Her Destiny

Chapter 12

Sado gathered his followers, and shortly after, they left the cave that was located deep within the Northern Mountains. As a group of assassins, they traveled fast and with secrecy, they did not need to be noticed and it was their job not to be. After traveling for sometime, his group split up into five parts, all taking off in different directions. It made their party smaller; hence their travel would be less noticeable.

The plan was to meet up at Gengetsujou in a week’s time where they could plan their attack against the Western Lord. They knew that they would lose some of their own while traveling, it was to be expected as they are Nezumi youkai, and often fell pray to larger predator youkai.

This fact however, did not stop them from being great assassins. They are skilled in penetrating any barrier with ease and their usual tactic was to approach their targets under the cover of night. Being dark grey in color, made it easy for them to travel at night unseen and since their eyesight was sharper at night than during the day, they preferred to rest during the day and travel by night.

A week had passed, and they finally made it to Gengetsujou. They met up with the rest of their party as they scanned the area. To their surprise, they had not lost that many in their journey.

They set up camp not far away from the barrier and sent out a scouting party to gather information of the surroundings area and of the enemy. Later a sortie of 5 Nezumi youkai was dispatched to the barrier, which was visible to them. After momentary deliberations, they decided on the most appropriate place to dig a passageway that would lead them to the other side of the barrier. The lead Nezumi led the dig while, the others followed suit pushing the excess dirt out from the hole as he made his way into the ground.

Their sharp claws made quick work of the dirt and small rocks that would be found within the earth as they dug deeper into the ground.

They continued to dig downwards until they were well past the barrier and then they started making their way up toward the ground. Once they broke through, the rest of the Nezumi followed and emerged on the other side.

Their ability to change size came in very handy when infiltrating enemy territory. They were small right now, more like mice in size, so it made it easy for them to get past the guards that were guarding the barriers. They continued on their way, taking note where all the guards were located.

There were plenty of guards around the perimeter of the castle. But it looked like the majority of the guards were on the outside of the perimeter near the barriers. There were some that were located at the castle but not as many as they thought there would be.

This would make their job a little easier. All they had to do was find a secret way into the castle and then take out the Western Lord. They went closer to the castle but they were stopped by another barrier. They all looked at each other, they never expected a barrier to be placed here. They circled the castle and found that the barrier went all the way around.

They looked for the best place to dig and they found the perfect spot. The leader of the group started to dig and when he started to turn his little hole towards the barrier, he was stopped. They have never encountered this before. This barrier extended well below the surface. They couldn’t dig their way under the barrier. They tried another area and faced the same problem.

Now this was very disturbing. They had no way into the castle. Try as they might the barrier around the castle was a lot better than the one that was protecting the outside of the castle. They had even tried to sneak into the castle in a load of supplies but the barrier prevented them from entering.

This frustrated them to no end. They returned to their comrades and reported what they had found out about the castle itself. This was not good. Sado looked at the castle, they were so close but they couldn’t get in to poison the Western Lord.

He had to think of another plan or report back to Jakyoku that they had failed in their duties. That will not sit well with him. He had been on edge lately and he might wind up killing all of his kind in a blood rage.

Then Sado turned to his companions and said, “We will have to wait for the perfect opportunity to strike. Since we can’t get into the castle we will have to wait until the Lord of the castle is outside its perimeter and then strike. We will set up guards just outside the castle’s barrier to keep watch. We will move at a moments notice and strike when we have the chance.” They were all in agreement, the first of the guards took their post outside the castle and waited for the perfect opportunity to attack.

A week passed, and still they had not accomplished their duty. They had noticed though that the Lady of the West was not here at Gengetsujou. This is what was keeping the lord inside the castle for so long. They had noticed his pups running around the area but not the female that the lord was protecting. So they deduced that wherever the Lady of the West had gone, she had taken the ningen onna with her.

It was late in the afternoon when they finally noticed the Lady of the Lands return. They saw as she landed down in the courtyard and was greeted by her pups. They observed when the Lord had stepped out of the castle but he was still within the barriers that protected it so they could not strike yet.

They witnessed a fight between the ningen and the elder son of the lord, and watched the ningen leave in a huff. They had no idea what was going on or why they were at each other’s throats. But they didn’t care. All they wanted was the opportunity to strike and get the hell out of this area. It was becoming dangerous just being here and the guards were getting better in patrolling the area. They had been almost caught twice now, if it had not been for their fast thinking.

Once the lady was back in the castle, the guards were doubled and it became harder to observe what was going on.

It was in the middle of the night when they noticed that the ningen had come out of the castle and was heading towards the gardens. The garden that the onna was heading for was outside of the barrier that protected the castle. They were in luck, they could at least capture the female for their lord and that would please him. Even if they couldn’t poison the Western Lord they would at least accomplish something.

The sentries that were watching the castle sent word back to the main group that the girl was making her way into the gardens.

The Nezumi kept watch as they observed the girl stop in the middle of the garden and just look up into the sky. Then they noticed that the Lord of the West had followed the female into the garden. Now was their chance, they could strike out at the lord and grab the female and be gone before the perimeter guards knew what was going on.

The main body of the Nezumi was setting up to capture the girl when they were informed of the impending arrival of the Western Lord.

Sado got a gleam in his eyes when he heard this. It was their only chance to strike out at the Lord of the West and poison him.

They watched from the shadows what was going on between the Lord and the ningen. When they were sure that they were unaware of their presence, he sent word for his comrades to get ready. They slowly surrounded the two in the garden as they made their way toward the Western Lord.

But they were discovered when they heard the Western Lord say, “Show yourselves! What are you doing on my lands you filthy bastards?”

Sado along with a good portion of his clan stepped forward, as he said, “Tonight you die Lord of the Western Lands!”

Sado noticed that the Western Lord had pushed the ningen behind him and was protecting her. This would do him no good, as they were getting ready to attack. They knew that the Lord was powerful but he did have a plan. He looked to the two that were standing on either side of him as he nodded his head to each of them. They both understood what that meant as they stepped off to the side getting ready to attack.

Inutaisho noticed that these were Nezumi youkai. Someone must want him dead if they were sending these youkai after him. He was watching them out of the corner of his eye and saw two of them leaving their leader’s side. He figured that these two had poison somewhere on them. He had to protect Kagome from getting hit. She was his main concern at the moment.

At that moment, he sensed a powerful aura coming his way. He smirked when he recognized it. ‘These fools are about to learn what it’s like to fight the most powerful pair in the Western Lands.

A ball of energy appeared to the right of Kagome, she turned to see Sesshoumaru standing next to her with his sword drawn. She blushed a deep crimson when she noticed that he didn’t have his haori on. For the first time she saw his well-toned body and she liked what she saw as she heard a pair of growls coming from Sesshomaru and his father.

---oOo---

Sesshoumaru was lying in bed with his eyes closed. He was thinking about Kagome and what he had said to her earlier this evening. He sighed, his brother had come to apologize to him, but no amount of apology would undo what he had said to Kagome.

He kept remembering the hurt look in her eyes as he looked at her. He had hurt her deeply and he wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arms and tell her that he was sorry. Yes he never apologized to anyone before, but for her, he would do it without a second thought.

He sat up straight in his bed when he heard the gentle padding of feet walking down the hallway. The scent of Night Blooming Jasmine was in the air, and it was growing faint. He was about to follow, wondering if he could take this opportunity to apologize to her, but then he heard another set of footsteps and picked up the scent of his father.

Sesshoumaru sighed, his father was going after Kagome and he wouldn’t have the chance to talk to her the way that he would like. He laid back down and continued to think about his dark haired angel. The image of her smiling up at him would present itself to him as he daydreamed about her.

Then he sat up again. He felt the presence of youkai in the area and these were not the guards from the garrison. He growled viciously, getting out of bed, as he tied his sash to his waist and placed his sword on his side. He was only wearing his sleeping hakama, which were black in color, he formed his ball of light and went streaking out of his temporary room to where Kagome and his father were located.

He landed right next to Kagome as he pulled his sword from its sheath. He eyed the youkai in front of him as his anger was growing. He and his father had gotten rid of these vermin once before and now they were back. He knew what this meant. Someone had sent them to kill someone and he didn’t know if they were after his father or Kagome. Either way it didn’t matter to him because he would protect both.

Sesshoumaru heard a growl from his father as he told him which three youkai to watch. These were the one’s he figured had the poison on them. He growled back to his father, saying he understood as he brought his sword forward in defense.

All three of them turned and stood back to back against each other. Then they saw the youkai attacking as they attacked as one.

The first to strike out was Inutaisho as he swung his sword across his body and released a powerful blast that killed all in front of him. Kagome was next with her Honoo No Shinide, the flames traveled forward and burned all those in front of her to the ground. Sesshoumaru came next as he swung his sword across his body and released its bright blue light. The attack went straight for the offending youkai as it killed them all, but there were more of the bastards coming their way.

Sesshoumaru and Inutaisho were keeping an eye out for the three youkai that they thought had the poison. The surge of youkais was great as it separated the three from each other. Sesshoumaru, Inutaisho, and Kagome had their own group of youkais to deal with.

Kagome was holding her own against the youkais in front of her, she would strike with her sword and turn to blast them with her Reiyouku. Inutaisho was keeping an eye out for his pup. He would not let her get hurt for anything. He had a daughter now and he was determined to keep her.

Then he noticed out of the corner of his eye, that two out of the three youkai he knew to have the poison were heading towards Kagome. He dispatched the youkais in front of him as he moved to protect Kagome. She had not noticed that they were coming from behind as he raced to her side.

Kagome sensed that there was an attack coming from behind her. She quickly killed the youkai in front of her as she turned to the offending youkai. They were a lot closer than she thought, and then all of a sudden she felt an arm come around her waist and pull her back. She saw as her youbu put his sword arm up to deflect the attack that would have hit her. He would normally wear armor on his arm but at the moment he didn’t have any.

The Nezumi, at the last minute, noticed as the youkai lord come in to protect the ningen. They changed the angle of their claws as they missed his sword, which he held in front of him, slashing his arm instead, making him cry out in pain.

Inutaisho held Kagome close to his chest as he let his youki go. He needed her in his arms to protect her. If he had let his powers go before he had her he could have killed her. The only thing his youki never killed was his family. But Kagome was not his, even though she carries the mark of his clan, she is not his pup by blood. His attack would have killed her and he would not have it.

He held Kagome close to his chest and surrounded his pup with a barrier, while he let his youki go, killing all the Nezumi that were surrounding them. Once he was sure that she was safe he released Kagome from his grasp, before he went down to his knees holding his arm. He had been correct in his assumptions. These two did have poison in their claws.

Sado saw his soldiers slashed the Western Lord and knew that he had been poisoned. He raced in to grab the girl so they could return home. He was calling for a retreat as he finally made it to the ningens side. He was about to grab the girl when her aura flared and the force of the flare pushed him away from her.

Sado looked up from his position on the ground. He had been knocked about 10 feet away from the girl. He was about to get up when he notice her aura. It was the most powerful aura he has ever seen in his life. He stopped dead in his tracks as he watched what was happening right in front of him.

---oOo---

Kagome saw what had happened to her youbu. Her heart broke at that moment. He had protected her and had taken the hit in her place. From the way he had cried out in pain and was laying on the ground holding his arm, it told her that he was the one from her dreams, the one to get poisoned.

Something deep inside Kagome snapped as she screamed in agony. She had finally found a father that would love her for who she was. She didn’t have to please him like she did her own father who wanted nothing but money so they could experiment on her. Her rage grew ten fold as she let her inner most powers go.

Wings appeared on her back and illuminated the area. Her hair went up with the wind, which was encircling her body. Her eyes had turned a pure white as she said, “You bastards, you will pay for hurting him. He is the only one to have ever loved me for who I am and now you have hurt him. I will make you pay for that!”

Sado didn’t know what to say or for that fact what to do. He stood up from the ground and said with a sneer, “I told him he would die tonight. You have two days at the most before he passes. I wish that I could stay to see him wither in pain as the poison takes over his body. It promises to be a great show. But I will spare you the sight of watching him die. You are to come with us. Someone has been waiting for your arrival for a while now. You will improve his mood a great deal.”

Kagome heard a growl off to her side; she huffed and spoke in a deadly voice. “Sesshoumaru, take care of your father. These vermin are mine. Get in my way and it will be your death.”

Sesshoumaru watched the level of power that Kagome was showing. She was a lot more powerful than he thought. If she unleashed this power when he tried to dominate her, she could win the battle against him. He decided not to test her tonight as he went over to his father and looked at his wounds. His skin has already started to turn black from where the poison has entered his body as he tried to stop the process.

Kagome’s attention was being held by the youkai standing in front of her as she said, “I will not go with the likes of you. The person that has been waiting for me is just going to have to wait. I hold no interest in him and he is a coward for sending someone like you to capture me. You’re a weakling and will never be able to subdue me.”

Sado had enough; he didn’t care if his lord wanted this wench. He was going to kill her himself for her insults. He charged and brought his claws up to attack. But before he could bring his arm down, it was cut off right at his shoulder. He screamed in pain as he went down to the ground. He looked up in time to see the female retracting a whip that came from her fingers.

Kagome had brought her hand up as a whip of pink light came out of her fingers. She snapped her wrist as she took off his arm. She then flapped her wings and rose into the air, holding her sword high, saying, “I pass judgment on you. Your sentence is death for the crimes you have committed.”

Kagome started to draw power from within as she glowed a pure white in color. Her sword turned white as well as she held it high in the sky and yelled, “TENHIKARIHA!!”

White purifying blades came out of her sword as the attack sought out its enemy. They only went after the Nezumi as they tried to run away from her attack. The Nezumi failed miserably as the blades cut them all down. Once they had all been killed, Kagome slowly came down to the ground as her wings disappeared into her back once again. She fell to her knees panting as she struggled to get up.

Kagome found that she couldn’t stand so she crawled over to where Inutaisho was laying and looked at his wounds. She tore a piece of her nemaki and tied it on the upper portion of his arm to prevent the poison from going further into his system. She moved with speed knowing that the poison was working rapidly through his system. She put her hands on his wound and allowed her healing power to come forth in an effort to purge the poison from his body.

Kagome’s body was thrown backwards as the poison rejected her attempts to heal the youkai lord. A dark spell has been placed on the poison; it will reject any attempt to use Reiyouku, to purge it from its intended victim.

Kagome landed hard on the ground as she was struggling to catch her breath. Tears were slowly coming from her eyes, she felt helpless to help the one person who loved her like a daughter.

Sesshoumaru was watching closely to see what Kagome was doing. She seemed to know what she needed to do to stop the poison from spreading. His father was in a tremendous amount of pain when she put her hands on his arm. He saw the blue light of her healing power come forth but in a blink of an eye she was thrown back from his father. She landed on her back with the wind knocked out of her.

Sesshoumaru growled as he howled into the night to get some help. The servants from inside the castle came running out as they picked their lord up and took him inside the castle.

Sesshoumaru then went over to Kagome who was struggling to get to her feet. He bent down to pick her up bridal style and then turned to walk back into the castle. Kagome was struggling in his grasp, as she said, “Put me down I need to go to him!”

Sesshomaru held her tighter as he spoke into her ear, “Kagome calm yourself, I am taking you to where they have taken father.”

Kagome stopped struggling, as she tried to regain her strength, she was going to need it if her dreams were correct. It will be difficult to find the black moonflower but she had to try.

At Kagome’s request Sesshoumaru stopped by her room before they went to see his father. She had stated that she needed to get something from her clothes box before she could deal with his father.

Sesshoumaru entered Kagome’s room as he gently placed her on her feet. She was still not strong enough to walk, as he helped her reach her destination. Kagome opened the door to her clothes box, reaching in and pulling out a hand full of long slender needles. He noticed when she placed them in the sleeve of her nemaki, and then picked her up in his arms, as he made his way to his parent’s room.

Sesshoumaru entered his parent’s room and they saw his mother crying over the body of her mate. They saw Kori as she was trying different herbs to counteract the poison that Inutaisho had in his body. Kagome looked up at Sesshoumaru and said, “Please put me down, I must help him.”

Sesshoumaru did as she requested and he placed her again on her feet. Kagome staggered a little before she caught her balance and walked over to where Kori was located. She stopped by Kori’s side as she said, “Kori, you don’t have the antidote for this poison. It’s a powerful one and it has no cure. But I will make one for him before it’s too late. If you will move I will make him sleep until the antidote can be made. I don’t want him to suffer.”

Kori moved out of Kagome’s way as Kagome made her way over to her Otou-san. Tears were falling from her eyes as she said, “I’m sorry Otou-san this is my fault. If I wasn’t here then none of this would have happened.”

She kneeled by his side as Inutaisho looked into the eyes of his pup. She was crying for him as he said, “No my little one. You have brought great joy into my life, I would have it no other way. Didn’t you know that it’s a father’s duty to protect his pups and I will protect you with my life.”

Kagome smiled weakly at him as she put her hand into the sleeve of her nemaki, she pulled out a hand full of long needles and placed them on the futon where her father was laying. She quickly dried her eyes with the sleeve of her nemaki and focused on what she had to do. She found the nerves in his arm and the veins that were pumping the poison into his body.

She couldn’t heal him with her Reiyouku but she could put him to sleep and prevent the poison from spreading throughout his body. She took her fingers and rubbed his skin, quickly, she found the first blood vessel. She gently pressed down with her fingers and then inserted a needle into his arm.

She sealed all the veins making sure the poison stayed in his arm. Then, she found the nerves and started putting needles in them as well. She was starting to make his pain go away. She then went to his neck, when she found what she was looking for, she placed several needles there to put him into a deep sleep. By the time she was done, he had needles sticking out all over his body.

Kagome moved and stood up on her feet, she wavered a little before she caught her balance. Ayashiko had seen what her pup had done to her mate as she walked over to her and asked, “Kagome what did you do to him?”

Kagome was mentally calling for the dragon to meet her outside the castle doors; she would be leaving as soon as possible to get what she needed. She heard her youbo’s question as she answered, “The needles are part of an ancient healing called acupuncture. What I have done is stop the poison from spreading in his body. I have dented the nerves so that he doesn’t feel any pain from the poison. Then I put him into a deep sleep until I can make the antidote to the poison they used. This is the only thing that I can do for him since I can’t heal him with my Reiyouku.”

Kori was amazed at what she heard and she said, “You know how to do acupuncture? Where did you learn to do that? I have been trying to find someone to teach me that practice for centuries now.”

“I can not tell you where I learned how to do that but once I get the antidote for the poison in his body I promise to teach you. Right now I must go, I have to go and get the one ingredient that I don’t have to make the antidote. I will be back as soon as possible with it.” Kagome said as she was leaving the room.

Sesshoumaru had been watching from the sidelines as he saw what the girl was doing. He was amazed at the amount of knowledge that she possessed. He heard her words as he stepped forward and said, “I will go with you.”

Kagome looked at Sesshoumaru as she said in a deadly voice, “I don’t need your help. Stay by your father and leave me be. I know where I am going.” With that Kagome quickly left the room as she made her way out of the castle. She was about to get on Ah-Un when she was attacked from behind and pinned to the ground.

---oOo---

Sesshoumaru was pissed, ‘How dare she order me to stay here while she goes out to retrieve the herbs needed to cure my father.’ His eyes started to bleed red as he went after Kagome. His mother had tried to stop him but the look in his eyes was enough to stop her from interfering. They had to work out their disagreement and she figured that this was the best way to do it.

Sesshoumaru ran out of the castle and saw Kagome about to mount the dragon. He rushed forward and tackled her from behind, pinning her to the ground by her neck. He growled at the dragon to go back to the stables and the dragon obeyed without protest. Ah-Un was not about to get caught up in the fight that those two were about to have.

Kagome’s anger was slowly growing again. She had not regained the energy that she lost when she killed all of those Nezumi, who were attacking the castle. Her aura flared around her as Sesshoumaru’s hand started to burn from her purifying power. He squeezed her neck a little harder, making her stop, as it was becoming difficult for her to breath.

Now that Sesshoumaru had her attention he said in a deadly voice, “Now, I’m coming with you to get this herb. We will travel together that way I am assured that you will return in time to cure my father. Is that understood?”

Kagome didn’t have a choice in the matter. She couldn’t fight him at the moment so she agreed to his request. She felt the pressure of his hand loosen as she heard him say in her ear, “I am sorry for the things I said earlier Kagome, I did not mean them. They were said in anger. I thought that you were another illusion that my brother was using on me. I did miss you.” He leaned down and gave her a lick under her chin as a sign of his sincerity.

Kagome stiffened when she heard what he said and felt the lick under her chin. ‘Did he just say that he missed me? If what he was saying is true then it really wasn’t his fault for saying those things. I know that his brother likes to torment him. But I’m not going to give in to him. He has already said that he hates ningens and I don’t want to get my hopes up.’

Kagome relaxed in his grip as he finally let her go. He stood up and offered her his hand to help her stand. She looked at his hand before she accepted and stood up with his help. Then she heard him say, “Now where are we going?”

Kagome was rubbing her neck as she said, “We have to go to the highest mountain in this area. The only place I know about is due north of here. There is a mountain there called Mount Tsuruga. There at the very top of the mountain we will find the black moonflower. But we must hurry. The flower only blooms by the light of the full moon and it must be picked during this time in order to make the antidote.”

Sesshoumaru understood what she was saying. They could travel in his orb form but he had a better idea. He talked with his beast and he quickly agreed to his request, as it would give him some time with his intended. He turned to Kagome and said, “I know of a way to get there quickly but you must ride on my beast for us to get there.”

Kagome was confused as she asked, “Beast? What beast are you talking about?”

Sesshoumaru smiled as he stepped away from her. He concentrated as he started to glow a golden color. His body lifted off the ground as he started to change.

Kagome watched in fascination as she watched Sesshoumaru change his form. When he was done, she saw the most amazing thing. There standing right in front of her, she saw the biggest inu in the world. He was pure white in color and his long fur flowed beautifully behind him. His long white fluffy tail moved from side to side as she saw him looking at her. He had blood red eyes and she saw the markings on his face.

He lowered his head as he put his nose close to her. Kagome was a little scared of what he might do to her. She reached out with a shaky hand and slowly touched his nose. She saw the great beast close his eyes in contentment as she gently scratched.

Then she heard the most amazing thing. He was actually purring as she scratched. She giggled and that cause him to open his eyes and look at her. She felt something going around her waist as she looked down to see his tail wrapping around her; it then lifted her up to the top of his head. He placed her gently on the top of his neck near his ears as he mentally said to her, “Hold on Kagome, we will be traveling very fast.”

Kagome reached down and grabbed a fist full of fur and noticed how soft it was. She leaned forward as she tightened her legs to hold on as Sesshoumaru took off into the night.

Kagome was amazed at the speed in which they were traveling. He was flying up high over the land as his legs moved with such speed that you could barely see anything. They were traveling great distances over the land as they were making there way north.

The cool night air was hitting Kagome in the face as she looked up to see where they were going. Her hair was floating behind her along with his fur as it came up to encircle her body to keep her warm.

Kagome smiled down at him as she reached over with one hand and started to scratch near his ear. She heard a low growl as she did this and then she heard him say, “Kagome if you want to make it to the mountain tonight I suggest you stop that. That is very relaxing and I don’t want to fall asleep this high up in the air.”

Kagome’s eyes widen at his comments as she immediately stopped what she was doing. She said a soft, “sorry,” as they continued going north.

Sesshoumaru was enjoying her touch very much, but it was so soothing that he almost faltered in his stride. He had to stop her or else they will never make it to the mountain and back to his father. He would stop and have his way with her. It was very tempting and his beast wanted that most of all. Sesshoumaru had to keep reminding his beast that if they wanted her as a mate she had to be presented to the rest of the lords. Then once they win the fight they will be able to dominate her and make her submit to him as his mate.

His beast reluctantly agreed with him. He wanted her as his mate and she was not afraid of his inner beast. This was something that was very important to him because it showed that she would accept all of him as he was.

They continued on their way as they were nearing the mountain. Kagome sat up a little as she saw the mountain coming into view. She couldn’t see it that well in the dark but the light of the full moon lit the very top of the mountain where the snow was. It shined brightly by the light of the full moon as it showed them where they had to go.

They landed down by the base of the mountain as Kagome stood up between his ears and said, “The flower should be located at the top of the summit.”

Sesshomaru looked up as he tried to figure out the best way to get up there. The air was thinner up there so it will be difficult for him to fly. He came up with a plan as he lowered his head and said, “Kagome I want you to get off for a moment.”

Kagome agreed to his request as she slipped down his nose and landed on the ground gently. She saw Sesshoumaru transform back as she looked at him and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Sesshoumaru looked at her and said, “The air is thinner up there so I can’t go in my true form. We must travel in my ball of light if we are to make it high enough into the mountain. Then we will have to climb the rest of the way.”

Kagome understood what he was saying. The air up there will be thin so they had to prepare. She knew it was going to be hard for them to get the flower but they had to get it. She looked into the sky and figured that they only had a few hours left before the moon went away. “We must travel quickly. We only have a few hours left of the moons light before it goes away.”

Sesshoumaru understood what she was saying as he moved closer to her and placed his arm around her waist. His tail encircled her body to keep her warm as he concentrated. He formed his demonic ball of light as it shot up into the sky.

As they were traveling, Sesshoumaru was concentrating hard to make it up as high as possible so they didn’t have to climb that much. Soon it became too much for him as he landed on a small cliff on the side of the mountain. They had almost made it to the top. The air was cold and thin where they were standing, as they stood there for a minute trying to adjust to the environment.

Kagome concentrated on her miko powers as she filled her lungs and Sesshoumaru's with the much-needed air. Soon they were both breathing normally as they started to climb. Sesshoumaru had his tail wrapped around Kagome’s waist to make sure she didn’t slip and fall down the mountain.

It was a slow process but they went carefully up the side of the mountain. They were battling the raging winds that threatened to send them off the side of the mountain as Sesshoumaru dug his claws deeper into the stone to keep them from falling down. On a couple of occasions, Kagome had slipped and if he didn’t have a hold on her she would have fallen to her death.

Kagome was getting cold. Her fingers were numb from the cold air that was whipping around them. The sharp edges of the rocks were digging into her feet as she climbed the face of the mountain. She had forgotten to wear shoes in her haste to leave the castle. But she could see the top of the mountain so she continued going, she had to get to the flower and save her new Otou-san; he meant the world to her and she couldn’t let him die.

After about an hour of climbing they finally reached the top of the mountain. Sesshoumaru pulled Kagome the rest of the way up as he gently placed her on the ground.

Kagome was shivering from the cold as she slowly stood on weak legs. Her strength was almost gone, but she still had to find the flower. She stood with Sesshoumaru's help as they looked around the area. There in the fading glow of the full moon, Kagome spotted the black moonflower. She slowly made her way to the flower with Sesshoumaru following closely behind her.

They made their way to the small cluster of black flowers, Kagome then knelt by them as she reached into her kimono and pulled two small jars from within its folds. She opened them and placed the jars on the ground as she looked at the flower. She was remembering what she had read and what Oyuki had told her she needed to do to pick this flower.

With numb fingers she dug out the first flower and held it up to the moons light. The flower opened beautifully for her as she recited the ancient text that would make the flower yield its precious nectar.

Flowers of the moon
Hear my call
I need your help to cure
From the depth of the moon I seek
The nectar to cure all
Yield your powerful nectar
So I may save the one dearest to me

Kagome started to glow as her powers engulfed the flower. The flower seemed to bend down to the jar she held in her hand, then the nectar from the flower started to pour into the jar. When the flower had yielded all of its nectar to her, Kagome put what remained of the flower into the other jar.

She continued doing this until the jar was full of nectar from the moonflower and then she sealed it shut. She placed it back in her kimono as she looked up at Sesshoumaru with tired eyes and said, “I have what I need, we must head back as soon as possible.”

Sesshoumaru saw how tired she was. He felt just like her and getting down from this mountain was going to take everything they had. He helped her to stand, but her legs gave out as she fell into his arms. She was panting hard as he said to her, “Kagome we must get off this mountain soon or else we will lose consciousness here.”

Kagome agreed with him as he helped her to the edge of the mountain. He looked over the side of the mountain as he came to a decision. He picked Kagome up and held her close to his chest. This will take a great deal of energy on his part, but it was the only way to get down as quickly as possible.

Sesshoumaru gathered his strength, leaping high into the sky and as far away from the mountain, they started their decent down to the ground. He had to keep conscious or else they would die from what he was trying to do. They descended rapidly towards the ground as the cold winds whipped around their bodies.

Sesshoumaru’s hair was whipping behind him along with his tail that made him look like a shooting star. The toes to his right foot were pointing downward toward the ground as the other leg was slightly bent. He kept Kagome close to his chest as he continued to look down toward the ground.

Kagome was shivering from the winds as Sesshoumaru tried to wrap his tail around her to keep her warm. When they got down far enough, that the air was becoming normal, Sesshoumaru took a deep breath as he concentrated on his orb form. He formed it as it streaked across the sky and away from the mountain. He found a cave not too far away from the mountain and landed safely on the ground.

He opened his senses and determined that it was safe to rest there for the night. He was just too tired to keep going back to the Western Lands and Kagome had already fallen unconscious from their ride down. She was sleeping peacefully against his bare chest.

He walked into the cave and was glad to see a dry patch of grass. It would do for the remainder of the night as he laid down with Kagome cradled against his chest. He closed his eyes as the sweet scent of his intended mate filled his lungs and lulled him into a peaceful sleep.

---oOo---

Kagome was the first to awaken the next morning. She was feeling very warm, and for the first time since she has arrived here in the past, she felt at peace with herself. It was the peace that she has been seeking for a long time. It soothed her heart and made her feel whole, she snuggled closer into the fluff that was surrounding her, not wanting to wake up.

She heard a gentle purr as her eyes slowly opened. She saw the fluffy white fur that was keeping her warm as she looked up. There above her, she saw Sesshoumaru sound asleep. He looked like an angel just sleeping there. His face was relaxed and the lines of tension were gone from his face. The stoic mask he always wore was gone and for the first time, Kagome got to see the real Sesshoumaru. She was pleased with what she saw, he was the most handsome youkai she had ever laid eyes on. She felt a blush come to her cheeks as she thought this. ‘Bad, bad, bad, Kagome! You know he doesn’t like ningen so why get your hopes up.’

She sighed as she tried to move away from his grip. She found that he wouldn’t let go of her. She was laying there trying to figure out a way to get out of his grasp when she sensed that they had company. She placed a barrier at the entrance of the cave as she gently shook Sesshoumaru awake, “Sesshoumaru, we have company.”

Sesshoumaru stirred when he heard Kagome speaking. He opened his senses as he felt the youkai standing right outside the cave. He growled as he released the girl from his arms and stood up. He was pissed these fools have just disturbed the most restful sleep he has ever had. He was enjoying having Kagome in his arms but these fools had to ruin it and now they were going to pay for it.

Kagome watched as Sesshoumaru moved to the entrance of the cave. He was still dressed in a pair of black hakama’s and no haori. He had left the castle in a rush that he didn’t stop to dress just like she had forgotten. He had no shoes, the sash he wore was the only thing that was keeping his sword attached to his waist. Kagome shook her head to clear her mind of the godly figure before her, while she got up and followed.

Sesshoumaru stopped as Kagome came over to his side, pulling her sword from her obi. How she managed not to lose her sword without its sheath she didn’t know, but she was grateful nonetheless.

They both looked at each other and nodded as they took a deep breath and stepped out of the cave. There standing in front of them were hebi youkai, but not just any hebi youkai. These were two of the most poisonous hebi that were known to be in existence. One was a Mamushi hebi youkai. They had a scaly body that was covered in reddish brown scales; they had black blotches surrounding the brown and some black spots showing on their skin.

The other was a Yamakagashi hebi youkai. This one had the colors of green with black and white flecks. Both of them had a triangle head and they were very tall. They stood taller than Sesshoumaru in his ningen form. There were about 10 hebi’s that were waiting for them when they walked out of the cave.

Sesshoumaru growled as he said, “What do you want?”

The hebi hissed as the leader said, “We want the SSSSShikon, give ussssss the SSSSSShikon and we will let you passssss.”

Kagome swallowed hard as she thought, ‘Oh boy, this is not good. Sesshoumaru doesn’t know that I’m the Shikon that they are talking about.’ She looked up into the sky and noticed where the sun was sitting. They needed to head back to the castle as soon as possible. She still had to make the antidote that would cure the youkai lord or he will surely die.

Kagome looked at the hebi and said, “We don’t have the Shikon so let us pass. We must get back to the Western Lands.”

“Insssssolate wench! Hold your tongue when sssssspeaking to usssssss! We want the SSSSSShikon and we will have it.” The hebi hissed as they got into an attack position.

Kagome’s temper was increasing the fool had made the mistake of calling her a wench. She was about to say something when she saw Sesshoumaru’s whip come out of his clawed finger and went for the offending youkai. He missed as they quickly moved out of the way of his attack.

“You better watch what you say about her! You will show your respect toward my intended mate.” Sesshoumaru growled to the hebi youkai.

Kagome was shocked to hear what Sesshoumaru had just said about her, ‘Since when am I his intended mate? He hates ningens and he has already made that clear to me. Plus I have not given my consent to be his mate, so for him to presume that I will accept him is very bold of Sesshoumaru. I have already made up my mind that I’m not mating anyone and that includes him.’

Kagome was fuming, for Sesshoumaru to declare to these fools that she was his intended mate made her even angrier. She was about to say something to the arrogant male standing next to her, when she was cut off the enraged hebi.

The hebi hissed their anger as they said, “We could care lesssssss who sssssshe isssssss we want the SSSSSShikon and we ssssssssshall have it.”

“Over my dead body!” Kagome yelled as she brought her sword forward to attack.

The hebi’s attacked as Sesshoumaru and Kagome defended. Sesshoumaru kept close to Kagome incase she needed his help as they fought against the hebi. One by one they started to fall as Kagome used her purifying powers to get rid of them. She felled her final opponent as she looked for Sesshoumaru.

Sesshoumaru dispatched the last of his opponents as he looked for Kagome. She was fine as she walked over to one of the dead Yamakagashi hebi. She looked at the hebi as she spotted what she was looking for. She took her sword and sliced the hebi’s neck open. She put her hand into his neck until she finally found what she was seeking, his poisoned sack, gently, she lifted it out of his body.

She took another jar from within her kimono and placed it in, then sealed the jar and placed it back inside her kimono. Sesshoumaru looked at her with curiosity and asked, “Kagome what did you just take from him?”

Kagome turned toward Sesshoumaru, and explained, “The Yamakagashi hebi has a neurotoxin that paralyzes his enemy until he can kill them. The poison can be refined to make medicine that will keep a gravely injured person from moving around. This will help the healer heal their wounds without them feeling any pain.”

Sesshoumaru was stunned by her answer as he asked, “Where did you learn all of this?”

Kagome sighed as she said, “If you must know back in the castle there is a book in the library that speaks about all of this. Now we must head back to the west. We don’t have much time to fix the antidote for your father.”

Kagome was becoming irritated for being delayed. She was under a time constraint and she didn’t like pushing herself this much. It could lead to making errors, errors that she couldn’t afford.

Sesshoumaru agreed as he transformed back into his true form. Kagome got on the top of his head, sat down and held on tight. Once Sesshoumaru felt that she was holding on, he leaped high into the air and flew back in the direction of the castle. They just hoped that they would make it back in time.

---oOo---

Ayashiko had been up all night with her mate. Once she had seen her elder son and Kagome leave the castle grounds, she went to sit with him for the rest of the night and kept a silent vigil over him as he slept.

She could tell that he was still in pain as she put wet cloths on his forehead to keep the fever at bay. Her Musume had done well; she has kept him asleep during this time so he would not be uncomfortable. But the pain was still there. She could feel his suffering though he was not awake to feel it. Their bond allowed her to feel everything he was feeling at the moment.

Ayashiko could handle what was going on as long as her mate was asleep. The pain was not nearly as bad as it could have been. Kagome in her haste to help her mate was helping her as well. But if her pups do not make it back soon, there will be two deaths in this castle. Her life was tied to his and his to hers. She was willing his body to continue to fight until their pups returned. ‘Please Kagome hurry, your father grows weaker by the moment and so do I.’

---oOo---

At that moment Kagome heard her Hahaue call as her heart almost stopped, ‘She is growing weaker like Otou? But why?’ Kagome didn’t understand what was going on or why things were happening the way they were. She leaned over to Sesshoumaru’s ear and said, “Sesshoumaru we must hurry! Your father is growing weak and so is your mother.”

Sesshoumaru’s heart started to race, ‘Mother! I forgot that your life is tied to fathers!’ With a growl, Sesshoumaru put on a burst of speed so fast that Kagome had to hang on for dear life. They were traveling so fast that all she saw was just a blur going by. She buried her face into his fur, making as low a profile as possible, as they raced toward the west.

Within an hour they arrived back at the castle as Kagome jumped from Sesshoumaru’s head and ran into the castle. Kori was waiting for Kagome as she led her into a room where she had everything that she would need.

Kagome pulled the jars out from her Kimono and placed them on the table. She put a pot in front of her as she started to concentrate on what she had to do. Slowly she started to mix the antidote just like Oyuki had instructed her. Then she put it on the heat to cook. It had to cook until it boiled before it was done. She waited patiently for it to finish so she could give it to the youkai lord.

---oOo---

Sesshoumaru had let Kagome down and saw her rush into the castle. He transformed back into his normal form, and then raced to his mother’s side. He found her sitting in her room near his father. He walked in the room and whispered with concern in his voice, “Mother.”

Ayashiko turned when she heard her name being called. She smiled when she saw her elder son. He quickly walked over to her and hugged her tightly. Then he pulled away from her as he asked, “Mother are you all right?”

Ayashiko smiled as she answered, “Yes Sochi, I’m fine for now but as your father grows weak and so do I. Did you find what you were seeking?”

Sesshoumaru’s heart was beating fast as he said, “Yes mother, we found the flower that Kagome needs and she extracted the nectar from it. She is mixing the antidote as we speak.”

Both Ayashiko and Sesshoumaru stayed together as they waited for Kagome to come back with the antidote for the poison.

---oOo---

As the antidote for Inutaisho was cooking, Kagome got busy with another potion. She had read this one from one of Oyuki’s books. She thought that it might help in keeping her youbo immobile while the antidote worked to purge his body of the poison from within. She had no idea how it was suppose to work but she was hoping that it would. The only way she would know if she got it right is once she gave it to him.

Finally, she got both potions ready as she put a small amount into vials and went straight to Ayashiko’s room. She entered the room without even knocking as she went straight for her Otou-san. She kneeled by his side and removed the vials from her kimono and placed them in front of her.

She was aware of the eyes staring at her, but at this moment, she didn’t care. She was totally focused on the youkai in front of her as she started to work. She took the first vial and opened it. She put a small amount of this potion on his chest and watched as it totally relaxed his body. Then she took the next one and opened it. This was the moment of truth. She opened his mouth and poured the potion into it, while at the same time, she rubbed his throat to make it go down. Once she saw him swallow the potion, she sat back on her hunches, all she could do now was wait.

After about an hour Kagome started to pull the needles from Inutaisho’s body. Slowly she pulled the ones from his arm as she observed his wounds. The blackened spots where the poison had entered his arm was slowly changing in color. It was returning to its normal color as the wounds were finally starting to heal.

Kagome continued to pull all of the needles and ended with the ones on his neck, which kept him asleep. Kagome waited to see if he would wake up but he continued to sleep. They waited all day and into the night to see if he would recover from his ordeal.

---oOo---

Inutaisho was slowly coming awake. He breathed deeply and noticed that the scent of his mate and his elder son were in the room with him. But a new scent came to his nose as he recognized to whom it belonged to. She was close that much he could tell as he slowly opened his eyes.

At first, his eyes were blurred, but after a few minutes they started to come into focus. When his eyes finally focused he looked to his side and notice a pair of bright blue eyes looking at him. She looked exhausted as he smiled at her.

Kagome had sat by Inutaisho’s side the whole day. It was now in the middle of the night as she continued her silent vigil. She saw as he was taking deep breathes and waited patiently for him to awaken.

Then she saw his eyes slowly opening as tears of joy were running down her cheeks. When she saw his smile, she was relieved to see that he was all right. At that moment in time, nothing matter to her as she broke down and cried on his chest.

Inutaisho reached up and hugged his pup close to his chest as he purred to calm her. He knew that he had scared her but the main thing was that she was all right and that’s what mattered to him.

Behind Kagome, Ayashiko and Sesshoumaru had woken up to see the youkai they loved slowly coming awake. When he smiled they both knew that he would be all right as they both got up and went over to where he was laying.

Kagome noticed right away that Ayashiko was standing behind her as she stood up and moved away from her father in order to let her mother get closer to him. When she saw them hug she quietly left them to their family reunion.

She was not part of this family and felt out of place. She walked out of the room and headed outside. She continued to walk until she got to the gardens and there she let her emotions go for the first time in two days.

She was emotionally drained as she fell to her knees. She looked up to the moon and said a silent prayer in thanks for its help. The black moonflower did its job to cure her father of the poison he had in his system. But she couldn’t help but feel that this was her fault in some way.

She needed to leave this place and soon. There will be more trouble and it will not be good. She could sense the evil in the distance and it was spreading throughout the land. She could feel that it was coming from the north but she couldn’t figure out where.

Slowly without her knowing it, she started walking in that direction as something seemed to be calling her there. She left the gardens and started heading toward the forest.

---oOo---

Once Inutaisho had given his mate reassurances that he was fine, he looked up wanting to talk to Kagome. When he didn’t see her he asked, “Where did Kagome go off to?”

Sesshoumaru turned and cursed under his breath for not noticing that the girl was gone from the room. He left his father and mother alone as he followed Kagome’s scent out into the garden. When he got there, he noticed right away that something was wrong. She was not there; he raced off into the forest following her scent.

He finally reached her within a few minutes and watched her walking away from him. He rushed to her side as he asked, “Kagome where are you going?”

Kagome didn’t answer and when he looked at her eyes, he saw that she was in some sort of trance. He grabbed her by the shoulders as he stopped her from leaving. He shook her to see if he could get her attention.

Kagome’s eyes cleared as she furrowed her eyebrows together and looked at Sesshomaru in confusion. She had no idea what was going on or for that fact, where she was. “Sesshoumaru were are we?”

Sesshoumaru looked at his intended with wide eyes as he said, “Don’t you remember?”

Kagome shook her head, as she said, “No, I thought that I was in the gardens a few minutes ago.”

This did not sit well with him as he picked her up in his arms and started to walk back to the castle. By the time he reached the castle, she was asleep in his arms as he made his way back to his parent’s room. He knocked on the door as he heard a “Come in.”

He entered the room with Kagome in his arms and went straight to his father.

Inutaisho was confused to see Kagome in Sesshoumaru’s arms as he asked, “What happened to her?”

Sesshoumaru explained that he had found her deep in the forest as she was walking away from the castle. When he asked her where she was going, she didn’t respond to his inquiry. Then he looked into her eyes and noticed that she looked like she was being controlled.

This did not sit well with Inutaisho, who said, “Sesshoumaru please put Kagome to bed and place a barrier around her room that will prevent her from leaving. Whoever or whatever they are, they are trying to control her, we must make sure that she doesn’t leave the castle by herself.”

Sesshoumaru bid his father and mother a goodnight as he left their room and headed toward Kagome’s room. He entered and then he placed her on the bed. She looked so beautiful when she rested. He leaned down and kissed her forehead, while he covered her up with the furs on the bed. He placed a barrier around her room to make sure that she couldn’t leave. He then left her room as he went to his own. If she decided to leave again, he would know, because the barrier will notify him if someone was trying to get in or out of Kagome’s room.

Sesshoumaru didn’t want to leave Kagome at the moment. Spending the night together in that cave was the best thing that he had done in a long while. He had slept well and he missed the warmth of her breath against his neck. His arms felt empty for they missed her body. But he knew he couldn’t stay with her. He could not trust himself at the moment with her. But soon he will have his chance and he will win the right to dominate her. He would be able to take her away from here for a while and spend some real time with her.

He could not wait until the other lords gathered. He knew he would hate seeing all of them again because they will bring their families with them and that meant that the fools would bring their daughter in hopes of him picking one of them to be his mate. ‘This Sesshoumaru will not bend to their will. I will have Kagome as my mate. All I have to do is prove to her that I love her.’

With this thought in mind, he fell into a deep sleep as he eagerly awaited the coming of the other lords.

---oOo---

Japanese Terms:

Nezumi – Rat
Youbo – Adopted Mother
Youbu – Adopted Father
Ittoshi Musume – Dearest Daughter
Karioya – Adopted Parents

Attack:

Tenhikariha – Heavenly Blades

This is the end to another chapter. Kagome’s dreams have come true. The one she needed to save was Inutaisho and it was a difficult task indeed. Sesshoumaru finally apologized to Kagome for his ugly words. He is now coming to terms with his feelings for Kagome.

In the next chapter Kagome reveals her true origins to her Karioya. Also I will introduce another one of my villains for this story. A kuro miko by the name of Akurei, she will pay a big part on what goes on in Kagome’s life.

You will also learn a little more about why Kagome acts the way she does, as she reveals a little history about her real father and her views on him.

Until the next chapter!

Ja ne!