One year later...

Honestly it took a lot of strength out of me to write this chapter... As ya'll can tell... It literally took a year for me to continue.

But then again if you have been with me on this journey for a while you are use to it by now.

I'm glad 2016 is over. It really was a tough year for me but I got through it and I'm ready for the next roller coaster waiting ahead of me. the last one help me grow into a person i never knew I'd become and now its time to develop into the person I want to be. I hope everyone can relate in some way and have goals they'll meet someday.

I'm rooting for you as y'all have rooted for me, along with with this crazy ass story lol

Take a breather and ENJOY:)

R&R

MY MISTAKES ARE MY MISTAKES

(LORD KNOWS I HAVE SO MANY)

Kagome Higurashi never felt so aware of her surroundings than she had before now.

She could feel the sweat building up on her brow before it trickled and chilled against her temple, turning into to salt against her skin while the hairs on her neck were at attention.

Her fist clenched and unclenched with every step.

She didn't know what to expect from this foreign village.

'We're still in the West... aren't we?' the young maiden thought to herself as fields came into view past the hills and meadow surrounding the small mortal town. 'They should at least respect him to an extent…'

In her own wonders, she side glanced the Demon Lord off to her right to see an unreadable expression painted across his face. Around about now, she would have compared him to his future sons but her thoughts were elsewhere as they neared the huts.

Plains of dried up crops and muddied fields greeted them, earning a long dragged out sigh from the Demon Lord in questioning.

Kagome looked around and spotted a few poorly dressed farmers plowing at nothing but drowned soil and dying weeds. It was almost as if they were trying to plant on swamp land after a rainy day. This caused her nose to wrinkle, for there was a foul stench odorizing from the crops.

Past the repulsive plains, you could see into the village with clay huts and patchy hay roofs. Women carried baskets that held little to nothing crops that didn't look to satisfying to eat while children carried out hard laboring chores.

The young girl from modern Japan never seen something so demeaning.

Touga's footsteps stilled resulting in a double take from the Miko who to stumbled to a halt. He kept his dullened gaze forward as a middle-aged man looked up from his daily work to the youkai in his fields.

It only took a second for his face to twist with discuss and form a scowl that told Kagome exactly how this was about to go down.

"Demon!" He spat out, interrupting the other handful of workers around him. Mutters started to circle and tools stopped plowing or were raised against them.

A few women gasped and dropped their baskets before clenching their children while others moved into a defensive stance.

"This village has been poorly treated by lesser demons," Myouga perched himself upon Kagome's shoulder with crossed legs and arms as well as closed eyes. "Reasoning with them will be difficult."

With that said, men that were dwelling within their homes rushed out in more formal attire that could resemble that of a monk.

As if it were rehearsed, a handful of the monks reached into their sleeves and Kagome, out of reflex, threw herself in front of InuNoTaisho screaming, "Stop!"

In response, people gasped.

"What is this!? A trick!?" scowled the middle-aged man. "A demoness in the form of a young girl-"

"I am not a demon!" Kagome glared back at the male who now had his plow pointed in her direction.

"Well then, we'll burn you along with him-"

An all too familiar sound made the earth tremble, startling the villagers and the young Miko at foot.

Kagome spun around to find crimson eyes and lengthened fangs starring deeply into the souls of all the people before them.

On que, Myouga was hidden in Kagome's tresses in the blink of an eye.

"N-no one… touches the Miko." Touga's beast voice was ragged and faint as if it were having trouble surfacing. As if it were weakening…

"Touga-"

There was the sound of shuffling feet surrounding them.

When Kagome had the time to turn back to the people, the monks were closer than the armed farmers had once been.

"Back away from him, Girl!"

"No!" The teen stood her grown between the monks and demon.

"Kagome, move…" Touga, the more humane, spoke under his breathe.

"No!"

"Move, Girl!" The men shouted once more.

"GET AWAY!" A surge of energy pulsed throughout Kagome's body forcing the villagers back by surprise while Touga grunted in pain and fell to one knee.

The youkai's once white silks became muddied while his weight startled the surface as his arm crackled like kindling fire. This caught the Miko's attention and within a moment, she too was on her knees, dirtying her traditional kimono to be by his side with worried sapphire eyes.

"Touga?" Her voice was a harsh whisper as she examined his face that was now reflecting a foreign emotion across his flawless features; pain.

The youkai had his eyes tightly shut, lips pressed in a thin line, and brows pulled together creating a frustrated appearance.

His clawed hand gripped his injured appendage firmly as if it were torn into once again by the fierce fang of So'unga.

Kagome, without thinking, grabbed his wrist and shoved his sleeve back to see an open wound lined with burning flesh and discoloration.

Touga hissed and pulled away before mockingly chuckling, "I thought priestess were supposed to be gentle…"

This made the young girl want to slap him for thinking this was the time to make such a petty joke.

"A Miko." A croak made the inuyoukai's pointed ears twitch.

Before Kagome could look over her shoulder, she heard slow heavy footsteps with an extra foot to be counted.

Over her shoulder, stood an old hunched back man with no hair and sagging cheeks that made his eyes look worn down.

The old man stood a foot away from the odd pair while wearing a brown wool materialized kimono that matched a faded walking stick he clutched in his boney vain covered hands. His worn eyes looked over the Miko and demon before he pursed his lips in a thoughtful manner.

"A Miko traveling with a demon… how peculiar?" He spoke while raising a free hand to rest on the bulky head of his staff that sunk into the swampy land.

"Masanori! They are trespassing-" The old man raised his hand hushing the crowd.

"That's enough, young ones," he rested his hand back on his staff before looking down at Kagome and Taisho. "Now tell me, what is a Lord's business here?"

"He's hurt." Kagome flat out said and Touga eye's opened.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, we just need somewhere to rest so he can be properly treated-"

"Then turn back around!" The farmer snapped and had a few others agree.

"We can't. It's too dangerous…" Kagome whispered for only the old man to hear.

For a moment, she looks over at Touga who was holding his tongue during this entire encounter.

"These people will not take lightly to a demon being brought into their home with open arms," The man began. "And If I were to explain to them a Miko has brought him here for recovery, they would be even more hesitant. They would believe you to be a dark witch and wish to stone you or burn you alive- "

A soft snarl came from Touga's lips, interrupting the wise man causing him to crack a smile.

"And I doubt the Lord will let that happen," He over looked the pair before frowning. "Which makes him an even bigger threat to this village... Dog Demons are known to be destructive during their most vulnerable times-"

"He won't do anything, I promise!" Kagome got to her feet with her blue orbs glossing over. "Please, just help me, help him. We're just passing through and we have enemies-"

"They bring danger to our village!?" People started to panic.

"Quiet!" The old man coughed out and Touga finally took a stand.

"This village belongs to the West." The Demon Lord stated firmly bringing all the bickering to a pause. "As Lord of these lands, I will protect it from all harm-"

"And where were you for the past fifty years-," Touga let out a gut-wrenching growl once more that quickly shut up the plowing farmer.

"Do not interrupt this one when he is speaking." His Topaz eye's started to bleed. "I will not bring harm to your people's town as I will not let harm come to it." Touga's words were sharp and filled with truth.

The wise man watching this scene unfold reclined his head back in understanding before turning to his people.

"This man is honest, and as Lord of these lands he is more than eligible to enter our village." Men and women gasped at the wise man's announcement.

"But Masa-" A monk was cut off by the raise of the old mans wrinkled hand.

"We will greet them with open arms. Now make way, or become a disgrace for being rude to our welcomed guest."

By Kagome's surprise, those words were enough to part seas, for the people made a path for the human girl and her demon companion to enter their village.

Then the wise man spoke once more, "Come, on the other side of this village is a traveling healer studying foreign herbs. There you can stay and let the Lord recover," he looked over at Taisho. "He is very familiar with you're kind, InuNoTaisho."

Touga nodded in respect with the lack of exchanging words.

Masanori, as they called him, in return began to walk the path the villagers had provided, inviting them to follow.

Kagome hesitated a bit before treading behind his footsteps to also be followed by the Great Dog Demon Lord himself.

As they walked into the village a few people stood outside their huts as if the Miko and youkai were a side show and they were their audience.

While the women were gathering up their fallen crops, others were still gripping their children.

One child in particularly, no older than a toddler, was eyeballing Touga's mokomoko and manage to squirm her way out of her mother's arm to take a dash at it. But sadly, the child's face drop when her mother's hand got a good grip back around the stubby arm and pulled her back into her parent's deathly grip.

These actions towards the warm-hearted Demon Lord made him stiffen behind Kagome.

Seemingly, the Miko sensed her friends discomfort resulting in her to fall back a few steps behind to meet him at his side.

Instead of opening her big mouth to say something smart or comforting she did something that neither of them would have expected her to do. First, she thought through many moments she had to take drastic measures to normalize a frazzled Inuyasha.

And then, she took action.

Kagome slipped her fingers into Touga's pale stronger and larger hand they held the heat of the setting sun.

And somehow it wasn't in the friendliest manner she would have thought it to be.

For when she looked down at their connected fingers, she found them entwined and oddly perfectly fitting in the most contrasting way. Tan against pale skin.

Light and dark.

Fire and Ice.

There was no resentment on Touga's side for his hand was softly gripping her own and sending a pleasing warmth up her arm as the embrace soothed his own pulsing one. Along with the tension in his posture, for it had gone as he relaxed against the Miko for support.

And for once Kagome felt like she was needed...

Genuinely needed.

Touga was surprised that the embrace from Kagome's hand hadn't stirred up his beast.

That his beast wasn't blabbering about how nice it felt to be holding the beauties hand.

How right it felt.

How it didn't matter that people hatted him or feared him.

That as long as Kagome was by his side, everything would forever be okay.

To him, it was almost unbelievable that his beast could be so quiet during such an intimate moment with his favorite girl.

But what he didn't understand, was that he was one with his beast in this moment. And that every thought he had was every thought his beast had to share.

Touga winced at his arm as he tightened the bandage covering his freshly cut wound. Hours have passed and he has yet to see a single sign of healing.

"My Lord," came Kagoshima's voice from the entrance of his study. He stood up, alarmed, and looked at the maid starring at his wounded arm. "A full-moon will be present tonight."

"Indeed. Whoever did this must have known I was reaching my limits." He paused for a moment. "Has anyone gotten in contact with Lord Shippo yet?" Kagoshima gave him a simple 'No' before he turned away and focused his thoughts on the intruders.

'There are only a few people who know of our weaknesses against the full moon.' Touga thought openly.

'Are you accusing our fellow ally, Touga?' His beast rumbled as if it had just come out of a deep sleep.

"Of course, not,' he responded roughly, 'but the fact that he is missing in attention is unacceptable on his part!'

'Surely he has a reasonable explanation . . .'

'Hn.' Touga reclined his head for a moment to dismiss himself from all negative thoughts that tried to corrupt him.

Ever since her Lord's departure this memory continued to play in Kagoshima's thoughts.

In a way... she understood why the Lord left his lands and joined the Miko on her quest.

One reason being to avoid gossip among the people that would've eventually spread throughout the lands and cause doubt in his allies' eyes…

Another being, to avoid vulnerability…

But even then, she was aware of a bigger issue flawing her master's actions.

One she could not yet confirm without further examination.

"Kagoshima?" The maid gradually stopped walking the perimeter of The Western Kingdom's great garden, before looking up at her dear comrade. "One more episode like this and I will label you emotionally compromised." He smirked.

She glared at him before continuing their stroll.

"You know… holding things in is very unhealthy-"

"I'm not holding anything in, Takei." She snapped back.

"And that is what we call a defense mechanism."

She glared at him and softly growled, "are you analyzing me, solider?"

Takei's eyes lit up with amusement to only be interrupted by a wave of awareness that soon turned into alarm to protect. He managed to startle Kagoshima by seizing her behind his being before resting his hand upon the hilt of his sword.

"Takei!?" She panicked to be answered by the scratching of claws against stone and hesitant screams.

Heavy footsteps approached with sloppy presentation.

This made Takei's fangs lengthen and snap in an animalistic way to ward off danger. But the opponents seemed to be as phased as a stubborn child who wishes to play with something they have no business playing with.

"Takei…" Kagoshima nothing but whispered as she realized that her and the other inu were strongly outnumbered by the threat closing in on them. She only stepped closer to her partner in crime to find comfort in their newly found situation.

A variety of soulless vessels starred down the two demons with bloodlust dripping through their pores.

Every breath the enemy took came off as a rumbling threat as they looked more vicious than they had before.

"Come now, my children, you are welcomed guest… not savages." Inukimi chuckled among the mist of kitsunes.

R&R

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