Blood Stained

 

Blood Stained

Chapter 56:

 

He had endured different kinds of shopping fury in the past, but this was one he always wished to avoid.  Frankly, he would have much preferred to be carrying big heavy bags all day than this.  He loved Kagome dearly.  And while he knew how to deal with certain situations, this was not one of them.  Especially since he knew for a fact that no matter what he said, she would not be convinced.

 

Four hours they had been shopping, not one piece of clothing had been bought.

 

She had tried on many different clothes, yet either she came out in silence or with tears threatening to fall.  At first he had thought she was tired, maybe she was missing her son, but as time went on, he had realized it was something else.  It was the clothes that brought her the unhappiness.

 

But it was not style, nor the color, it was…

 

“I won’t take these either.”

 

Kouga turned his head towards the voice, before a frown appeared on his face.  He watched as Kagome returned the clothes to the saleslady.  There was a frown on her face as she headed back in his direction, he could feel what was coming.

 

“We can go,” she said, obviously trying to hide her sadness.

 

At first she had thought that this would be a good idea, but as more time passed, the less she enjoyed it.  Clothes were evil.  Apparently the previous depression she had felt concerning her body had not dissipated.  It was getting worse when it came to finding something that fit.  Out of everything she had been unable to even find one thing that fitted her somewhat.

 

She should have just picked something and ignore the fact that it was not as baggy on her as her maternity clothes, which made it more revealing, but she couldn’t.  Maybe not shopping for new clothes and just waiting was not the worst idea.  Plus, where was she going did she need good garments?  Well, it was true she and Sesshomaru were probably trying to be something, but he should want to regardless of what she was wearing.

 

As she kept walking out of the store, she could feel his eyes on her, so she turned her head to the side slightly.  “Sorry we’re wasting so much time.”

 

Kouga shrugged his shoulders.  “I don’t mind, but I’m thinking you should want a few clothes…”

 

She shook her head.  “What for?”

 

Kouga arched an eyebrow, before picking up his pace a bit so he’d be beside her.  

 

“Because, that’s usually what’s involved in clothes shopping.”  She seemed to nod, but he could tell she wouldn’t buy anything.  “Are you gonna tell me what’s wrong or we’ll keep doing every store until you get tired?”

 

Touche.

 

“I can’t.  Nothing fits, nothing is good.”

Kouga could not possibly be the right person to talk to about this could he?  Not because he was a bad person, but because… he was a guy?  Not that she really had friends pouring out of everywhere.  Kouga, his pack and Sesshomaru were all she had lately.  Plus, Kouga had proven to be really useful during the recent events, so maybe he could provide her with some enlightenment.

 

She stopped in her steps and turned around.  “I just, ever since the birth… I mean, I look different and then…I don’t know.”

 

Involuntarily, Kouga found himself glancing down at her stomach.  Frankly, he saw nothing wrong with it, to him it looked like it always did, even back when he first met her.  Though from the glossy glance in her eyes, he could tell, she did not feel the same.  Kouga was not that familiar with post pregnant women of the modern era and the right words to say were not coming easily.

 

He took a step in her direction, before grabbing her hands in his and smiled.

 

“Kagome, you look beautiful.  Ask anyone.”

 

She knew he meant it, but it still didn’t echo within her.  Nonetheless, she offered him a weak smile, before nodding.  

 

“You know what, let’s just go into another store, I’ll pick the first thing I see.”

 

Kagome freed her hands from his hold before turning around and heading towards their next destination.  Meanwhile Kouga knew that once they were back at the hotel, he needed to have a talk with Sesshomaru.  Kouga could say many things to Kagome, but it didn’t change the fact that he was not the main presence in her life.  Sesshomaru was, perhaps he was the only one who could help her.

 

Silently he followed her, watched her grab the first things she found.  It saddened him a bit to see her in such a state.  It felt as if she had been in a depressed state for a very long time and he couldn’t wait to see a smile back on her face.  If anyone deserved to feel pure joy, it was her.  Hopefully, Sesshomaru would be able to help her on that path.

 

If he could he would, but he could not.

 

All he could say was that Kagome sure was a strange girl.  There was no limit to the size of her heart, how much she could forget and forgive.  People like her didn’t come around too often.  Sesshomaru might be much older than she was, but boy did she have a thing or two to teach him.  The old Daiyoukai might have changed over the years, but Kouga felt as if he knew nothing just yet.

 

Only she could teach him.

 

-B-

 

Silence had been engulfing the room, especially due to the fact that Kiyoshi was sleeping and Sesshomaru was reading a book, when the door opened.  Sesshomaru slowly raised his head, only to be graced with the sight of Kouga holding nothing but one lonely bag.  To be honest, he had expected the Wolf to return drowning in shopping bags.

 

Behind Kouga was Kagome, whose smile was not as bright as he was used to seeing.  Her steps were slow as she came into view and once she was near him, she nodded.  He greeted her back the same way, before they both found themselves glancing over at Kiyoshi.  Once her eyes caught sight of her son, her smile grew all the way up to her eyes, she walked over to the crib.

 

Kouga was glad that Kagome was going to be a bit distracted since it would be his chance to slip away with Sesshomaru.  “We’ll give you some privacy,” said Kouga, glaring down at Sesshomaru.

 

Kagome knitted her eyebrows together.  “Privacy?”

 

“Yeah, you hm, probably want to change and all.”

 

She was in no rush to be in more fitting clothes, but she could not keep these clothes she currently had on, especially since it might lead to Sesshomaru asking a few questions.

 

“Of course.”

 

Kagome walked back over to the bag Kouga had left on the floor and picked it up as she headed for the bathroom to get changed.  As soon as she closed the door behind her, Kouga picked up Sesshomaru by the arm, raising him to his feet, which displeased the inuyoukai greatly.

 

“We need to talk,” said Kouga, as he led the way.

 

Sesshomaru frowned as he allowed the Wolf to carry him out of the room.  Usually, he wouldn’t have stood for being so impolitely handled, but by the tone of Kouga’s voice, he could tell it was rather important, that it most likely involved Kagome in some way.  In silence Sesshomaru followed, though he allowed himself to glare at the Wolf.  After all, he was still a tad bit bitter about him taking Kagome out shopping.  Even if it had been her decision.

 

Kouga didn’t want to go too far so it wouldn’t look suspicious or anything, so he simply took Sesshomaru to his room.  Once they entered, he closed the door behind them, before crossing his arms in front of his chest.

 

“You know what’s wrong with her?”

 

Sesshomaru could not help but be slightly confused.  He was almost certain that her meant Kagome, but he was not aware something was wrong with her.  Granted, she had seemed a little off when she arrived, but plenty could have happened.  Especially since she had spent half the day with Kouga.

 

“I’m not aware, no.”

 

Kouga sighed.  “She’s depressed.  And it’s your fault.”  Technically it was, since he was the one who got her pregnant.  “She’s having self esteem problems.”

 

Self-esteem problems?  Kagome?  He didn’t think he had often seen her doubt herself, even in her darkest moments.  Surely, it had to be wrong, especially since he couldn’t think of what it was about herself that would make her feel that way.  There was nothing wrong with her.

 

“I think it’s the pregnancy.  You know, it changed her body.”

 

Geeze, did he really have to spell out everything for Sesshomaru?  He thought he was supposed to be the smart one, or something.  Though, from what Kouga could tell, Sesshomaru might have been lacking female interaction for the last five hundred years or so.  It was a good thing in itself, but it also made him inexperienced and unprepared.

 

Sesshomaru was aware of the damage pregnancy could leave on a body, though he hardly doubted it had done anything to Kagome’s.  It was true that he had not seen her body bare since, but he could see the gist of it, she appeared fine.  Though of course, some insecurity could be normal, since nobody had been there to tell her she looked beautiful and breathe taking.

 

Also, Sesshomaru concluded that if Kouga was sharing such information with him it was because, obviously, it had been very obvious to him during the day.  That perhaps, he was the one who had to help her.  Though then came the next question; how.  There were certain boundaries that they were not yet ready to cross when it came to Kagome and boosting herself confidence without breaking them could be challenging.

 

“Any suggestions?” he finally inquired.

 

Kouga shrugged his shoulders before sitting down on the nearest chair.  “It’s a difficult one.”

 

He hadn’t become attached to anyone really in the past number of years and though he had seen his count of relationships, nothing had been serious, at least not to the point where he had revealed his real self to anyone.  Still, he had encountered a few difficult cases, where he had to deal with emotional women.  However, Sesshomaru couldn’t exactly comfort Kagome in a physical way, there in came the problem.

 

“Try spending time with her.”  It almost sounded cheesy.  “Show her you enjoy her company.  Don’t stay silent, don’t go around.  Focus on her.  I think she needs to be the full centre of attention.”

 

Sesshomaru wasn’t sure it would do a whole lot, but he was willing to give it a try.  Maybe he’d try to subtly find out a bit more about her moods when they would be alone together.  He nodded in agreement, before realizing that, Kouga might have helped a quite a bit lately.  It wasn’t a notion he enjoyed admitting, but it couldn’t be ignored.

 

Kagome had been right when she labeled him as a good friend… a good friend of hers.

 

“I appreciate,” was all Sesshomaru said before turning around so he could return to their room.

 

Kouga watched him leave, a smirk on his face.  Honestly those two would be unable to do anything without him.  If he hadn’t come, they would probably be avoiding each other and no steps in the right direction would have been made.

 

Meanwhile Kagome was still in the washroom, her new clothes on, but she could not come out.  At least, it was what she had planned on doing until she heard the door of the room open, which meant Sesshomaru was back.  Clearly she could not remain in there forever or he would inquire why and it would lead an explanation she didn’t want to give.

 

As she heard him walk around, she found herself looking at her reflection in the mirror.  She pulled down on the light blue top, almost hoping it would make it larger.  The pants were regular black ones, which she didn’t have much of a problem with, but it was mostly her upper body that bothered her. She closed her eyes, not wanting to look anymore, before taking a deep breath, getting ready to exit the bathroom.

 

She did her best to appear normal as she came out, her eyes immediately searching for him.  Kagome found him glancing down in one of his suitcase, his eyes trying to locate something.  She closed the distance between them, but he barely seemed to notice.

 

“Is everything okay?”

 

The sound of her voice surprised him a bit, but he caught himself before he could appear surprise.  “Yes.  Why is something the matter?”

 

She shook her head.  “I just thought Kouga seemed in a rush to leave.”

 

Sigh.  “I do not think he enjoys shopping.”

 

His attempt at humor did bring a smile to her face, since it was not something he did often.  “It could have been worse,” she said before pulling away slightly.  “It could have been you.”

 

Of course, it was meant to be a joke, but deep inside he had wished he had been the one who had gone with her.  Still, he chased that thought away from his mind, as he resumed his attempt at finding a movie.  Meanwhile, Kagome had her hands pressed into the edge of the crib, looking down at her son.  She couldn’t help but wonder what happened between Sesshomaru and Kiyoshi while she was gone.

 

She quickly glanced at both men, but knew that neither would talk.

 

Perhaps it was their own little secret.

 

“Would you like to watch a movie?”

 

Kagome turned her head to look at Sesshomaru and processed his request.  The only time she had watched a movie with him, their situation had been much different.  She glanced at him, then at the movie he was holding in his hand before nodding.

 

“Why not.”

 

At least, she’d be able to hide herself under the blankets.

 

“Would you like something to eat?”

 

“No!”

 

Even to herself, she was surprised by her quick answer.  “I mean, I’m fine.”

 

She shook her head at herself, as she headed for her bed.  She couldn’t help but feel stupid for her reaction.  No it wasn’t like she was starving herself, nothing close to that.  But perhaps she was cutting out unnecessary snacks.  Unfortunately, it wasn’t an attitude she liked.  If only she could have a few days of work outs, perhaps she’d feel better quicker.

 

Sesshomaru put the movie in, before following her actions and laying down on his bed.  He saw no problem with that, but it got Kagome’s mind working.  She had somewhat shared a bed with him in the past, when they were not even trying.  So if they both remained in their own bed now, wasn’t that some kind of regress instead of progress?

 

Though now having him lay beside her would have a much bigger significance than it did back then.  Confusion took hold of her heart, as she pressed her lips together.  She could see him putting the settings as he had accessed the menu, but her mind was wandering.  If she didn’t propose it, he wouldn’t come on his own, since he would feel like he was either pushing her or intruding.

 

But was this too much for her?

 

No, of course it wasn’t.  No steps back, just forward right?  He wasn’t going to sleep in her bed.  He was going to lay on top of the blankets right beside her.  Kagome was aware that Sesshomaru wouldn’t harm her, so there was no reason for her to fear this interaction… right?

 

“You can come here if you want.”  Heat came to her face, she wondered if she turned a bright red color.  “I mean, my bed is closer to the TV.”  Stupid, stupid, stupid.

 

Frankly, considering how lost in her own mind she had appeared, Sesshomaru hadn’t expected her to propose such a thing, but he wasn’t about to turn her down.  He nodded as an answer, before grabbing his own pillow and joining her in her bed.  As he laid down, he made sure to keep a reasonable distance between her and himself.  When she seemed comfortable, he felt relieved.

 

He didn’t need her to be jumpy around him, especially since he was going to attempt to make her feel better about herself.

 

Kagome allowed a sigh of contentment to roll off her lips, as she placed herself properly in the bed, buried under the blankets.  Ignoring her previous stress, she realized that it was truly not uncomfortable to be in his presence, even after she had agreed to allow him to court her.  She knew he would keep his promise to take things slow.

 

Gently she tilted her head to the side a bit, not revealing it was bringing her much closer to him.  She might be oblivious to it, but he was not.  Although he was fully human, or supposed to be at the moment, he could still get a strong scent filling his nose.  The scent of her strawberry shampoo was still vividly present, almost intoxicating.  Why could he smell it?

 

His watch was obviously working, meaning his youkai senses could not be the reason why.  Whatever it was, it did make it a bit harder than usual for him to concentrate, especially each time she moved around, giving him a fresher sniff.  Nonetheless, he tried to concentrate his attention on the movie much like she was doing.

 

He could see the actors moving, but his brain was not following the story.  Usually people did not talk during a movie, yet he wanted to have a conversation with her.  Wouldn’t that be the only way he’d figure out the full extent of her problem?  She looked almost comfortable around him, and he could not sense her having any type of problems.

 

Then again, would she really show him her uneasiness?

 

He pressed his lips tightly together, before convincing himself to not glance at her for too long, or he might get caught.  Surely there could be plenty of reasons as to why he was looking at her, but he didn’t want her thinking the wrong idea.  Though he was interested in her, he didn’t wish to appear obsessed.

 

Sesshomaru said he would help her be happy and that was part of it.  Whatever he could do to make her feel better he would do.

 

However, since she seemed to be so into the movie, he never found it in him to actually disturb her, so he remained silent as the time went by.  Most of the time, his eyes remained locked on the TV, that was until he felt a weight on his shoulders.  Sesshomaru glanced down, only to see it was Kagome resting on him.  Her eyes were shut, her breathing was even as she leaned into him.

 

He knew she had been over exhausting herself lately, especially with the way she was faithfully taking care of their son, but he hadn’t expected her to be that tired.  He found himself slowly taking another position so she would be more comfortable.  Sesshomaru moved her so she was half on his shoulder, half on his chest, and it didn’t seem to wake her.

 

Then, he made sure she was carefully covered by the blanket, before wrapping his arm around her.  Her rested his own head against hers, his lips gently pressed against her hair.  From his position it was as if he could feel her heartbeat vibrating through her, reaching out to him.  Everything about her was so present, he really could not explain it.

 

As the movie kept going, he found himself nodding off into slumber as well.  The draining emotions he felt because of the mating mark had never disappeared and he would not be against a little extra sleep.  Most of the time, he didn’t allow her to see how tired he was but now that she was sleeping…

 

With her carefully tucked in his arms, it was hard not to find the peacefulness to sleep.

 

And as they both dozed off, a gently purple aura surrounded them bringing them not only extra comfort, but also peace of mind, putting all their current worries at ease.

 

-B-

 

Kagome opened her eyes, confusion dawning upon her.  She ran her fingers through her bangs, which were covering her eyes.  It wasn’t until she moved around a little that she felt something that was neither a bed nor a pillow beneath her.  As the events that occurred before her falling asleep rushed back to her mind, her eyes widened.  She cringed as she turned around slightly, only to confirm the fact that she had fallen asleep on Sesshomaru.

 

A blush appeared across her cheeks, before slightly pulling away.  Unfortunately doing so woke up Sesshomaru who seemed to always sleep lightly.  He seemed as dazed as her as he took in a deep breath and glanced around.

 

“Sorry,” said Kagome, the blush still present on her face as she moved to her own side of the bed.

“It’s nothing,” he said, prior to turning his body so his legs were dangling from the side of the bed.

 

He had hoped that he would have woken up before her, but apparently he hadn’t been fast enough.  Sesshomaru observed that she looked very embarrassed while scrambling onto her feet.  He rubbed the side of his head with his index and thumb, before rising to his feet.

 

Deciding that the quiet approach was not working, he decided to take it up a notch.  This time, Sesshomaru headed straight for her and made the bold decision to grab her wrist gently.  It got her attention and a bit confused she looked up at him.

 

“Are you well?” he inquired, since he refused to go right away and discuss directly what the problem was.  Perhaps she didn’t wish for him to be aware of it.

 

Kagome frowned.  “I- hm, I think so, why?”

 

He shrugged ever so slightly.  “You seemed a little upset earlier.”

 

She rapidly shook her head.  “I’m fine.”

 

Had even Sesshomaru noticed her change of mood?  Was she really being that obvious?  A deep sigh almost came out, but she held it back before smiling.

 

“Just fine,” she added, before refocusing herself on her son.

 

Kiyoshi was laying in his crib, his amber eyes wide open as he stared at his mother with what looked like a smile on his face.  Kagome copied his expression as she reached out for him, before carefully tucking him in her arms.  Since he had been sleeping upon her return, she hadn’t been able to hold him in hours and she had missed him.

 

In a few days, she had grown very attached.  He was her everything.

 

“How did it go while I was gone?” she asked, her eyes never leaving her son’s face.

 

Sesshomaru had noticed that Kagome had attempted to help him be closer to his son and he didn’t wish for her to worry further upon the subject.  Instead of giving her a verbal answer, he moved so he could be in front of her, he extended his arms in front of her.  Kagome seemed a bit surprised but she gently handed over Kiyoshi.

 

She had hoped that leaving the two of them together for a few hours would work, but a part of her hadn’t expected it to.  Apparently she had been wrong.  She observed carefully as Sesshomaru held Kiyoshi and though his movements were a bit unsure, he was still holding him of his own will.  Especially since her emotions were all over the place, her eyes immediately became tearing at the scene.

 

Her relationship with Sesshomaru had its ups and downs, but she wanted Sesshomaru to be a strong presence in Kiyoshi’s life.  The fact that Sesshomaru didn’t seem as uncomfortable around his son was truly a wonderful sight.  Before she knew it, the first tear rolled down her cheek, and it seemed to attract Sesshomaru’s attention.  As soon as he looked at her with concerned eyes, she shook her hands in front of her body.

 

“No, I’m fine, really.  It’s just- I’m happy.”

 

Happy.  Not a feeling she had experienced a whole lot during the last few months.  But at that exact moment, she truly meant it.  They were perhaps a very dysfunctional family, but they were one anyway.

 

It was still hard to believe Kiyoshi could be so calm and relaxed, even at such a young age.  She had expected to get up many times every night to tend to his needs, but he barely ever woke up, or cried.  Kagome did find herself worried a few times, but there were no signs that anything was wrong with Kiyoshi.  She could only assume it was because of his youkai blood.

 

Unfortunately, her words were proven wrong fairly quickly when Kiyoshi’s cry echoed through the room.  However, Kagome and Sesshomaru didn’t have to search very long for the source of his changed mood.

 

 

“Hey.”

 

Kouga popped into the room, his eyes locked on Kiyoshi who was now crying.  “Is he okay?” he inquired before taking a step closer.

 

“He was prior to your arrival.”

 

Kagome couldn’t help but crack a smile.  “Hey Kouga,” she said as she stepped closer to her son, running her fingers gently through his short little ebony hair, in an attempt to soothe him.

 

Kouga was glad Sesshomaru and Kagome could have some sort of interaction without being forced into it, but he still wished to speak to Kagome, just for a minute or two.  He tore his eyes away from Kiyoshi, whom he assumed was trained by Sesshomaru to hate him and glanced at Kagome.

 

“Can I talk to you?”

 

Her eyebrows lifted.  “Hm, sure.”

 

Sesshomaru sent a quick glare over at Kouga, as Kagome headed for the door.  The only response Kouga gave him was when he shrugged his shoulders, a smirk on his face.  Maybe he was also doing this because he enjoyed the jealous angry look on Sesshomaru’s face each time he was alone with Kagome.

 

Though, what he was about to do was for Sesshomaru’s sake.  Kouga hadn’t conversed with him very often, but they had a few conversations in which he had learned a few things. Since he had tried to explain Kagome’s point of view to Sesshomaru he thought he might try to do the same with Kagome.  She didn’t know exactly where Sesshomaru came from, he thought that if she did, it might help her.

 

Frankly, sometimes it was to wonder why he was getting so involved.  In the past he had never been close to Sesshomaru, he had been in love with Kagome.  Clearly he was much more of a good guy then he thought.

 

He could have taken her to his room, but he wanted to be alone with her.  After all, he might end up discussing some personal details and it was nobody else’s business.  No matter how much he’d love to spread around the details of Sesshomaru’s life.  Instead he took Kagome outside of the hotel, near the pool where there were many sitting areas.

 

Of course, if he had thought that part through, he would have realized that taking her where women would be walking around in bikinis was perhaps not the best idea.  Though, once they were sitting down he realized it was too late.  Fortunately, Kagome didn’t seem to glance around, instead she was looking at him, quite concerned.

 

“Is everything okay?”

 

In the past, she might have been grateful that she was taken away from a situation with Sesshomaru, but not anymore.  Although she was a little embarrassed about falling asleep on him, it was not bad to be in his company, she was rather comfortable.  Granted, they didn’t always have the biggest conversation, but she believed that so far, everything was going well.

 

Or at least, nothing she had feared would happen had.  Then again, it wasn’t as if Sesshomaru would repeat any of the actions his beast had done, so there was truly nothing to worry about.

 

“I just wanted to talk about Sesshomaru,” he said beginning the conversation right at the root of the subject.

 

She bit on her bottom lip.  “What about him?”

 

Frankly, Kouga wasn’t sure how Sesshomaru would be able to pull any move on Kagome; it wasn’t like he had any experience.  Whatever he might end up doing could be the wrong thing and he didn’t want it screwing up anything.

 

“See, Sesshomaru is not very… knowledgeable when it comes to women.”

 

She arched an eyebrow.  “Knowledgeable?”

 

To be honest, Kagome didn’t wish to know about Sesshomaru and his past with other women.  Not only was it his privacy, but his personal choices had nothing to do with her.  Right now, they were giving a relationship a try and knowing more than she needed to would probably not help.  Why would she want to find out about all the women when she had a hard time thinking about their own past?

 

“Let’s just say he has none.”

 

Her toes were curling as she was itching to ask another question, but she held herself back.  Sesshomaru had been roaming the world for over five hundred years and Kouga was trying to tell her he had no women tales to talk about?

 

“I- don’t think.  I mean it’s none of my business.”

 

Kouga frowned, a bit upset.  Kagome might not know much about the rules of mating, but he did.  Sesshomaru might not have done the right thing each time, but that was something sacred he had respected.  That he was around Kagome or not, as her mate it was his duty to respect her and be loyal.  Granted because of the circumstances he could have strayed, but he did not.

 

“Sesshomaru hasn’t been with anyone else since you.”

 

It could be something romantic, but it really wasn’t.  It wasn’t as if Sesshomaru and her had made a promise of love, she had expected him to be only hers.  As a matter of fact, back then she wanted him to be anything except hers.  Though she had to admit, considering how he was in the past, she was almost surprised.  Had Sesshomaru been focused on her all these years?

 

The statement made her feel uneasy, because she was becoming confused as to how to feel about it.  It was true that Sesshomaru always prided himself on his honor and whatnot, so being with another woman would technically break that code he had imposed for himself.  Who would have thought that he deemed her worthy to respect the mating?

 

Kouga smirked as he watched her expression change.  “He’s not always a bad guy.”

 

“I know that,” she said, her hands resting upon her lap, as she played with the hem of her shirt.  “I just, - it’s hard sometimes.”

 

He nodded.  He didn’t know what she went through, but for someone coming from the modern era, he could imagine how much harder it was to accept all the events that had occurred.  However, she was doing a wonderful job trying to deal with everything.  Kagome was going much further than most women would.

 

The past could not be expected to disappear in the matter of a few instants.  It required work and effort, while she wanted to be free from it, it was impossible to do so in a few weeks.  But, apparently, Sesshomaru knew how to be very patient, which was a good thing, considering the amount of time she’d need.

 

“Why are you telling me this?” she inquired, curious.

 

Kouga shrugged his shoulders.  “You’re both in your own shell, if someone doesn’t push you out of it, nothing will be done.”

 

He rose to his feet before extending a hand her way.  “Come on, I’ll bring you back before he has a fit.”

 

Instead of taking his hand, Kagome stretched her arms and brought him into an embrace.  “Thank you Kouga.”

 

After spending years in the Feudal Era, she had lost touch with her friends from the Modern Era.  She had often thought that once it would all be over, she’d find herself alone.  Kagome was more than glad to see she had been wrong.  Her life might not have gone the way she had expected it to, but it was not all darkness.  She could see the light shining through.

 

Kouga returned the hug and they remained like that for a few seconds before they pulled away from each other and headed back to their rooms.  As Kagome processed Kouga’s words while they were walking, she realized that Sesshomaru was still a complete mystery to her.  She knew the one from the past and the beast, but the more time passed, the less she knew about the new him and how he came to be.

 

Once they reached Kagome’s door, Kouga winked at her.  “If he gets too boring, remember; I’m right next door.”

 

A small laugh escaped her lips.  “I’ll remember.”

 

If someone could make any tense ambiance comfortable, it was Kouga.  The smile was still vivid on her lips as she opened the door, only to find emptiness.  She closed it behind her, before venturing further. It wasn’t until she made her way into the kitchen that she found him.  Though it was quite late during the day, Sesshomaru was making coffee.

 

“Hey,” she said softly, warning him of her presence.

 

Sesshomaru slightly tilted his head to the side, before offering her a smile.  “Is everything well?”

She nodded.  “He just wanted to talk.”

 

Kagome began heading in Sesshomaru’s direction, her hand dragging, touching everything.  Once she reached the chair closest to him, she sat down on it, causing their backs to be facing.  By telling her about Sesshomaru, Kouga had brought along a good point.  If this was going to work, she needed to know everything about him.  It might seem a bit intrusive, but she felt it was necessary.

 

“You know, I was thinking...”

 

Sesshomaru, who had been pouring coffee into his cup, stopped his movements. 

 

Kagome tilted her head to the side, pondering on the right words to say. “You have this suitcase that has everything there is to know about me…”

 

As the words left her, he almost expected her to be upset.  She had seemed fine upon the discovery of the inside of his suitcase, but perhaps after sometime of brewing it over, she had decided it was an invasion of her privacy.  Nonetheless, he remained silent, waiting for her to finish.

 

Kagome slouched a bit in her seat.  “I just, I don’t know anything about you.  What happened to you during the last five hundred years and whatnot.  Nothing.”

 

His expression transformed into one of surprise.  “You wish to know about me?”

 

Kagome turned her body around a bit so that she could look at him.  “I’d like that.  I want to know who you are.”

 

Sesshomaru still seemed a bit surprised, as a tiny frown appeared.  “It’s a long story.” Some of it involving things he wasn’t sure he was ready to talk about.  Though he couldn’t keep much from her.

 

“Well, apparently,” she said bringing a hand to her neck, “I’m going to live quite a while, so I guess we’re okay.”

 

He couldn’t help the small smile that broke through his expression.  It was rare that she was comfortable enough to crack a joke around him and he enjoyed it.  “Very well,” he said, taking his mug.  “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

 

Kagome nodded, knowing she might need it in the long run.  She watched as Sesshomaru turned around to prepare it, she couldn’t help the smile on her face.  If five hundred years ago someone told her that her monster would be one of the good guys, she would have called them insane.

 

Now, she could see that out of every bad thing, came a good thing.  She had long believed he had the biggest impact in her life, but now, she was beginning to see that perhaps she had affected his life as well.

 

Through it all, they were intertwined.

 

-B-