Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Inuyasha characters.

Resolution of a Taiyoukai

The western survivors were stunned for moments before they shook the stupor from their minds and walked into the bloody room. Walking gently towards the figures in the middle, they were astounded the two were not dead. Blood pooled onto the floor and soaked into the mats turning them a deep black, the kimono of the female was splattered with blood on the top and soaked and dripping with blood along the bottom. The silver haired man she held on her lap was bleeding profusely from a chest wound. It was his blood that covered the kimono of the woman. She sat and begged the man not to leave, she filled his delicate ears with whispers of their possible future together and how that could only occur if he lived. The watchers were afraid to disturb the two, it seemed the man was alive only because of the hold the woman held on him. They did not wish to lose their lord, but he had to be moved and had to be cared for. Surrounding the two figures in a circle, they reached down with bloodstained hands and lifted the man from her lap. The woman watched as the bloodstained hands lifted the silver head from her lap, she continued to watch as the bloody hands carried the silver man from her, as they neared the door something in the woman's mind snapped and she sprang to her feet.

She had to go with him, had to heal him. She could not let him die.

Hiroshi met the burdened survivors in the hall and gasped at the sight before him.

"Quickly bring him to the dining table. We will be able to care for him there better." The kitsune had never seen a youkai overcome a wound as horrible as this and feared he would lose the pup to death. As the group rounded a corner in hall, they were met by a small human girl. Her deep brown eyes grew wide; a single crystal tear ran down her cheek and trembled on her jaw, before falling and shattering on the floor.

"Sesshomaru-sama?" Her voice was quivering and broken, worry and fear laced her scent. She believed she would lose the only father-figure and family she had left. Hiroshi looked into Rin's face wanting to go and comfort her; however, his abilities were needed by the Taiyoukai. Looking over his shoulder at the bloodstained miko behind him, Hiroshi knew she would not be leaving Sesshomaru's side. Sighing and turning back to the small girl, Hiroshi was surprised when the figure of Inuyasha wrapped his arms around the girl and lifted her into a comforting hold in his arms.

"Sesshomaru will be okay Rin. We need to let them heal him though so he can be with you again. Will you stay with me while they heal him?" Inuyasha's voice was laced with concern for the emotional health of his brother's ward. If Sesshomaru died the girl would soon grieve herself to death just to be with the inu youkai.

"Hai, Inuyasha-sama. Rin will stay with you as long as you hold Rin." The little girl had been raised by a man who did not show emotion and she had learned to not show her pain and need for comfort, but by asking Inuyasha to hold her she had asked for it silently.

"Hai, Rin I will hold you until they say you can see him." The hanyou stepped to the side to allow the group and their burden through. Looking past Hiroshi, Inuyasha's eyes landed on Kagome. She seemed to be functioning with only one thought on her mind, to heal Sesshomaru.

Between Hiroshi and Kagome the Taiyoukai's wound was washed, treated with salves and herbs, and bound with bandages. Now they only waited to see if Sesshomaru's healing abilities were strong enough to heal a wound such as this. During their examination of his wound, the two healers had found a spot on the youkai's heart that had been sliced with the blade of Akito. Youkai healing was known for its ability to heal the body quickly, however, a wound to the heart was always deadly. The two now waited to see if Sesshomaru was as impressive as he seemed. They sat beside him all night, watching his chest rise and then waiting with baited breathe for it to fall again.

Morning came with a bright cheerfulness proving to all in the Western palace that the Earth was not concerned with the wars of man or youkai. While the soldiers and remaining household servants buried the dead and their untouchable leader lay dieing within the palace, the Earth continued her journey through the skies and her creatures returned to their lives. Neither the Earth nor the creatures upon her felt the immense sadness that permeated the air around the castle.

In a small room a hanyou sat cuddling a small human girl to his chest. The child had eventually cried herself to sleep. The hanyou took care of the child and never placed her out of his arms for the entire night, choosing to keep his promise to the girl. Promises were often the thing the hanyou had a hard time keeping. He could never seem to uphold them, try as he might. The girl was nothing more then a small waif of a child who should have shuddered in fear and cried herself to sleep at night because she was afraid of the Taiyoukai of the Western lands; however, she had cried herself to sleep because she truly loved the stoic youkai and could not imagine her life without him in it. Sesshomaru was everything to the girl; all she had in the world was the taciturn youkai. Inuyasha realized the depth of her love when she had cried into his haori about her father. At first Inuyasha had thought she had meant the human father the girl had to have had, soon though he realized the girl was referring to Sesshomaru. To say Inuyasha was shocked at the revelation that Rin considered Sesshomaru her father was putting it lightly; however, he hid it from the girl and only cuddled her closer to his chest.

Sitting near the girl and the hanyou was a toad youkai, he was concerned not only for his master but also for his young charge. Jaken knew the girl would never be the same if Seshsomaru died. Hell, he did not think he would be the same if Sesshomaru died, no one would be. While the Taiyoukai was quiet and imposing he had an affect on every life he came in contact with. His hanyou brother grew stronger from his bouts with Sesshomaru, the monk had met someone who could converse with him about philosophy, and the youkai exterminator had found the one full youkai she could honestly say did not deserve to die. Shippou had found a man who could give him the guidance he would need to become the youkai he was meant to be, the one who could guide him on his path in life. Jaken had found a reason to live after his people were killed and the miko had found her life. Everyone in the palace worried what would happen to the miko if he died. Kagome knew she did not love him but she knew she could one day. She just had to be given a chance, but it seemed the chance was to be taken from her by fate.

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He was lost in the flow of a great river that ran past him rapidly and tried to yank him away from his anchor on the shore. He was not for sure how long he had been in this timeless place with the river as his only companion, but he was sure something was not letting him go with the flow of the river. Every so often he could hear a hushed melodic voice calling to him from the shore. Whoever owned that voice did not wish for him to travel with the river, they wished for him to stay with them. The voice was what anchored him to the shore and stopped the river from sweeping him away. He wanted to stay with the owner of the voice very dearly, however, finding the strength to get out of the flow of the river was another thing. He felt as if his entire body had been drained of its power and the only thing that kept him tethered to the shore was the pure white light that kept calling his name ever so softly.

She had sat at his side every minute since he had been brought to his chambers. Kagome had drained all of her powers in an attempt to help speed his demonic healing, now all she could do was sit at his side and call to him softly, begging him to come back to her. Eventually Kagome slid into a deep sleep with her head resting on a silken silver pillow near the taiyoukai's shoulder.

She spent many days like this, waiting for him to wake up and say something cold to her. Every night she put her head on her silken pillow and slept beside him. Five days passed and the youkai did not stir, many had given up on him and thought it was a matter of time before he died. Sesshomaru was never one to go along with what others thought he should do and usually ended up surprising everyone in the end.

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Sunlight filtered through the pale cream curtains of the room and gently stroked the sleeping face of Sesshomaru. The warm caress of the sun served as the last tug needed on his mind. He was pulled from the warm waters of the river and back onto the shore. What he found there brought a whisper of a smile to his lips, there resting near his shoulder was the one person who brought a light to his dreary life. She looked peaceful resting near him, as if she did not fear him as if she had slept there forever.

Kagome felt someone's gaze on her and cracked open a swirling midnight eye to see who it was. Looking into Sesshomaru's golden gaze for the first time in five days, Kagome beamed at him. The first true smile gracing her lips since her nightmare with Akito had begun.

"I am so happy you are awake. I was very worried about you. You have to promise me you will never do that to me again or this mating will not work." His heart stopped beating and his breath caught in his throat, she had just implied they would be mates officially. Hope spread through his chest and wrapped its warm tendrils around his heart, he prayed to any kami listening that she was not toying with him.

Kagome dropped her head and stared intently at her hands, she had said the first thought that had sprung into her mind and now she was worried he would now be the one rejecting her. Sesshomaru looked at the downcast girl and could smell the fear that rolled from her in small waves.

"What troubles you, miko?" He would never tire of the spark that ignited in her eyes when she was not addressed by her name.

"You know my name, Sesshomaru, please use it. I am worried because I just said something I did not mean to say and I fear that you will turn me away." Sesshomaru's gaze softened on the girl slightly. He brought his clawed hand up to her cheek and stroked away the tear that was making a wet trail down her cheek.

"I will never turn you away, Kagome. You and I were meant for each other from the day of our births and we will remain together until the day of our deaths. Nothing will separate me from you ever again." Kagome eyes shimmered with unshed tears and happiness filled her heart, yes she would defiantly come to love the youkai before her. She already felt the stirrings of it in her heart and had begun to cultivate the feeling. What she felt for Sesshomaru was different then what she had felt for Inuyasha. There was no crushing feeling of having to make his life easier by sacrificing hers, no feeling of not being good enough. Sesshoumaru knew what she was now, not what her soul was fifty years ago. Her love for Sesshomaru would only grow and become stronger with age.

The door to the room flung open and two small children flung themselves upon the bed and into the arms of the two they considered their parents. Rin and Shippou now had that elusive thing they both yearned for called a family and they were going to hold it as tightly to them as they could for the rest of their lives.

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The years slid into the decades and soon centuries began to slip by, and yet the Taiyoukai of the West still walked hand in hand with his mate, the Shikon Miko. The whole Shikon jewel gave her an unnaturally long life. Inuyasha and his group had fought Naraku; however, the outcome was not one they expected.

They had defeated Naraku after a lengthy battle. After the battle Kagome had gathered the shards of the Shikon Jewel and joined them into the complete jewel. She had sat staring into the ever shifting façade of the jewel for what seemed like eons, thinking about her wishes and trying to find one that would be unselfish. She could wish Sango's brother back to life, however, that would be a selfish wish because she wished Sango to be happy. She could wish for Inuyasha to be a full youkai, but that to would be a selfish wish for she wished Inuyasha to also be happy. She could wish Kikyou back to life, but that was a selfish wish to make Inuyasha happy yet again. She could wish for world peace, for all who had been affected by Naruku to have their lives restored, and she could wish for her life to be that of a normal teenage girl; however, these were all selfish wishes and would not lead to the purification of the jewel but to its tainting. She could find no wish that would not be selfish. She was human, she had a human heart and soul and like every human she wished for what was best for her and those she loved. The true curse of the Shikon Jewel revealed itself to Kagome; no living being could ever make a wish that would purify the jewel. Every wish that could ever be made would be tainted by the desires of the wisher. She raised tear stained eyes to her companions and let them see her fear.

Mirdorkio soon appeared in a shimmering white light before the young miko. She spoke to Kagome in a pleased tone.

"Kagome, you have realized the true curse of the Shikon Jewel. There is no true unselfish wish, for the wisher will always taint their wish with their own desires. You are the only protector who has realized this in all of the time of the Shikon's existantance. And so you will become our eternal guardian. You alone are strong enough and pure enough to carry us through the centuries and assist me in keeping the demonic aura contained inside the jewel. Your life shall be unnaturally long and you will heal from all but mortal wounds. The question is Kagome; do you accept such an honor?" Kagome raised her eyes to the older miko's and saw her destiny in Mirdorkio's eyes.

Nodding her head, Kagome accepted her fate. And so she became the true Shikon Miko, the only protector of the Jewel of Four Souls. She did not walk her path alone nor did she walk in the dark. She walked beside Sesshomaru. Their love lit her path and gave her warmth during the cold hours when she missed all those she had loved. Sesshomaru was no longer lonely and had a heart filled with emotions he had long felt dead. She was his life, his reason to live, she filled his lungs with air, and was his light on an otherwise darkened path.

Through the years they had watched Rin grow into a beautiful young woman, she had blossomed into a wonderful mother, and later when she had become frail and old they had both stood beside her bed as she slipped into an eternal sleep. Shippou had been raised and was now the father of several rowdy kits. Kagome and Sesshomaru had two pups of their own, which now had pups of their own. Kikyou had a final moment of clarity before she drug Inuyasha to Hell with her. The love she once had for the hanyou came to the front of her heart; she looked to Inuyasha with a gentle look and a peaceful smile.

"Inuyasha, I loved you fifty years ago. My heart still loves you. I do not want to take away your chance at happiness. I will be waiting for you when your time on Earth is done. I love you." Inuyasha watched as his love began her descent into Hell alone. At the last moment, Kikyou's soul was sent to Heaven to await her hanyou. The Kami's witnessed her last moments and were awed by the power of her love.

After Kikyou's last death, Inuyasha remained near the village of Edo and became it's constant protector. He never mated, nor took another female to his bed. He would wait until his time on Earth was done and then rejoin Kikyou, Inuyasha lived the rest of his life as he always had, full force with his sword drawn. Inuyasha had met his fate defending the village that had accepted him during the Feudal Era. His death saved the villagers and helped set their village on the road to becoming the modern day Tokyo. Stories were told of him centuries after his death; however, the storytellers never remembered to tell that their great savior was a hanyou. They always remembered to tell about his glorious death and his reasons for dieing, many people told their children of Inuyasha the Savior of Edo before they sent them to bed every night.

Sango and Miroku had married and had many children. The demon slayer and the monk had lived a long happy life together; they had done everything together from the day they married. In the end Miroku had preceded his wife in death, finally succumbing to old age. Less than twelve hours later, Sango followed him. She was unable to live without her lecher monk beside her. They were the last of Kagome's friends to pass and she had felt their absence deeply in her soul and was inconsolable for days. Sesshomaru had worried for her and never left her side during her depression.

Kagome had been right she did come to love the Taiyoukai with every beat of her heart and every breath she took. Every night before she slept peacefully in his arms she recalled the words he had said to her so many years ago.

"You and I were meant for each other from the day of our births and we will remain together until the day of our deaths. Nothing will separate me from you ever again."

The End

Authors Note

I know it took me quite awhile to update. I am deeply sorry about that. I would like to invite all of you to read my next story Kagome's Teacher. This story once again features Sesshomaru; however, he will be paired with an original character. I am also working on finishing Learning to Live, but this story is refusing to be written so I am working on it slowly and not pushing it. Thank you for your time and your reviews.

Lady Morgannamaru