Her Destiny

Chapter 15

Kirara was slowly making her way deep into Midoriko’s cave. She was tired, she has just traveled from the west and fought off the villagers from taking the young girl from her back. She could smell the blood coming from the girl and this worried her. She just hoped that she had made the right decision in bringing Kagome to the cave first, to Midoriko.

Midoriko, her former mistress, had been very kind to her. She had raised her from a young kitten and showed her love, kindness, and compassion. She was the first ningen to have ever done that. All her life ningens hunted her kind down to enslave.

The fire neko’s were fierce warriors and once loyalty was given to anyone they fought to the bitter end to protect them. A pang of hurt went through her heart knowing that she had failed to protect the one that had given everything to protect her.

She remembered that day very well.

---oOo---FLASH BACK---oOo---

They have been traveling from village to village making sure all was well in the area. Her mistress would help the villagers in anyway possible and protected them. They would take care of any youkais that would threaten a village and didn’t want to live in peace in the area. Not all youkais were bad but on a few occasions they would have a few that would challenge Midoriko’s authority in the area.

They were on their way home when they heard about the hordes of youkais that were running amuck, destroying ningen villages, as they went through the countryside.

Word had finally reached Midoriko of what was going on and they set out to investigate. They had come upon a village that was being destroyed by the youkais as they set out killing those who refused to leave the area.

Kirara helped her mistress battle the youkais, always watching her back for her when in battle. During one of the fierce battles Kirara had gotten hurt, as the youkais surged forward, trying to take down Midoriko. She went down hard, not being able to get back up to fight, as her mistress protected her from the youkais that wanted to do her harm. She had fought them off keeping them confined to the area they were currently located in as she protected Kirara from being hurt any further.

She had managed to send word back to Inutaisho to see if he could come to her aid, but alas he was currently in a war himself with the panther youkais of the south. They had threatened to take over the west and he was fighting to keep his lands safe.

So Midoriko was on her own fighting these youkais. It seemed like the more she killed the more showed up for the fight. Six days have passed and still the battle was raging on. Midoriko herself was getting weak. The constant battles, little to no rest, and no food was taking its toll on the powerful miko, but still she fought on. Never once wavering from what she had to do.

Then, on the seventh night of the battle, a lone youkai was making his way to Midoriko. He was devouring youkais as he went and absorbing their youki, making himself even stronger. What finally faced Midoriko at the end was a giant youkai made up of about 100 lower class youkais. There bodies were combined into one, as were their powers.

The youkai surge forward, trying to kill the powerful miko, as she fought to protect the lands. The youkai had gotten her mistress in its jaws and was about to kill Midoriko, when she gathered the last of her remaining strength, and started to glow a pure white in color.

She had warned Kirara to stay away for she was about to end this battle once and for all. Kirara had protested and had tried to go after her mistress so she could help her but she had placed a powerful barrier around herself and the youkai.

Kirara watched in horror as her mistress power surged forth. It encircled her body and the youkai that had her trapped in their jaws. She grabbed hold of the youkais souls, and pulled them towards her. Her own soul answered the call as it surged forth and encased the youkai souls in a crystal jewel that came out of her chest.

The force of the jewel being created was so great that it created a hole in her chest were her heart used to be. It made a hole in the armor she was wearing as the jewel landed on the ground. Kirara saw the jewel and went to it. It was pink in color as she looked at it, she could still see her mistress fighting the battle that they have been fighting for the last seven days.

Kirara roared her pain into the sky for having her mistress taken away from her as she laid down and curled her body around the jewel to protect it. Kirara looked up at her mistress, as she saw that Midoriko along with the youkai that held her, have been turned to stone. It disappeared from the area as Kirara stayed to protect the last thing that her master left behind, her soul.

A couple of days later Lord Inutaisho finally made it to the clearing where they fought the final battle. There were dead youkai everywhere as he gazed upon the carnage of the battle. He found Kirara and gone to see if she was all right. When Kirara stood she revealed the jewel to him.

Inutaisho kneeled on the ground and looked at the jewel. Realization of what it was came to him as the look of horror was seen upon his features.

Kirara watched the youkai lord closely, she saw a lone tear leave his golden eyes as he closed them and held the jewel close to his chest. He was one of the most powerful youkais in the land and the only one that could hold the jewel and not be affected by its dark powers.

Inutaisho picked up the jewel along with Midoriko’s sword and headed back to Midoriko’s village. Once he arrived at the village he explained what happened and the entire village mourned the passing of the great miko. They decided to take the jewel and the sword to the cave in which Midoriko used to live in before her demise. The place was protected by her magic and they figured it was the safest place for both items.

When they got to the cave they noticed that it was glowing inside. They had no idea what was going on but they cautiously made their way into the cave, ready to take down any threat to the area.

The deeper they went the brighter it got until they came upon the stone image of Midoriko. She was in the jaws of a youkai that was about to devour her. They saw a whole in her chest that went right though the armor she wore. Somehow the stone statue of Midoriko fighting the last youkai found its way into her cave and now that’s where it stood.

They placed the jewel and sword down on a pillow in front of the stone statue and saw how brightly the jewel glowed. Everyone left the cave after that but Kirara stayed behind. She could not leave her mistress knowing that she was still in the jewel.

Then the mikokoro of Midoriko appeared to Kirara and said, “Kirara, I free you from your bond to me. You my friend must find a new master and continue to live on. In the future you will find my Musume. When you do please protect her for she is the key to protecting the lands.”

Kirara understood what Midoriko was saying. But she never wavered from her duty to protect the cave that held her soul. A century passed and no one showed up that even looked like Midoriko.

Kirara, being lonely for over a century, befriended a young Taijiya by the name of Sango and that’s how she came into Sango’s service.

---oOo---END OF FLASH BACK---oOo---

Kirara finally made it to the back of the cave where her former mistress rested. Slowly she stopped in front of the stone statue of Midoriko and looked up at her. She whined and when nothing happened she turned her attention to the girl that was on her back.

Kirara gently lowered Kagome to the ground. Once Kagome was settled Kirara turned to the task at hand. Kagome was still bleeding badly from all of her wounds. She had a couple of deep gashes on her side and numerous cuts across her arms and legs.

Kirara didn’t know what to do. Her saliva was not as strong as that of an Inu Youkai, but she had to try and heal her. She started with the worst wounds to make them stop bleeding. It was a slow process when she heard someone say, “Kirara my tomodachi, please move aside so I can take care of my Musume’s wounds.”

Kirara looked up from her work when she saw the mikokoro of Midoriko and moved aside. She transformed back into her kitten form to conserve energy as she sat by and watched what her mistress was about to do.

Midoriko moved over to Kagome as she observed her wounds. She placed her hand on Kagome’s forehead and concentrated as she let her healing powers come forth to heal her.

Kagome’s body was engulfed in a soft blue light as all of her wounds started to heal. Soon all you could see was the light pink skin that knitted together and sealed her wounds. Then Midoriko gave Kagome some of her energy so she could recover quickly.

Midoriko could feel the Inu Youkai close to the village and she had to hurry. They would be there soon and knowing the elder son of Inutaisho he would be breaking down her barrier to get to Kagome as she sat and waited to Kagome to awaken.

Kagome’s head was hurting as she was slowly was coming around. Her whole body hurt as she groaned and started to move. She opened her eyes to see that she was in a cave. There was a light coming from somewhere as her eyes were slowly coming into focus. Once they were focused she slowly sat up as she felt a heavy weight on her lap. She looked down to see Kirara mewling at her.

Kagome smiled, she picked up the kitten and held her close to her chest, as she softly said, “I’m all right Kirara, I just have a headache that’s all.”

Midoriko watched her Musume with amusement in her eyes. Her Musume still did not noticed that she was there as she said, “Musume, I do believe that you scared Kirara half to death.”

Kagome quickly turned to the voice as she saw Midoriko sitting not too far away from her. She smiled as she said, “Hello Okaa-san, what am I doing here?”

Midoriko’s heart leaped with joy when she heard her Musume call her Okaa-san as she said, “I had Kirara bring you here after your fight with the kuro miko. You were low on energy and were badly injured. I had to get you to a safe place so I had Kirara bring you back here to my village.”

“Your village? Where is your village located?” Kagome asked with interest in her voice.

Midoriko chuckled as she said, “My village is Sango’s village. My original home was destroyed a long time ago. This village found me when I was young and let me live here. I found this cave away from the main village and this is where I stayed when I was home.”

Kagome thought about this as she asked, “But why didn’t you stay at the village? You said that they let you stay here with them.”

Midoriko looked at her Musume and asked, “I can ask you the same questions, Musume. Why do you feel that you are not part of Ayashiko family? Both Inutaisho and Ayashiko treat you as their pup but yet you pull away from their affections. Why?”

Kagome looked down in her lap as she looked at Kirara. She didn’t want to tell Midoriko why she feels that way, but she had a feeling that the dead miko wouldn’t take no for an answer. So she proceeded very slowly to tell her why, “I feel so out of place here. I know that Ayashiko and Inutaisho love me as their pup but I’m afraid to get close to them. I’m afraid to lose them like I have lost other things in my life.

I crave their love and affection, but I’m afraid of losing that love, if I let them get too close to my heart. I have already lost someone very dear to me. I don’t want to loose my youbo as well. I love having an Otou-san but the memories of my real father comes back to haunt me. I love Inutaisho with all my heart and I know that he won’t do the same things that my real father did but I can’t seem to move on from that.”

Midoriko knew what she was talking about as she said, “Kagome you must move on. You must open your heart again to love and be protected. Allow them to see the real you that is hidden deep within you. You have to take the chance to love again because you have no choice in the matter. You have to work through all of your insecurities and they will help you overcome those.

Plus your idea, not to be mated, is a bad one. You must be mated and you must live Kagome.”

Kagome looked up as she stared at Midoriko and said, “I will not be mated to someone that only wants me for my body and powers. I refuse to be used in this manner.”

Midoriko knew that she had to be stern with her Musume if she wanted her to have a future. She must make her comply with her wishes. She hoped for the best as she said, “Kagome, you don’t know who the victor of the fight will be. He might surprise you and love you for who you are. But if you don’t even give him a chance how do you know you won’t fall in love with him and be happy? Don’t make the same mistakes I did when I was looking for someone to love in my lifetime.

By the time I realized what I had done he was gone and I was left alone. I don’t want that for you. You were brought back to this era because you and your mate are the only one’s that can defeat the evil that is coming. If you die then the future as you know it will change forever. You will never get to see your real mother again no matter how hard you try.”

This bit of information shocked Kagome. She didn’t know what to do now. Her heart was torn in two as she said, “I’m so confused, I don’t know what to do anymore. I don’t want to mate with someone that will not love me but if what you are saying is true then I have no choice.”

“Kagome, open your heart and follow it. It will tell you if the male that won the right to dominate you is the one you are destined to love. He could very well be your soul mate and make you complete. You will never know unless you are willing to open your heart to love again. Don’t let your past memories of the things that have happened interfere with what you have to do.

You will accept this male when he challenges you. I know that you will fight him tooth and nails, but I expect nothing less. You must prove that you are a strong female and the male must understand that having such a strong female come with a price. He has to learn to protect and love you for all your days.

But know this Kagome. That kuro miko will be back and without a mate she could kill you the next time. You were able to bring forth your deepest powers, but only with a mate can you control them. Your powers exceeds my own and only with a mate can you hope to control what is deep within you. He will guide you in what you have to do and you must help him come into his next level of power, without it, these lands are lost.

Kagome I’m not saying it’s going to be easy, but you must try and be open minded about what is to come.” Midoriko finished saying her peace as she watched her Musume. She could see the confusion in her eyes and worry. Worry that the male that was the strongest youkai around would not love her for what she was.

Kagome took a deep breath as she said, “All right, I will try to open my mind and my heart to whatever suitors shows interest in me. But I’m not promising that I will accept them. If they can dominate me then I will give them a chance and see if they could ever love me for who I am, but if he does not show me any kind of love, then I will reject him. I don’t want to be mated to anyone that is only going to take advantage of me. You know just as well as I do that the knowledge I process is enough to tip the scales for the future. I will not allow myself to be used in that manner.”

Midoriko smiled as she said, “That’s all I can ask of you my Ittoshi Musume is to keep an open mind and an open heart.”

At that moment Midoriko felt that the villagers were gathered at the entrance of the cave. They were looking for Kagome, she could feel Sango standing there waiting for her. She turned her attention to Kagome as she said, “Kagome, Sango is waiting for you at the entrance to the cave. You will have to go out there and meet her because they can not enter the cave.”

Kagome understood what Midoriko was saying as she slowly stood on her feet. She was tired, but she got her balance as she was making her way out of the cave. But before she left she turned and said, “Thank you for helping me realize what I am doing. I don’t mean to pull away from the people that love me, it’s just hard for me to let anyone in my heart after everything that I have been through.”

Midoriko understood what she was saying as she replied, “Remember Kagome open your heart to them, you won’t be disappointed.”

Kagome smiled as she left the miko behind and made her way to the cave’s entrance.

Kagome was slowly walking toward the entrance of the cave. She could see the light up ahead as she walked. She stopped when she heard the thunder coming from outside. Fear, fear of a long ago memory gripped Kagome as she stopped to catch her breath. Her whole body was shaking in fear as she got her control back. She took deep breaths and continued on her way.

She was almost to the cave’s entrance when she spotted Sango. She saw the Taijiya turn towards her as she heard her say, “Kagome! Are you all right?” She was about to answer when she saw the lighting flash and then heard the thunder outside the cave. She stopped and closed her eyes. She was taking in deep breaths as she was trying to calm her heart.

Kagome opened her eyes and smiled at her friend, stating, “Yes Sango I’m all right. Just give me a minute and I will be there.”

Kagome continued to walk as she leaned against the wall of the cave. Her balance was not that good yet and she felt very weak. She was almost to the entrance when a flash of lighting hit the area and was soon followed by a loud crack of thunder.

Kagome froze in her tracks, the flash of lighting and the sound of thunder brought back horrible memories for her as she closed her eyes trying to get control over her emotions. ‘It happened a long time ago damn it! I’m not going to let it get to me this time. I know that I’m safe and nothing is going to happen to me.’

Kagome opened her eyes again as another lighting attack lit up the skies in front of her as she saw the monster from her dreams. The youkai with four arms that was about to attack her was standing right behind Sango as she screamed and ran back deeper into the cave.

Kagome was running screaming her head off as the nightmare from when she had just turned three years old came crashing back to haunt her.

-------FLASH BACK-------

Our little Kagome was very adventures back then; her mother would always warn her not to go wondering into the shrine, because it was forbidden for females to enter the inner sanctum of the shrine.

One day, when her mother was busy cooking dinner, because her parents were having guests over that day, Kagome took her chance and secretly went to the shrine. No one noticed that Kagome had stolen away to the shrine, not even her grandfather.

But unknown to anyone, that day there was a typhoon approaching the city. The news said that it wouldn't come anywhere near Tokyo, but unpredictably the winds changed its direction, bringing the powerful storm straight to the heart of Tokyo.

Kagome sneaked into the shrine through the grand ceremonial hall (the hall used to perform weddings and traditional dances) and looks all about. All the things in there, like the traditional musical instruments, enthrall her. She sees another door and opens it, she finds her self inside a hidden corridor. She follows it until it leads her to another door.

But unknown to her, outside, the weather is changing fast, the sky is getting darker and the wind was picking up. Asami and her husband just thought it was the tail end of the typhoon. She and her husband left the house to go do the shopping, leaving grandpa to look after Kagome, all of them thinking that she is just taking her afternoon nap.

Kagome opens the door and walks into a large, dark and cool room/hall. This room has a high ceiling and a number of small windows high up. Little Kagome is excited to find this large room and runs around merrily inside. But all of the sudden, she stops her merriment when she hears the wind howling outside. Kagome wonders what's happening outside. The wind is so strong that she can feel its strong currents inside the hall that she is in.

- - - -

Asami and her husband get stuck at the shopping complex that they had stepped into for a moment. It was the only place in the city that Asami could get her cooking ingredients from. It also happened to be the time when the authorities announced that the typhoon was about to land. The wind picks up around the city and cars aren't allowed on the roads, until the storm dies down.

- - - -

The winds were getting stronger and stronger, tree branches start to snap and some of them hit the top of the shrine, scaring little Kagome in the hall. The doors of the shrine, that she had opened to sneak in, are fully opened by the winds. The door she opened to get into the inner sanctum closes with a bang, warping the doorframe and sealing the little girl within.

When the door banged close, Kagome almost jumped a foot in the air, she ran to the door trying to push it open but it wouldn't budge, the door had made its mind up not to open. Kagome pulled and pulled but the door wouldn't budge. All of a sudden, she heard a loud crack; the dark hall was lit brightly, shortly after that, a booming clap of thunder rung though the air and it’s deafening echo, bounced off all the walls in the hall she was in.

Kagome clasped her hands over her ears and closed her eyes shut. Then there was quiet... as the wind howled madly outside. And since the door was determined not to budge, Kagome walked to the center of the room to wait for someone to come and find her.

The hall became darker and Kagome felt fear over coming her entire being, as she shook in terror in the middle of the room. There was a bright flash of light and Kagome saw something that struck the fear of kami into her.

There standing right in front of her was a tall figure that filled the wall, it had 4 arms, an angry face with large fangs, and he was holding four humongous swords in his hands. She screamed loudly, then a loud bang filled the room and Kagome started to cry. She should have listen to her mother and not go into the inner sanctum of the shrine.

Every time the lightning flashed, she would see the scary face of the guardian deity of the shrine. And every clap of thunder would get louder and louder. At one point Kagome cried and screamed for her mother to come and get her.... but no one came.

The winds were howling like an angry wolf while the lightning and thunder whipped madly through the sky. Kagome called for help but no body came, she hugged her knees and cried. Every time the lightning flashed and the thunder clapped boomingly, Kagome would cover her ears, shutting her eyes tightly, she cried even harder.

Softly she called "Mama… Papa… Jii-chan… someone… please help me..." but no one came, only the lightning and thunder that scared her out of her mind.

- - - -

Jii-chan was worried out of his mind he couldn't find his cute little granddaughter anywhere. He heard that the typhoon had changed direction and was to hit Tokyo at anytime. He went up to her room to wake her up and get them to a safe place, but when he went in, the room was empty. Kagome wasn't in her room. He looked all over the house, but she wasn't there. He checked all of Kagome's favorite hiding places, but his cute granddaughter was nowhere to be found.

He was starting to panic, where did she go? Did her parents take her? No they had told him to take care of her. He panicked, did Kagome go out to play. He went out and searched the grounds but he couldn't find her. Did she go back into the house? He wondered, and went back to the house. He returned to the house and went in as called for his granddaughter, but there was no answer.

The winds were getting stronger, he had to find her, he tried to go back out but it was not an easy job trying to get the door open. The strong winds of the typhoon were pushing against the door. Grandpa thinking that his little granddaughter maybe somewhere outside in the approaching storm, fought to get the door open, but once he managed to get the door open, he rushed out, only to be hit by the door. He fell back into the house and sprained his ankle.

- - - -

Kagome lay crying and hugged her little body as the storm went on, the wind whipped about the hill shrine relentlessly. Kagome had retreated to a corner in the shrine far away from the scary guardian statue, all the time crying softly for her mother to come.

The storm went on for hours until the evening when it finally died down, but by that time... the damage was done to Kagome. Her parents knew where to look for her, after they found grandpa. That was when Asami broke the rule of the shrine, and entered the inner sanctum. She saw that the door was warped, she and her husband fought to open the door, they called Kagome's name but no answer ever came. When they finally got the door open, it was to find their daughter in a petrified state sitting in her little corner, her face streaked with dried tears and her eyes red from crying so much.

----------END OF FLASH BACK---------

Kagome continued running deep into the cave as she was going towards the back. There in the back of the cave was a big hole that led to nowhere. It was a bottomless pit and she was heading straight for it. She was almost there when she was grabbed from behind and pulled into a soft chest as they held on to the struggling girl.

---oOo---

Lord Inutaisho and Sesshoumaru were quickly making their way back to the youkai slayers village. The storm was rapidly approaching the village and they had to make it there before it hit full force.

Inutaisho could still feel Kagome’s fear as they continued to go faster. Soon they made it back to the village as they raced to Midoriko’s cave. They stopped at the cave entrance when they saw the villagers there talking to someone.

They walked up behind Sango and that’s when they noticed that Kagome was on the other side of the barrier to the cave entrance. She was leaning against the cave wall and had just looked up when the lighting struck a tree right behind them. A big tree fell as it barely missed the youkais standing there. Thunder sounded loudly through the area as they saw Kagome’s eyes grow big as she screamed and ran back into the cave.

But what everyone failed to see was when the tree landed right behind Sesshoumaru it made him look like he had four arms with swords in them. Sesshoumaru seeing how scared his intended was raced after her into the cave. To everyone’s surprise the barrier let him pass as he raced after Kagome.

Inutaisho ran after his son and his little one as he entered the cave. The ningens stood outside the barrier for they couldn’t follow.

Inutaisho had finally caught up to Sesshoumaru as they stopped at the stone statue of were Midoriko was located. They looked around the area and couldn’t find Kagome as Midoriko appeared and said, “You must stop Kagome before she reaches the back of the cave. If she falls into the bottomless pit we will never see her again.”

Sesshoumaru raced off after Kagome’s scent as Inutaisho stayed behind to talk to Midoriko.

Sesshoumaru was moving fast, he had to find Kagome before she fell into that hole. The cave was dark but he could still see where he was going. He spotted Kagome up ahead as he went faster to get to her. She was almost to the pit as he raced forward. He reached out, grabbing Kagome by the waist and pulling her into his chest, stopping just before they both went into the pit.

He held on to her tightly as she was fighting him to release her. He sat down on the ground as he held her close to his chest and started to purr to calm her. His tail went around her body to keep her in place as he said in her ear, “Kagome, I will always protect you. I will not let anything hurt you ever again.”

Kagome felt the gentle purr of the person holding her. She calmed down as she was gently being rocked back and forth. She felt safe for the first time in her life and at peace. She closed her eyes as she let his gentle heart beat lull her into a deep sleep.

Sesshoumaru felt as Kagome slowly calmed down. Her breathing evened out as she fell asleep in his arms. He nuzzled her under her chin as he took in her scent. She was unharmed, untouched, and that’s what mattered to him.

He got up off the ground as he kept his tail wrapped around her body and made his way back to his father. He walked slowly because he knew that as soon as he got back to his father he would take her away from him. He couldn’t blame him though. The way he was feeling about her at the moment, he would mate her tonight, if his father were not with him.

Sesshoumaru finally made it back to where his father was located. He saw him quickly walk up to him and say, “Is she all right?”

Sesshoumaru looked at his father as he said, “Yes father, she is unharmed. I caught her before she went into the pit. I managed to calm her down and she is sleeping at the moment.”

Inutaisho was happy as he held out his arms so he could take Kagome away from Sesshoumaru. Sesshoumaru growled as he removed his tail from around Kagome and gave her to his father. He was not happy about losing her warmth against his body as he watched his father say a spell that put her into a deeper sleep.

Sesshoumaru was curious about why he did that as he asked, “Father, why did you put her into a deeper sleep?”

Inutaisho looked at his son as he said, “The storm is getting worse outside. I put her into a deeper sleep to keep her calm. Midoriko explained that this fear, that she has, comes from when she was a young pup. She had gotten caught in a storm like this and was left by herself for hours until the storm passed. By the time they found her, the damage was already done. They found her petrified in the shrine where she lived and she has never been able to get over her fright.”

Sesshoumaru now understood why his intended mate was so afraid of the storm that was raging outside. He made a promise to himself to always be with her during a storm so that she feels safe.

They sent word to Sango and the other youkai slayers that they were going to stay the night in the cave for Kagome’s well being and that they would leave in the morning. The villagers brought food to them as they tried to make them as comfortable as possible.

Inutaisho never let go of Kagome. He held her to his chest as he constantly purred to keep her calm. Even though they were deep in the cave you could still hear the thunder and see part of the lighting as the storm continued to rage outside. Kagome could feel this and would shiver from time to time.

Inutaisho was resting against the wall of the cave with Kagome in his lap. Sesshoumaru was sitting off to the side watching his father and his intended sleep. He could not sleep, because he wanted to hold Kagome so badly, but he knew that he couldn’t.

Midoriko saw her opportunity to talk to the young heir, as she appeared right next to him.

Sesshoumaru looked over to his side and he saw the mikokoro of Midoriko, he tilted his head, acknowledging the deceased miko.

Midoriko not one to beat around the bush came right to the point of what she wanted. “Sesshoumaru-sama, do you have an interest in my Musume?”

Sesshoumaru raised an elegant eyebrow at her as he said, “Yes, I do have an interest in her.”

“Then let me give you a piece of advice if you want to mate with her. Unless you can show her that you will love her for all eternity then I would suggest that you don’t even try to mate with her. She is stubborn and she is looking for a male that will love her for who and what she is.

She is prepared to die if she cannot find this male. She will not be bonded to anyone that can’t love her and she will not survive without a mate. Her next heat will kill her and she is prepared for this.

So if you want her then look beyond the fact that she is a powerful female that can bare strong pups. Look beyond the fact that she is ningen and see her for who and what she is. Then you may have a chance of mating with her. This is my advice to you young lord.” Midoriko ended her rant as she watched Sesshoumaru, he was deep in thought about the things she has said to him.

Midoriko just hoped that she finally got through to Sesshoumaru and that he could see the Kagome that she sees. Kagome was a fragile girl that needed to be loved and cared for, for the rest of her life. She left the young youkai alone to his thoughts as she disappeared from the area.

---oOo---

Sesshoumaru sat there the whole night thinking about what Midoriko had said, ‘If I look beyond the fact that she is the strongest female I have ever encountered, and I look beyond the fact that she is just a ningen. What do I have? I have just a plain onna with nothing special to offer this Sesshoumaru.’

But that train of thought didn’t sound right to Sesshoumaru as his beast decided to join in on the conversation. ‘Is that all you see when you look beyond all those things?’ asked his beast with a growl.

Sesshoumaru furrowed his eyebrows together as he asked, ‘What do you mean by that? There is not much there after I look beyond those things.’

Sesshoumaru’s inner inu growled again as he said, ‘I see an onna who has a kind and caring heart. She takes time to teach pups how to protect themselves and then plays with them for no other reason than to give them joy.

I see an onna that protects that, which is not hers and risks her life for those she cares for. She has a beauty that cannot be compared for we have seen no ningen or demoness that possesses such beauty. Nor have we ever met an onna that could move our hearts as she does.

She is worthy to be called our mate and this inu loves her for what she is. A pure white soul that calls to us when she is in distress and one that soothes us when we are angered. Her soul calls to us because she is our soul mate.’

Now this was new information for him. His inner inu has stated that she is his soul mate. ‘Could this be possible?’

Sesshoumaru looks over at his intended mate as she rested in his father’s arms. The storm outside had finally started to go away and she has finally settled down to sleep. He closed his eyes as he thought of her. His youki reached out into the cave as it sought his intended and caressed her in his light. She answered back in kind as she wrapped her aura around his and gently took in his warmth.

That’s when he felt it. He felt the connection that his beast said was there. His soul was connected to the girl as his soul reached out to hers and she responded in kind. Their souls mixed and joined in ways that could only be dreamed of. It was as if he was whole for the first time in his life. He felt a great warmth surround his heart as he finally felt his true feelings for the girl.

Inutaisho had been asleep when he felt something strange in the cave with them. He slowly opened his eyes as they came into focus. He looked up and what he saw shocked the living daylights out of him. There in the middle of the cave were two auras that were dancing in the high ceiling of the cave.

When he looked at his son he saw that he was asleep but he was glowing a golden color. He looked down at Kagome and noticed that she too was glowing. She was glowing a pure white in color. He looked up again as he saw that it was their auras that was glowing so brightly and mixing together.

Midoriko at the moment appeared in front of Inutaisho as she said, “Yes my friend, my Musume is your son’s soul mate. Sesshoumaru has finally realized who she is and now the battle to claim her will start. Protect my Musume my friend. There are evil youkai that want her and the kuro miko will return to kill her. The sooner these two are together the sooner they can protect each other and the lands.” She then left the Western Lord to his thought as she disappeared from sight.

Inutaisho took all this in as he looked from his son to his little one and smiled. He understood that there was something special about her when he first seen her. He now knew that he would have her, as a daughter to his clan, his son would do everything possible to claim the lovely Kagome.

His mate will be surprised about this little bit of news once they got back home. This only meant that they had to step up their plans to get their special place ready for them so they can spend time together after he dominates her. But he knew that his son was going to have a ruff time making her submit to him.

He settled back down as he closed his eyes until morning. They will travel back home in the morning and be a family once again.

---oOo---

Inutaisho and Sesshoumaru were the first to awaken. Their inner clocks told them it was just about dawn and the sun was due to rise over the horizon.

Inutaisho looked at his son as he smiled. He might not remember what happen last night but he did. He then looked down at his little one and she was still asleep. He whispered his spell to release her from her sleep as he waited for her to awaken.

Kagome started to stir, as she felt very warm. She felt that she was being held as she opened her eyes slowly. When her eyes came into focus she saw that the youkai lord was holding her, as she said, “Good morning Otou-san.”

Inutaisho smiled as he purred and said, “Good morning my little one how are you feeling this morning?”

Kagome sat up as she said, “I feel tired for some reason. But where are we?”

Inutaisho looked at her with concern in his eyes as he asked, “Don’t you remember anything from yesterday?”

Kagome took a deep breath and let it out slowly as she tried to clear her mind of the fog that she felt was there. She concentrated as she started to focus her mind on what happened the previous day. She started to remember everything that happened as her eyes went wide with understanding.

She looked at her youbu and said, “I remember what happened yesterday. That kuro miko attacked the castle but she got away before I could kill her. Then I remember waking up here and talking to Midoriko for a while, then she told me that Sango was outside waiting for me. I went to see Sango, I remember the thunder and lighting, after that I can’t remember anything else.”

Inutaisho understood that his pup couldn’t remember what happened after she ran from the storm last night, he thought it best not to remind her as he said, “Are you ready to go home Kagome?”

Kagome smiled as she said, “Yes, I’m ready. I want to go home and see how Inuyasha is doing. He was hurt pretty badly yesterday during that attack. I healed his wounds but I would still like to check and make sure that he is all right.”

Inutaisho then stood with her in his arms as he placed her on her feet. Kagome stood on shaky legs as she held on to the wall for support. He turned to his son and said, “I’m going outside to see if I can find Sango and tell her we are leaving. Come out when you’re both ready, then we will leave.”

Sesshoumaru nodded his head in understanding as he saw his father leave. He then turned his attention to Kagome as he was watching her very closely.

Kagome stood on shaky legs as she held on to the wall for support. She couldn’t understand why she was feeling so weak. She tried to take a step forward and almost fell. She was grabbed from behind by a strong arm and when she looked up she was surprised to see Sesshoumaru standing there holding her in his arms.

Kagome blushed a bright red as she said, “Um, thank you Sesshoumaru for catching me. I can’t understand why I can’t stand up. My legs feel so weak.”

Sesshoumaru thought about it for a few minutes as he said, “You released a tremendous amount of your Reiyouku yesterday when you battled that kuro miko, you have not recovered from that as of yet. It will take another day for you to recover your strength.”

Kagome understood what he was saying as she tried to stand on her own and immediately fell forward into Sesshoumaru. Sesshoumaru seeing that she will never be able to walk on her own, picked her up in his arms, as he wrapped his tail around her and carried outside.

Kagome looked at Sesshoumaru as she bowed her head in shame. She didn’t want him to think that she was weak but she couldn’t stand on her own. She had no idea what was going on as she concentrated on her Reiyouku. She leaned her head on his shoulder as she closed her eyes. His scent calmed her as she let her healing powers go over her body to heal anything that might need to be healed. She was glowing a light blue as Sesshoumaru was looking at her.

Sesshoumaru smiled as he rubbed his cheek on the top of her head while he continued to walk. Once he was outside the barrier to the cave, he found his father. Sango was with him along with half of the slayer village. By the looks of things, it looked like they stayed here last night and protected the cave. He has never known ningen to be so committed to duty before. He was impressed with this village as he walked over to his father.

Inutaisho sensed his son coming towards him as he turned to look at his son. He noticed right away that Kagome was glowing a light blue as he asked, “What happened to Kagome?”

Sesshoumaru, having placed his stoic mask back in place, answered in his monotone voice, “She was feeling weak. She couldn’t take a step without falling so I picked her up and came outside. She is using her Reiyouku to heal her body.”

At that moment everyone got a good look at Kagome. It was the first time that they had seen the descendent of Midoriko as the males gasped. She was beautiful as they were all looking at the girl in the youkais arms.

Sesshoumaru noticed this and he began to growl viciously, threatening all the males that were there to back off. The villagers moved back when they heard the growls as Inutaisho and looked at his son.

Inutaisho noticed what was going on as he growled at his son, warning him not to harm anyone in the village.

Sesshoumaru moved his tail over Kagome to cover her from the staring male ningen. The sooner they left this village the sooner he will calm down. He hated being close to so many males.

Kagome was sensing something in the near distance. A very large youkai was heading for the village. She could tell that he was powerful as she struggled to get stronger. But there was something wrong. She was feeling weaker not stronger. She opened her eyes as she gently said, “Sesshoumaru, there is a very large youkai heading this way. It’s a powerful one and the villagers will not be able to fight it off. Please, for me, protect Midoriko’s village.”

Sesshoumaru heard Kagome’s request as he opened his senses full and found the youkai that his beloved had told him about. It was powerful and he knew that these ningen would never be able to defeat it. He turned to his father and said, “Father there is a very large youkai heading this way. It’s powerful and these ningen will never be able to defeat it. Kagome has requested that we protect the village from harm.”

Inutaisho upon hearing his son’s word opened his senses and found the youkai that his son was talking about. He was correct this youkai was powerful and he knew that the slayers would not be able to take down with their weapons. He looked at Sesshoumaru and then at his little one.

He noticed that something was wrong with Kagome. She seemed to be growing weaker not stronger as he observed her. They didn’t have much time before the youkai arrived at the village as he said, “Sesshoumaru, take Kagome back into the cave, she will be safe there until our return. I know that Midoriko will protect her and not let any harm come to her.”

Sesshoumaru nodded his head in agreement as he turned and walked back into the cave. He carried Kagome back to the place where they had rested for the night as he placed her on the ground. He kissed her forehead before he stood and left her there to rest. All the while he was still getting this uneasy feeling that something was wrong with his intended mate.

He walked back outside the cave as he went to his father side. They left together to confront this youkai that wanted to destroy the slayer village, along with a good portion of the men from the village. They were determined to fight this threat to protect their home.

Sesshomaru and Inutaisho stopped at a clearing not too far away from the village, they felt the presence of the youkai they were seeking so they decided to confront him here. They were there for only a few minutes when the ningens joined them for the battle that was about to happen.

They only waited for a few more minutes, when the youkai came crashing through the forest. It was a giant Oni and a powerful one. It must have stood about 40 feet tall. It was bald with only one eye. Its lower fangs were protruding out of his mouth pointing upward. When he snarled you could see the rest of his teeth, as they looked green. His arms were long and he had only three fingers on each hand. He had long deadly claws that were sharp. He wore a cloth made from a large animal across the lower part of his body as he roared his challenge to the ones in the clearing.

Inutaisho, not being impressed with the youkai said, “What do you want here?”

The Oni just chuckled and said, “I want the Shikon, give me the Shikon and then I will leave.”

Inutaisho huffed as he said, “We don’t have the Shikon so you will leave this place and get off my lands. If I ever see you here again it will be your death.”

The Oni answered with an attack as he sent a blast of his youki straight to the group in front of him. Inutaisho saw the attacked coming as he used his whip to intercept the attack. He diverted the attack to the side as he used his whip and slashed the youkai in front of him. His whip barely had any effect on the youkai as he said, “Sesshoumaru! We must combine our attacks if we are to beat this youkai.”

Sesshoumaru understood as he moved in to attack. Sesshoumaru used own whip, saturating it with his poison, as he struck the youkai in front of them. His whip sliced right through the tough skin of the Oni, as the youkai howled in pain. The Oni turned his attention to the youkai that just joined the fight, as he lashed out with his claws.

Sesshoumaru saw the attack coming as he quickly moved out of the way. He extended his own claws as a green mist started to form at the tips of his fingers. He rushed in as he slashed with his poisoned claws, making four deep claw marks across the Oni’s chest. Sesshoumaru’s poison was going deeper into the youkai’s blood as he howled in pain.

Inutaisho came in right after his son as he slashed with his own claws, making additional marks on the Oni’s chest as the youkai lashed out wildly trying to get the attacking youkais.

The villagers up to this point have only been watching, staying out of harms way, they saw their opportunity to attack as they sent their various weapons toward the large Oni. Their weapons struck the various opened wounds that the youkai had as their weapons made them worse.

The Oni was greatly weakened because of the blood loss as he started to lose the fight. Sesshoumaru saw the Oni waver on his feet, when he saw his chance and took it. He used his poison whip as he beheaded the youkai and it fell dead on the ground.

Everyone was panting hard from the battle as they surveyed the damage done to the area. At least the village was still standing. Inutaisho and Sesshoumaru had to make sure they didn’t use their more powerful attacks because they would have destroyed the village if they did. So they were reduced to fighting with their claws and whips in order to bring the Oni down and make sure the village survived.

Sesshoumaru was panting hard from that battle, as he stood straight up, looking for his father. At that moment he felt the mental touch from his intended as he heard, “Sesshoumaru, please help me.” The voice was so weak that he was afraid that he might be losing her, as he turned and rushed towards Kagome.

Inutaisho seeing his son take off back to the village quickly followed behind him to see what was wrong. ‘There is only one thing that can make him move this fast. Kagome must be in trouble and she has managed to break my spell in order to talk to Sesshoumaru.’ Inutaisho thought as he picked up speed and rushed after his son.

---oOo---

Kagome was breathing hard. She was trying to get her energy back as she laid on the ground. She couldn’t figure out why she was feeling this way. She should have recovered from her fight the previous day, but she hasn’t. As a matter of fact she felt like she was weakening.

Kagome didn’t know what was wrong as she said, “Midoriko please I need your help.”

Midoriko had heard her Musume as she appeared at her side. She looked at her daughter and knew what was wrong with her. She has a curse that was placed on her. She cursed under her breath for not noticing this before. The attack that Kagome fought off yesterday from the kuro miko has left her cursed and it was making her weaker by the minute.

Kagome looked up to see Midoriko sitting there next to her as she asked, “Midoriko what is wrong with me? Why am I getting weaker rather than getting stronger?”

Midoriko quickly said, “Kagome you have a curse that is slowly draining your powers. If we don’t stop this and soon, you will die.”

Kagome closed her eyes as she concentrated on the curse that was surrounding her body. She knew how to break it but she didn’t have the energy to do it. Kagome mentally called out to Sesshoumaru in hopes that he would hear her.

Within moments Kagome felt Sesshoumaru's presence right next to her. She opened her eyes to see the worried look on Sesshoumaru’s features sitting next to her. She struggled to talk as she said, “Please help me break this curse, before it drains me of my powers.”

Sesshoumaru hearing, what his intended said, closely looked at her. He saw the curse that was surrounding her body as it was draining her of her Reiyouku. He was about to pick her up when he heard his father say, “Sesshoumaru, you can’t transfer your powers to her unless you’re mated. I can transfer my powers to her because I have marked her as my pup. If she needs additional power then you can transfer it to me and I can then transfer it to her.” Inutaisho said as he was kneeling down next to his pup. She was growing weaker by the minute, so they had to hurry.

Sesshoumaru understood what his father was saying as he was picking up Kagome in his arms. He observed as his father called forth his youki and surrounded his body, as he began to supply her with the energy that she needed. He placed his hand on her right ear where she had her mark, as a member of his clan, and started channeling his youki into her.

Kagome started to get stronger. Her energy was coming back slowly but it was not enough to break the curse. It seemed that the more she regained her strength, the more powerful the curse became to prevent her from recovering.

Inutaisho watched to see what was happening with his pup. He was sustaining her but she was not getting any stronger. He looked at his son as he said, “Sesshoumaru you must add your youki to make her stronger. I am sustaining her but she does not have the strength needed to destroy this curse.”

Sesshoumaru understood as he moved closer to his father. He put his hand on top of his father’s hand as he concentrated on his youki and gave it to his father.

Inutaisho eyes opened wide at the amount of power that his son was transferring to him. He looked over and saw this son’s aura glowing almost a pale yellow. It was powerful as he quickly channeled the power given to him into Kagome, so she could recover quickly and break the curse she was under.

Kagome started getting stronger. She felt the surge of power that went through her body as she concentrated on what she had to do. She gathered the curse and encased it in a golden spear, once she had it all she lifted it out of her body as it hovered above them all.

Sesshoumaru saw what Kagome has done, he was surprised at the level of power that she has in order to seal a curse in the golden ball of light that he saw floating over them. His anger grew at the thought that someone had done this to her as his claws grew longer. Poison started to seep from his claws as he lashed out and destroyed the curse.

Once he was done he quickly looked down at Kagome and saw her regaining her strength back. He stopped supplying her with his youki as he pulled his hand away from his father.

Inutaisho also saw that Kagome was regaining her strength as he pulled his hand away from her ear and waited for her to wake up.

Kagome slowly opened her eyes and let them get focused. When they finally came into focus she saw her Otou-san sitting next to her. She was confused because she thought that Sesshoumaru was the one sitting next to her as she turned her head to the side and then noticed Sesshoumaru.

The expression on his face mirrored that of her Otou-san, they were both concerned about her as she let out a sigh of relief. She closed her eyes as she said, “The curse is gone. Thank you both for helping me.”

Inutaisho looked at his pup as he asked, “Kagome, how do you feel?”

Kagome turned to her Otou-san and said, “I feel very tired.”

“Sleep my little one, sleep while we travel home.” Inutaisho said as he cradled her against his chest and purred to lull her to sleep.

Kagome felt safe once again, she turned and cuddled closer into Inutaisho’s chest. Her hand came up as it grabbed on to his haori, never wanting to let go. She finally fell asleep in his arms, content for the first time in two days. Inutaisho then rose to his feet as his son followed suit.

Sesshoumaru saw as his father pulled Kagome closer to his chest and wrapped his tail around her to keep her secure to him. A low growl escaped his chest at the jealousy he was feeling that his father could hold her but he could not. He wanted so badly to hold her and never let her go. Soon though, very soon, the other lords will gather and he will have his chance to dominate her. He had to win the right first and he was ready to meet it head on.

They both walked out of the cave as they saw the slayers of the village standing there, waiting for them to come back out.

Sango was waiting patiently for Lord Inutaisho and Sesshoumaru to come out with Kagome. She knew that something must have been wrong with Kagome if they both rushed back here to be with her.

She saw them coming out of the cave as she said, “Milord, is Kagome all right?”

Inutaisho turned his attention to Sango as he said, “Yes Sango she is fine now just tired.” He then turned his attention to Hiro as he said, “Hiro, I must return to the Western Lands. I want to thank you for giving us a place to stay for the night.”

Hiro bowed deeply as he said, “The pleasure was ours milord. Please come and visit again.”

They all turned and started to walk away from Midoriko’s cave. Once out of the influence of the spells and enchantments of the cave Inutaisho then said, “Sesshoumaru, Sango, grab hold and I will take us all back to the castle.”

They both complied with his request as he encased them all in his golden orb. They left the slayer village, as the orb streaked across the sky heading back to the Western Lands.

---oOo---

This is the end to another chapter. I wanted to thank my beta, Advi, for her contribution to this chapter. She wrote the part about our little Kagome and the typhoon. When I had writers block we were discussing what I wanted in this chapter. I explained my idea but I just could not write it for the life of me. Advi came up with that little story for me and she gets all the credit for it. Thank you Advi, you are awesome!

This was yet another chapter of why Kagome acts the way she does. Now Sesshoumaru knows his true feelings for Kagome. Someone asked me to have someone else explain to Sesshoumaru about Kagome’s feelings. They suggested that I let him over hear her desires in a mate. I had this already written and I thought that it was a better way of telling him. Sesshoumaru has finally come to terms with his feelings and he is going to be more open in his emotions with Kagome.

Congratulation Dark Darianna Minamino. You were the only one to see that Star Wars quote. Good eye. Did anyone else see it?

Kutelilochicky, asked how I came to write fanfics. I have always been a fan of Inuyasha. I found Fanfiction net and enjoyed reading all the stories that everyone came up with. I had a friend, who’s name is Jinx. She was depressed one day and I wrote a story for her. I have many such stories but never thought they were any good. I write them to relax from a trying day.

I let her read my story and she blacked mailed me into posting my story for everyone to read. The first few I wrote were Inuyasha/Kagome pairing. Then I received a challenge to write a Sesshoumaru/Kagome pairing and I took it. That’s how I came to write Sesshoumaru/Kagome stories.

In the next chapter we will see what Sesshoumaru’s parents have been up to. They have a surprise for Sesshoumaru and they are hoping that he will accept their gift. Inutaisho actually gives Kagome some freedom to go out on her own. But while she was out with Sango she sees something that upsets her. Will this cause a riff between Kagome and Sesshoumaru? What did he do you ask? Well you have to read the next chapter to find out.

Until the next chapter!

Ja ne!