Kagura woke alone in the morning; sore, stiff, and happier than she'd ever been in either of her short lives. She curled herself into silk sheets and basked in the warmth of the morning sun. She knew her mate was nearby, she could sense his presence. Finally she opened one eye and grinned. Sesshoumaru was wearing his hakama and upper clothing, but the top had been left loose and open, giving her a rather enjoyable view of his perfectly formed upper body. He was sitting on a sort of bench situated beneath one of the windows, facing her, his legs stretched along the length of the bench, one knee drawn slightly up, and his back resting against the wall behind him. The sunlight made his hair shimmer. He was beautiful, she thought, utterly perfect.

"Mornin' Sessh."

He quirked a thin brow at her, obviously not surprised that she was awake.

"Sessh? Only you, mate, may have the honor of mutilating my name in such a way and remaining alive."

She smiled and stretched, hands above her head, arching her back with an almost feline grace, not minding how much of her bare body this revealed, and noting the way he watched her, like a predator eyeing its prey. The thought made her smile.

"Are you alright, Kagura? Did I harm you?"

She grinned.

"No, I'm fine. A little sore here and there, but that's to be expected." She eyed a rather suspicious bruise on her shoulder. "Did you bite me?"

He winced.

"Apologies. I wasn't thinking just then."

"No problem. I don't remember it hurting then…don't even remember it happening, actually. It just aches a little now."

He moved to sit on the bed beside her.

"Here, let me see." He winced again as he took in the faint bruise. "I'm sorry, Kagura, I ought to have been more in control."

She shook her head vehemently.

"No. I didn't want you to be in control. I'd rather have a bruise or two than share my body with a block of ice."

He smiled at that, and shifted so that he could lick at the bruise. She shuddered. Suddenly she was very certain that they would not be leaving this room for a good while yet.

……..

Michiko was standing on the long porch, holding Rin's small dog, which had accompanied them from Kaede's village to the palace, and was staring at it much as Sesshoumaru did; seeming torn between being amused and being appalled. Kagura walked out onto the porch, freshly bathed and dressed now as the lady of the manor, her clothing incredibly elaborate and rich. She felt smothered and restricted by all the layers, but forced herself to accept that this minor inconvenience was a small price to pay for the joy that filled her heart.

Rin ran over, drawing a few mildly shocked or annoyed glances from varied demonic eyes at her lack of dignity. She smiled brightly at Kagura.

"Do I have to call you by a title now, Kagura?"

"I'm actually not entirely sure, Rin. I haven't a clue how this all works. We'll just hope Sesshoumaru-sama teaches us both, okay?"

Rin nodded. Michiko approached them, dressed today in her fur and regal robes, looking cold and collected and not at all the amusing eccentric who Kagura knew her to be. She handed the puppy to Rin and took her new daughter-in-law's hands, smiling at her.

"Good luck. You'll be good for Sesshoumaru, I know it. I must leave now. I've been here quite a while and my own palace needs tending to. Make sure to let me know when I have a grandchild on the way."

"We will. Thank you for all your help and for welcoming me into your family so kindly."

"Of course. And thank you, girl, for making my son happy. He deserves to be happy, after all this time."

Sesshoumaru came out on the porch then, and he and his mother simply nodded to each other wordlessly, yet Kagura noted affection in both sets of eyes. Then, Michiko was gone in an orb of light.

Kagura moved back into the house, shooting her mate a seductive look over one shoulder. He followed her. Takara, who was accompanying Kagura, gave a quiet groan and whispered to Kagura.

"But Milady, we just got you dressed!"

Sesshoumaru was instantly ready to kill, but Kagura laughed melodiously, so he forced himself to relax. Still he gave Takara a sharp glare and sent her away when they reached the door to their wing. Kagura was still snickering quietly as, within their chambers once again, he began to expertly undo all the maids' hard work.

………

Takara stood before her mirror, eyeing herself critically. She was beautiful. She was the daughter of a lord. She was intelligent and strong willed. Yet her father, instead of offering her to Sesshoumaru-sama, which had been her secret dream since childhood, had offered her to a fat minor lord. What was she supposed to do, other than insult him? She had seen perfection in golden eyes and silver hair; there was no way she would settle for that disgusting horse Youkai father had matched her to. Her punishment had been to be assigned as a maid in Sesshoumaru-sama's household. It was, she had thought, her great opportunity. If only he would spend more time at the palace, she would have found an opportunity to slip into his bed, to seduce him. She would have manipulated herself into being the lady of this keep.

Instead, he had brought home that crimson-eyed whore, the daughter of his enemy, and made her his lady. Worse, he had assigned Takara as Kagura's maid.

So in the darkness of her small room at the end of the hallway, her sharp hearing unable to block out the sounds of pleasure from down the corridor, Takara sulked and schemed, and determined that, one way or another, she would have the title and the riches of the House of the West.

………

Many leagues away, a man in black clothing, hooded, stood on a high hill looking towards the West. It was there that his goal lay.

It was there that he would find his inheritance.

A/N: This is the last chapter of "Gold and Rubies". There will be a sequel, which will have more….I dunno, more plot? I hope. Though I seem unable to write anything with a good strong plot, and a villain, and such, but I may try. I'm thinking the sequel will be called either "Lunar Wind" or "Tales from the House of the West"…or maybe just "The House of the West". Tell me which ya'll like (or any suggestion you come up with)…I'm already going to work on the first chapter…I just wanted to end this here because I don't want it to be too long all in one story.

Thank ya'll for the many good reviews!