Author's Note: Updates may be delayed as I'm having a difficult time working at the moment. My husband is having spinal fusion surgery in ten days and my anxiety is making my nerves about it so much worse. I'm trying to continue writing, especially for my patrons, but it's rough going.

Chapter 15

Kagome materialized at the bottom of the well in her time, carefully keeping her weight off her bad foot. Her ankle was still swollen, an ugly shade of purple. She glared at the ladder, but before she could decide whether to try to climb it or call for help, she felt a powerful aura wash over her.

The taiyoukai, dressed in his usual expensive tailored suit, was suddenly beside her, and she rolled her eyes in irritation.

"Don't you have somewhere else to be?" she muttered.

Sesshoumaru shrugged noncommittally. "How, exactly, did you intend to get out of the well without me, miko?" Without another word, he swept her up in his arms and jumped, landing softly on the ground around the top of the well. He placed her back on her feet with one arm around her waist, careful not to aggravate her injury.

Kagome blushed lightly but refused to back down. "I could have handled it. Aren't you supposed to be an important businessman? Isn't there something else you should be doing, other than bothering me? Haven't you screwed things up enough?"

"I do not believe I have 'screwed' anything up," he replied flatly. "Truly, did my past self seem bothered in the least that you are now ours to protect?"

"No, but that's only because he has too much honor to complain about something he can't do anything about."

The taiyoukai rolled his eyes. "Or perhaps he is pleased with the change. I seem to recall saying that I did not feel stuck with you, but rather blessed by your presence."

The miko scoffed. "Why the hell would anyone be happy to be saddled with me? Now his life is going to be dominated by protecting and rescuing me every time I get myself in trouble, which happens a hell of a lot."

Sesshoumaru smirked. "Trust me, I remember."

"Ass," she muttered under her breath. "Told you he's not happy about it. You clearly remember that, so don't think you're fooling anyone."

"Just because I remember coming to your rescue does not mean that I minded doing so," he told her. "Though every time trouble managed to find you, when I failed to protect you, I did question my own abilities. You should never have been at risk while under my care. I should not have allowed danger to reach you."

Kagome couldn't help but laugh. "You mean Mr. Perfect couldn't keep all the bad guys away from little old me?"

"You seemed to be a magnet for trouble. I could not be with you every moment, though I certainly tried. There were times when you refused my presence, during moments you deemed to be 'private'. I believe such moments were why you chose to come home to recover instead of staying in the past."

The miko blushed while remembering the conversation she had with him before asking him to take her to the well. She realized that he would have to carry her out into the forest when she needed to relieve herself, and then come and collect her again when she was finished, just the thought of which was completely mortifying. With his powerful nose... No, she didn't want to put either of them through that. It was much easier and less embarrassing to just come home until she could walk on her own again.

Refusing to face that humiliating topic once more, Kagome decided to swiftly change the direction of their conversation. "I still think he's mad about it. I don't know if he's mad at me or you, but there's no way he's happy about what you did."

Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow at her. "Why can you not accept the fact that I enjoy your presence? Why is that such an impossible thing?"

"Because he's... you're Sesshoumaru! Even if he did stalk me to learn more about me, that doesn't mean he wanted to be stuck with a human woman for years. At least I'm going to die eventually, so he won't have to suffer through my presence forever."

The taiyoukai fought down the desire to smirk. She had absolutely no idea what he, or the fates, had in mind for her. She wouldn't be dying anytime soon, neither in the past nor in the present. She would be with him until the very end of time. How he wished she would simply accept things at face value and believe his words instead of looking for hidden meanings. Inuyasha had certainly done a number on this sweet girl for her to not be able to fathom how he could possibly be interested her.

"You know, Mama is going to freak out when she sees you carrying me into the house. She's gonna wanna know how I know you, and why you were in the well house to begin with. No one but my family knows my secret."

This time, Sesshoumaru allowed the smirk to show. "I will leave the explanations to you. Will I be needed to carry you to the doctor as well?"

"Gee, thanks. And nah, I've got my own set of crutches. It's just a sprain, anyway." When he gave her a questioning look, she sighed. "This is not the first time I've sprained my ankle."

"Then you won't have any problem joining me for dinner this Friday," the taiyoukai stated more than asked.

"What?" Kagome questioned, too shocked by his words to fully comprehend what he said.

"I wish for you to have dinner with me," he repeated. "I will pick you up at six."

"Don't I get a say in this?" she exclaimed.

"Do you intend to refuse me?"

"Well, I..."

He smiled as she stammered. "We both know you wish to question me further. Though I may not be able to answer some things, I am willing to share what I can." He knew it was an underhanded way of getting what he wanted, but as long as it had the desired result, he didn't care.

"Why would you want to spend more time with me? Didn't you get enough of that in the past?"

"Honestly? Because I find myself rather lonely these days, and you are, after all, still my alpha female."

Kagome's cheeks flushed pink, and her heart ached for the taiyoukai. Had he never found a mate? Had he truly spent all those long years alone? After all, she could only have lived for a few more decades if she stayed in the past permanently. If she was still his alpha female in this time, then that meant he never found another to replace her, the poor guy. She couldn't even begin to imagine living so very long with no one to help pass the time.

Sesshoumaru allowed her a few moments to consider his request, frowning at the sadness he saw in her eyes. Why was she suddenly upset? What had he said wrong? Even after all the time he spent with this woman, she still managed to confuse him on a regular basis.

"I'm still your alpha female?" she murmured softly.

"Indeed."

"But... Shouldn't you have found another by now?"

Ah, now he understood. She felt pity for his loneliness. She assumed that he had lived a solitary life since her 'death', as if he would ever allow her to die. She should have known better than to believe, even for a moment, that he would allow something as silly as her human mortality take her away from him.

"I never desired another," he replied, allowing a small amount of his true feelings towards her seep into his voice. Gods, he was lonely, but the decision had been made quite some time ago that if he intended to play with the timeline, he would have to do so on his own. Waking up alone in his large, cold bed every morning was hell, but he knew it was worth it. Every time his path crossed with another of youkai heritage, he knew the sacrifice he was making daily had changed everything for so many others.

He loved her in the past for so long without ever giving her even the slightest hint of his feelings, and that path had been torture to walk. Now, he was changing it so that he had a chance with her to have what he always wanted, and he got it...eventually. Still, he wasn't satisfied. It took far too long and he had no desire to live daily in her presence while her heart yearned for another, as she held onto her love for Inuyasha, and she'd done so for years. No, it was far too painful, for the both of them. Now, he had a new plan to help her realize that she deserved better, and hopefully a hell of a lot more quickly than it would take otherwise. He wanted to have every single moment possible with her, with her heart in his hands and her body held tightly against his own, with their very souls entwined so that they could never be torn asunder.

Kagome looked wary, studying him closely as if trying to determine his true motives. After a long, awkward silence, she nodded. "Fine, dinner. Only dinner, in a public place."

"You still do not trust this Sesshoumaru," he said, fighting to hide the pain in his voice. "There is a restaurant to which I wish to escort you," he explained, assuring her that her terms would be met. He had been planning their dinner there for weeks now. Afterwards, she would likely return to the Feudal Era and begin traveling with his past self and he wouldn't get to see her for quite some time. Once he was certain of how long it would be until she returned, he had another woman to see, the same, and yet different. It had been too long.