the engagement ceremony?"

Inuyasha said nothing, but the slide of his gaze away from hers spoke clearly enough.

"Inuyasha, look at me," she said softly. "I am here. Empress or not, engagement or not, my intention has been and will be to remain at your side. I am not going anywhere. We just need to continue to be careful as we move forward. Neither of us are beyond reproach and ultimately we are going to need the support of the clans if we hope to get anything done."

Inuyasha huffed, leaning down to bury his face in the crook of her neck even as he was careful to keep from putting his full weight on her. He mumbled something against the flesh there, the movement equal parts ticklish and toe curling.

"What was that?" she said, her voice a bit breathier than she had intended. "Should I take that as an agreement?"

"I said, I'll be careful," he said, shifting just enough for the words to be audible even as the points of his fangs continued to just drag along her skin. "But the only thing I'm interested in getting done right now is you."

Any further response she might have wanted to make was lost to the slide of his fingers along the inside of her thigh, parting the layers of her sleeping yukata and reaching her core in one fluid motion. He shifted to rest on his side, every part of him pressed against her side as he slipped his free arm beneath her neck and to her opposite shoulder to anchor her firmly against him.

Moving just enough to ensure that he could meet her eyes, he swept the pads of his fingers in a slow, torturous slide along the center of her. Kagome would have squirmed but for the solid grip he had on her, the sensation somehow multiplied by how little she could move against it. Inuyasha's eyes searched hers with every motion, pupils huge and dark as he watched the effect play over her features.

"You showed me the first ever not shitty thing about my human night, you know," he said, pausing his attentions to bring his hand up to his lips. "I barely had to worry about hurting you when I touched you."

Deliberately he brought each claw to his lips, biting the tips off until his nails were as blunt as they had been on that new moon night. He was careful to spit the tips away from her over his opposite shoulder, his hand sliding back between her legs without missing a beat. Kagome bit her lip against a whimper, the sensation far stronger now that he did not have to be so cautious of catching her with his claws.

"I can definitely see advantages to both," she managed to get out. "But I know you would never hurt me in either form. You're you either way, after all."

Inuyasha blinked, pausing in his ministrations. His eyes held hers for several long moments, the playfulness in them giving way to that look that she had seen so many times but was only now beginning to understand the depth of.

"I love you," he said, in the same quiet, seeking way that he always uttered the words.

"I love you, too," she said firmly, vowing silently to herself that some day he would be so used to hearing her say the words that he would need never fear or doubt them again.

She leaned up as far as she could within his hold, brushing her lips lightly against his as if to seal the words between them. He leaned eagerly into the kiss, a press of his tongue deepening it in an instant and forcing her back down. Moments later his fingers mirrored the gesture, two of them pressing gently up into her as his thumb slid over the nub between her folds.

Kagome gasped at the sensation of his fingers slowly stretching her, working in gentle strokes inside her. Inuyasha broke the kiss in favor of watching her face as he continued to tease her, fingers growing slicker with each stroke. His free hand slid from her shoulder down past the edge of her yukata, cupping and beginning to stroke her breast in a rhythm with the hand now gliding steadily in and out of her.

Kagome sucked in a sharp breath, her eyes falling shut against the force of the combined sensations and the intensity with which he watched her every reaction to his touch. This only seemed to spur him on further, the press of his fingers deepening with every stroke inside of her. She could feel herself beginning to unravel, feel her legs beginning to shake.

"Tell me you're mine," he said, the words rumbling along the shell of her ear and straight down to join the knot of sensation tightening rapidly low in her stomach.

"I-Inuyasha," she keened, unable to gather enough of her thoughts to manage much more.

"Say it."

"I-I.."

"Say it, Kagome."

"I-I'm yours," she breathed, the words almost escaping as plea. "Please, Inuyasha, please."

His low growl of approval rumbled through her in every spot that they touched, the slide of his fingers increasing to an almost feverish pace. She could feel him lean in and press his nose to the hollow of her throat, inhaling deeply.

"This scent," he groaned. "The scent of us together. This is what I want. I'll wash it off for now, hide it, but I'll come back every night until the scent is so thick on both of us that it'll never fade, no matter what."

The promise in his voice, the thought of them connected so thoroughly that they left indelible marks on one another, was enough to push her over the edge. She cried out, back arching as she spasmed around his fingers.

He continued to work her as she shook, the glide of his fingers inside of her dragging out the sensation until she nearly begged him to stop. She was still shaking, breath coming in ragged pants, when she was finally able to open her eyes once more.

Only to be met by the sight of his tongue darting out to taste the slickness that now coated his fingers. Mortification and arousal hit in a dizzying combination, a small, choked sound escaping her at the sight.

Inuyasha blinked, one corner of his lips curling slowly upward at the look on her face. Slowly he pressed both of the fingers into his mouth, maintaining eye contact until he pulled them back out with a wet popping sound.

"Roll over."

Kagome blinked, still struggling to gather enough of her wits to form a coherent thought. The depth of the intensity in his gaze was something new, something that seemed to have been unleashed that new moon night along with the admission of his feelings. With the removal of that final barrier his desire for her had shifted somehow, what had once been a desperate seeking sliding slowly into something more primal.

Slowly Kagome rolled over on the futon, casting him a questioning glance over her shoulder.

"Like this?"

She had barely gotten the words out before Inuyasha was behind her, hands reaching to pull her hips up and back against him. She flushed at the feel of him hard against her and at the unfamiliar sense of exposure that the strange position brought even with her yukata still largely covering her.

"Can I?" Inuyasha murmured, hips pressing closer against hers as if to make his meaning clear. "I need…"

He did not finish the thought aloud, but she could hear his breaths coming in soft pants and feel the strain in his frame as he pressed against her. Something in the position seemed to be pulling forth a need in him deeper than the usual and despite the foreignness of it she felt her own arousal spike in response.

Levering herself up on her forearm, she gazed back at him over her shoulder as she reached with one hand to pull her yukata up over her hips. He swallowed visibly at the sight, pupils expanding until they had taken over almost the entirety of the iris as his eyes roamed the length of her. He fumbled at the tie to his hakama, nearly shredding it in his haste.

The press of him stretching her as he slid with strained slowness inside of her was far more intense in this position. It might have bordered on pain were she not already so slick and were he not so careful with her. Still a soft grunt escaped her as she felt him press fully inside her, a depth to the sensation that was nearly overwhelming.

"Are…you alright?" Inuyasha said, barely managing to choke the words out against the force of the sensation.

He leaned forward until the length of him was pressed lightly along her back, wrapping one arm around her waist to support her and using the other to brace himself. Tremors danced through every muscle as he fought to keep himself from moving.

Kagome nodded, the intensity of the feeling ebbing somewhat. Experimentally she flexed her hips back against him, dragging a gasp from them both as the motion somehow pressed him in ever deeper. Tremors wracked both of her arms and she was certain that but for his hold on her she would have collapsed.

"Fuck," Inuyasha ground out, a guttural quality to his voice that she had never heard in it before. "Fuck, I…"

Kagome craned to her neck to catch a glimpse of him over her shoulder. Between the dim light and the angle it was difficult to make out much, but she could almost have sworn she saw a strange, jagged mark marring his cheek and that his fangs protruded further over his lower lip than they ever had before. The feel of his youki along her skin was shifting too, almost pulsing with a force that she had never felt from him before.

It was almost as if the youki was wrapping around her, attempting to bind itself to her. The surge of desire that the sensation awoke in her was beyond rational thought, her entire body suddenly reduced down to only the places where they touched. Some small, distant part of her mind whispered that she should be frightened, but there was no fear in her even as she felt the sting of those elongated fangs press lightly at the dip where shoulder met throat.

"It's alright," she murmured. "I'm yours, remember? And you're mine, Inuyasha."

The words shattered the last bit of hesitation in him, his hips shoving forward roughly against her. Kagome groaned, her head falling forward. Even the sting of the feeling was all pleasure now.

Inuyasha pressed her flush against him with the arm around her waist, hips continuing to rock unrelentingly into hers. With every press the tip of him hit something inside her that drew a shudder, the feeling building in intensity so quickly that it left her dizzy. Every thrust of him, every withdrawal, threatened to undo her, to leave her in a boneless heap on the futon.

Still he held her to him, a low growl building in his throat as his thrusts built in speed and desperation. She could feel him coming to an end, feel every muscle strain around her as he fought it.

"Mine," he snarled against the column of her throat. "Mine."

And with one final, deep stroke inside of her he came apart, fangs sinking down into the flesh of her shoulder as he spilled his seed inside of her. Kagome yelped, the sudden, sharp sting dragging her with him over the edge. She strained against him for several long moments, her entire body shuddering with the force of it until she sagged against the arm still holding her in place.

For several long moments their panting breaths were the only sound, his lips still warm against the aching flesh of her punctured shoulder. She felt the moment that realization began to creep in for him in his sudden intake of breath, every muscle in his body going rigid.

"I'm alright," she said. "It's alright."

The words seemed to ease some of the immediate panic. Still he took an excess of care in disentangling himself from her and lowering her onto the futon.

Kagome rolled over just enough to look up at him, unable to manage more as her body struggled to come down from the aftermath. She only just caught the moment that the last of the strange stripes faded from his cheeks. He reached up with a shaking hand to touch his lips, his claws receding back to their normal length as he swiped at the blood speckling his lower lip.

Her blood, Kagome realized with a remarkable lack of concern. Inuyasha's eyes went wide at the sight of it glistening on his fingertips, all of the color draining from his face in an instant.

"Shit," he breathed. "I…did I…?"

"Calm down," Kagome said, forcing herself to sit up. "I'm alright. You didn't hurt me. If anything, you did the exact opposite."

Inuyasha blinked, looking from her to the blood on his fingers as if could not quite comprehend it. Kagome offered him a small smile, taking his hand between both of her own and swiping the blood away gently.

"Are you alright?" she said, reaching up to swipe a thumb along the ridge of his cheek where the odd stripe had appeared.

He nodded slowly, pressing his cheek more solidly into her hand as if to ground himself.

"Yeah. I just…I don't know what happened. It's like…there was some other voice in my head, telling me what I needed to do. That I needed to…to mark you. Are you sure I didn't…?"

He trailed off as if he couldn't quite force the word out.

"I'm sure," she said. "It was just…more intense than usual. Besides, I'm fairly sure you barely even broke the skin, see?"

She reached to pull down the neck of her yukata, revealing the hollow between her neck and shoulder where he had bit her. There was a dull ache to it, but nothing worse than she felt in every muscle after the eagerness of the encounter.

Inuyasha's gaze was like that of a man transfixed as it slid over the mark, pupils growing wide and dark as the night sky. He reached out, fingers swiping tentatively over what had already healed to little more than two deep divots in her pale flesh. Goosebumps rose along his forearm, his breath hitching in his throat.

Kagome frowned.

"No."

"Huh?"

Inuyasha blinked at her as if emerging from a trance.

"I know that look. You have to let me rest! We have things to get done tomorrow!"

"I wasn't-!"

"You were!"

Inuyasha scowled, turning away with a huff.

"It just…I like, that's all," he muttered. "That mark on you. It looks…right."

Kagome smiled, reaching up to touch the mark. It was on the shoulder opposite her sun mark and, by all logic, what she was somehow sure would become yet another permanent mark on her skin should have bothered her. At the rate she was going, she would be nothing but a collection of scars and marks soon.

But every mark was a memory, another thing that bound her to this place and this man. And if he needed to mark her, to bind them ever more tightly together, she would let him time and again.

"It feels right," she agreed softly. "And you are more than welcome to admire it all you like as I get some rest."

His ears drooped faintly.

"...are you sure? We could just-"

"Inuyasha!"

---

The relief that the flames brought was immense.

Kagome had performed more final rites in her life than she would have liked, but never before had she felt such an enormous weight lifted from her as the pyre was lit. She stepped back as the flames began to climb the wood, but even the heat of them felt like a caress.

When speaking the rites she had tried to keep in mind only the little boy. Monsters did not simply spring from the void. They grew as anyone else did, bit by bit, but their growing was the painful sort. The kind devoid of sunlight and care and sustenance. At the root of this monster had been the boy Onigumo, helpless and abused at every turn. It was for him that she prayed for peace as they burned the remains of the monster he had become.

The others had spoken not a word throughout the ceremony, only looking on in grim silence. Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, Kagura, Kanna, Sesshoumaru, Midoriko, and four guards. They were the only ones present here outside of the walls of the court to bear witness to Naraku's final passing from the world. As their eyes reflected the climbing flames, she hoped that there was relief at last for them, as well.

She felt a hand on her shoulder, guiding her protectively further back from the slowly growing flames. Instinctively she grasped the hand, squeezing it and leaning into the solidity of Inuyasha's side. His gaze was distant and she wondered which of the people that Naraku had stolen from him that he mourned for. She grasped his hand more tightly.

Not far behind them stood Miroku and Sango, the hand that still held the rosary flexing and unflexing unconsciously as he looked on. His expression was shadowed, pain and regret mingled among the hard lines of it. Still he smiled when Sango reached for his hand, holding it tightly in both of her own.

Though Kohaku was regaining more and more of his strength with each passing day, they had all decided it best that he not be in attendance. The wounds that Naraku had left on his mind were still far too raw and they feared that being forced to face fully even the remains of the man who had used him so terribly might set him back.

Shippou had volunteered to stay behind with him. Though it was likely through Naraku's machinations that his parents had been framed and put to death, he still insisted that he would sooner remain at his friend's side than be in attendance.

Kagome was slightly surprised that Kanna had chosen to come, though she had felt it only right that she be given the choice. Even now as ash began to spiral upward on the wind there was not a shred of emotion to be found in the pale girl's face. Whatever thoughts or feelings she might have around Naraku's death were entirely her own.

She was, however, standing close enough to clutch at the trailing sleeve of Kagura's juni-hito. It was hard to be sure of much where Kanna was concerned, but Kagome had always gotten the sense of a genuine bond between the two of them. Whether that had always been present or if it was simply the result of a shared tormentor, Kagome suspected that Kanna's presence was largely due to Kagura.

Of all of them Kagura stood closest to the flames, her face awash in them. A smile curved her blood red lips upwards as she watched, unblinking, the flames swallowing the remains of the man who had held her in subjugation for so long. Within the flickering light, though, the corners of that smile trembled. Kagura had wrested her freedom back from the monster with her own two hands, but the scars of those years would continue on with her.

Abruptly Kagura reared back, an awful snorting noise coming from her before she spat into the flames.

"From me," she snarled. "And from Kanna and the boy and the kitsune and the girl. May it cool you where you burn in hell."

With that she took Kanna's hand in her own, spinning around and starting back off towards the gate.

Sesshoumaru's gaze trailed after her, but he made no move to follow. While he had watched her closely throughout the rites, he had made no move to stand at her side.

Despite that the impassiveness of his expression still rivaled Kanna's own, Kagome could not help but wonder if it was guilt that kept him from her side. He had been unaware of her struggle for so many years, too preoccupied with his anger over his father's dismissal of his right to the throne to see clearly.

He had abandoned her while he went to nurse his wounded pride in China, and even upon his return he had hesitated to join the fight against Naraku in order to spite Inuyasha. It was difficult to imagine that even someone as imperious as him did not harbor some regret for it all.

"You're not going after her?" Inuyasha said, unknowingly echoing her own thoughts.

Sesshoumaru shot him a sharp glance, but did not reply immediately.

"This Sesshoumaru requires a word with you and your mate," he said at length. "Come."

He turned and headed off a slight distance, not even bothering to glance back to see if they would follow.

Inuyasha and Kagome flushed simultaneously, eyes darting from Sango and Miroku to Midoriko to the guards. Thankfully Sesshoumaru's words had been low enough that none of them appeared to have overheard.

"You said you had washed thoroughly!" Kagome hissed under her breath, jabbing him with an accusing finger in his side.

"I did!" he hissed in return. "If I'd scrubbed any harder my skin would've come off! Bastard's nose is even better than mine."

Kagome held her glare a moment longer, but relented when he appeared to be in earnest. She glanced towards where Sesshoumaru waited just far off enough to keep them from being overheard.

"Well, should we follow him?"

Inuyasha shrugged.

"Not much choice, is there? If we don't the bastard'll just throw a fit when the time comes to put him back in the Chūwain."

Silently Kagome conceded this. With a nod, she started off after the daiyoukai.

Sesshoumaru did not turn to face them as they approached, his back still to them and the pyre behind them. Silence stretched for several long moments.

"Did you need something or are you just jerking us around to make sure we don't forget you're an asshole?" Inuyasha bit out at last.

Sesshoumaru cast him a withering look over his shoulder before turning to face them full. Surreptitiously Kagome shifted so that her body was angled between them, bracing for what she hoped would amount to no more than a verbal sparring match.

"Crude as ever," Sesshoumaru drawled, darting a look at Kagome. "This Sesshoumaru would have thought that you would have trained that out of him by now, woman. Tell me, has he been housebroken yet or has that proved too much for the cur to handle?"

Inuyasha bristled. Placing a restraining hand on his arm, Kagome leveled a glare at the daiyoukai.

"I seem to recall that it was you who wanted to speak to us, Sesshoumaru-sama," she said. "So speak, boy, speak."

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed at her turn of the insult upon him, but the pride in Inuyasha's expression as he looked at her was well worth the potential of picking a fight.

Surprisingly, though, Sesshoumaru's glare faded almost as quickly as it had formed. His gaze slid away from them, back to the flames of the pyre.

Kagome had not seen him since that awful night of Naraku's death, but during the time that they had all been working together on the plan to lure Naraku she had thought at moments that she sensed a shift in him. He had revived her without question on that night and had returned to his confinement without comment. Perhaps the shift had been a deeper one than she had been able to see.

"This Sesshoumaru will re-enter the court," he said at last.

Kagome blinked, her gaze darting to Inuyasha. The hanyou frowned.

"You know it ain't that easy," he said, and Kagome was surprised that the words were not an immediate denial. "In the eyes of the court, you're still a traitor to the throne."

"This Sesshoumaru is aware," he replied cooly. "This Sesshoumaru is prepared to make…concessions, if concessions are made in return."

"Concessions?" Kagome echoed.

Sesshoumaru leveled his gaze on Inuyasha, meeting the hanyou's eyes squarely.

"Our father named you as Tennō," Sesshoumaru said, and Kagome bit back a gasp at even the slight acknowledgement of their shared parentage. "This Sesshoumaru will not pretend to understand or approve of his decision, but it is done and cannot be taken back."

"You have managed to preserve what he built against those who would have seized it or seen it crumble. To continue to preserve it, this Sesshoumaru will acknowledge you before the court. In return, this Sesshoumaru will be brought in on all matters concerning the throne."

Inyasha's jaw hung open as he stared, blank faced, at the daiyoukai. Kagome was equally at a loss, having expected almost anything but that.

"I…you…"

The faint twitch of one silver brow spoke of an almost immediate regret on the daiyoukai's part as Inuyasha struggled to string two words together.

"What exactly would that entail, Sesshoumaru-sama?" Kagome managed at last.

"For the acknowledgement, a ceremony will need to be held before the court," he replied. "For the matters of the throne, this Sesshoumaru will require regular reports and a voice in all decisions of weight. This Sesshoumaru was bred and raised for the throne. The weight of that knowledge, those connections, are not to be treated lightly. If it is made known that Inu no Taisho's sons are…aligned, many that might have been enemies will choose more wisely."

"...why now?" Inuyasha said, a genuine seeking in the words. "After all of the shit you pulled, why decide this now?"

Sesshoumaru said nothing for several long moments, his gaze straying back to the flames that had at last risen to consume the entire pyre.

"There are things that need to be protected."

Any answer that Inuyasha might have given was preempted by the approach of a guard, bowing as he reached their party. It was not one of the four men that they had brought with them from the Dairi and the man's face was faintly flushed with exertion.

"My apologies, your Majesty, O-Miko-sama, for the interruption," he said hurriedly. "I bring urgent word from the commander at the west gate of a horde of youkai attempting a breach of the barrier there. The guards there are greatly outnumbered and requesting approval from his Majesty for the aid of more troops or a spiritualist."

Inuyasha's brows rose, his gaze meeting Kagome's. It had been some time since a horde had last made an attempt on the barrier.

"I'll go," he said. "It's easier to take care of it myself."

"I will go with you," Kagome said.

"What is going on?"

Miroku, Sango, and Midoriko, having caught sight of the guards' approach, moved to join them.

"There's a horde of youkai gathering at the western gate," Kagome said. "His Majesty and I are going to aid the guards there."

"Let me go with you," Sango said. "The more of us there are, the less risk to us all."

"I second Sango-sama and will accompany you, as well," Miroku put in, adding at the sharp looks he received, "And I would appreciate not being treated as if I were an invalid. I am more than recovered enough to be of some use in a fight."

"I can take some of the guards and escort Sesshoumaru-sama back to the Chūwain," Midoriko volunteered.

Sesshoumaru made no protest to this, though Kagome thought she caught the faintest flicker of annoyance darting across his expression. Still, his proposition would have to wait until the more pressing threat had been dealt with.

Behind them the pyre was still burning bright. They had made certain that the area was clear of brush and separated a ways from the tree line before deciding on the location, but it would not do to leave an open flame unattended so near to the east gate.

"Would one of you mind staying behind to watch the pyre?" Kagome said, addressing the four guards they had brought with them. "Just until it burns itself out."

One of the guards nodded.

"I will, O-Miko-sama."

"Thank you," Kagome said. "The rest of you, please accompany the O-Miko-sama and Sesshoumaru-sama back to the Chūwain. Sesshoumaru-sama, his Majesty and I will visit you as soon as we are able to finish our…discussion."

Sesshoumaru offered only an almost imperceptible nod to this, sweeping off towards the gate and leaving Midoriko and the guards to follow in his wake. Midoriko offered them a long-suffering look before trailing after him.

Inuyasha knelt down, offering up his back to Kagome. Normally she might have objected to traveling that way in broad daylight, but time was of the essence.

Once she was settled securely, she cast a questioning glance back at Miroku and Sango.

"I left Kirara just inside the gates," Sango said. "I had thought to take her out for a ride after the ceremony, but it seems we will be going on a different sort of outing instead. Thankfully I almost always wear the taiji-ya uniform under my clothing."

A smile curved up the corners of Miroku's lips at that last bit, a wicked comment on the tip of his tongue. A sharp look from Sango stifled it quickly enough, the houshi holding his hands up in a gesture of peace.

"Go on ahead," Sango said. "We will be right behind you."

Kagome nodded, bracing herself as Inuyasha rose and started off. She cast a final glance back towards the pyre, watching the flames grow smaller and smaller as the distance grew.

They had done it. In the light of the flames, the words finally felt like they meant something.

Kagome smiled, turning forward to face the next challenge.

---

The threat at the west gate proved easier to dispatch than they had expected. Though the number of youkai gathered there was unusually high, between the guards, Kagome, Sango, Inuyasha, and Miroku, the horde was quick to disband as their defeat quickly became all but a foregone conclusion.

Word would later spread from the guards that had been posted at the gate through the court of the of the almost frightening fighting prowess that the four had shown there. They said that they had moved like battle-hardened warriors who had fought at each other's sides for centuries, attacking and defending in a dance so efficient and so effortless that scarcely a word had been uttered between them as they moved.

While Kagome was certain that some of the overblown praise was merely a result of the court distorting the story as it spread, she was pleased at how easily the four of them had meshed together in the moment of need. That same inexplicable sense of ease that she had felt at the Tachibana residence had been present once more and there was a deep sense of satisfaction to watching as Inuyasha began to let down more and more of his guard around the friends she had grown to consider more akin to a second family.

In the days following the incident, life within the court for Kagome began to take on a rhythm that, for all that she scarcely had a moment to herself most days, was somehow everything she had ever hoped for of her life in the court.

Together with Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, and often Midoriko, she began to take in hand every thread that she could within the court. The servants, the council, the Ministry, the appointments, the villages, the clans. Every scrap of hard-earned knowledge was picked up and laid out in a tangled mess before them with the hopes that it could be woven into something more. Far too many threads to be woven by any one hand, but thankfully they no longer found themselves short of hands at all.

The first major question to be addressed by herself and Inuyasha was that of Sesshoumaru. Though Kagome had anticipated that the discussion of the topic would be a lengthy one, she was surprised to find that she and Inuyasha came to the same conclusion fairly quickly.

Leaving Sesshoumaru to rot in the Chūwain would do them little good and in fact might become a source of contention in the court if it were left unaddressed too long. He did, after all, still have a claim by blood to the throne and there was no doubt still those among the clans who would sooner see a full blooded youkai at the head of their nation. Inuyasha had shown strength and mercy in confining him after his attempted coup, but leaving him in extended confinement ran the risk of making him a sympathetic figure once more.

If Sesshoumaru was willing to publicly declare his acknowledgement of Inuyasha as Tennō, it would take a good deal of weight out of any claim he had to the throne and would present a powerful united front between the two sons of Inu no Taisho. The only risks to it lay in the question of whether Sesshoumaru was in earnest in what he had said or if it was simply a means to free himself so that he could work once more towards his own ends.

Surprisingly it was Inuyasha who expressed doubts that the latter was the case. Sesshoumaru had been an asshole for as long as he had known him, he said, but he tended to be a straight forward asshole at least. Besides, there had been something weirdly sincere in his words at the pyre.

Beyond any political considerations, though, Inuyasha felt that there was a debt there that needed to be repaid. Without Sesshoumaru there would have been no saving her that night, and for that he was willing to risk anything that Sesshoumaru might throw at them. Worst case, he said, he would just beat his ass again and throw him back into a much worse form of confinement.

And so it was agreed that Sesshoumaru would resume life in court and would be brought in one slow step at a time to have a voice on matters of import. However, Inuyasha insisted that he still had a right to tell that voice to shut the hell up if it ever got too annoying.

This he thankfully managed to keep from saying aloud when they went to visit Sesshoumaru and give him the news. Both brothers actually managed to maintain a level of civility during the encounter that Kagome would have once sworn would have been impossible. It gave her some hope that perhaps something truly was changing within Sesshoumaru.

They agreed that a gathering of the clans would be planned and held as soon as they were able, Kagome taking up that thread and adding it to her ever-growing handful. The number of ceremonies to be planned seemed to be piling up by the moment, but thankfully her time spent planning the ceremony for the appointees with Midoriko and the number of people she could now look to for aid kept it from becoming too overwhelming.

Another thread that they took up was a regular, daily scheduling of time to receive reports from Chūsei's network, the guards, and the governors of the villages. Inuyasha made certain that they were both present for as many of these as possible, the two of them together far better equipped to record and handle all of the information than either of them were on their own.

Reports from all three groups were largely just the day to day minutiae of court and village life. The guards reported a few small changes in their rotations after one of their captains had suddenly fallen ill, some minor skirmishes here and there with youkai making attempts on the barrier, and a few odd youkai migration patterns that had been observed, but largely all was peaceful on their end.

Chūsei's network reported the discovery of a few minor clans that they felt might be worthy of investigating for potential abuses to their servants. Inuyasha was quick to assign a few trusted members of the Ministry to investigate, instructing them that any sign hint of mistreatment was to be acted on immediately by a removal of all servants from the residence and a ban on the clan being able to employ servants for at least a year. Any displaced servants were to be sent to Chūsei for aid and reassignment.

They were also able to work with Chūsei on ideas of how to better the situation of the servants within the court. A number of suggestions were proposed and just as swiftly thrown out as unfeasible, but at length they stumbled on a solution in the form of one of the servants accompanying Chūsei.

The woman was young and one of the brightest among her network, Chūsei informed them. When Kagome asked her opinion on a list they had written of potential ideas for the betterment of the servants, though, the woman had been deeply embarrassed to admit that she could neither read nor write.

This was not uncommon among the servants, Chūsei had hastened to assure her and inform them. Most servants received no more education than was strictly necessary for their day to day duties. While the skill was prized among the courtiers when they sought out personal attendants or head servants to help manage their households, it simply was not one that most would ever have access to.

At this the three of them had paused, looking to one another as a thought struck them almost simultaneously. Education. The courtiers valued it, but the servants had no way to access it. And even a basic knowledge of letters and numbers would be far beyond what most villagers received, making the skills valuable even beyond the confines of the court. If they could provide even a basic education to the servants, it was likely to open any number of paths to better their situations.

Thus it was decided that they would begin working on a plan to provide education to those servants who desired it. There were still a good many details to be worked out before anything could be put into place, but it was a solid place to start from.

The meetings with the governors were a bit more tricky to manage, but thankfully Inuyasha had been considering the issue of communication with them for some time before coming to a solution: Kanna. With the youkai girl living in the Dairi and now freed of Naraku, the issue of distance quickly became hardly any issue at all.

The biggest obstacle was introducing the idea to the governors, many of them startled at the initial contact of seeing the Tennō reflected in some random body of water or some small reflective surface. Once the situation was explained, however, they were able to set up appointed times with each one to receive reports on the status of things in each village.

The progress was somewhat uneven from village to village, but this much was to be expected. Some villages simply had more resources than others and some had been left at a disadvantage by the attacks of youkai hordes.

In each, though, progress was to be found. Spiritualists were being brought in, new agricultural techniques were being introduced, and the able bodied among them were being trained to defend their villages should the need arise. The governors advised on what supplies were needed to best aid each village and they in turn were able to share the different innovations that were being made from village to village.

Kagome was even able to check in on her own village and family. Her mother, her image in Kanna's mirror practically glowing with health, informed her that she would scarcely be able to recognize their village whenever she got a chance to return. Yasunori continued his diligent reinforcement of the barrier she had created and had displayed a great knack for healing that had proved a blessing to many in the village.

Tachibana Hidehiko had chosen to make their village the base of operations for himself and the small contingent of Tachibana who were still working alongside him to rebuild villages in the area. Their presence continued to be a welcome addition to the village and largely discouraged any would-be bandits or raiders from coming around.

Kagome had not missed the pleased flush that colored her mother's cheeks when she spoke of the head of the Tachibana clan. She suspected that the choice of their village as a base had far more to do with her mother's presence in it than any convenience of location, but she held her tongue on this. Her mother and Tachibana Hidehiko were both adults and long time widowers. When and if they chose to involve themselves with one another, she was certain her mother would tell her when she was ready.

She was also able to gather that Sango had not informed Hidehiko of what had occurred with Kohaku. It made sense, as she imagined that he would have joined Sango in an instant in the search for Kohaku had he been aware of the danger his son had been in.

Everything to do with Mount Hakurei and its aftermath had occurred in such a rapid, jumbled succession that she was not surprised that Sango had not had enough time to send word to her father, but the fact that he was still unaware made her suspect that some of the choice had been made out of consideration for Kohaku. Hidehiko, for all of his obvious love for both of his children, appeared to hold them both to very high standards. Sango was likely worried that what had happened to Kohaku would be perceived as some sort of weakness.

Thus Kagome was careful to make no mention of it that might make its way back through her family to the head of the Tachibana clan. Kohaku was safe and regaining his strength every day. When Hidehiko made his eventual return to court, Kagome trusted that Sango would handle the matter in whatever manner she saw fit.

Souta and her Jii-chan also made frequent appearances in these meetings-they were supposed to be with Yasunori and the village headman most of the time, but that rarely kept them from devolving into family gatherings-to inform her proudly that they were training alongside the Tachibana.

While Souta did appear to have put on a bit of muscle that would indicate training, at Jii-chan she could only raise an incredulous brow. His "training", her mother informed her when he was not present, was nothing more than him standing by yelling nonsensical instructions at the men as they trained. It made him feel included and kept him occupied, though, so the men were happy enough to tolerate it.

In the middle of their third such meeting, Kagome could feel Inuyasha fidgeting behind her so restlessly that she could scarcely focus on a word being said. The hanyou had been present for every one of her discussions with her family, but had rarely spoken much beyond when her mother addressed him.

Her mother, ever a friend to any friend of Kagome's, addressed Inuyasha with all the ease of addressing any of the children who had grown up in the village. Souta and Jii-chan, on the other hand, were still a bit gobsmacked by the idea of addressing the Tennō directly and tended to freeze up when it came to him.

On this occasion, both Kagome and her mother paused when the hanyou's agitation became so obvious as to be concerning.

"Is something the matter, dear?" her mother said gently.

Inuyasha had almost flinched at her first use of the term of endearment, but as he had not bothered to object Kagome had opted not to comment on it either. She could not help but suspect that some part of Inuyasha enjoyed the motherly treatment.

"I…"

Inuyasha had glanced from her to her mother, his discomfort growing by the moment. Kagome had frowned, uncertain where the sudden unease was coming from. She had reached for his hand, but he had beaten her to it by snatching hers up first and holding it up before the mirror.

"I want to marry your daughter!" he had blurted out, his face so red she feared he might pass out on the spot. "...please."

Kagome's mother had blinked, her face going blank for several long, painful moments. Kagome had put a hand to her mouth, her own mortification rising as she realized that she had failed in all of their meetings to tell her family about her relationship with Inuyasha. Speaking with her family again, being able to see them almost whenever she wanted, had simply felt so natural that it was easy to forget that they had been privy to almost nothing in her life since she had last seen them several months ago.

That explained why Inuyasha had seemed so out of sorts after her other meetings with them. She had assumed that it was simply that he tended to struggle when acclimating himself to new people, but the whole time he had been sitting there wanting to tell them and having no idea how.

"Oh," he mother had said softly at last. "Oh. Oh!"

Her voice had cracked around the last exclamation, her hand coming up to cover her mouth as tears welled rapidly in her eyes. Inuyasha's eyes had gone so wide that she could see the whites of them all around, all color leaving his face in an instant. He looked every bit the deer caught in a hunter's sights, poised to flee at even the slightest provocation.

"That's wonderful!" Kagome's mother had exclaimed, shattering the tension in a blessed instant. "Oh, Kagome, I am so happy for you! Oh, I knew it! I just had a feeling when I first saw the two of you together that there was something there! You know, I had never seen Kagome so infatuated with someone before!"

"Have you decided when the wedding will be? We will do anything we can to be in attendance, though I'm not certain I have anything fit to wear in the court! Oh! Let me go get Souta and Jii-chan! They will be just thrilled to hear the news!"

Before either of them could get so much as a word out, she had bustled off to go find them. The two of them had been left blinking in her wake, trading bemused looks.

"Was that a yes?" Inuyasha had said.

"Mama would never imagine saying no to you," Kagome had replied, shaking her head. "From the first time you came to the village she thought we were a couple and I doubt she has ever let go of the notion since. To her it was likely all but a foregone conclusion. I'm so sorry, Inuyasha. It wasn't that I didn't want them to know, just in the excitement of everything it completely slipped my mind."

Inuyasha had shaken his head, one corner of his mouth curling upwards suddenly.

"S'alright," he said. "I mean, you were probably too shy to say anything being that they know about how you've had a huge crush on me for so long. So embarrassing."

Kagome had gaped at him, flushing.

"We are getting married!"

"Congratulations," Kanna had said, peeking her head out from behind her mirror.

The remainder of the meeting had been largely a mess gushing from her mother and stunned congratulations from her brother and grandfather. They had promised that they would make sure that they could be in attendance when the date for the ceremony was finally decided and that they would provide any of the necessary attire or other sundries that might be needed.

Kagome had asked them to keep from spreading the word further until the official announcement could be made in court. She knew it was unlikely that the Tachibana among them would somehow spread the news all the way back to the court before it could be announced, but she figured that they were better off safe than sorry on that front.

For all of the time she had spent agonizing over whether she would be able to handle the position of Empress, her family surprised her by making not even the vaguest of comments on the subject. She was not sure if they were just so thrilled at the prospect of her marrying that it did not occur to them or if it truly was not something that they were concerned about at all, but there was a relief in being able to celebrate the idea of her impending marriage without all of the attendant trappings that usually had to be considered with it.

Better even than that, though, was the light in Inuyasha's eyes as they had heaped their praise and congratulations on him. Any barriers of status that might have existed between them dissolved in an instant at the knowledge of their engagement and it was more touching than she ever even could have imagined to watch Inuyasha be so thoroughly welcomed by her family.

That night, as they had lain side by side in the darkness of their place, he had even suggested that her family be moved to the court to live. It would be easy enough to give them a residence and clan name and to see to it that they were taken care of, he had said. Kagome had burst into tears at the suggestion, sending Inuyasha into a panicked spiral until she regained enough of her wits to assure him that they were tears of joy.

Another thread that needed tending was that of the appointees and their new Ministry branch. Thankfully, however, the tending required there was minimal at best. The appointees had proven themselves every bit as capable and driven as she could have hoped, researching tirelessly with Midoriko's help to find precedent for the establishment of new branches as well as drawing up outlines of what their official functions should be.

Truly all that was left where she and Inuyasha were concerned was to make the official announcement. For this they worked with Sango and Midoriko, designing a ceremony fit for the announcement of a new Ministry branch and that of Sesshoumaru acknowledging Inuyasha officially as Tennō.

Under different circumstances they might have held a separate ceremony for each of the two events, but as Kagome insisted that it be held before their engagement ceremony (it would put them in an infinitely stronger position with the court and would alleviate some of the disappointment of the clans who might have hoped Inuyasha would pick a bride from among their daughters) Inuyasha was equally insistent that they be gotten out of the way as soon as possible. Midoriko and Sango, with some pressure from the hanyou, agreed after a bit of consideration that the two announcements were similar enough in nature that they could be held together.

Thus four weeks slid by in a flurry of planning interspersed with the myriad of daily duties that they had to attend to. It was one of the most hectic and happiest periods Kagome could recall ever having experienced in her life.

They chose the Daigokuden as the venue for the ceremony for Sesshoumaru and the appointees. Not a particularly novel choice, Midoriko said, but there was a certain gravitas that needed to be afforded to these types of announcements that the space was perfect for. Besides, what the ceremony might lack in originality they more than made up for in lavishness.

Almost every piece of artwork that had ever been made in dedication to Inu no Taisho had been pulled from storage and used to decorate the walls along with lavish silk swaths of the former Tennō's favored hues of red and gold. A dais of elaborately carved hinoki wood depicting several scenes of the original formation of the Ministry and its acts of service to the Tennō had been commissioned for the appointees and placed alongside Inuyasha's own dais in the room.

The entryway leading into the Daigokuden was strewn with fresh paulownia petals, the air rich with the scent of them, and shikigami were used once more to guide in the courtiers, this time wearing the guise of great dog youkai. Smaller, nondescript shikigami bustled about serving the food, the number and variety of the dishes as extensive as any courtier could wish for.

From start to finish the ceremony went off without a hitch. The new Ministry branch was announced first and, while there was some general surprise at this, there was also an easy acceptance of it that told Kagome the rumors of it had long since spread far and wide throughout the court. The general reaction to the official announcement seemed positive, the interest in some of the younger women of the court especially apparent.

Each appointee being inducted into the new Ministry branch took a turn approaching the dais, Inuyasha awarding them their official title and thanking them in advance for the good work that they would do in service to him. It was especially gratifying to see Katsumi and Hisana stepping up to accept their positions, their heads held high and eyes alight with the vision of a new future.

Sesshoumaru's entrance proved to be the true talk of the ceremony. The daiyoukai swept into the Daigokuden with all the regal grace of the former Tennō himself, his usual raiment swapped out in favor of the reds and golds favored by Inu no Taisho and Inuyasha.

At the foot of the dais he stood in silence for several long, agonizing moments, his gaze meeting Inuyasha's almost as if in challenge. For those moments Kagome feared the worst, tensing in preparation for anything he might try and wishing with all of her heart that she had brought bow as she had half-thought to do.

But then Sesshoumaru's gaze had shifted ever so slightly, straying towards the side of the room where the Taira were seated. Following his gaze, Kagome found Kagura and, even more surprisingly, Rin seated there at Kagura's side. The youkai woman's expression gave away nothing, though her blood red gaze was fixed unwaveringly on Sesshoumaru. Rin, on the other hand, was practically squirming with excitement, her eyes wide and tiny fists clenched before her as she looked on.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Sesshoumaru lowered himself, bowing his head just enough to convey his submission. In as few words as he could manage he offered his acknowledgement of Inuyasha as the rightful Tennō, pledging his service to the bloodline of Inu no Taisho from that day forward. Inuyasha rose and accepted his vow, forgiving his past transgressions and welcoming him into his service.

The silence following all of this was so loud that it was nearly deafening. It was as if every member of every clan was holding their breath, waiting to see what would come next. It was the Taira that broke that silence at last, their resounding applause shattering the shock that hung thick throughout the room.

The other clans followed in quick succession, the sound of their approval growing so loud that the entirety of the space echoed with it. None among them had ever expected to see an alliance forged between the sons of Inu no Taisho, but the promise and the power of it was enough to force a show of support from even the most reticent among them.

Thus it was that Sesshoumaru reclaimed his place in the court and a new Ministry branch was born. From her place on the dais that day, Kagome felt almost as if she could reach out and take into her hands the bright future that she had watched growing before her eyes day by day.

There remained only one big step forward to take.

---

Kagome felt nauseous.

It might have been the unusual warmth of the day or the suffocating heaviness of the excessive number of layers that she was wearing or even the fact that her engagement to the divine ruler of her nation was to be announced the next day. It was hard to say.

Sango, on the other hand, could scarcely have looked happier should she have been announcing her own engagement. Her hands were pressed to her mouth, her eyes wide and bright with the sheen of unshed tears.

"You look radiant," she said, her voice thick with emotion. "Truly. How do you feel?"

Kagome offered her a smile, pressing a hand to her churning stomach.

"Honestly, a bit ill," she confessed. "I mean, the juni-hito is everything I could have hoped for and I know we have taken care of every last detail of the ceremony down to the moment, but I just…I feel as if I might throw up."

Sango offered her a sympathetic smile, nodding her understanding as she moved to her side.

"I think, given the circumstances, the feeling is understandable," she said, rubbing a gentle hand over her back. "What do you say we call this final fitting done, get you out of these heavy layers, and go have some tea and snacks with Kohaku and his lot? As you said, we have done all we possibly can these past weeks in preparation. Let us take the rest of the day for a well earned rest, hmm?"

Opening her mouth to voice her agreement, Kagome was interrupted by a mortifyingly loud rumble coming from her own stomach. She blinked, the sensation of nausea shifting to that of hunger at the mention of food so quickly that it was almost dizzying. She flushed as Sango stifled a laugh, shifting to help her begin to remove the layers.

"I will take that as yes," she said, her voice thick with amusement. "I used to worry at how little you ate when you were under strain, but I am glad to see that habit seems to have given way with time to a healthy appetite."

"Do you think they might have more of those yokan they had last time?" Kagome asked absently, shifting to help Sango remove another layer. "Those were good."

Sango chuckled, taking care to smooth out each layer before handing it off to the servant woman in attendance to be hung and stored.

"I am certain that it can be arranged for if that is what the future Empress is craving," she teased, keeping her voice low to avoid being overheard.

Kagome shot her a pointed look, but there was no real heat in it. Sango had been teasing her with the title ever since they had begun planning this ceremony over a month and a half ago, but she was grateful that for all of the jokes there was no real sign among her friends of any change in their treatment of her. If anything, the lack of formality with which they treated her and Inuyasha should have been somewhat concerning, but would not have changed it for the world.

Her stomach rumbled once more and she pressed a hand to it, frowning. She had not thought too much of it- had not had time to think too much of it, really-but Sango was right. She had been close to ravenous of late, to the point that Inuyasha had even begun bringing snacks to their meeting place at night. He seemed to get some kind of strange satisfaction out of making sure that there was almost always food on hand for her and she wondered if that was somehow altering her appetite.

Mentally she shrugged. It did not much matter either way, and if a bit of extra food and putting on a little more weight helped her to manage the myriad of tasks that they had taken on of late then so be it.

Once the ceremonial juni-hito was fully removed, she redressed in her miko robes and the two headed off arm in arm to Kohaku's wing of the residence. On the way Sango made a point of stopping to ask a servant to have tea, snacks, and extra yokan prepared, offering Kagome a cheeky wink that she could not help but laugh at.

They found the usual group gathered in Kohaku's quarters with the addition of Miroku. They welcomed them warmly, Miroku's gaze so fixed on Sango that he would not have noticed should a wagon have been about to run him down. Sango flushed at the attention, but made no comment as she sat down near enough to him that the tips of their fingers just brushed.

Kagome had had many a discussion with both of the lovesick fools about why there appeared to be little progress between them. Miroku simply said that he was content to be at Sango's side for as long as she would allow him.

Sango said that she wanted to make sure that Kagome's ceremony was the focus for the time being. Her father would be in attendance, after all, escorting Kagome's family to the Heian-kyō. With him there and the ceremony done, she could begin working on her plan to get her father to accept Miroku as a potential suitor.

Secretly Kagome suspected that she was also just taking her time to enjoy the houshi's attentions being so ardently fixed on her after so many years of him having to withhold his affections.

"Kagome-sama, here," Rin said, holding out a tray of yokan for her.

Kagome smiled, taking a few of the proffered treats and thanking the girl. Though Rin's position was much altered in the court, she still tended to act the part of the servant almost instinctively.

Midoriko had officially taken her on as an apprentice, telling Kagome that she showed a great knack for the healing arts and strong desire to be of aid to others. She also had been granted quarters in the residence in the Dairi that Sesshoumaru had taken up upon his release. Kagura seemed to regard her much as she regarded Kanna, with the kind of begrudging affection she awarded to those who managed to wiggle their way past her thorny exterior.

Kagome had little doubt that, in time, the pair would likely adopt her as their official ward and she was glad to think that the little girl who had suffered so much would be so well cared for.

Shippou and Kohaku, on the other side of the low table, were deep in a discussion involving an abundance of exaggerated gesticulations from the kitsune, though they had paused long enough to greet them when they came in.

As her ward, Shippou would have a place of honor during the ceremony tomorrow. When he was ready he would also be moved into the Dairi to reside, though for the time being he chose to remain close to Kohaku in the Tachibana residence as the boy continued to convalesce.

Over the last month and a half Kagome had made certain to make time for Inuyasha and Shippou to spend together, the two of them having had little chance to truly get to know one another in their limited interactions up to that point. While there still seemed to be an almost instinctive tension between them in vying for her time and attention, Inuyasha had largely been on his best behavior and Shippou was slowly coming around.

It also certainly helped that Inuyasha had volunteered to train him in a few fighting techniques and had said he would see about having a sword forged specifically for him.

In fact it was that blade that he was now so animatedly discussing with Kohaku, detailing exactly what he imagined it would look like. Kohaku was nodding along, even offering a few soft exclamations of admiration here and there.

To see how far that he had come since he had been brought back to the court was a wonder that warmed Kagome all the way through. While there was still a certain fragility to him, a kind of tentativeness that begged for soft words and gentle treatment, he would now readily speak and interact with those that were familiar to him. He ate regular meals without prompting, went on walks around the Tachibana residence, and even ventured out occasionally with Miroku and Sango to watch them spar.

He still would not touch or even look long at his own kusari-gama, Sango had told her, but she did not intend to press him on that unless he asked for it himself. From the time he was very young, Sango said, Kohaku had always been an exceptionally gentle soul. Likely were it not for him having been born to the headman of a clan of taiji-ya, he would never have picked up a weapon at all.

If their father took issue with him no longer wishing to fight, Sango would be the first to defend him. She would not allow anyone to force any more violence or fear on her brother than he had already been subjected to, and if that meant her stepping in to take his place as head of their clan then she would find a way to do it. She had proven herself a warrior and a leader and she would continue to do so until her father and her clan relented the notion that she was not fit for it simply because she had happened to be born a woman.

Memory also seemed to be slowly returning to the boy, though much of his time under Naraku's control remained hazy. He knew that he knew Kagome from before, but he did not know how or when they had met. He knew that he and Shippou were friends, but he had a hard time recalling when or how that friendship had formed.

While Kagura would occasionally prod him on these details, for the most part she seemed content to sit back and allow him to remember or not remember in his own time. That he had been able to drag himself back from such a thorough torture as Naraku liked to inflict on those he subjugated was a feat in and of itself. Perhaps for that he should be allowed at least the kindness of forgetting the worst of it, Kagura had said.

She sat now off on her own on the edge of the walkway that overlooked the gardens, her eyes closed as a warm spring breeze tugged at her hair and clothing. In moments like these Kagome often thought of Kagura as something akin to dandelion seed, ready at any moment to be swept up and away to any place the wind might deem to take her. She wondered at times if that was why all of Kagura's affections seemed to be begrudging, the very weight of those connections the only thing that kept her rooted in place.

As if sensing her thoughts Kagura's eyes suddenly opened, meeting hers directly across the room. A faint frown tugged at the corners of her lips.

"There is something strange on the wind," she said, and all other conversation in the room suddenly ceased. "It blows from the east and carries the scent of blood along with…your scent, or something quite close to it."

Kagome froze, yokan falling from fingers that had suddenly gone numb. Sango met her look with equally wide eyes, her face paling.

Her family. They had set out from her village several days ago with Tachibana Hidehiko as an escort and were anticipated to arrive that day by way of the east gate in order to be present for the engagement ceremony.

"Come," Sango said, regaining her wits the quickest. "Come, we will take Kirara and head to the gate. If there are injured among them we can help."

"I will go with you," said Miroku, rising to stand at Sango's side.

Sango nodded, her gaze darting to Kagura.

"Kagura-sama, you can travel the fastest among us," she said. "Would you go ahead to the east gate and see if there is anything to be done? Please, it may be Kagome-chan's family or my father that are in trouble."

Kagura's frown deepened, her gaze sliding between the two women. She sighed.

"Very well," she said. "I will meet you there."

Sango flashed her a small, grateful smile before grabbing Kagome's hand and hauling her to her feet. She tugged her out of the room and down the hallway to the area where Kirara tended to spend her afternoons sunbathing, Miroku trailing behind them.

"All will be well, all will be well," the noblewoman kept saying, and whether the words were more for herself or Kagome was uncertain. "Kirara!"

The neko youkai, sunning herself on a rock in the inner courtyard, perked up immediately at the sound of her name. She did not miss a beat, transforming in a swirl of youki into her larger form and lowering herself just enough for Sango to vault onto her back. Miroku aided Kagome in getting up before jumping up behind her.

"East gate, quickly!" Sango said, and they were off in a burst of speed that made Kagome grateful for Miroku's solidity behind her.

She could hear the pounding of her pulse in her ears, but her mind was glaringly empty. Blood. Her family. The east gate. The words tumbled through her mind like stones, heavy and impenetrable.

Distantly she felt Miroku squeeze her shoulder, the comforting gesture enough to pull her from her stupor. She glanced at him over her shoulder and he offered her a bracing smile.

"All will be well," he said. "Your family is strong, and so is Sango's father."

"There!"

Sango's exclamation cut across any response she might have given and her gaze snapped immediately to where her friend pointed. It was difficult to make out from the height that they were at, but there were several figures grouped together just outside of the gate around what appeared to be a wagon.

Kirara dove towards the scene and it became clearer with each moment. Kagura was already there, Shippou, Rin, and Kohaku inexplicably in tow. They stood near the wagon along with four others that Kagome instantly recognized as her family and Sango's father.

Before them stood four guards, apparently barring their path through the gate. As they touched down Kagome could just catch the tail end of an exchange between Sango's father and the guards.

"-cannot allow it," one of the guards was saying. "My apologies, Tachibana-sama, but she is not permitted within the court."

"Show some mercy!" Hidehiko said, gesturing towards the wagon. "The woman is dying as we speak and you-!"

Kagome lost the thread of the conversation as soon as Kirara's paws touched the ground, scrambling off of her back so quickly that she nearly fell. She righted herself and dashed past the guards and the Tachibana headman, briefly relieved to see that he appeared to be whole and uninjured.

"Mama!"

The only woman amongst their traveling group, her mother turned away from where she had been watching the wagon at her cry. Her eyes went wide, her arms opening instinctively. Kagome dove into them, her legs nearly going out from under her with the relief of the realization that she was unharmed.

"Kagome! Oh, my sweet girl, thank goodness you are here!"

"Mama, Mama, kami, are you alright? Is everyone alright? We had heard that there was trouble and I-"

A swell of sudden tears choked her words off and she swallowed them back, pulling back enough to examine her mother's face. The woman was pale and fatigue sat heavy in the furrow of her brow, but beyond that she appeared much as she always did. Glancing behind her, Kagome saw Souta and Jii-chan looking much the same.

Both men came forward, wrapping their arms around herself and her mother. Enveloped in their warmth, Kagome's eyes fell shut and she allowed herself a moment to simply breathe them in. They were there. They had made it and they were all of them whole.

Reluctantly her mother pulled back, breaking them up.

"I am so glad to see you," she said. "And I wish this could simply be a joyful reunion, but I fear time is running out. We stumbled across them a day ago on our ride here and she is gravely injured. Hidehiko-sama did what he could, but she is still losing so much blood and I'm worried if she does not receive proper treatment soon that she will not hold out much longer. The guards won't allow her through. Can you help her?"

She gestured to the wagon. Rin and Shippou had climbed up into it and Kohaku and Kagura were peering over the side at what Kagome had initially taken for no more than a pile of blankets. Now that she was closer she could see that it was in fact two huddled figures, a haggard looking man cradling what appeared to be another pile of blankets in his lap.

Kagura caught her eye, her lips set in a grim line and something almost like pity in her hooded gaze.

"Kagome-sama, the lady is hurt," said Rin, moving to kneel beside the bundle of blankets in the man's lap. "Can you help?"

Kagome glanced from her to Kagura, sending the youkai woman a reproving look as she levered herself up into the wagon. Kagura gave a slight shake of her head, the gesture strangely like a warning.

"They were insistent on coming and I did not wish to waste time finding someone to look after them," Kagura said, answering her unspoken question. "Though I think that might be the least of your concerns right now."

Kagome frowned, turning her attention to the haggard man leaning against the back of the wagon. While she would rather that the younger ones had remained behind, Kagura was right in that there was the more pressing concern of the injured woman to worry about first.

"Could you show me her wounds?" she said, addressing the man. "I promise I will do my best to help her."

The man seemed to hesitate a moment, weary eyes roving over her features. Slowly he nodded, leaning forward to pull enough of the blankets away that the woman could be seen.

Kagome's heart stopped.

Bloodied and bruised, her belly swollen with child, and just barely clinging to consciousness was a dead woman.

Kikyou.

---

Mini-History Lesson/Context Notes:

-Inuyasha's human form: from my reading of the manga/watching of the anime, I always tended to think that in human form Inuyasha's emotions are much closer to the surface than they are when he's hanyou. I personally would imagine that for someone as vulnerable his whole life as Inuyasha was, having all of his defenses stripped forcibly away once a month would be a really awful/harrowing experience to have to endure. I also generally got the impression that youkai experience emotions very differently than humans do, almost in a way that's somewhat more muted due to their long life-spans. That's why I tend to think that in human form Inuyasha is smacked full force by the weight of human emotion, leaving him a lot more open than any other time. I'm not certain that any of this is canon, but hopefully you can pardon my interpretation here of Inuyasha as being much more open on these nights than at any other time.

-Marriage/weddings: I believe I've mentioned it briefly before, but marriage/wedding ceremonies in Heian Japan were wildly different among the nobility than what we think of today as marriage. Primarily they were fairly loose in structure and very little if any ceremony was needed in order for a couple to become "married", mostly just an arrangement between the man and the woman's father plus him visiting her nightly. Obviously I did not choose to adhere to this with this story, taking a bit more of a current take on the institution and rituals surrounding it.

-Paulownia petals: the paulownia plant is the symbol currently used on the Government Seal of Japan, but in the past it was also used by the Japanese imperial family as their seal. I'm not certain that its use dates all the way back to the Heian period, but I used the petals anyway as a symbol during the ceremony for Sesshoumaru/the appointees.

-Hinoki: Japanese cypress, a type of wood utilized extensively in Japanese woodworking

-Yokan: Bean paste, agar, and sugar shaped into a block that could be made either of paste or water. Still eaten today as a traditional snack with tea.

-Was there both a Parks and Rec and a Star Wars reference hidden not at all subtly in this chapter? Yes, yes there was. You're welcome.

This chapter ballooned rapidly out of my control as I was writing it, so my apologies for its monstrous length. Every time I thought I was nearing the end, some scene that I had thought would be no more than two pages suddenly decided to make itself into a monster instead. For all of its unwieldiness, I hope that you enjoy it because it was an absolute pleasure to write (for the most part).

If you come across anything you find that you don't understand please feel free to shoot me a message here or on Tumblr and I'll do my best to respond.

Also, if you happen to be looking for more ways to interact with or support me or this story, visit me on tumblr at eien-no-basho ! Any and all support there is always greatly appreciated!