And here is it folks. After ten long years, I have finally finished this story. It may not be the end everyone was expecting, hell I didn't even know I was going to end it this way. But I think its a suitable ending for the story and I can now start writing the story that was sparked from some of the ideas that I'd had in this story.

Enjoy and when you get to the end...let me know what you think. I apprecitate the feedback.

Disclaimer-Characters are not mine, I just enjoy playing with them.

Chapter 7

3rd person

Kagome took her brother off to the side as the others got ready. She didn't want to leave without letting him know some of what was going on. She told him that she was going to go and try to make things better and would he be a good boy and stay here to hold down the fort. They would all be back.

Souta looked at his sister, with tears running down his face, and demanded that she make a promise. I want you to promise me that you'll come back to me. She smiled sadly and told him, I'm going to fix this mess and then I'm going to come back. I'll be back in time for your birthday. I promise that everything is going to be alright.

He hugged her tightly as the Silver haired demon came to get her. 'mama its time to go.'

'In a minute Shippo. Souta its time for us to leave. I love you. Stay safe and be good. Miss Sakura, you remember her right?' Souta nodded. She's going to keep an eye out for you. If you need anything just let her know, okay?'

'Okay.'

Kagome walked out with the fox demon. They met up with Yusuke and Hiei out in front of the sanctuary. Kagome stopped for a moment, 'Shippo what would you like me to call you?'

He smiled. 'Shippo was my childhood name and I'm filled with happiness everytime you use it, but Kurama has been my name for a long time now.'

'Kurama it is.' They both smiled at each other. Hiei looked disgusted at the display and Yusuke just looked like himself. Before anyone else could say anything, Kurama grabbed Kagome and then were off. Her shriek of surprise died in the wind.

It wouldn't take them long to get to the cave. Kagome held onto Kurama as Hiei and Yusuke finally caught up and they traveled quickly in silence.

Before they arrived, Yusuke asked, 'So are you going to let us in on your plan?'

Surprisingly they hadn't run into too any demons. 'You'll know it when you see it. Just keep the demons away from me long enough for me to finish.'

Kurama frowned, 'Don't forget your promise.'

'I won't.'

They were only a few meters from the mouth of the cave when the demons appeared. Hiei and Yusuke jumped into the fray without saying anything. Kurama got Kagome into the cave and acted as guard. The frayed barrier was still there. The temporary barrier had allowed parts of the barrier to stay up, but it was disintegrating very quickly. It wouldn't be long before there was absolutely nothing hold the demon hordes back.

Kagome frowned and ignored the frayed barrier after assessing it. She had faith that Kurama would keep the demons away for her long enough to do what she had to do. She folded her legs under her in a very relaxed position and took out the two halves of the shikon no tama. The half that Hiei had held onto was black as pitch. He natural reflex to purify the jewel that had been in my body for so long, wasn't having an effect on it. The other half was still the perfectly pink color it had always been.

She sighed a little bitterly and placed the two side together. There was a flash of brilliant light and they fused in perfect harmony. One side black and the other pink. She could hear Kurama shift behind her in surprise, but she ignored him. If he'd any idea of what she had planned, he'd never agreed to let her continue.

See, she remember the story of Midoriko and how the priestess had fought off a thousand demons. The battle so fierce that she'd known that no one would survive, so she had given the world her ultimate sacrifice and the battle had lived on in the shikon no tama…a jewel that had once been rumored to grant any wish.

Well it certainly couldn't grant a wish, but it could provide Kagome with the power she needed to recreate the barrier, using up the power in the jewel and running it through her body as a medium. It was probably going to burn her body to dust, but she would do anything to save her brother, to save the world and if that meant giving the ultimate sacrifice she would. She hated the fact that it would leave Souta alone, but she knew that he'd be looked after, afterall her son had come back to her.

She was going to break her promise, but that was okay, because they would live. So she started the process of drawing the harmonized power threw her. At first it was fine, her body had been used to large amounts of spiritual power because it had housed the jewel for so long, after a few moments the jewel began to become colorless and the burning started. She would not be able to hold the screams back for much longer, but she refused to submit to the power. The conviction in her heart would not allow her too.

She vaguely heard Kurama shout something to her as power began to become visible around her, circling like a cyclone. Yusuke and Hiei came into the cave, just in time to hold her boy back.

Suddenly she opened her eyes. They were glowing an eerie pink shade. She stood up and walked to the barrier. Holding the shikon no tama close to her body she gasped as her hand reached out to touch the disintegrating barrier. The barrier flared for a moment and then disappeared entirely. Kagome screamed as power burst out from her body. She could hardly think, but she knew what she had to do next.

Her body was burning brighter and that much hotter. It wouldn't be long now. She was afraid that she wasn't going to have enough power and suddenly a darker but powerful spiritual presence walked up behind her. She tried to tell him to go back, he would only burn, but she couldn't get the words out. He picked her up bridal style like he had done so many times for Keiko when she'd been too tired to move. She looked up at him, her eyes still glowing and he too began to glow with the power of the Jewel. It was soaking up their power, their bodies were burning, but there was no more pain, no more suffering, just peace and the knowledge of exactly what had to be done.

There had been so many things that she had wanted to do. So many things that he'd wanted out of life, but they were okay with how it was going to turn out. Together they were going to save the world. They'd both be leaving behind people they loved, but they were going to save them so it was okay in their hearts. They were at peace with their decision.

Yusuke had trusted Hiei to keep Kurama held back and Kagome trusted Kurama to take care of her brother in her place. It wasn't going to be easy for them, but they would eventually be able to move on.

Kagome and Yusuke closed their eyes at the same moment that a brilliant blue light filled the cave. As the light cleared, a stronger, more durable barrier, the likes that had never been seen before was in place. Earth was once again safe from the demon hordes of Makai.

Kurama and Hiei looked around in horrified silence. The barrier was up, all traces of the demons were gone, but Kagome and Yusuke were nowhere to be seen.

20 years later

Souta-

The world was healing. I still couldn't believe everything that had happened. My sister and that odd man had saved us all but had given their lives to do so. She had promised me that she would come back, but I think I knew even then that was a promise that she would never have been able to keep.

When Kurama had come back to the Sanctuary he'd been alone. I had hated him for not saving her, but then I realized that he was hurting just as much as I was and we had learned to heal. It hadn't been easy and there were still days that were harder than others.

It had taken 10 years for the economy to even begin to recover. 3 weeks of the demonic terror that had plagued the world had done more damage than any of the world wars had done combined. It had taken another 10 for the world to go back to the way it had been before. Most people would never know about the two souls that had saved their lives, but I remembered them everyday.

Today Kurama and I were going to trek through Tokyo and do to where that cave had been. We'd had no bodies to bury so we had erected a memorial in remembrance of my sister and Yusuke and all the others that had lost their lives. Sometimes when I went there and closed my eyes, I would pretend to hear my sister's voice as she berated me for something I'd done or hear her voice explain one of my homework problems to her. There were times where I would swear I could hear her laugh and then a male's voice grunt in amusement. Those moments would leave me feeling at peace because I would then know and remember that as long as the barrier stayed strong, my sister was still there protecting me, protecting the world.

The END.

I know I left open plot holes, but I can't honestly remember where I was going with some of them and I really wanted to have some sort of ending for this. It should have been posted as a one shot-but its finished and whereas I don't think everyone is going to be happy with the ending, I'm quite satisfied with it. I think it fits with the whole tone I had with the story.

Let me know what you think and I'll be writing a new story soon enough.

Cheers

Ambarina