Disclaimer: Inuyasha isn't mine

Sequel to Little Moments, dedicated to sugarplumprince :D

Michiko Higurashi hovered outside her daughter's bedroom, hand poised to knock. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so conflicted. As usual, she hadn't received any kind of explanation, but even so, it was terrifyingly clear that she might have lost Kagome forever.

It had happened so fast. Kagome had emerged from the Well, safe and sound in Inuyasha's arms. She'd ran to them, crying and hugging them all tightly. It should have been a happy reunion, and for a moment it was. Then the Well had started glowing, pulling Inuyasha into its depths.

That had been a week ago. Kagome tried to put on a brave face in front of her friends, but Michiko wasn't so easily fooled. She was so relieved to have her beloved daughter home again, but it broke her heart to see her in such pain, to know where she would be if she had the choice.

She wasn't sure what to do. Kagome's grief reminded her of when she'd lost her husband in that car accident so many years ago. True, Inuyasha was alive, but with five-hundred years separating them, he might as well have been dead.

She knocked gently on the door. Kagome's quiet sobs paused.

"Go away."

"It's Mama." She answered. Nothing. Michiko pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Kagome looked terrible. There were dark shadows under her eyes, her hair was in tangles and her skin was ashen. She was still in her pyjamas, despite being three in the afternoon. She sat up and wiped her eyes.

"Oh, my girl." Michiko said quietly. She sat down beside her daughter, lost for words. A small photo album lay beside her pillow, but it was closed and fastened with a latch.

They sat in silence for a moment.

"I'm sorry Mama," Kagome said quietly. Michiko smiled sadly and gave Kagome's knee a gentle pat.

"You don't have to apologize for anything. Losing someone you love is the hardest thing in the world. But if it helps to talk, I'm here to listen."

Kagome's hand touched the cover of the album.

"In here…are pictures of my life from the other side." She murmured, "I thought looking at them might help but…" Fresh tears welled up and fell. With just that one sentence, Michiko felt like she understood much better. She hadn't just lost Inuyasha, she'd lost a family and a home.

"May we look at them together?" She suggested.

Kagome's hands shook as she opened the album.

"That's Miroku," She explained, "and that's Sango. They've been in love for ages, but neither of them would admit it."

Kagome's story was the stuff of legends. A Buddhist monk with a cursed void in his hand, a demon-slayer who rode on the back of a flying sabre-tooth cat with flaming paws, a mischievous fox-demon child who could shape-shift into almost anything and loved playing pranks and finally, the rough and rude half-demon with a heart of gold.

"So, the fox, Shippo, is the one who took these pictures?" Michiko asked. Kagome nodded.

"He was a sweet kid, but he did like to tease Inuyasha." She flipped to a new page and pressed a hand to her mouth, dissolving into tears.

In the photos up until now, Inuyasha's expressions had ranged from curious to irritated. But in this one, the only word Michiko could think of was adoring. Of course, Michiko had known from early on that the grumpy hanyou loved Kagome dearly, but it was strange seeing the emotion so clearly displayed on his face.

Carefully, she lifted the album from Kagome's lap. The bottom half of the page was empty. Was that the last picture? She turned the page. No, there were more.

"Is one of them missing?" She asked.

Kagome looked at her in surprise, scrubbing away the tears. She took the album back and looked.

"I can't believe him." She murmured, "He stole it." There was no anger in her voice and a shaky smile touched her lips.

Michiko put an arm around her daughter's shoulders, blinking away tears of her own.

"Kagome, if you don't give up hope, I have the feeling that he won't either."

Silently, Michiko prayed that she was right. Her feelings usually were.