A/N: Hey everyone! This is my brand new fanfiction! I'm going to call it my second one, since the other thing I wrote was just my view on certain aspects of the series. Anyway, I'm so glad you all enjoyed my first fanfic. However, I will not be making a sequel to it. So, let's get on with this one!

Disclaimer: I didn't own InuYasha when I wrote my first story and I still don't.

"Miroku!" Sango was frenetic, her hair a mess and her eyes glossy with tears. It had been four hours. She collapsed onto her knees, sobbing profusely. "That's it then, isn't it?" she whispered. "I'll never get to see him again." She lightly caressed the vast stone in front of her, though her fingers were dented with the horrible scratches from the constant striking she had induced on the rock. She took in her surroundings; it was dreary and dark. She felt so alone as she stared around the cave, before looking back to the looming stone that had trapped Miroku in darkness.

They had been fighting an enormous demon that contained three jewel shards. Its hide was thick and seemed impenetrable as all of their attacks failed to even create a small incision. The demon had fled, though at the time it seemed completely bewildering. Sango and Miroku followed it through the winding paths of the forest they had been in out to an open field. There they saw the demon make its way into a cave on the mountain ahead of them. The couple continued after it, landing them at a dead end. That was when they had first seen the stone, its immensity astounding them.

The battle had seemed endless, extending well past what either Miroku or Sango could have predicted. After so long they began to become fatigued; that's when it happened. The demon grabbed Miroku, holding him tight in its clutches. Sango, in her exhausted state, was unable to reach him in time.

'Now that demon has him,' Sango thought, recalling the penitent inability she had suffered. She couldn't even bear to think of it. The demon simply disappeared behind the stone with Miroku still in its grasp. She slid a hand across her face, wiping away her tears.

"Sango!"

She turned around, seeing Kagome standing there, looking apprehensively at her. "Hey," Sango said weakly.

Kagome glanced around the cave. "Where's Miroku?" she asked. She frowned seeing Sango's grave expression. "Is everything alright?"

"What's going on?" InuYasha and Shippo trudged beside the two girls, eyeing them with perplexity.

Sango explained Miroku's vanishing thoroughly, choking back tears. "I just don't know anymore," she admitted as her hands touched the stone again. "I don't want to leave him, but I just can't…" Her voice faded away; her hope did as well.

"What's this?" Shippo questioned, staring curiously at the left side of the rock. "There's something written here."

Sango glanced up, striding slowly toward the young fox demon, ruffling his hair as she knelt down to get a better look.

When half-demon and human come together to form another, then darkness will let free what it took from their world.

"What do you think it means?" Shippo sat down, thumbing his chin, his eyes engulfed with oddity.

Sango's thoughts plagued her mind. 'Form another? I don't understand. Does that mean that a human and half-demon would have to…' Her eyes widened, as she comprehended the situation, finishing her thoughts aloud. "…Have a child?"

"What are you goin' on about?" InuYasha demanded, raising his eyebrow at Sango, arms folded. "Let's just move the damn boulder!"

Sango watched in anticipation as InuYasha inflicted countless attacks on the stone. Her eyes averted back to the engraving, rereading it carefully. 'That has to be the only way,' she determined as InuYasha's next attempt proved futile.

"Damn it! This thing won't budge!" InuYasha roared, infuriated. "How the hell are we supposed to get Miroku back, now?"

"Read this," Sango suggested quietly, gesturing at the message. "It might explain things."

"I don't understand, though," Kagome said, leaning closer to the stone, tracing her fingers over the words. "What would a half-demon and human have to-"

Sango cut her off. "I think," She paused, eyeing his friends intensely. "I think they would have to produce a child."

"Keh! There ain't no way that's gonna happen!" InuYasha furrowed his brows, his gaze moving to the stone ground. "Half-demons are rejected all together. No human would ever even consider becoming that intimate with one, so this whole thing is impossible!"

Sango stared at him. He was right. They would never be able to find anyone who would…

"Why can't Kagome and InuYasha just have a baby?" Shippo asked suddenly. "I mean, she's a human and he's a half-demon, right?"

There was an abrupt silence among the group, creating an unnatural sense about them.

Sango looked toward InuYasha and Kagome with a pleading gaze, immediately regretting it. 'I can't ask them to do that,' she rationalized, turning away. 'But…' Her gaze altered back to the stone. 'What about Miroku? We can't just sit here and do nothing.' She flinched, feeling a hand touch her shoulder. She tilted her head to see Kagome looking at her with concern.

"Sango," Kagome started. "I'm sorry I-"

"It's ok, don't apologize." Sango let out a feeble laugh. "It was stupid of me to even think about it."

Kagome felt a shower of guilt wash over her. She had an opportunity to save her friend's life, and she wasn't taking it. Worse, Sango clearly believed that the entire thing was her own fault. 'I can't have a baby, though!' her mind screamed. 'I'm only fifteen!' She sighed faintly, glancing at InuYasha who was glowering at Shippo. 'InuYasha doesn't seem that keen on the idea either.'

(0000000000000000)

The camp had a perturbed atmosphere hanging over it that night. The group sat around a fire they had lit in the cave, feeling awkward, each of them timidly glancing at one another every so often.

"I think I'll go gather more firewood," Sango offered, standing up to leave.

"I'll go with her," said Shippo, bounding after Sango.

InuYasha and Kagome watched them leave without a word.

Kagome coughed, clearing her throat, attempting to break the uncomfortable silence. She laughed nervously. "So…"

InuYasha threw her an icy glare. "What?" he demanded. He crossed his arms defiantly. "If you're going to ask me about what Shippo said, then you can forget it!"

"I wasn't going to! Geez, what's your problem?"

InuYasha jerked his head sideways, letting out a slight growl of aggravation.

'He must feel guilty,' Kagome recognized. 'Just like me.'

"It's not like we really could help anyway," InuYasha said suddenly. "They can't really expect us to…" He trailed off. "Never mind, just forget it."

Kagome nodded. 'I know how you feel, InuYasha,' she thought to herself. 'But, what would it be like if we agreed to help? I just can't help but wonder if it would be so bad.' She shook her head. 'What am I thinking? We can't do this. My relationship with InuYasha is constantly on and off, what with Kikyo and all. And, he already gets jealous enough as it is. If I were pregnant it would just make things worse. Besides, we haven't even kissed yet! How are we supposed to have child?' She sighed nonchalantly as Sango and Shippo entered the cave. She glanced back at InuYasha, knowing that they would need to talk about it eventually, unaware that he was thinking the same thing.

(0000000000000000)

Kagome let out a heavy sigh. The early morning sun danced across her face as she relaxed against a tree. It had been three days since Miroku was taken and she still couldn't bring herself to discuss it with InuYasha. He seemed equally as anxious for some reason. His glances were now lingering and almost seemed eager at times, and he had tried to get her alone on several occasions.

'Maybe he really is considering it,' she reasoned, pulling her arms up over her head, stretching them. That thought, however, tugged at the back of her mind. Why would he even give the slightest bit of thought to the idea of having a child? He seemed completely against the whole thing the last time she brought it up. 'InuYasha doesn't even really like kids that much, does he?' Kagome shook her head. 'I just don't understand him sometimes.'

She brought her knees up to her chest, resting her head on them. 'I really should go back,' she decided. 'I don't want everyone to wake up and worry about me. Besides, InuYasha hates it when I wonder off. The last thing I need is for him to get upset.' She stood up to leave, brushing off her skirt.

"Kagome, what are you doing all the way out in the forest?"

Kagome looked at Sango with a weary expression. "I'm just trying to clear my head, that's all."

Sango nodded understandingly. "I already told InuYasha that we were headed off to take a bath. I told him you went on ahead of me," she said. Sango handed a large yellow backpack to Kagome. "I brought your stuff for you."

The two reached a hot spring after strolling through the forest in silence. The clear steaming water beckoned them in. Kagome undressed, another sigh meeting her lips. She slowly lowered herself into the comfort of the spring. 'This is strange,' Kagome thought as Sango slipped into the water. 'She looks so uneasy. I wonder why.'

"Kagome, you have to have that baby!" Sango blurted out unexpectedly, making it a point to avoid her friend's eyes.

Kagome was taken aback. She stared at Sango incredulously. "What?"

"I need you and InuYasha to have the baby! I know that it's a lot to ask, and it's totally unfair, but I just need you to!"

"Yeah, it's unfair!" Kagome shrieked, shooting Sango a fierce glare. "It's already bad enough that Miroku's gone, and now you're putting the whole thing on my shoulders!"

Sango groaned, trying to regain composure. "I'm sorry, ok? It's just so frustrating! You and InuYasha could help; you could save Miroku! There's no one else! You two are already in love, so why is it-"

"Wait a minute!" Kagome cried, cutting her off. "Don't just go assuming things about my relationship with InuYasha! It's a little more complicated than that!" Her tone softened as a small tear crept down her cheek. "Look, I've tried to think about it, I really have. I just don't know if I can do that."

"Yes you can!" Sango reassured her. "Please? I want to see Miroku again! Maybe you don't understand what it's like to lose someone that you love!"

Kagome sunk low into the water, looking toward the sky. "I don't understand? Sango, I don't even know what it's like to have someone I love. You're asking me to have a child with someone who is still…" She lowered her gaze, finishing her thoughts in her head. '…In love with someone else.'

Sango mentally hit herself. 'How could I have been so horrible? I shouldn't have mentioned it at all.'

Standing up, Kagome wrapped a towel around herself, gathering up her things. "I'm going back to camp," she said quickly. She concealed herself behind the nearest tree, throwing on her clothes. 'I was way too hard on her,' Kagome figured, straightening her shirt. 'She just wants to have Miroku back, and I just lash out at her like it's some kind of crime.' She slung her backpack over her shoulders, heading back to the cave.

InuYasha watched Kagome from the branch of a tall tree close by. 'Why is she crying?' he wondered. He leapt down in front of her, giving her a suspicious look.

Kagome jerked back, startled. How long had he been watching her?

"What are you cryin' about?" he asked, narrowing his eyes.

Kagome inhaled sharply as she fought back tears. Everything was just so hard right now. She had to make this horrible decision that she wasn't even approaching being ready for, her friend was captured, Sango was making her feel incredibly culpable, and he was asking her why she was crying?

InuYasha huffed. "Fine then, don't answer my question!" He turned away, inwardly feeling concerned.

"Don't do this right now," Kagome whimpered. "I just can't handle it." She pushed past him, running back toward camp, as if running away from her own problems.

InuYasha watched her run, fighting with his own conscious. 'Damn it! I didn't do anything, and she just got more upset!' Though his mind was compelled to think that, his conscious proved different. It argued that perhaps he should have just left her alone instead of interfering.

(000000000000000)

"Are you still mad?" InuYasha asked as he and Kagome sat together in a field beneath the stars. She had wanted to get away from the cave for a while, after sending constant indignant looks at Sango. He followed her when she left, hoping to evade any kind of danger.

"I was never mad at you, InuYasha," Kagome said calmly. "I'm sorry, I was just having a hard time."

InuYasha jerked his head away from her gaze. "It's ok. You don't have to apologize or nothin'" He glanced back at her with a hint of concern in his expression as he saw her distant look. It was odd, seeing her like this. She was usually so alive and full of emotions, but all of this seemed to be drowned out by something that he couldn't quite grasp. "Kagome," he started, but stopped himself, realizing he couldn't find the words.

Kagome's eyes met his.

It was like an alarm going off inside his head. He had noticed that she had been down recently, but seeing her empty eyes was overwhelming. It was like they were asking him to do something. How could something be so empty and yet so full at the same time?

"Kagome, what happened? Why…why were you crying?" He tried his best to not sound harsh or demanding, knowing that it may cause the same reaction he had gotten earlier.

She looked away. "It was Sango. She just started insisting that you and I had to…" Kagome stopped herself, trying not to scare him off by mentioning the word 'baby'. "I just feel so guilty," she admitted. "Sango made it seem like that I was to blame because I wasn't doing anything."

InuYasha just stared. There was nothing he could say to make this better, and about a million things he could say to make it worse.

"I don't want to feel so helpless anymore," Kagome continued. "But, there's no way that we could…" Her voice grew quiet as her thoughts came alive. 'I can't ask him to do this. It would only make him feel trapped. If we were to have a baby, I know that he would feel obligated to stay with me. I don't want to hold him back like that.' A part of her still wanted to go through with it, though, so she could have that hold on him, one that Kikyo never would. She gasped at her own notion. How could she ever think something so selfish?

'It wouldn't be right,' InuYasha thought. 'I can't stoop so low as to ask her to have my child. I want to save Miroku just as much as she does, but we just can't do that. She would be putting herself and her body through more stress than she should have to handle right now.'

It wouldn't be right to feel so trapped.

A/N: Ok, that's the first chapter. Tell me what you think. No flames please. Also, please review. Thanks.