Her Destiny

Chapter 33

Sesshoumaru rushed upstairs to his bedchambers carrying Kagome in his arms. He opened the door with a bang, placing his beloved mate on their futon. A few minutes later the castle healer came rushing into the room, looking at the young master.

Sesshoumaru didn’t even turn away from his mate as he explained to the healer what happened. She understood the problem and after a few minutes of talking to Sesshoumaru, she finally convinced the young master to step away from his mate, so she can examine her.

After a few agonizing minutes the healer turned to Sesshoumaru and said, “Sesshoumaru-sama your mate has protected your pup and is doing fine. There is a barrier around it as we speak that will protect it from her powers. She must have done this subconsciously to make sure she wouldn’t hurt it. The pup’s heart is beating strong and it’s doing just fine.”

Sesshoumaru breathed a sigh of relief when he heard this. He was so afraid that Kagome purified their pup. Then he heard Kori clearing her throat and continued, “I will need you to release your mate from your spell so I can give her something that will make her relax. Even now, under your spell, she is agitated and is not resting. We need to calm her so she can rest and let her know that the pup is fine.”

Sesshoumaru understood as he kneeled next to his mate and chanted the spell to release Kagome. He watched carefully as his mate stirred from her slumber and opened her beautiful blue eyes. He saw the confusion that she had, and then he noticed the tears that developed in the corner of her eyes.

Kagome woke up feeling disoriented. The last thing she remembered was being in the great hall enjoying the party. Then her memories started to come back, she remembered the fight she had with that demoness that wanted to take away her mate.

She remembered her anger and rage, as she purified the bitch to oblivion. Then, in her anger, she remembered the bitches that talked ill of her. The way they said that her pups will never inherit the West because they will be half-breeds, she took her vengeance out on them too, purifying them to hell.

Then she heard the words, she never wanted to hear, her mate caught her attention, by saying, “Mate, you must calm down or you will purify the pup.” Those few words hit her like a rock as she quickly pulled in her powers and controlled them.

She turned her head, as she saw her mate kneeling next to their futon. His eyes showed his uncertainties for her, she gathered her strength, wanting to know if she did the unthinkable, “Sesshoumaru, did I… did I… did I purify our pup?” The tears she has been trying to hold back started coming down her cheeks, while she waited anxiously for her question to be answered.

Sesshoumaru moved his hand up, cupping her cheek, while he wiped away her tears of pain. He turned his honey colored eyes to his mate, answering her question, “No mate, you did not purify our pup. As a matter of fact, you protected it. You have placed a barrier around it and its still there.”

Words could not express the joy that Kagome was feeling, that she protected her pup. She cried full force, as she felt herself being lifted and settled on her mates lap. She buried her face into his chest and cried, glad that she didn’t hurt her own pup.

Kori had a cup of tea in her hands, she gave it to Sesshoumaru so he could make his mate drink, to calm her down.

Sesshoumaru pushed against the top of Kagome’s head, wanting her to look at him. When she finally pulled away from him, he had her attention, “Mate, please drink this. It will help you to calm down from what has happened.”

Kagome agreed as she drank the tea and felt its affects. But before she gave into the effects of the tea, she had a request for her mate. “Anata, please I’m begging you, I want you to seal my powers until the pup is born. I cannot take the chance that I will lose control again and hurt the pup. I was able to protect it this time but there is no guarantee that I will do so in the future.”

Sesshoumaru’s eyes opened wide at her request. If he sealed her powers she will not be able to protect herself if someone was to attack. He pulled her closer to his chest, letting a soft word leave his lips, “Kagome.”

Kagome knew what her mate was thinking, but this was for the best. She could not live with herself, knowing that she cause the death of her pup. “Please, I know that you can protect us. I couldn’t live with myself if I was to hurt our pup.”

Sesshoumaru looked up towards the door, his father was standing there along with his mother. Inutaisho heard Kagome’s request and nodded his head in agreement. He knew his little one needed this or they will lose her if she was to lose this pup.

Sesshoumaru closed his eyes as he resigned himself to what he had to do. He will suppress her Reiyouku but not all of it, only the part that could hurt or purify the pup. He turned his attention back to his mate and whispered, “Very well mate, I will seal your powers until the pup is born, but not all of it. I will leave your healing abilities alone so you can heal yourself should something happen.”

Kagome agreed to his request. Sesshoumaru closed his eyes, releasing his youki, as he surrounded his mate with it. Kagome’s Reiyouku automatically reacted to the threat and surged forth to protect.

Kagome was trying to control her powers, but then she heard her mate say, “Kagome, do not suppress your powers let it go. I promise that it will not hurt our pup, but I have to have all of your Reiyouku so I can suppress it.”

Kagome understood what her mate was saying and let her powers go. His youki took her powers and held it in its grasp, he was pushing it back down to suppress it. The more she fought the more he had to flare his own powers to make hers submit to his.

Once he had it firmly in his control he started his spell and channeled it into her necklace. It will suppress her powers until the pup was born and then the spell will break.

Kagome finally gave in to the sleep that was pressing on her senses. She turned her head into her mate’s chest as she gave a sigh of contentment and fell deeply asleep.

Sesshoumaru held his mate closer to his chest. She will not be able to defend herself from now on. He will have to be with her to make sure that she was protected at all times. He was rocking her back and forth offering, his strength for what was to come.

His inner inu was growling softly, soothing her in her time of need. Sesshoumaru took his hand and was running his long fingers through her hair, not paying attention to those in the room with him. His only concern was for the female that he was holding and her comfort.

Inutaisho watched as his son suppressed Kagome’s powers. He understood her reasoning for wanting this done. But now that she could not fight back, they will be hard pressed to make sure she stayed safe. They have no idea how long she will stay pupped. A normal youkai pup will be born in 5 moon cycles and a normal ningen pup will be born in 9 moon cycles. These next few moons will prove to be interesting to say the least.

Inutaisho and his mate left their pups alone for the rest of the night. They understood that Sesshoumaru will become more protective of Kagome now that she could not protect herself.

---oOo---

That night there was a meeting in a cave deep in the forest around the castle. There were youkai making their way toward this meeting, as one by one they sneaked away from the castle.

Marude and Bakeru called this meeting, so they could plan for the Western Lords demise. They wanted revenge for what they did to their Lord. They were devastated to find out that they killed Jakyoku. That filthy ningen helped in his destruction and they will make her pay as well.

When everyone was there, Marude took a head count. They had at least 25 spies in the castle and they all had different areas of responsibilities. There were cooks, maids, gardeners, soldiers, and many others. They had the whole castle under surveillance.

Everyone quieted down as Marude started the meeting, “We all know what happened to our lord. Those youkai came back here proud to have defeated Lord Jakyoku. Well that will not go unpunished. They will suffer just like we have and our clan.

“We have to wait for the perfect opportunity to strike against the Western lord. His son will pay for his part in destroying our armies. The ningen will also have to be dealt with because our lord desired her and she rejected him.

“We need to keep our eyes and ears open for any information that will be useful to us. We need to dispatch a few of you back to the place where our armies were last seen, we need to see if we can find any survivors. If they have survived the attack from the western army, then we need to gather them together, to strike, when the time is right.”

At that moment one of the serving wenches for the castle raised her hand as she said, “Tonight, I heard some interesting information. And if it’s true then we can strike when the time is right.”

Everyone was interested in what she had to say as Bakeru asked, “Well wench, what did you hear?”

The female inu youkai huffed as she said, “The ningen has been pupped. If this is true then she will give birth to the half-breed in about 9 moons. Time will tell if this is true because she will begin to show in a few moons. She will be weak during this time, if we keep watch, for our chance to retaliate, then we can capture her and the runt of the castle, we will be able to deal with them for what they have done.”

Marude liked this idea, he turned his attention to everyone there, “This is indeed good information to have. When we find the rest of what’s left of Jakyoku’s army, then we can have them wait until we capture her. She will still be a hand full to over power, so we will have to come up with a plan on how to subdue her. Taking the runt will definitely hurt the Western Lord, and when they find their dead bodies they will know how it feels to lose your love ones.

“Now here is what we are going to do, I want you two,” he pointed to two inu youkai that were leaning up against the wall, “to find any of Lord Jakyoku generals. They will know were the rest of his army is located. Bring him back here by the next full moon and we will then discuss what to do, to capture the ningen. She will be the hardest to obtain.

“As for the rest of us, we will keep an eye on what’s going on around the castle. We will go about our normal duties like we usually do. Now let’s all get back to the castle, we have a busy day tomorrow and we need our rest.”

They all agreed, the two-inu youkai that Marude pointed to, left the castle grounds to go and find the generals that were in charge of Lord Jakyoku armies. They were to bring him back by the next full moon, so they could continue to plan the Western Lords downfall.

The rest of the spies returned to their duties, they sneaked back into the castle to get some much-needed rest before the start of their day. They will sit and watch to see what was going on, looking for any weaknesses to the lord’s protection of his family. He was bound to make a mistake and they will be there when he did.

What these youkai didn’t notice was that there was another set of eyes watching them. The violet eyes of the monk were watching who was coming out of the cave that was close to where he was going to build his home. He was mediating when he spotted the group of youkai in the forest.

Miroku thought this to be odd, so he followed the youkai to their meeting place. He took note of everyone in the cave. He didn’t know their names but he will find out. He saw them end their meeting as he hid in the forest, making sure that he hid his aura and scent from the inu youkai.

When they were all gone from the area, Miroku sat down and took out some paper and ink. He then proceeded to write down what he saw so he wouldn’t forget. He wrote down everything that he could think of, and when he was done he headed back to the castle, to the room that was given to him by the lord himself.

He will wait until morning to speak to the lord about what happened here tonight. He didn’t want to wake them at this hour. They had a very trying day and they needed their rest.

Miroku finally made it to his room. It was in a secluded area of the castle and no one saw him coming or going from the castle. He was like a ghost in a sense, but an effective one.

He went to sleep that night, going over in his mind what these youkai looked like. He will find them, this was his vow, to protect the miko from getting harmed. If anything ever happened to Lady Kagome he knew that Sesshoumaru will destroy the castle trying to find the ones responsible. He finally fell asleep, as he waited to tell his lord what he saw this night.

---oOo---

Sesshoumaru has been awake since early this morning. He was keeping an eye on his mate as she slept. He was worried that her body might reject the pup because of her upset. He knew it will destroy his mate, if anything was to happen to the pup.

He put his hand on her stomach and let his aura search. He was searching for the pup but there was a barrier around it, protecting it from any harm. He felt its heartbeat and smiled. It was strong, its little heart was beating good and strong, he hoped with all his heart that it survived what was to come.

His mate started to stir at that moment, he leaned in, trying to see if she was feeling any better this morning.

Kagome slowly opened her eyes, she was in her room and her mate was watching her closely. She smiled as she said, “Good morning, koibito.”

Sesshoumaru smiled when he saw her beautiful smile. He leaned in and kissed her while he asked, “How are you feeling this morning mate?”

Kagome giggled at her mate, he was so worried about her, but something was strange this morning. She didn’t feel sick at all, like she would be on previous mornings. She smiled at this, “I feel just fine. I’m not sick this morning, as a matter of fact I’m a little hungry this morning.”

Sesshoumaru’s heart leaped with joy. His mate has gotten over being sick in the morning and now was actually hungry. He pulled her into his arms as they went into the bathing chambers to get cleaned up. They dressed and then walked out of their room heading down toward the dinning hall.

Sesshoumaru’s tails were securely around her waist, holding her close to his side. He will protect her and his pup with his life. The doors to the dinning hall opened as they entered. His parents along with the other lords of the lands greeted them.

He felt his mate stiffen by his side, he brought his arm down around her waist to comfort her. Kagome relaxed in his hold and they then proceeded to sit in their perspective places.

Kagome forgot that the other lords were still in the castle. She refused to meet their gaze as they all ate in silence. When they were all done eating the Northern Lord was the first one to break the silence.

Clearing his throat, “Sesshoumaru, my boy, I wanted to be the first one to congratulate you for your new pup. May it grow up happy in your home and loved by all here.”

Sesshoumaru was shocked to hear this. He didn’t think that any of the lords would be happy about the pup that was to come. He heard the echoes of the other Lords agreeing to what Lord Kasumigaoka said.

Inutaisho was taken by surprised by his friend’s words to his son. Then to hear the other lord’s echo his sentiments made all the difference in the world to him. They have all accepted the pup that was to be born as the heir to the west. He smiled and joined in the toasting to the new pup and mother.

Kagome couldn’t believe what she was hearing. ‘They… They accept my pup and me? What happened to change their minds? Did losing my temper last night set everything right in their minds?’

Kagome watched as each lord made a toast to the future and happiness of her pup. She noticed that the ladies of the lands kept their head down during these proceedings and wondered what was going on. She will have to ask Ayashiko once all this was over.

Finally all of the lords from the other lands said their goodbyes. All of the guests were leaving today so they could get back to their duties. Kagome was one, who was happy to see them go. Maybe now everything will get back to normal.

She couldn’t wait to see Sango. She needed to talk to her in a very bad way. She needed to apologize for her behavior and she also needed to apologize to the monk. She knew that his way of thinking was proper for this era and she had to accept that.

If Sango wanted the male then she will support her with all her heart. She just wanted her sister to be happy. Plus, she needed answers, which only Ayashiko could provide, so she could understand what was going on.

Once all of the other lords for the lands were gone with their mates, Kagome made to move away from her mate, so she could go with Ayashiko to their special room. But there was a problem, Sesshoumaru would not release her from his grasp, she turned to her mate, and said, “Mate, please let go. I want to go and talk with your mother for a while.”

Sesshoumaru growled, as he said, “No, you are to stay at my side from now on. With your powers suppressed, you could be attacked and will not be able to defend yourself.” That was definitely the wrong thing to say, as his own mother turned on him for his words.

“Sesshoumaru! Are you saying that I can’t defend my own pup! She will be safe with the slayer and me. Plus we have the neko youkai with us and our special place is very well protected. No one comes in, unless I allow him or her in the room. If you doubt my powers then maybe I should show you how well a mother protects her pups.” Ayashiko growled at her own son, ‘How dare he insinuate that I can’t protect Kagome!’

Sesshoumaru swallowed hard as he saw his mothers eyes turn red. He definitely said the wrong thing around her. She never called him by his given name unless she was really mad at him.

He saw, out of the corner of his eye, his father’s mirth at his predicament. He sighed, he knew that he was defeated as he said, “Very well mate you can go with mother. But do not leave her side for anything, I want you with someone at all times.”

Kagome smiled as she turned, kissing him on his crescent moon, nuzzling him under his chin in gratitude, then she felt when his tails released her. She turned and walked over to his mother as they both left the males alone to do their business.

Inutaisho chuckled as he saw his mate win against their son. He knew that Sesshoumaru would lose that fight to his mother. To tell her that she is not capable of protecting her pup was the ultimate insult.

He turned his attention to his son, “Come Sesshoumaru, we have to plan on sending that help to those villages that the monk spoke to us about the other day. Those ningens and youkai will not be able to last much longer, if we don’t send aid, plus I want to plan on paying that area a visit. The minor lords to that area have some explaining to do on why they let their people go without food.”

Sesshoumaru sighed, his inner inu was not happy about letting their mate out of their site. His beast wanted to go with her and if he was honest with himself he wanted to go with her too. He was interested in what the females talked about all the time.

He turned and followed his father. He understood that he had responsibilities to the people of the lands and he had to make sure that they were all fed during these hard times. He, himself, wondered why the minor lords haven’t said anything to them about the need for food. Something didn’t feel right about all of this.

They finally made it to the study, when Inutaisho approached he felt that someone was already inside waiting for him. He knew who it was by his scent, he opened the door, and stated, “Good morning Miroku, what can I do for you this morning?”

Miroku stopped his nervous pacing as the door to the study was opened and in walked Inutaisho with Sesshoumaru following closely behind him. He heard the lords question as he replied, “Milord, I have some information for you.”

Both inu youkai stopped in their tracks when they heard the monks answer. They quickly closed the door and then sat down to hear what Miroku had to say.

When everyone was seated, Miroku started to tell them what he saw last night. He pulled out a piece of parchment as he started to describe each youkai that he saw in the cave last night.

Inutaisho listened carefully to what the monk was saying. He pulled out his own parchment and some ink, while starting a list of names of the youkai he described seeing last night.

When Miroku was done he had a list of at least 15 names on it. He had a feeling that these were not all of them. “So these youkai have learned that Kagome is pupped. We will have to be careful with her from now on. Since her powers have been sealed, she is vulnerable, if she is attacked.”

Miroku looked up as he said, “Her powers have been sealed? But why?”

Inutaisho turned to Miroku and replied to his question, “It was at her request that this was done. She lost control of her temper last night and passed judgment on some female youkai that couldn’t accept her as the next Lady of the West, she purified them to oblivion. Her anger was so great that we thought that she purified the pup. She requested that her mate seal her powers until the pup is born to protect it.”

Miroku understood Kagome’s fears, she is only trying to protect her pup from herself but at the same time it made her open to attacks. He has to be around to protect her, which he didn’t mind since he still wanted to see Sango.

Miroku then said, “I will be part of those guards that protects Lady Kagome. I can place seals on the doors to the room they are always in, and make sure that only those with no malice in their hearts can enter. It will protect her while she is here in the castle. I can also give Sango some of my sutras that she can throw, to help protect Kagome, if they are attacked.”

Inutaisho agreed to the monk’s idea as he saw Miroku leave the study. In a matter of days the monk has proven his worth. He now has a list of possible traitors to his clan and they will be dealt with. But not yet, he needed more information, he has doubts that the generals that escaped him, will be quiet for very long. With these many spies in his castle, he was sure they will be back, and when they came back, he will have a surprise for them.

Inutaisho then turned to his pup as he said, “Now we have a list of those that are spies in our castle. But I have a feeling that these are not our only worry. The general that escaped us in the final battle is still out there and a very real threat. We will keep an eye on these fools and wait, I want them all in one place before we kill them.”

Sesshoumaru agreed with his father. This was just the start of an elaborate plan to strike back at them for killing Jakyoku. But they will get rid of these youkai once and for all. They turned to the business at hand, food for the villages and settlements that were in need, and when they will get this aid.

---oOo---

Kagome was happy that she got away from her mate. She loved him dearly but he was so possessive. She was thinking that maybe she made a mistake in telling her mate to seal her powers away until the pup was born. As she thought about it she realized that no she didn’t make a mistake, she will protect her pup even from herself, having her powers sealed will just help her pup grow.

Sango meet them on their way to the sunning room. Kagome missed her special room, where the girls will gather to sit and talk. They finally made it to the room as they all walked in and settled down on the pillows in front of the warm fire.

Kagome got her chance to speak with Sango, “Sango, I’m sorry for the things I said to Miroku the other day. I didn’t want you to get hurt again. But I had no right to say those things. It is up to you if you want to take him back. All I want, all I ever wanted, is for you to be happy.”

Sango heard Kagome’s words and knew she was sincere in what she said, she smiled at her sister, “Kagome, you don’t have to apologize for what you said, I know that you are trying to protect me. I didn’t take Miroku back, I told him that we can only be friends.”

Kagome smiled at this, she knew better, if the monk wanted to be her friend, he still had contact with her and maybe, just maybe he could get her to marry him in the end. ‘Hmm, I will have to speak to the monk. If he wants to still pursue Sango, then I could help him with it, but he will have to promise me, that he will never hurt her again.’

There was a knock on the door and Ayashiko said, “Enter.” Katsuki walked in with a tray in her hands as she serviced the tea for everyone and then left the room. When they were alone Kagome turned her attention to Ayashiko and asked, “Oka-san, what happened down there in the dinning hall this morning?”

Ayashiko was taking a drink of her tea when she heard her pup’s question. She raised an eyebrow in confusion, “What do you mean, Kagome? What did you see happen in the dinning hall this morning?”

Kagome explained what she felt, “Oka-san, yesterday all of the ladies of the lands were giving me dirty looks. I never did anything to them, to be treated in such a manner. But this morning they were avoiding me like the plague. What changed their minds?”

Ayashiko chuckled as she explained, “Well after you lost your temper with those females that talked ill about you, and the one that tried to take your mate, the other ladies of the land had a revelation. They finally realized just how powerful you are and that you could kill them for the way they were treating you.

“You, as the next Lady of the West, have more power than you can even imagine. You can strike them down for their insolence. They knew that they escaped being killed by just a fraction. Plus, their mates put them in their places last night. They embarrassed their mate in front of your father and that was not taken very well.”

“They embarrassed their mates?” Kagome repeated as she thought about what Ayashiko said, then something clicked in her mind, “Oh Kami! Did I embarrass Sesshoumaru last night?”

Kagome was panicking. She didn’t want to embarrass her mate in any way. Tears started to form in her eyes, as Ayashiko quickly spoke, to get her to calm down, “No Kagome, you didn’t embarrass your mate last night. The only thing you did was to prove, that you are just as powerful as he is, and that he has the better mate.

“The mates of the ruling lords openly challenged you last night by not going through the proper procedures. To challenge you in the eyes of youkai society they must go through your father in order to do it. They have to openly challenge you in front of him and he has to agree to the challenge.

“This is done because your father is the alpha of our pack and he is the leader, to openly challenge a female from his clan without going through him, means that the ruling lords are challenging him and his authority. Your father called them on it and the other ruling lords backed down. They have no desire to fight your father because they know they will lose.

“So Sesshoumaru was not mad, nor embarrassed by you for putting those bitches in their places, it is expected of you.”

Kagome’s tears started to go away as she listened. Then she said, “It is expected of me? Why?”

“I am the dominant female to the ruling lords. I am more powerful than the rest of the ladies of the lands. They all bow down to my desires as their males bow down to your father’s desires.

“Now Sesshoumaru is the dominant male in the lands, they all have to listen and obey his laws, just like they have to listen to your father. You had to establish your rule over them and you did. So you losing your temper last night was a good thing. It shows that you are the dominant female and a powerful one. No one will challenge your authority.” Ayashiko finished speaking as she watched her pup. She saw the line of confusion leave her features, as she understood what happened.

Kagome now had a better understanding of what was required of her. She had a role to play in this life and that was to dominate the rest of the females of the land. They will all do as she commands or face her wrath.

Ayashiko sensed that there were some servants in the hallway and she wondered what they were doing here. She got up from her pillow as she walked to the door. She turned to her pup and said, “Kagome, I want you and Sango to stay here.” She then turned her eyes towards Sango, “Sango, do not leave Kagome unprotected. If you hear anything outside the door do not come out, is that understood?”

Sango nodded her understanding as she looked at her friend. Kirara understood and transformed into her true form, as she stood ready.

Kagome was scared as she asked, “Oka-san? What’s going on? Who is out there?”

Ayashiko didn’t answer her pup, as she walked out the door. When she closed it behind her she placed a seal on the door to prevent anyone from going inside, except her mate. She looked to the right and noticed two male servants just down the hallway.

She approached as she asked, “What are you two doing in this part of the castle? This area is forbidden to all servants except those which I have given permission to enter here.”

The males in question stopped what they were doing. They have been caught red-handed spying on them. They turned and bowed to their lady as one of them said, “Please forgive us milady. We were only trying to clean up this part of the wing, along with our normal duties. We didn’t know it was restricted.”

Ayashiko was not buying it. These two have been in the castle long enough to know that this area was off limits. She summoned the guards with her mind as she said, “I don’t believe you. You have been here long enough to know that this part of the castle is off limits to you. If you think that you can hurt my pup then think again. No one will touch her.”

At that moment the males attacked, Ayashiko was ready to attack when the males froze in place. Ayashiko looked around the area and spotted Miroku coming down the hallway, she raised an eyebrow to him in question.

Miroku was hiding in the shadows keeping an eye on things. He noticed the two males that came into this wing and wondered what they were doing here. He knew this area was off limits, so what could they possibly want?

He observed the males placing barriers around the area that will conceal anyone hiding in those areas. He knew that they were part of the spies that were still left in the castle. He must have missed seeing these two at the cave last night. He pulled out his sutras getting ready to detain them, when the lady of the castle walked out of the room, where Sango and Kagome were located.

He witnessed the exchange between them and when they attacked, he attacked them before they hurt her. He looked to the lady of the castle and saw the question in her eyes, as he answered, “I’m part of security for Lady Kagome. I will be near to make sure that no one harms her.”

Ayashiko understood what the monk saying, at that moment she felt her mate’s aura coming towards her in a big hurry followed by her son.

---oOo---

Inutaisho and Sesshoumaru just finished the details on how they were going to send food to the troubled area of their lands. They made plans to leave in the morning, for a visit, so they could see for themselves what was going on.

Then Inutaisho felt his mate’s aura flare in anger as he took off towards her. She was being attacked, he will kill the bastards that dared lay a hand on his lovely mate.

Sesshoumaru felt the panic rise in his mate, she was scared and she was calling to him. He rushed out of the study following his father to where their mates were located. When they got there they had blood red eyes. They saw two males frozen in place with Miroku standing next to Ayashiko, in a protective manner.

The soldiers that Ayashiko summoned had just arrived, as they were ready to take the two youkai down to the dungeons. They were waiting for the monk to release them from his spell.

Inutaisho looked at his mate as he asked, “Mate, are you all right?”

Ayashiko smiled as she said, “Yes Koi I’m fine. Miroku came to help me.”

At that moment Sesshoumaru felt his mate’s distress and went into the room she was in. He opened the door and rushed to her side, as he said, “Kagome, please calm yourself.”

Kagome was having a fit. Her mother went outside the room because there were intruders in the hallway. She was scared that something might happen to Ayashiko. If she was to get hurt it will be her fault.

Sango tried her best to comfort Kagome, but she was too upset to settle down. Sango heard Miroku’s voice and was relieved that Ayashiko was protected. Then she felt the aura of the youkai lord enter this part of the castle, and they were not in a good mood.

Sango thought it best to move away from Kagome. As soon as she and Kirara moved away, Sesshoumaru came crashing into the room, and was at Kagome’s side in an instant. He was trying to calm her down but it was no good. She was upset as hell and didn’t want to calm down.

Sesshoumaru held his mate in his arms to try and calm her. “Mate, mother is fine, she was not hurt. The threat to this part of the castle is over. You are safe once again.”

Kagome heard Sesshoumaru’s words. She knew that he would not lie to her about something as serious as this. She was starting to calm down when she saw Ayashiko walk back into the room. She was unharmed and that’s all that matter to her. She fainted in her mates arms as Sesshoumaru panicked.

“Kagome!” Sesshoumaru yelled as he shook his mate. She was unconscious and he didn’t know why.

Ayashiko rushed toward her pups as she looked at Kagome. She placed a hand on Sesshoumaru’s shoulder and calmly said, “Calm yourself Sesshoumaru, she just fainted. This incident just overwhelmed her a little, nothing more. She has to get used to not having her powers and remain calm when something like this happens. I will have to train her in this area.”

Sesshoumaru was relieved to hear this, he brought his mate closer to his chest, as he picked her up in his arms and stood. He was not leaving his mates side for a while. He turned and left the room they were in, heading upstairs to their chambers.

He wanted some peace and quiet for his mate, and the only place that could be had, was in their private chambers. He walked into their room and shut the door quietly, he wanted to make sure he didn’t wake his mate. But instead of laying her on their futon, he chose to walk over to the fireplace and sit on the large pillow that was there.

He sat down and placed Kagome in his lap, his tails wrapped around the both of them, as his inner inu purred to comfort their mate. Sesshoumaru started a fire and soon the room was warm for them. He cuddled into the pillow with his mate in his arms.

He was feeling tired. He didn’t get any sleep the night before, worrying about his mate. He was up watching her all night, making sure that she wouldn’t have nightmares during the night.

His tails provided warmth for the both of them as he placed a barrier on the door to make sure they weren’t disturbed. Having her in his arms meant that she was safe. Only he could protect her the way she needed to be protected.

He didn’t know what he was going to do when they left the castle to go visit these villages that needed aid. He thought for a little while and wondered if he could get her to come along with him. That way he could protect her and have her with him. He was sure that he could convince her to go. But if she didn’t want to go, then he will have to leave the whole western army to protect her. He knew he was being possessive but that was his nature.

He brought his mate closer to his chest as he took in her scent. It relaxed him enough to fall asleep with her in his arms, keeping her safe.

---oOo---

Inutaisho watched as Sesshoumaru tried to calm Kagome. She was inconsolable; she was worried about his mate and thought that she might have been hurt. When they came into the room he saw his pups eyes shine with happiness and then she fainted in her mate’s arms.

Inutaisho panicked thinking that something was wrong with his little one, but when his mate said that she was just overwhelmed by everything he relaxed. His knew his son was not going to leave anything to chance. He was not disappointed, when Sesshoumaru took his mate and went to their private room.

Inutaisho turned to his mate and said, “He is not going to let her out of his sight now. We are going to the villages that need food for the winter in the morning. We wanted to see the area for ourselves and see how bad everything is. I know that Sesshoumaru will take Kagome with him, he won’t leave her unprotected, and so my lovely mate, do you want to come with me?”

Ayashiko smiled, she has never been anywhere with her mate before. This was a treat for her as she said, “Yes, I will come with you.”

Inutaisho smiled as he turned his attention toward Sango. He saw her shifting in her position, feeling uncomfortable witnessing the events between them. He cleared his throat and said, “Sango, while we are gone tomorrow I want you to work with Miroku. He has a mission and I know that you can help him with it. You two together will be a great help to me in finding what I need.”

Sango blushed, when she heard the lords request, she will have to work with Miroku and his wondering hands. But if what he said was true, then she could help protect Kagome. This was her priority and she will do anything to make sure that Kagome was protected. She stood to her full height as she said, “As you wish milord, I will do what I can to help.”

Inutaisho smiled as he escorted his mate out of the room. He turned to Miroku and said, “Did you hear what I told Sango, Miroku?”

Miroku bowed deeply as he said with a smile on his face, “Yes milord, I heard what you said, Sango will be a great help to me on what I have to do.”

“Very well Miroku, make sure that your hands don’t wonder where they don’t belong or you might be minus a hand when I get back.” Inutaisho warned as he walked away with his mate tucked into his side.

Miroku sighed in relief. Lord Inutaisho could be very scary when he was angry. But he will take his warning to heart. He wanted to fix things between Sango and himself. He needed to respect her and still work together to get this problem solved.

Miroku finally released the two-youkai spies to the soldiers standing in the hallway. He watched as they escorted them to the dungeons and sighed in relief. At least there were two less spies to worry about.

He then turned as he went into the room where Sango was located. He needed to brief her on what he was doing.

---oOo---

Ayashiko looked at her mate as she saw the amusement he had in his eyes. She could tell that he was up to something as she asked, “Mate, why did you put those two to work together?”

Inutaisho smiled as he said, “I am well aware that the slayer has turned down the monk. I am also aware that he still loves her, but he must repair the damage that he has done, of abandoning his mate to be. I am giving him the chance to repair said damage.”

Ayashiko didn’t know that her mate was so sneaky. He could pass as a woman for some of his behaviors. She laughed at the thought, as they continue to walk out of her private part of the castle. Tomorrow was going to be a very interesting day.

---oOo---

Kagome woke up in the middle of the night. She was hungry and couldn’t sleep anymore until she got something to eat. She shifted but got the tightening of arms around her body. She looked up and saw her mate starting to wake up from his slumber.

Sesshoumaru sensed that his mate was waking, but it was still in the middle of the night and wondered what was wrong. He opened his eyes and looked at Kagome. He saw her wide-awake and asked, “Mate, what’s wrong? Why are you awake at this hour?”

Kagome felt sorry for waking her mate, “Anata, I’m sorry for waking you, but I’m hungry and I want to get something to eat.”

Sesshoumaru was surprised by her statement, “You’re hungry?”

Kagome turned red from embarrassment and said, “Yes.”

Sesshoumaru slowly unwrapped his arms from around his mate as he slowly stood from the pillow they were laying in. He turned to her and offered her his hand to help her stand.

Kagome accepted her mates help as she stood on her own two feet. He then pulled her into his side as they started to walk towards the kitchen. At this time of night they will have to get their own food, since everyone was asleep.

Kagome walked close to her mate. The castle was dark and she really couldn’t see where she was going. She tripped once and was swept up into strong arms to keep her safe. When they finally made it into the kitchen Sesshoumaru put her down as his lit the candles.

The fire in the cooking pit was always lit to make sure that it was ready when the staff arrived. Kagome went into the kitchen as she found something to make a meal for them. She threw everything into a pot and started to make a small stew.

Sesshoumaru watched as his mate made herself a meal. It was nothing fast, it was a well thought out meal that was nutritional for her and the pup. He noticed that she didn’t put enough meat in what she was cooking as he walked up behind her and grabbed a fist full of meat and put it in the pot to cook.

Kagome turned to her mate, and said, “Hey, there’s too much meat in the pot.”

Sesshoumaru turned to his mate and stated, “You must eat more meat for the pup. It needs the protein contained in it. If you don’t it would greatly weaken it.” Kagome seemed to be thinking about what he said. Her face was contorted in concentration, as she seemed to be searching for something. She seemed to have come to a conclusion as she went about finishing her meal.

Sesshoumaru sat on a mat and watched as his mate finished their meal. She took two bowls and filled them with stew, she placed a bowl in front of her mate and the other in her spot.

Sesshoumaru sniffed the meal that his mate made. It smelled good, he took a bite of the food and it was full of flavor. He settled down to eat as he looked at his mate. She was eating her food with enthusiasm and he was happy to see her eat. She was eating a lot of meat, which made him very happy. But she would need to take raw meat as well.

He looked at Kagome as he said, “Kagome, you will need to consume raw meat for the pup as well. I suggest that you fix that sauce you made when we mated. It was the only time that I saw you eating raw meat and enjoyed it.”

Kagome thought about what her mate said, she could understand why she needed the raw meat. Back in her era, if she was pregnant, she will receive iron pills from the doctor and vitamins to supplement her diet. But here in the past none of this has been developed yet. She needed to make sure that she stayed healthy for the pup. It was the only way it could survive. She agreed with her mate as she continued to eat her food.

Then Kagome got the scare of her life when she heard, “Kagome, child, what are you doing up so late at night?”

Kagome jumped, screamed, as she dropped her food on the floor. Sesshoumaru had her wrapped in his protective arms in an instant as his claws grew in length. He was pissed at himself for letting down his guard, when he was with his mate. He was ready to kill the person that interrupted their meal together, when he saw Katsuki come into view.

Sesshoumaru relaxed as he looked at his mate. She was pale and having a hard time trying to calm down. He growled his displeasure and said, “Next time you come into a room and know it’s us, make some noise so you don’t scare Kagome half to death. Now it’s going to take me some time to calm her down.”

Then they both heard a noise, as they looked up, to see his father and mother coming into the kitchen. They were worried when they heard Kagome scream and came running downstairs to see what was wrong. They looked at their son, as Inutaisho asked, “What in Kami’s name are you two doing up this late at night? You should be in bed.”

Sesshoumaru huffed as he said, “Kagome was hungry and we came down to get something to eat. Since it was late she cooked her own meal.”

Both Inutaisho and Ayashiko sniffed the air and picked up on a wonderful scent. Ayashiko turned to her son as she asked, “Sesshoumaru, what did Kagome make that smells so good.”

Sesshoumaru looked at his parents, stating, “She calls it a stew. Its cooked meat in a favorable sauce, it has it own unique taste, which I have never tasted before.”

Then Sesshoumaru turns his attention to Katsuki, “Katsuki bring Kagome another bowl of her stew. She was not done eating when you scared her. She needs to eat to sustain the pup.”

Katsuki quickly got another bowl for Kagome and while she was at it she gave the lord and lady some of this stew to try. They all sat at the table and ate their meal. Sesshoumaru had calmed his mate enough so she could finish her food.

Inutaisho was amazed at the way the food tasted. It tasted wonderful and he wondered if all food tasted this good in the future. He looked up at his little one as he said, “Kagome this is wonderful. What other kinds of food do they have where you come from? Is it this good?”

Kagome smiled as she said, “There are a lot of different foods that you can eat. All made in different ways, we learned to try other food from different countries so we know what to eat when we go there.”

Inutaisho was amazed to hear this, he will have to get his pup to make some more of these strange meals, so they can try them. “You will have to make some of these meals so we can try them. I am most interested in trying something new.”

Sesshoumaru turned to his father and said, “Kagome makes this sauce that you can eat with raw meat. It gives the meat an interesting taste, its smooth on the palette, I found myself enjoying it immensely. I have asked her to make this sauce again and teach Katsuki how to make it. I think that you will like it father.”

Inutaisho eyes lit up as he said, “Good, maybe one day soon you can make it for all of us to sample my little one.”

Kagome blushed, her mate was so proud of her cooking. They all seemed to enjoy the meal that she quickly put together. Even Katsuki was enjoying a bowl of her stew. Kagome agreed to his request as they finished eating.

Kagome gave a big yawn, she was getting tired really fast and she needed to get back to her room and soon. Sesshoumaru saw this and picked her up in his arms as he proceeded to take her back upstairs.

Inutaisho and Ayashiko followed behind them as they gave their pup a kiss good night and went to their own rooms. Inutaisho turned to his mate and said, “You know, you were like that when you were reaching the first month of being pupped. I wonder how long Kagome will carry her pup before she has it.”

Ayashiko was thinking the same thing as she said, “I was just wondering that myself. I say she will carry the pup half way between a youkai birth and a ningen birth. That will be at the seven moon mark. Because she is a ningen her body needs to take longer to birth a youkai pup. But I will be watching her from the time she hits the fifth moon of being pupped. Everything will be ready for when she goes into labor. I will need you to subdue your son when she does. He will be unstoppable, just like you were, when he smells the blood.”

Ah Inutaisho remembered those days well. He was in an uncontrollable rage when he smelled his mate’s blood upon giving birth. They had to subdue him in order for her to have her pups.

He agreed with his mate as they went back to their room. Now that they had their midnight snack they were ready to go back to sleep.

Sesshoumaru entered their room as he closed the door behind him. He placed his barrier on the door and then proceeded to undress his mate. She was asleep in his arms again as he put her into their futon with nothing on. He undressed as well, climbing in after her, and pulling the furs over the both of them to keep them warm. He fell asleep immediately, with a full stomach, and cuddled up to his mate.

---oOo---

The next morning the castle was anything but quiet. Inuyasha was whining to his father about wanting to go with them. Inutaisho turned his attention toward his youngest son and said, “Inuyasha, you will stay here and continue with your lessons. I have been lenient up to this point but when I come back I expect you to have more control over your sword. When you can manage a hit on my person then I will think about taking you with us. Right now you cannot even protect yourself against a show of force. Your swings are wild and you show no control in what you do. You have to greatly improve on your skills if you want to travel with us.”

Inuyasha listened to what his father was saying, he was right, he didn’t have any control over his sword and his fighting style lacked finesse. He will have to study hard and control his temper while fighting, if he even wanted a chance to hit his father. His father was fast and it was next to impossible to hit him.

He wanted to go with him so he could help protect his mother and Kagome. But how could he do that, when he couldn’t even hit his own father in training. At that moment he made up his mind. He was going to improve. He will show his father that he was willing to learn and that he could help protect the females of his pack.

He looked up into his father’s eyes as he said with determination in his voice, “I will improve on my sword fighting father, and when you come back you will definitely see a change in my fighting abilities, after all I have something that I want to protect, and I will protect it with my life.”

Inutaisho was shocked by what his youngest son said. The look in his eyes showed nothing but determination, he felt his powers grow, when he said that he had something to protect. If he could learn this lesson now that he was young, he will be unstoppable when he was fully grown.

Inutaisho looked at his youngest with new eyes. His pup was slowly growing into a full youkai and it won’t be long before he reaches his maturity. Soon he will have to face the hormones that will possess him when his inner beast will awaken. He will have to show him how to handle his beast, show him how to dominate his inner inu, this was a dangerous time for all pups to face. That will be his trial for maturity, the taming of his beast.

Inutaisho looked on as his son walked away. He had a growth spurt recently where he grew in height, he now reached just below his brother’s shoulder in height, but he was almost as tall as Kagome.

He will soon be a full-grown youkai, with it came responsibility, that he was sure he will have no trouble in handling. He shook his head to clear his mind as he said to Sesshoumaru, “Are you ready to leave?”

Sesshoumaru was standing off to the side as he watched his brother walk away from his father. He knew what Inuyasha was going through. He, himself, had gone through this same stage in his life, wanting to prove to his father that he was grown and could handle himself.

Sesshoumaru heard his father’s question as he said, “Yes, we are ready to leave.”

He pulled Kagome closer to his side as they both formed their golden orbs of light and took to the skies.

Kagome was excited, her mate has never taken her anywhere before. The only times she has been outside of the castle is when she left on her own, or when she went with Ayashiko to survey the other villages close to the castle, but unfortunately that time they were captured by the enemy. But she has never been anywhere with her mate and now she was going with him.

She was happy that she could spend some time with her mate even if it’s seeing to the welfare of the people on their lands. She welcomed the change in scenery and the distraction it caused in her mind.

Sesshoumaru noticed that his mate was happy for once. Her aura was at peace and he could actually feel her happiness. He never knew that taking her with him would cause such a reaction from her.

When he asked if she wanted to come with him this morning, she all but jumped into his arms, exclaiming that she would love to join him. She was happy then, as she was quickly getting dressed to make sure he wouldn’t leave her behind.

He chuckled at her antics but he could understand her excitement. She has not been anywhere on their lands. His father brought her here to the castle a while back and she’s been kept under lock and key. She was not allowed to leave the castle grounds, though she did find ways of sneaking out without permission.

He held her closer to his chest while they traveled. He found that he was happy as long as she was in his arms. His nose, would from time to time, rub against the top of her head. She smelled wonderful and he couldn’t get enough of her scent. Even though her scent was a part of him now, it was nothing compared to the real thing.

His inner inu was at peace with their mate, he felt his tails moving as they wrapped around her small form to keep her warm on this cold day. She was so fragile, so small compared to him. He towered over her by about a head, she, just coming up to just under his neck when she stood by his side.

They were nearing their destination as both orbs slowly descended to the forest area. When they landed the orbs disappeared, they were standing in the middle of the forest, not too far away from the youkai settlement that was their target. They didn’t want to frighten the youkai, so they landed just outside of their domain.

Both youkai sniffed the area looking for threats, when they found none, Inutaisho lead the way toward the settlement.

The cold wind was picking up around the area. They were approaching the settlement when Kagome stopped in her tracks. Something did not feel right about the village. She felt no danger here, she could feel the youkais that lived here but they were not moving around.

She thought this to be a little odd for youkai. It was in the middle of the day so there should be some movement. But she couldn’t even feel the pups playing in the area, the pups should at least be playing. She has observed the pups at the castle and they will play every chance they got, but there were no pups playing here.

Sesshoumaru stopped as he looked at his mate. He noticed that she was concentrating on the area around them. He sniffed the air trying to pick up on any danger but he couldn’t find any. He sent is aura out trying to ferret out the enemy but he found none. He turns his attention back to his mate, “Kagome, what’s wrong? Why did you stop? Do you feel danger in this area?”

Kagome took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She looked at her mate with concern in her eyes, “The pups, the pups are not out playing this time of day. At the castle the pups there play all day if you let them. They play every chance they get, but here, at this settlement, the pups are not moving. They are not playing with one another.

“There are also the adults, no one is moving, there is something wrong here, but I can’t figure out what it is.”

Ayashiko heard what her pup was saying, and it was true, the pups that are in the settlement up ahead were not playing. Everyone was hiding and they didn’t know why. She turned to her mate as she voiced her concerns, “Mate, our pup is right. There are no pups playing in this area. Everyone is hiding for some reason, so we must proceed with caution. I don’t feel that this is a trap, but we must be cautious with these youkai.”

Inutaisho heard his mates concerns and they were valid. What his mate and Kagome just said was true. Everyone was hiding and he needed to know why. He turned to his son and said, “Sesshoumaru, be on alert. We don’t know what this settlement is afraid of. I have never known youkai to hide in fear before.”

Sesshoumaru nodded his understanding as he brought his mate closer to his side, so he could protect her and his pup. They continued to walk until they came to the settlement.

Youkai settlements were different than those of the ningens. Their dwellings were either in the earth, cave, or trees. There was a common area where they would sell different things to other youkai that traveled through the area. But even this place was deserted.

The group looked around the area trying to figure out what was going on. Inutaisho allowed his youki to flare around the area announcing his arrival at the settlement. They heard movement off to the side as the males took a defensive position in front of their mates.

Out of one of the caves three elder youkai came out to greet them. They looked sick in Kagome’s eyes. Kagome used her powers to seek out what was wrong with them. Kagome gasp as she could feel how weak they were. It looked like they have not eaten in days, if not weeks.

Kagome grabbed the back of her mate’s haori and said, “Sesshoumaru, these youkai are malnourished. They have not eaten in weeks. If they don’t get food soon this whole settlement could perish.”

Kagome’s statement took both Inu Youkais by surprise. Inutaisho stepped forward and said, “Good day elders, what is wrong with your settlement? Where are the others that live here?”

The elders stopped in front of their lord and bowed deeply to him in greetings. They heard his questions, the one that was the leader of the settlement, was the one to answer, “Milord, this village is in dire straights. We do not have enough food to feed everyone here. The adults have taken the minimum of food and have given what they have to the pups, but this is not enough. This settlement is dying and we can not stop it.”

“Did your settlement not gather food for the winter?” Asked an exasperated Inutaisho, he really wanted to know what was happening here.

The elder seemed to hesitate in answering his questions. Inutaisho, on the other hand, was clearly not in the mood to be lied to, “Tell me what is happening here, I can’t help you unless you tell me what is wrong.”

The elder sighed, gathering his courage, he finally spoke, “The Lord of this area came through this area a few moons ago, he took just about everything that we had to supply his castle with. We tried to tell him that we needed the food to feed everyone here for the winter but he cared not. Several of our warriors were killed in the process of protecting what little we had.”

Inutaisho was not happy at all. This is not what the minor lord of this area was for. His job was to see to his peoples needs. Not take it away from them. If he could not meet their needs then he had the right to contact him and ask for aid. This was unacceptable; he will personally deal with this minor lord. He turned his attention back to the elder as he asked, “Who is the lord for this area?”

The elder looked up from the ground as he said, “Senshu, Lord Senshu is the lord of this area.”

Sesshoumaru turned to his father when he heard this name, “Father, who is this Senshu?”

Inutaisho eyes harden as he said, “He is a yamaneko, a very powerful one if memory serves. I put him in charge because he showed potential in caring for all in this area. When there was trouble, he saved countless of villages and settlements in the area and I thought he would make a good lord. But I guess I was wrong, if he is doing this to this settlement, what is he doing to the villages where the ningens live?”

Sesshoumaru understood what his father was saying, they will have to visit this Senshu and find out what is going on. If he was behind all of this, then it will be his great pleasure to get rid of this curd.

Kagome was standing next to her mate listening to everything that was being said. She was worried about the youkai in this area and wondered if they will survive until help arrived from the castle. She knew that her Otou-san has already dispatched help with food for this area, but they needed help now.

Kagome was brought out of her musing when she heard a noise off to her side. A demoness was slowly making her way over to her and she held a bundle in her arms. She kneeled in front of Kagome as she offered the bundle to her.

Kagome was curious about the demoness, as she walked away from her mate and went to the one that was kneeling not too far away from her. She kneeled in front of youkai and asked, “Can I help you?”

The demoness knew that she was dying. She wanted to give her pup to someone that she knew will protect and care for it. She looked up at the ningen that was kneeling in front of her. She was finely dressed and then she saw the mark of the western lord’s clan on her forehead. This meant that this female is mated to one of the heirs to the land.

She swallowed hard as she said in a horse voice, “Please…, please milady…, please take care of my pup. Don’t let him die because I am unable to feed him. My life is nothing, I will gladly give it to save my pup. Please I beg you, please see that he grows up to be happy.”

Kagome could not believe what this demoness was saying to her, she wanted her to take her pup and care for it. She took the pup from her arms as she unwrapped it. Tears started to form in her eyes when she saw the pup. It was so thin and it was barely breathing. It didn’t have long to live as she searched her mind for answers.

‘What can I do? This precious pup is going to die unless I can help it. All of these youkai will die unless we help them now.’ Kagome continued to think trying to find the answer to all of her questions.

A lone tear left her eye as it slowly went down her cheek. The tear had a celestial glow as it traveled down. It turned a pure light blue like her eyes as it fell from her chin. The moment the tear fell it grew bigger than life. It broke into a millions pieces, as it searched for all the youkai in the area. It healed every youkai that was weak and dying. It filled them with energy to sustain them until the food from the castle arrived.

Kagome whole body was washed in a blue aura as she held the pup in her arms. She was oblivious to what she was doing as her mate turned to her and panicked.

Sesshoumaru was talking with his father and failed to notice that Kagome walked away from his protection. He felt a wave of power going around the area as he turned searching for his mate. She was kneeling on the ground in front of a demoness and she was holding something close to her chest.

He rushed to her side, when he looked at what she was holding, he noticed that it was an inu youkai pup. It seemed healthy and had a pair of lungs that would wake the dead. He watched in awe as the light from her tear spread out through the area seeking all those that were weak. Even the elders they were talking too, felt rejuvenated.

Kagome came out of her fog like mind when she heard the pup crying in her arms. The pup knew she was not its mother, as she gave him back to the demoness in front of her. She looked at the demoness as she said, “I don’t think that your son wants to come with me. He wants to stay with his mother and I don’t blame him. Help is coming from Gengetsujou and they will be here soon.”

The demoness felt strong again as she looked at her son. He was healthy and had a strong cry, a cry that she has not heard in days. Tears were running down her cheeks as she said, “Thank you, thank you for helping my pup milady. We will be all right, now that help is coming. Thank you.”

Kagome blinked when she noticed that her mate was kneeling next to her, she didn’t know what was wrong as she inquired, “Sesshoumaru? Is something wrong?”

Sesshoumaru pulled her into his embrace and checked her to make sure that she was all right. The flare of her powers surprised him as he checked their pup. Their pup was fine, it was unharmed and Kagome didn’t seem to know what she just did.

He pulled her away from his chest and asked, “Kagome, how are you feeling? Are you hurt?”

Kagome was confused, she had no idea what her mate was talking about. “Mate, I feel fine, why are you asking me this? What did I do?”

Sesshoumaru raised an elegant eyebrow at his mate, ‘She doesn’t know what she just did to save these youkai.’ He took a deep breath as he explained, “Kagome, your powers surged throughout the area.”

Kagome panicked as she said, “Did I hurt anyone?”

“No mate, your powers didn’t hurt anyone, but it did heal all here in this area. When your tear fell from your eye it turned blue, like your eyes. It broke into a million lights and touched every youkai in this area. You healed everyone here until the wagons get here from Gengetsujou. Look around mate, no one is weak any longer.” Sesshoumaru said, while his mate looked around the area.

Kagome noticed that the youkai that inhabited this settlement were starting to come out of their hiding places. The pups, those precious little beings, were running around playing again in the morning sun. ‘I did this? How? I don’t remember doing this or using my powers to do this.’

Kagome was confused at her mate’s words, but accepted them. She was glad she could help, even though she didn’t know how she did it. She got up from the ground as Sesshoumaru wrapped his tails around her, making sure that she stays put this time, and doesn’t wonder off.

They returned to his father side, he noticed that his sire was concerned about Kagome as Sesshoumaru said, “She is fine father, and she doesn’t even know how she did that.”

Inutaisho nodded his head showing that he understood. He looked at his mate and motioned with his head towards their pup. Ayashiko understood as she went over to talk to Kagome. She, herself, wanted to make sure that Kagome was all right.

Kagome was speaking to Ayashiko when she noticed that the pups were running to her. She turned as they all stopped in front of her and bowed. The oldest of the pups, that was in the group, came up and kneeled in front of her, as he said, “Milady, we wanted to thank you for healing us. We have not felt this good for a while now. We all wanted to know what your name is?”

Kagome smiled as she kneeled down to the pups. It was hard to move as two tails tightened around her waist and she lightly tapped them to loosen their hold on her. When they did she was able to breath, she turned her attention to the pups, and said with a smile on her face, “My name is Kagome, I’m glad that I was able to help you. What kind of games do you all like to play?”

Kagome sat there and talked with the pups for a while. Ayashiko joined her on the ground, she was holding one pup in her lap. Kagome had all the pups sitting down while she told them a story. The pups were very quiet as they listened to the story being told. Their mothers were near by watching, to make sure that their pups did anything to insult the ladies of the west.

When Inutaisho and Sesshoumaru finished their business with the elders of the settlement they turned looking for their mates. Sesshoumaru still had his tails wrapped around his mate so he knew where she was. She was sitting right behind him as he heard her talking.

He turned around and to his surprise she had all the pups there listening, to of all things, a story that she was spinning for them. His eyes glowed with warmth at seeing his mate with the pups. He knew that he was looking at the future with their pups. He looked at her as he said in a gentle voice, “Kagome, its time for us to leave.”

Kagome looked up at her mate, then she heard the whines of the pups, they were protesting that they wanted to know what happened next. She looked up with pleading eyes as she said, “Can I finish the story first, I’m almost done.”

The look in her eyes made him cave as he nodded his agreement. Kagome turned around once more and continued with the story. It only took her a few more minutes to finish her tale, when she was done all of the pups came up to her and hugged her goodbye.

She stood along with her mother as they waved goodbye to the pups and followed their mates away from the village.

Kagome was quickly pulled into her mates embrace as he nuzzled her on her neck. She laughed as she asked, “What was that for?”

Sesshoumaru growled as he said, “For being you, and for caring for those pups back there. They never expected that my mate would be so kind hearted, that she would be willing to take care of another youkais pups.”

Kagome didn’t understand what the big deal was, his statement confused her, “Why wouldn’t I care about another pups? They are the future of these lands, if we show them to take care of each other, then they will live in peace with one another.”

Inutaisho and Sesshoumaru were taken by surprise by her statement, but what she said was true. If they educate everyone to live together, then the future will look brighter. They continued to walk and Kagome was wondering where they were going. She turned her attention to her mate, “Sesshoumaru? Where are we going now, to another settlement or a village this time?”

Sesshoumaru face became hard as stone, answering, “We are going to meet the one responsible for all this hardship. He is the governing lord for this area and we have some things that we need to discuss with him.”

Kagome raised an eyebrow at her mate as her temper started to rise. She knew that she could not use her Reiyouku but she was not defenseless. She had a few choice words to say to this youkai. Not her mate, nor her father, was going to stop her.

Sesshoumaru noticed that Kagome’s anger was growing. This was not good if she tried to access her Reiyouku. He will have to keep an eye on his mate, he didn’t want anything to happen to her, if her anger got the better of her.

---oOo---

It took them about an hour to arrive at Senshu castle. They were amazed that he could live so lavishly, while the people of this land were dying of starvation. They approached the castle, as the alarm was given that there were approaching youkai.

When Inutaisho got to the gate he said, “Open the gates now! I want to see Senshu.”

The guards were not about to open for him as one of them said, “We do not open the gates just for anyone, who are you to demand anything of us?”

Inutaisho eyes flashed red as he said with a growl, “I’m Lord Inutaisho! Lord of these lands, now, if you don’t open these gate then I will have the pleasure of taking them down for you.”

The soldier scrambled to get the gates opened when they felt the youki of the youkai standing in front of them. It was a powerful aura and they knew that he has to be the lord of the lands. They quickly opened the gates as they bowed and offered their apologies for being rude.

Inutaisho was not in the mood. His fist went right through the first guard’s chest, the one who had insulted his person, he turned to the rest that were standing there and said, “Take me to Senshu!”

The guards complied with his wishes as they led him inside of the castle. Not only did the outside of the castle looked beautiful, but the inside was even more lavishly decorated, there was gold everywhere. The four of them were lead into something that was the equivalent to the great hall in his castle.

When they entered they spotted their prey and walked in his direction. Inutaisho could see that the yamaneko was scared out of his mind to find him in his domain. He stopped in front of this so-called lord and said, “Senshu, we have much to discuss.”

---oOo---

Senshu was in his bedchambers when he got word that the Lord of the Lands was in his castle. He didn’t think it possible that Lord Inutaisho will come all this way to visit him. He was after all a minor lord in his kingdom.

He tricked this Inu into giving him rule over this part of his lands. For years now he has been bleeding this area dry, of everything they grew and the weapons they made. He was planning on leaving this area when the spring season came around. By then all in this area will be dead from lack of food. There will be no one left that will accuse him of bleeding this area dry.

He told the soldier standing at his door to escort these people to the grand hall. He will be down shortly to greet them. It was probably some minor lord from another area, wanting something from him. He had plenty of the other lords coming to him for help and he will refuse each one.

He checked his person in the mirror, when he was satisfied with the way he looked, he made his way to the grand hall. He entered the room from his private door, when he spotted the intruders to his castle. He swallowed hard when he noticed that it was the Lord of the Lands that was waiting for him.

He was not alone either, he had with him the Lady of the West, and another youkai that looked a lot like him. He figured that this was his eldest son and heir, but what amazed him was his aura, it was a pure white in color. It signified that he has reached the height of his powers. A feat that was very difficult to achieve.

He saw this youkai unwrap his tail from around something that he held in his arms. He lowered a ningen onna and placed her on her feet. She had midnight black hair and beautiful blue eyes. They were looking around the area until they landed on him.

He stood straighter making his height look impressive to the little onna, and then he noticed her eyes. They were changing color very fast, like there was a storm approaching his domain.

He stopped right in front of his lord and bowed when he heard his declaration. He didn’t like his tone of voice, it meant trouble for him.

He stood straight up as he looked at his lord and said, “Oh, what do we have to discuss, milord. All is well here in this area of the lands.”

Inutaisho growled his displeasure, “No, everything is not well in this area. I have been to one of the settlements and the youkai there are starving. There was no food in the village for them to eat or provide for their pups. What do you have to say for yourself?”

Senshu was caught, Inutaisho has been to one of the settlements, he knew that he has seen the condition it was left in. The look in his eyes told him that he will die this day for everything he has done to the people of these lands. He squared his shoulders as he replied, “I have no idea what you are talking about milord. The villages and settlements in this area, have plenty of food to last them through the winter. If the settlement was starving then they have not informed me of it.”

Kagome was standing next to her mate with his tails wrapped tightly around her waist. Her mate was not about to let her get near this youkai. She slipped her hands inside her sleeves. It was to hide her hands as she pulled several shuriken from her obi to get them ready. She had a feeling that this youkai will attack her Otou-san and she was going to get them first.

Her eyes roamed the area when she saw several youkai hiding in the shadows. She pulled several ofuda’s, that Miroku gave her, to freeze the youkai in place. She knew where they were as she silently said her spells and got them ready.

There was a heated argument going on between Inutaisho and Senshu when the attack came. Kagome was ready as she threw her ofuda’s and landed on the youkai that were in the shadows and her shuriken went towards Senshu.

Her shuriken hit their mark as it pulled the youkai backwards and pinned him to the wall. His arms and legs were spread out effectively trapping him in place. It helped that the shuriken had a spell placed on them as well, to hold the youkai in place.

Kagome grinned when she saw what she did. Now her Otou-san could take care of this fool, because if he didn’t, she will kill him herself, for what he has done.

Inutaisho blinked and the next thing he knew Senshu was pinned to the wall in front of him. He looked to his side and saw several youkai frozen in place. He did not sense them at all, nor did he pick up on their youki or scent.

He turned around and looked at his pup. She was smiling, ‘Kagome must have sensed them and she attacked before they did us any harm.’ Thought Inutaisho as he looked at his mate to make sure she was unharmed.

Sesshoumaru was equally surprised when he noticed what happened. He did not even sense that they were in danger but his mate did. He turned his head toward his mate as he asked, “Mate, how did you know they were waiting to attack us? I didn’t even sense them.”

Kagome never took her eyes off of Senshu as she said, “They are ninjas, and they have ways of blocking you from detecting them. I am also a ninja, I can break through their spells to find them. I noticed those three hiding in the shadows waiting for a chance to attack. This one though, I could feel what he was going to do before he actually did it, and I was able to subdue him.”

Kagome then turned to her Otou-san and said, “Lord Inutaisho, if you do not deal with this filth, then I will deal with him myself. I will pass judgment for what he has done to the people of this land. I know that you sensed that he has been lying to you, about what is happening here in the lands, plus he is the cause of all of it.”

Inutaisho was impressed with his pup. She was very powerful if she detected these cretins, where he could not. His eyes flashed red as he turned his attention to the one that was pinned to the wall. He smirked and when he spoke it sent shivers down Senshu spine.

“So, Senshu, you like to lie to your lord. It’s a good thing that we brought Kagome with us. You see she is my eldest son’s mate and a very powerful miko. She would love nothing better than to get her hands on you for what you have done to the people of this area.

“She had to heal all of the youkai from the settlement before we came here. If she didn’t then they would have died before help could reach them. So give me a good reason why I should not let her kill you?”

Senshu, was shaking in fear. He has never seen a female this powerful, he could tell that she didn’t even use any of her powers to subdue him. Her eyes went to a dark grey almost black in color as she stared at him.

He shivered in fright, he turned his eyes to the Lord of the Lands, and said, “Please forgive me milord, I meant no harm. I just wanted to live like you, have nice things in my home and be a lord in my own right. I can make things right, I can make sure that the people of this land have more food in the settlements and villages. Let me prove to you that I have changed my ways.”

Inutaisho laughed, ‘Does this youkai think that I’m stupid? He has no intentions of righting his wrongs. I have no choice, I can’t let Kagome kill him, she can’t use her powers and if she tried then it will hurt the pup.’

Inutaisho stopped his laughing, and then he turned his attention back to his prisoner, “No, you had your chance, you should have helped the people of these lands, but you chose to hurt them instead.” He then turned his attention to his son and said, “Sesshoumaru, will you please do me the honor of getting rid of this filth. I’m sure that as the ruling two tail you will enjoy it much more than I.”

Senshu finally noticed that the heir to the west was a two-tail inuyoukai. He was the ruling youkai for all the lands, not just the west. His eyes opened wide when he noticed that his hand was glowing. Before he could say anything in his defense a golden whip came out of his hands, it was the last thing he saw before he died.

Sesshoumaru smiled at his father as he brought his hand up and cracked his knuckles. He summoned his golden whip and struck out at the youkai that was pinned to the wall, and sliced him in two.

He flicked his wrist and the whip came around, seeking those that were being held under Kagome’s spell, he easily killed the ones that were trying to do them harm. When he was done he called back his whip as they all turned around and left the castle.

They will have to find someone else to take over this area and make sure that they work for the people and not against them.

They walked out of the castle only to be greeted by Senshu army. Inutaisho and Sesshoumaru stood in front of their mates to protect them. They attacked as both inu youkai attacked with a vengeance.

Ayashiko and Kagome were standing back, there were trying to stay safe but they were attacked as well.

Ayashiko pushed Kagome behind her to protect her. Her anger grew at the youkai who were trying to hurt her pup. She brought her right hand up as a green whip came out to attack those who wished to do her pup harm.

As more soldiers converged on them Kagome started to panic. She could not help them fight and she was worried about Ayashiko. She didn’t know how much longer she will be able to protect her as Kagome’s fears grew.

Ayashiko felt her pups fear as her rage took over. These filths were scaring her pup and she needed to put a stop to it. She let her youki go over the area as she attacked the soldiers that were coming after them.

Kagome witness for the first time a mother’s rage, as she saw the power that Ayashiko held. She never knew that she was this powerful as she killed all the youkai soldiers in the area with just her youki, while she protected her.

Kagome noticed that more soldiers were coming from behind as she screamed and Ayashiko quickly turned to take care of the threat. She was hit in her shoulder as she went down to her knees.

Kagome seeing that Ayashiko got hurt protecting her lost it, as she screamed in anguish.

Sesshoumaru heard his mate’s screams as his rage took over. He spun on the toe of his right foot as his golden whip came out and destroyed the youkai that was around him. He leaped from his position as he landed near his mate and took care of the ones that were attacking Kagome and his mother.

Inutaisho had about enough as his let his powers go. His sword lashed out at the youkai soldiers killing them in one swift move. He turned as he looked for his mate and his little one. He saw them on the ground as Kagome was crying near his mate. He rushed to their side to see what was wrong.

Kagome was crying her heart out when she noticed that Ayashiko was hurt trying to protect her. She turned towards her Oka-san and said, “I’m sorry Oka-san, because of me you were hurt trying to protect me. I’m worthless to all of you.”

Ayashiko noticed that all of the enemy soldiers have been dealt with. She heard what her pups said to her, as she grabbed her by the shoulders and said in a forceful voice, “Kagome, how can you call yourself worthless? You are the most powerful female in all the land. You have done more than any other female has done in her lifetime. You healed a whole settlement with just a drop of your tear because you cared enough about them to help them. I don’t call that being worthless. You have to stop putting yourself down every time someone gets hurt. Its going to happen whether you are here or not.”

Kagome started to cry even harder, she was scared, she was scared that she would lose her, and threw herself into Ayashiko’s arms and cried. “I was so scared that I would lose you, I don’t want to be left alone again.”

This statement caught Ayashiko by surprise. She didn’t know what her pup meant by that statement, as she brought her closer into her embrace. She will have to find out later what she meant by that statement.

---oOo---

Sesshoumaru was breathing hard as he approached his mate and kneeled behind her. His mate was still upset, as he looked at his mother, pleading with her to release his mate to him.

Ayashiko noticing that Sesshoumaru was kneeling behind Kagome, saw the pleading look in his eyes. She nodded that she understood as she moved Kagome away from her and let Sesshoumaru take his mate.

Kagome was still upset as she was pulled into Sesshoumaru’s embrace. He held onto her while his beast purred to calm her. He rubbed her back in a soothing motion as her cries turned into hiccups. Kagome finally calmed down as she held on to her mate.

Inutaisho was standing there listening to what his little one was saying. She was upset and wouldn’t calm down no matter how much his mate tried to comfort her. He saw as his son took his mate from his mother and tried to comfort her.

Inutaisho then had his chance as he went to check on his mate while his son took care of his. His eyes soften as he said, “Mate, are you all right?”

Ayashiko purred as he brought her into his embrace and said, “I’m fine mate, but I’m worried about what Kagome has said. Who did she lose that meant that much to her? We know that her mother is still alive, so who died?”

“I don’t know mate, but we will find out. She just needs some time to calm herself down.” Inutaisho then picked up his mate, while he turned to his son and asked, “Are you ready to leave Sesshoumaru?”

Sesshoumaru turned from his mate as he said, “Yes, Kagome has finally calmed down so we can leave.” Father and son left Senshu castle, each holding on to their mates as they made their way into the forest.

Inutaisho turned to his pup and asked, “Do you think that we can go to the next village? Or do we need to return to Gengetsujou?”

Sesshoumaru looked at his mate who was still awake, but holding on to him with a death grip, she seemed calm enough and was resting against him, so he decided, “No, we don’t need to return just yet. I think that we could go on to the next village and see how they are doing.”

They both took their orb form and took off to the next village. They arrived to see that his soldiers were there with the needed supplies for the villagers. The ningens were grateful for the help as they expressed their gratitude.

Kagome was standing next to her mate the whole time. She didn’t move nor did she speak to anyone. Ayashiko saw her opportunity, as she walked over to her pup and pulled her along with her. They went to sit down at the edge of the forest where they could have some privacy, there they waited until their mates were done with their business.

Ayashiko pulled her pup toward her and wrapped her arms around her. She nuzzled her, offering her comfort. After a while she finally felt when Kagome relax in her arms. They sat like that for a while until she turned to her pup and asked, “Kagome, who did you lose that you don’t want to be left alone?”

Kagome knew this was coming, she said something that she had deeply buried in her mind. She tried to pull away from Ayashiko but she will not let her go. She relaxed as she said, “The person I was talking about was my Baa-san. She was the one that protected me from my father. She was always there to hold me when I was hurting. She caught on to what my father was doing and she protected me from him.

“Then one day she got sick. We had to take her to the hospital, which is a place that takes care of anyone who is sick. They told my mother that there was nothing that they could do to help her. She died when I was holding her hand, she got hurt because she was protecting me, but she didn’t want me to tell anyone. That day I vowed that I will not lose anyone who tried to protect me.”

Ayashiko had tears coming from her eyes as she held her pup. She could not believe that Kagome has suffered so much in her life. She now understood why she said that. She rocked her pup in her arms, as she softly hummed to herself. It soothed Kagome until she fell asleep in her arms.

---oOo---

Inutaisho turned to look for his mate. She was gone from his side as he turned to Sesshoumaru and asked, “Sesshoumaru, have you seen your mother and Kagome?”

Sesshoumaru finally noticed that his mate was gone from his side. She has been quiet since she got upset at Senshu castle. The last thing he noticed was that she was standing quietly behind him. “No I have not seen either of them. I have no doubt that Kagome is with mother.”

Inutaisho agreed as they went looking for their mates. They finally found them sitting under a tree near the forest. The area was quiet and they were both sleeping soundly in each other arms.

Inutaisho thought that it was a beautiful portrait. Both of them looked like angels sleeping together. He then turned his attention to his son and said, “You take Kagome and I’ll grab your mother, but be careful, we don’t want to wake them. If your mother notices that someone is taking her pup she will attack.”

Sesshoumaru understood his fathers warning as he approached his mate. He moved his mothers arm from around his mate without waking her. He slipped his arms around Kagome and gently pulled her away from his mother. Kagome stirred but quickly settled back down when his inner inu soothed her.

When he was assured that Kagome will not wake up, he stood with her in his arms and moved away, this allow his father to grab his mother. When the males had their mates, securely in their arms, they left the village and went back home. They had the knowledge that everyone got the supplies they needed and will survive the winter.

---oOo---

This is the end to another chapter. Kagome’s powers are now sealed until her pup is born. Sesshoumaru will be hard pressed to keep her safe from now until the pup is born. Miroku is going to have a hard time trying to convince Sango to marry him, but we all know that our favorite monk will win Sango’s heart and change her mind.

Hey guys for all of you who didn’t know the last time I posted 2 chapters. Chapter 31 and 32 are new chapters. Many of you only read chapter 32 and didn’t read 31. You need to go back and read 31 if you missed it. How do I know? By the number of hits that the chapter got, there are twice as many hits for chapter 32 than there is for chapter 31. Just thought I let you know.

I hope that you enjoyed this chapter. From my family to yours, may you have a Merry Christmas and a Joyous New Year. Our story is rapidly coming to an end. Only 4 more chapters to go and then my story will be complete.

Kagome is now showing and it has finally snowed in the western lands. Join me as Kagome teaches the pups of the castle the joy of snowball fights and other wonderful winter games.

Until the next chapter!

Ja ne!