A Question Of Honor

It had finally arrived. The battle that everyone had been waiting for. As Sesshomaru stood at his window, he allowed himself to relax, his body preparing itself for the strain that it was about to endure. He slowly turned when he heard a knock at the door and had told back a growl when he saw that it was Conner.

“The lads are ready. Soon, the lass will be avenged.” Conner said, his eyes narrowing in anticipation of handing Kagome Naraku's head on a platter.

Sesshomaru growled. He knew exactly what the inu was thinking, however, it would be he, Sesshomaru, who avenged Kagome, and no other. He would not only restore his honor, but he would also prove to Kagome that he was, in fact, the only male strong enough to protect and defend her.

When the foreign inu left, Sesshomaru turned and reached for his beloved sword. “Tokijin, today you will bring back what I so foolishly lost. Today, our honor will be returned and more importantly, Kagome's honor and security will be given back to her. With the death of Naraku, she will finally be able to rest easy.” He murmured.

Once his sword was strapped to his waist, he reached out and grabbed his healing sword. However, his eyes narrowed. He slowly placed it where it had been leaning and sighed. Today was not a day for healing. Today was a day for death.

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Inu Yasha and Miroku glanced at each other and then looked at the wolf, who was protecting the small girl who stood behind him. At first, it appeared that she had been attempting to suck out his soul, but when they raced to his aid, Kouga quickly stood up and placed himself between them and Kanna.

“Why are you protecting her, Kouga?” Miroku asked, his staff ready to strike. He noticed that the small void was gazing into her mirror and quirked his eyebrow up at her words.

“Kohaku has gained the support of his sister and they are close to Naraku's palace. Naraku is no longer there, but a youkai named Kaijai is waiting for them to arrive. They will have to face many creatures and apparitions. Sadly, it would appear that Naraku has decided to use the souls of the dead slayers to torture Kohaku and Sango.” Kanna whispered.

Inu Yasha bared his fangs. “Sango knows where the palace is and didn't tell us?” He demanded. His ears flattened to his skull when the void replied, “No. Kohaku is leading her to the palace. He has been free from Naraku's interference for some time, but stays to pass along information to guards and others who have approached you. I believe that the monk has already had contact with one of the youkai that Kohaku spoke to.”

Miroku nodded. Of course, now it made sense. The only way for Naraku's plans to be known was for one of his own to leak the information out. However, he snapped to attention when the hanyou knelt down before Kanna and softly asked, “Can you show me Kagome? Is she safe?”

Kanna held her mirror out before her and suddenly the mirror turned smoky. Finally, the image they had been waiting for appeared and for the first time, Inu Yasha relaxed. Kagome was sitting on a stone bench, in what looked to be a lush garden. Her dark hair was pulled into an intricate design and she was petting Kirara. Her cheeks were filled with a rosy color and she had a peaceful expression upon her face.

“She looks so happy. This is how she should have always been.” Inu Yasha whispered, his finger reaching out to touch the mirror gently. However, when his finger made contact, the image changed and it was Kikyo whose image appeared. He was about to snarl, but Kanna softly said, “You have to understand. The mikos are one. Kikyo and Kagome share a soul, but it is experience that separates them. Though she is no longer alive, Kikyo still has many of her emotions, and one of them is the emotion, love. It is because of Kikyo's love for you that Kagome stayed with you, even when you broke her heart. Kikyo never stopped loving you, but when she was revived, her anger and pain suppressed that love and buried it. It still lives in Kagome, but now that pure love is turning to another. It is time for you to move on.”

Inu Yasha stared at the ground before slowly nodding. He had always known that despite their differences, Kagome and Kikyo were the same, right down to the core. When she was alive, Kikyo had the exact same loving nature as Kagome. Now, just as before, hate had separated them and he didn't know how to repair the damage.

Miroku's hand touched his shoulder. “We need to get to the palace. If the rumors are correct, the troops will head out within an hour. I want to be on the front lines and my wind tunnel is ready to suck anything in that is not an ally.” He said.

“You are still a monk. Even though you do not wear you robes, you still carry the staff. It is time to be what you are. It is time to forgive yourself for your mistake as well as forgive your friends.” Kanna said, her tone strong for the first time. She realized that the longer she was away from Naraku and his evil miasma, the better she felt. Now, she was certain that he had used his miasma to subdue her and she was ready for payback.

Miroku bit his lip. He had told the others that he left his robes behind, but that was not true. He still carried them with him to remind him what he had done, but perhaps the young youkai was right. How could he fight unless he was true to himself? Yes, he would wear his robes, at least one more time. He would go into this battle as the cursed monk and he would be victorious.

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Kikyo stared at the calm waters and then turned to walk up the path. Her soul collectors told her where Naraku's army was headed and she wanted to be sure that she was there to see his downfall. She would give her aid, and then, when the battle was over, she would simply return to ask.

It was true. She never should have been brought back. Urasue brought her back to gain power and instead, she managed to turn on her creator. Kagome made that possible. Of everything that her reincarnation made her feel, it was pride that was on the forefront.

Yes, she had hated her reincarnation, but not because the girl had her soul, but because she was everything that Kikyo could not be. Kagome's heart was light and she loved to laugh. When she was alive, she had believed that laughter could not be afforded due to the seriousness of her responsibilities.

Now, the rumors of Kagome's power had reached her ears and it made her feel good to know that her reincarnation had managed to beat Naraku once again. She had survived the most brutal attack and managed to foil his cruel plan. Kagome had even managed to teach Inu Yasha how to trust, and that in itself proved that the younger miko had a good heart and loving nature.

A nature that she helped harm. It was due to her need for vengeance that she placed her reincarnation in harm's way and allowed her to be raped. It was due to her hatefulness that allowed her to place another in a situation that had caused so many women before her to take their own lives. She had delivered Kagome into the hands of the enemy and it was all because of a broken promise between herself and Naraku.

However, she could not allow herself to dwell upon what has been. All she can do now is concentrate on what is about to be. She had to be of sharp mind if she wanted to see Naraku's downfall. Hopefully, her bow would be strong and her arrows fly true. If Kagome was able to gain her powers back, then perhaps the fates would see fit to allow her to fire her sacred arrow one final time. And hopefully, that time would be when her arrow found Naraku's heart.

Securing her hold on her weapon, Kikyo began to walk and soon found herself on top of a hill that overlooked a lush valley. She narrowed her eyes when she saw that already, Naraku's army had arrived and was setting up their defenses. It was obvious that his soldiers were well trained and she had to wonder if Sesshomaru and the others were aware that Naraku had managed to gather skilled soldiers.

She turned and hurried down the way she came. She had to get to the others before they arrived. She had to tell them what she saw and warn them that once they arrived, the battle would probably start immediately. There would be no time in setting up their own defenses. Naraku would not allow that.

Moving swiftly, Kikyo made her way into the forest and towards the palace where Kagome's protectors were getting ready. She only hoped that she made it on time.

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Naraku smiled. Finally, he was going to win. After those who stood between him and the miko were dead, he would take her again. And again. And again. He would break her, force her into submission, and then mate her so that she could not leave him. He would use her body for his pleasure and dismiss her once he had his fill. She would produce him pups and he would teach them his ways. Together, they would be unstoppable.

However, the thought of the western lord quickly erased the smile from his face and he growled. The western lord and those scottish guardians were not going to die so easily. In fact, he could just bet that they would fight tooth and nail to protect the young miko. However, they would fail. They would fail and he would finally arrive at the place he should have been so long ago. At the top.

As he watched his army set up, he nodded his approval as his general yelled out orders for the youkai to hurry up. He could hear whips being snapped at those who were going too slow and knew that should they not hurry, they would be whipped within an inch of their lives.

He reached into his robes and pulled out the nearly completed shikon jewel. Once he had Kagome in his possession, he would force her to put in the remaining shards and then wish to be a full youkai. He would be even more powerful than Sesshomaru and his sire put together.

As the sun reached its zenith, a cruel smile formed on his lips. He could hear the sounds of marching in the distance and knew that the battle was about to take place. His men were ordered to attack when they saw the first of their enemy. They would not allow them the chance to protect themselves.

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They were gone. Kagome was aware that her guardians, Sesshomaru, and the other youkai that pledged to stand with them had gone to fight Naraku. She walked into the study in which Sesshomaru had spent a lot of his time and glanced around.

She paled when she realized that Tensaiga was leaning up against the wall. Why did Sesshomaru leave it behind, unless he simply forgot about it. Rushing forward, she recalled all of the things that the sword could do and quickly turned and hurried out of the study.

Calling to Kirara, Kagome explained the situation and mounted the firecat when she transformed into her larger size. They were already in the air when Karin came rushing from the palace, screaming for Kagome to return, but she couldn't. She had to get to Sesshomaru and give him his sword so that he could help someone if they were injured on the battlefield.

As she flew, the sounds of swords clanging and men screaming soon filled the air. When the battlefield came into view, Kagome paled. All of this because of her. All of this pain and suffering due to her inability to protect herself.

As Kirara flew closer, determination set within Kagome. She wasn't going to run away. The shikon miko would not flee, but stand and fight to her death. She would no longer be Naraku's victim and it would be he who turned bitch.