Hello, all! I hope you are doing well (or as well as anyone can be in the current climate of things). Thank you all for the warm welcome back that I received in your comments on the last chapter. I really appreciate all the positive feedback, as it is incredibly motivating and really aids me in my writing process. I'll try to respond to everyone as soon as I can, but I figured that focusing my energy on getting this chapter out was the highest form of thanks I could offer.

(Super) Mini-history lesson for today:

-Namasu: sliced raw fish served in a vinegar sauce. The dish was common to the Heian period.

A single shaft of moonlight slanted through the pitch black darkness of the sparsely furnished room, casting deep shadows across the pale features of its occupant.

Kagura's lips were pressed into a thin line, the otherworldly crimson of her eyes dark as she gazed into her reflection in the small rounded mirror suspended before her.

Only it was not her reflection that peered back out at her.

A man's face, deathly pale and strangely delicate, stared out at her. A dark mass of ink black hair seemed almost to writhe with a life of its own about his face, and his lips were drawn upward in a faint smirk that did not quite reach his murky red eyes.

"What news do you bring me tonight, Kagura?" the man spoke, his voice a low rumble that sent chills skittering over her flesh.

Kagura was silent, the lines around her mouth deepening for the briefest of moments before she could smooth them back into a semblance of apathy.

"Rumor has it that the appointments are to be resumed soon," she said with a small shrug. "Little beyond that."

The man's brows rose faintly, interest lightening his eyes to an eerie shade of blood red.

"They are trying to consolidate their power while they feel that they have the advantage, then," he said, though more to himself than to her. "It is of little consequence. Let them play at fixing the court if they will. It will only serve to keep them distracted."

Kagura eyed him, brow furrowing the slightest bit. She shifted, the silk of her juni-hito whispering in the silence of the room. The beam of moonlight slid to illuminate the fan she held in her lap. She considered it for a moment before raising her gaze back to the mirror.

"Who from among us do you wish to have sent, then, Naraku-sama?" she said lowly.

"Sent?" the man, Naraku, echoed.

"According to the rumors, they will not be taking the firstborns," Kagura said, twisting the fan idly between her fingers. "No announcement has been made as yet of how they intend to choose, but should we not prepare ourselves now for that inevitability?"

"Interesting," Naraku murmured. "Although I suppose I should have expected nothing less of the half-breed and his commoner. Hmmmm, who shall we send, Kagura? Anyone who goes will have unfettered access to the Dairi, after all."

His eyes slid to her face, his gaze piercing as it attempted to read the lines there. Kagura's gaze fixed on her fan as it danced between her hands, her expression determinedly impassive. She offered up another small shrug.

"It is not mine to decide, Naraku-sama," she drawled. "Do as you will. You always do, do you not?"

"But you do not have even a suggestion for me, Kagura?" Naraku pressed, his gaze never wavering. "No one you would recommend?"

There was the faintest twitch of Kagura's lips, gone almost before it could be perceived. She slid the fan open slowly, lifting it to hover just beneath her lips.

"Not my mission," she said. "Not my concern, Naraku-sama."

Naraku's lips curled up faintly.

"Then consider it now your concern," he said. "Byakuya will accompany you. You will both continue to report back to me anything that might be of use."

Kagura frowned, blood red lips curling back in distaste. She slid her fan shut with a resounding snap.

"As I said, Naraku-sama," she said. "As of yet we've no idea how they intend to choose who will enter the Dairi. As such, how am I to ensure that Byakuya and I will be among the ones chosen?"

"As you said, Kagura," Naraku returned lowly. "Your mission, your concern. I trust that you will find a way. If not…"

He trailed off, baring his teeth in a grin as he met her eyes meaningfully. Kagura sighed, her eyes sliding closed.

"Of course, Naraku-sama," she said. "As you wish."

"Then it is settled," he said. "Have you anything more to report? What of your observations of the miko and the half-breed?"

"There has been little to observe," she replied. "Matters appear unchanged between them. Are you certain their relationship is what you believe it to be?"

She kept her eyes carefully fixed on her fan as she spoke, the dark arc of her lashes shielding them from his view. He frowned.

"The hanyou would not have risked what he did in leaving the court for her were it not," he said.

"A turn of circumstance we could have taken advantage of, had you not failed so miserably in your duties as my eyes within the court."

Kagura tensed, the line of her back straightening. Her eyes shifted back to the mirror, her chin tilting up defensively.

"I am not all-seeing, Naraku-sama," she said. "Besides which, I am hardly the only set of eyes that you have here. What of their failure to-?"

She stopped abruptly, eyes growing wide in her face. Her fan clattered to the floor as her fingers spasmed, her hand jumping to her chest. Her lips fell open around a pained gasp, her entire body jerking.

In the mirror Naraku held something up for her to see, grasped tightly within the cage of his fingers. It was a heart, pumping in a grotesque frenzy as he tightened his grip around it.

Kagura's hand jerked furtively towards the mirror as if she could reach through to reclaim it before another surge of agony doubled her over. Naraku smiled thinly, loosening his grip.

"If I wished to speak of their failures, then I would speak of them," he said, lifting the fluttering organ as if to examine it more closely. "As one of my eldest, though, you will simply have to learn to bear the brunt of it, Kagura. Now I know you cannot speak when you are like this, so how about you bow and we will consider the matter finished?"

Shaking, Kagura just managed to lift her head enough to look at him. Her eyes narrowed, rage bright as they met his, and her lips drew back from her teeth in a silent snarl.

Naraku frowned faintly. His hand flexed sharply around the heart, fingers digging hard into the tender flesh.

This time Kagura screamed, her body falling forward to half-sprawl against the floor. Her hands, splayed before her, clawed convulsively at the wood beneath them.

"I supposed that will do well enough," Naraku said musingly.

He lowered his hand, the heart disappearing beyond the edge of the mirror's frame. For several long moments there was only the sound of Kagura's labored breathing. Slowly her hands curled into fists, trembling where they pressed against the floor.

"Are you ready to behave again?" he said.

"...Of course, Naraku-sama."

Kagura made no move to lift her head.

"Good," he said, though there was no real pleasure in the word. "Then we are finished here for tonight. Kanna, close the mirror."

Something like mist began to spread slowly over the surface of the mirror, obscuring Naraku's face.

"Wait, Naraku-sama."

The mist stilled, then slowly began to pull back. Naraku's image re-emerged, a faint frown edging his lips.

Kagura pushed herself up from the floor. Her skin had blanched so pale that it was ghostly in the faint light of the moon. Her eyes were shuttered, betraying nothing as she reached up absently to wipe at a trail of blood dribbling from one corner of her lips.

"What of Kanna?" she said. "When I enter the Dairi my movements will be restricted. It will be difficult for me to report back to you what I observe there."

"Then find a way to take her with you," he said, eyes narrowing. "And know that if you dare to call me back here again tonight without cause, Kagura, I will not be in such a forgiving mood."

"Of course, Naraku-sama," Kagura said, the smallest upward quirk to the corner of her lips. "So long as Kanna has your permission."

The mist appeared once more, spreading more quickly across the surface of the mirror. In moments his image was obscured entirely, but not before Kagura reached out to trail two bloody fingers in a jagged red line across it.

Kagome gasped, jerking abruptly into full consciousness. Her heart pulsed a frantic tattoo in her ears as she lifted a trembling hand to hover before her face. It was difficult to tell in the darkness of the room, but there was no trace there of the blood she could have sworn was on her hands.

"Kagome?" came Inuyasha's voice, close enough that she could feel the warmth of his breath against her ear. "What is it? Are you alright?"

She could feel the muscles of his body tense against her side. She felt the whisper of his hair sliding against her skin as he levered himself up on his forearm beside her.

Golden eyes met hers, bright with some internal light of their own, and Kagome felt some of the panic go out of her.

"I'm fine," she said, eyeing her hand one last time. "Just a nightmare, I think."

She could just make out his frown as his eyes skimmed her face.

"You have a lot of those," he said. It was not a question.

"It's fine, Inuyasha," she said, her eyes sliding away from his. She tucked her hand back at her side, though the faint sensation of cloying stickiness lingered on the skin there.

His frown deepened. He reached out, grabbing the hand she had been eyeing and tugging her towards him.

He leaned back against the futon-when had they moved there, she wondered idly-tugging and twisting until she rested tucked firmly against his side, her torso half-splayed atop his. His free hand came to rest at the crown of her head, pressing with gentle insistentence until her ear was directly against the pulse of his heart. The sound rushed in her ears, slow and strong like waves lapping against the shore.

"Just focus on the sound," he murmured. "It always put me to sleep when I was just a brat."

"Your mother?" Kagome said, the steady sound already beginning to lull her.

"Mmm," he said, and she could hear the sound reverberate through his chest.

He flexed the hand resting on her hand idly, claws grazing gently through her hair and along her scalp. Kagome felt her eyelids begin to grow heavy, the gentle thrum and the soothing gesture pulling her under.

"Thank you," she managed before allowing herself to drift off.

"I've got you, Kagome."

"Could you repeat that?"

Inuyasha scowled, his lower lip protruding almost petulantly as his eyes slid away from hers. He crossed his arms over his chest, huffing as a faint red crept across his cheeks.

"You heard me!" he snapped.

"I never said I didn't hear you," Kagome said, a grin curling up the corners of her lips. "I would just like you to say it again."

She leaned partially over the low wooden table that separated them, prodding gently at him with a single finger. She raised her brows, some small part of her reveling in the hanyou's obvious annoyance. He swatted lightly at her hand, peering at her from the corner of his eye.

Her hair was still sleep-mussed, popping up in odd places against her head and draping in dark tangles over her shoulders. To his quiet disappointment she had chosen to redress, donning her rumpled white karaginu. The garment was slung almost carelessly about her frame, drooping to bare one pale shoulder to the morning light. Her eyes were brightening slowly to full wakefulness as she looked at him and there was the faintest trail of dried drool at the left corner of her mouth from her sleep.

Kagome in this groggy and entirely unguarded state, the hanyou had found, was the Kagome that he had the least resistance to.

He sighed, his eyes sliding shut.

"Fine," he bit out. "I said I need your help, alright? Happy?"

Her grin bloomed into a full-blown smile, her eyes practically glowing. She sat back on her heels, nodding.

"Very," she said.

"Then will you eat already?" he said, gesturing to the mass of dishes laid out between them on the table. "You've barely touched anything."

"Only if you will tell me what exactly it is that you need my help with," she said as she took up her hashi obligingly.

Inuyasha eyed her for a moment, slumping to rest his weight on his hands as he leaned back from the table. She made a show of picking up some rice and bringing it to her lips as if to urge him on. He frowned, reaching forward to grab a piece of pickled vegetable and toss it into his mouth.

"It's the wolf," he murmured around the mouthful, not quite able to meet her eyes. "I need you to come with me to see the bastard."

Kagome paused with a piece of fish suspended halfway to her mouth, blinking. Her expression sobered as she set her hashi down.

"What do you mean?" she said warily.

The last time she had been to see the Wolf Lord...she flushed, recalling exactly how that encounter had ended. She had not even gotten the chance to finish speaking with him before Inuyasha had dragged her off, to say nothing of what had occurred after that.

Besides which, Inuyasha had never once sought out Kouga before. The two had never done anything but fight ever since their very first encounter. So why in the world would he wish to seek him out now?

Inuyasha leaned more heavily against his palms, further distancing himself from the table and herself. His eyes shuttered, his gaze sliding off to a corner of the room. His lips twisted in a faint grimace.

"Look," he said, the word heavy with reluctance. "The wolf is a moron and a flea-bitten bastard and a fucking pain and-"

"Inuyasha," Kagome said warningly.

"What I'm tryin' to say is the bastard's fast, alright?" Inuyasha huffed, even the slight admission paining him.

"Was that what you were trying to say?" said Kagome, raising one incredulous brow.

Inuyasha shot her a pointed look, his scowl deepening.

"And what does Kouga-sama being fast have to do with anything?" Kagome pressed.

Inuyasha huffed once more, falling back into a full sprawl against the floor.

"He's faster than any youkai I've seen before," came the hanyou's voice from below the line of the table. "And we need to get the supplies and shit we promised to the villages out fast. They're counting on it. So…"

He trailed off. Kagome blinked, mentally filling in the words he could not quite bring himself to say aloud.

Kouga was incredibly fast. She had seen his speed, almost twice that of most youkai, demonstrated on numerous occasions. As a youkai he was also strong enough to move large amounts of supplies at a time.

If he were to take over the distribution of supplies to the villages, it could likely be done in hardly any time at all. Then it would only be a matter of Inuyasha choosing trusted governors to go out to the provinces and begin working with the villagers.

Kagome leaned to the side, peering beneath the table to try and get a look at the hanyou's face. His hands were beneath his head, his ears pinned back so far that they almost disappeared amidst the silver of his hair.

"You want Kouga-sama to help us get the supplies out to the villages," she said, watching his face.

She could see his jaw clench.

"Yeah," he said after a moment. "We need to get the supplies out as soon as we can so that the villagers will have the best chance possible in case…"

He trailed off once more, but she understood well enough. Another nation had been involved somehow with Naraku in his plot to kill Inuyasha's father and mother. Mysterious ships were somewhere off the coast. The Chinese Emperor knew of what Inuyasha had done and had little love for him. The more quickly they could strengthen the villages and their connections to them, the better.

"You've really been thinking about this, haven't you?" she said softly.

That he would even consider asking Kouga showed clearly how serious he was.

"Keh," he said. "I said I would figure it out, didn't I?"

Kagome nodded, more to herself than to him. He had promised her that he would and a quiet pride warmed her at the thought that he truly was willing to do whatever it took to make sure that the villagers and the court were taken care of.

She reached a hand out beneath the table, tugging lightly at the ankle of his sashinuki. His foot twitched and he shot her a faint glare. She smiled.

"I'm really proud of you, you know?" Kagome said. "You've come a long way, to be able to ask Kouga-sama for help."

She could see a faint flush rise on his cheeks as he turned away from her. He shifted, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Keh. I'll still rip his fucking arms off if he even looks at you wrong."

Kagome's smile dimmed instantly.

"Maybe not such a long way, then," she muttered to herself, and then, to him, "When do you propose that we go to see him?"

"Sooner the better," Inuyasha replied, levering himself back up to eye a few of the dishes. "The bastard's been itching to go since he got here, so it's about time we let him."

He reached out and grabbed a bowl of faintly steaming soup, lifting it to his lips and drinking it down in several large slurps. Kagome raised a brow, eyeing him.

"You're not doing this just to keep Kouga-sama away from the court, are you?" she said.

He set the bowl down, reaching for another dish with a slight shrug.

"Doesn't hurt," he muttered.

Kagome sighed, but chose not to comment further. Though his motivations were not quite as pure as she might have hoped, he was not exactly wrong. The sooner Kouga could be on his way, the better it was likely to be for all three of them.

And the Wolf Lord was not the only matter that would be best addressed sooner rather than later. Kagome grabbed a bowl of namasu, stirring it with her hashi as she watched Inuyasha from beneath her lashes.

He seemed to be in good spirits. Eating always did put him at his ease, and if he was willing even to speak of Kouga then now might very well be her best chance of catching him while he was most receptive. She took a few bites, chewing slowly as she mentally braced herself.

She set the bowl down as she swallowed, taking a deep breath.

"Inuyasha," she said, diverting his attention from the food. "There is something that I need your help with, as well."

The hanyou, his cheeks rounded with the amount of food he had attempted to pack in all at once, paused. His gaze narrowed suspiciously at the shift in her tone.

"Wi' wha'?" he said, words distorted around the mouthful. She winced.

"Well," she said, folding her hands together in her lap. "I know that we have spoken of it a bit previously, but I have had something of a revelation concerning the appointments that I thought you would-"

A choking sound brought her up short. She blinked, watching as Inuyasha struggled to force down his over-ambitious mouthful. His face reddened slightly, his brows drawing sharply downward.

"Not this shit again!" he gasped as soon as he was able, his hand coming down hard enough against the wood of the table to rattle several dishes. "Kagome, if you think for one fucking moment you can force me to-to-!"

"I am not trying to force you to do anything, Inuyasha," she cut in, holding up a hand to forestall him. "Please, just hear me out on this.

I really do need your help here."

This appeared to cool some of his ire, a bit of the tension going out of his features. Still his eyes were sharp with the promise of an argument should she press him.

"Thank you," Kagome said when he had been silent a moment. "I know this isn't easy for you. And you know it...it hasn't been easy for me, either, to have to think about...well, suffice it to say that we both have a great deal that we will have to come to terms with."

She paused, the ache in her chest momentarily stealing her words. She could see Inuyasha bristling, golden eyes bright. She shook her head.

"However, I do not think that that matter is our most pressing concern," Kagome continued. "I think that we can move forward with the appointments for now and in time we can...revisit the question of a successor."

Inuyasha blinked, his expression shifting warily.

"What're you saying, Kagome?"

"Only that we push forward with the appointments to continue securing your place here within the court and your ties with the courtiers," she said. "And then, beyond that…"

She trailed off, her hands twisting in her lap. 'Beyond that' was certainly a bridge neither of them wished to cross, but in time they would reach it whether they wished it or not. All she could hope was that time might reconcile the both of them to it somehow.

"I won't choose one of them," Inuyasha said, his eyes fixed steadily on her.

Kagome averted her eyes, an ache sweeping through her at that steady gaze.

"I'm not asking you to," she said softly.

"Not right now," Inuyasha said. "But that doesn't change it and I won't do it. I know you think that's the only path there is, but if it is then fuck it. I'll carve a new one for us to walk."

Kagome peered up at him from beneath her lashes, the certainty in his voice catching her. His gaze remained fixed on her face, his jaw set stubbornly. She had seen this look before. When he had torn down the screen before the entire court. When he had formed the barrier. It was not a look to be taken lightly.

She found herself smiling faintly even as a chill of trepidation swept through her.

"I trust you to do what's best, Inuyasha," was all that she could manage.

"Kagome…"

Kagome shook her head, forcing a smile back onto her face.

"Never mind all that right now," she said, a part of her scared of what the conversation might bring should she allow it to go on. "For the time being let's focus on the appointments themselves, shall we? I was speaking to Chūsei-san yesterday and I believe we have managed to come up with an idea as to how to go about them!"

She saw his ears droop slightly, saw the disappointment that dimmed his gaze as she hastily steered them back onto safer ground. He shifted, crossing his arms over his chest. She felt a small twinge, but forced it back. Neither of them could afford to indulge in fantasies here.

"What's that?" he said.

"It's to do with the network that Chūsei-san has put together," Kagome said, forcing herself to press on. "I was trying to think of the best way to go about choosing courtiers to fill the appointments when Chūsei-san made me realize that who is in a better position to observe them than the servants?"

"Servants?" Inuyasha echoed, cocking one dark brow.

Kagome nodded, warming to the idea once more.

"Just think of it," she said, spreading her hands in an expansive gesture. "The servants watch the courtiers their whole lives. They tend to their needs, they see them at their best and at their worst. A person wears their truest face when they feel they have nothing to either gain or lose, as with the servants. And is that not what you would want, someone who is fair and kind even when there is nothing to be gained from it?"

Inuyasha's brow furrowed as he considered this. He nodded.

"I get it," he said. "That's pretty bright, Kagome."

Kagome's smile widened. She had known he would approve of the idea.

"Chūsei-san has already agreed to it," she said. "Now it is just a matter of her approaching the others to see if they are willing, as well."

Inuyasha nodded.

"Then we just need to create a cover for them," he said thoughtfully. "Something to make the courtiers think we're the ones doing the choosing so that nothing comes back on them. And then we can throw some sort of banquet to announce everything. The courtiers always eat that shit up."

"Then you agree?" Kagome said. "We will proceed with the appointments?"

Inuyasha's look shuttered somewhat.

"We can bring them in," he said. "But I ain't making any promises beyond that."

Kagome held up her hands, splaying them before her.

"That is all that I will ask," she said. "At least for now."

Inuyasha sighed, his eyes sliding closed.

"Then bring let's bring the fucking bastards in."

The pair finished off the remainder of their morning meal with only minimal bickering before deciding that a walk about court on the way to the Wolf Lord's temporary residence would be the best way to proceed.

Both readied and dressed themselves for the day. Kagome was silently thankful that for once her chest bindings had managed to escape the hanyou's claws unscathed and that she was able to tolerably straighten out her miko robes from the previous day, though the quandary of how they could possibly continue on in this manner gnawed at her.

She was both grateful and alarmed to see as they left his chambers that at some point in the night Inuyasha had dismissed his guard. He hardly needed them, he said, laying a hand meaningfully on Tessaiga's hilt. Besides which if he had allowed them to remain throughout the night they inevitably would have seen her emerging from a night spent in his chambers.

For the discretion Kagome was grateful, but she could not help chastising him for the recklessness of leaving himself open to attack. There was also the fact that the guards could only be dismissed so many times before even they, loyal as she knew them to be, would begin to grow suspicious.

Inuyasha turned his nose up at this, refusing to address it beyond insisting that they would be fine. Eventually Kagome was forced to drop it, well aware that she was just as lacking as he was in ways to handle their current situation that did not end in the two of them being forced to separate.

Instead she reached out silently, grasping his hand. He shot her a surprised glance, flushing faintly as his hand curled around her own. They remained that way until they reached the outer gate of the Dairi and Kagome was forced to slip her hand back into the folds of her sleeves. Inuyasha said nothing, but his hand lingered as if he would have held on.

With a few curses muttered under the hanyou's breath, the two made their way out into the streets of the court. They had agreed to go for a few turns about the more crowded streets as it had been some time since the two of them had been able to appear in public together and they felt it important to continue to present a united front.

It occurred to Kagome as they started out that the last time they had done this Kikyou had walked between them. She experienced a twinge as the phantom of the woman surfaced in her mind's eye, though it was hard to say whether the pain she felt was more on Kikyou's behalf or Inuyasha's.

From the corner of her eye she saw a shadow pass over Inuyasha's expression, and the thought that his thoughts ran much along the same path as her own provided cold comfort. A sudden distance seemed to grow up between them. She held the feeling to herself like stinging salve to a wound, trying to remind herself forcefully that this was the true order of things between them despite whatever fleeting fling they might be indulging themselves in at the moment.

Courtiers approached and she forced a smile, though it was as hollow as the feeling in the pit of her stomach.

The courtiers who approached them on the stroll were deferential in manner and polite in address. Fans swept in gestures of interest and respect towards the both of them. Inquiries were made as to Kagome's health, Inuyasha's thoughts on who might be best suited for the appointments, when they might expect the next court banquet to be held. All mild, all with a seeming reverence that was both slightly disconcerting and encouraging to see.

At one point Kagome thought she caught a glimpse of Kagura lurking just at the edge of a larger group of courtiers, but if she had been there she was gone before the miko could turn her head. Beyond that there was no sign of the Taira to be seen.

After making several circuits through the busier streets, the two at last decided-largely out

of mutual exhaustion-that that would suffice for the time being. They cut down a smaller side street and made their way towards the Wolf Lord's temporary residence.

Absently Kagome wished for a fan as they crossed the threshold of the building. The cloying heat of summer was fast wrapping itself around the court and the sun's rays were relentless as it sat directly overhead.

Nor did the encounter looming before her do much to cool the sweat that she could feel beginning to collect along her upper lip and at the nape of her neck. Her hand twitched with the desire to reach out to Inuyasha for support, but she hastily tucked it back into her sleeve.

At first glance the residence appeared empty, the main sitting room unoccupied and not a sound to be heard to indicate that anyone was around. As Kagome moved to check the small adjacent room, though, Inuyasha shook his head.

"Garden," he said simply, a slight twitch of his nose indicating that he had caught the youkai's scent.

Kagome nodded, gesturing for him to lead the way. He headed towards the shoji opposite them in the room, sliding it open with an unceremonious clatter.

On the other side was revealed a small central garden, boxed in on all sides by the covered walkways of the residence.

Kouga sat on the walkway farthest from them, bare feet dangling in the pond that dominated most of the small garden. He looked up as the shoji slid open, blue eyes wideningNJ.

He looked...small somehow. His hair hung in lank ink-blank strands around his face-the only time Kagome could ever recall having seen it outside of its traditional high tail-and there were dark circles beneath his eyes visible even from where she stood. His skin appeared sallow, his shoulders slumped.

Kagome's heart caught in her throat as his eyes met her own, any greeting she might have thought to give dying on her lips.

Inuyasha looked from her to Kouga, a scowl creeping over his face like thunder clouds moving to hide the sun. He crossed his arms, shifting so that Kagome's smaller frame was partially blocked by his own.

"Oi, wolf, we have business," he said tersely. Kagome shot him a warning glance.

Kouga's eyes, however, did not leave her face. He rose, standing ankle deep in the pond.

"Are you alright?" he said.

Kagome blinked, uncertain what he meant, when it suddenly occurred to her what the end of their last encounter must have looked like to him. Inuyasha had dragged her off abruptly and rather forcefully, leaving Kouga with no explanation whatsoever for days. She raised a hand to her mouth, mortification heating her face.

"I am fine, Kouga-sama. I apologize-"

"As if I would let anything happen to Kagome," Inuyasha snapped, eyes flashing. "Kagome is-!"

"Your woman," Kouga finished, his words cutting across the hanyou's despite how softly they were spoken. "For real now, by the smell of it."

Both Kagome and Inuyasha froze, eyes going wide. For a moment Kagome could process nothing beyond the shock of the fact that he knew.

Kouga's eyes shifted from her face to Inuyasha's, narrowing. He shifted, crossing his arms over the leather armor that covered his chest.

"Was that supposed to be some sort of secret, mutt?" he said, turning a hard look on the hanyou. "Well, think again, dumbass. Even you should know enough to know nothing gets past a wolf's nose. And if you're trying to keep Kagome as some sort of mistress-!"

"Shut up, you flea-bitten bastard!" Inuyasha shouted. "You don't know shit about it and Kagome is none of your business!"

He took a threatening step forward, ears flattening back against his head as one hand shifted to grasp Tessaiga's hilt. Kouga bared his teeth in return, arms dropping to his sides as his fists clenched.

Kagome stepped forward hastily, extending an arm to block Inuyasha's path as she met his eyes in a warning look.

"Stop it," she said. "Both of you. I refuse to be argued over as if I weren't even here."

She shifted her gaze to Kouga.

"Kouga-sama, you are not...wrong," she said, wincing inwardly at the brief flash of pain she could see in his face at the words. "Inuyasha and I...things have changed between us in some ways. In others, though, they remain the same. It is a complicated matter and I would appreciate it greatly if word of it did not go beyond the three of us here."

Kouga eyed her for a long moment, the tension in his features easing into a scowl. After a moment his eyes slid shut and he turned his face away from her.

"Keh," he scoffed softly. "Who would I even tell?"

Kagome took a small step forward, half reaching out a hand toward him though she knew he was beyond her reach. She had hoped that she would be able through this meeting to somehow finally make peace between herself and Kouga, but it seemed that she was doomed to do nothing but hurt him.

"I'm sorry, Kouga," she said softly. "For more things than I can say. I did not intend for you to find out this way."

The Wolf Lord glanced at her from the corner of his eye, the line of his mouth tightening. And then suddenly all of the fight seemed to go out of him, his shoulders sagging and the tension in his jaw easing. He sighed.

"It's fine, Kagome," he said, shaking his head. "It's not like I haven't known you were into the mutt for a while now, though the kami only know why. I just won't stand for that bastard treating you like you're some kind of dirty secret."

"Oi!" Inuyasha snapped, stepping forward until she could feel the sleeves of his haori brushing against the back of her robes. "I'm right here, asshole!"

Kagome reached out, placing a hand on his arm. She could feel his gaze on her face, but kept hers on Kouga.

"I promise that that is not the case," she said. "And even if it were, I assure you that I am more than capable of handling myself."

Kouga cocked his head, gaze trailing over her and sliding to Inuyasha as if to assess the truth of this. Inuyasha's hand found hers, wrapping itself around hers possessively. Kouga's gaze fixed on the entwined appendages and Kagome saw something like acceptance darken his gaze.

The Wolf Lord sighed again, more dramatically this time, flopping back to reseat himself on the edge of the walkway.

"I know," Kouga said. "I trust you, Kagome. Though I still think your taste in lovers is pretty messed up."

Kagome smiled wryly, her stomach slowly beginning to unknot at the look on his face. She heard a faint rumbling growl begin in Inuyasha's throat and she squeezed his hand as it began to tense around her own.

"Thank you," she said.

"We're friends, aren't we?" said Kouga, shrugging.

Kagome's smile widened as she realized that yes, perhaps they finally, truly were.

She moved forward to the edge of the walkway on her side, dragging the tense hanyou along with her. She sat down on the edge, tugging at Inuyasha's hand until he reluctantly joined her. He eyed the youkai across from them darkly, but thankfully managed to hold himself back from making any further remarks.

"So you said you had business," Kouga said, dark brows quirking as he moved his hands to rest atop the edge of the walkway beneath him. "If it isn't about dog shit here trying to assert his claim on you, what is it?"

Inuyasha bristled and Kagome could see the slightest twitch developing above his left brow. After a moment, though, he appeared to force the impulse back as if swallowing something particularly unpleasant, his mouth curling downward in disgust. She squeezed his hand, silently impressed to see this degree of restraint from him.

"It's about the villages," the hanyou was able to force out. "You were with them out there, right?"

Kouga nodded, his own brows lifting slightly as Inuyasha failed to take the bait.

"Then you know all about the terms they agreed to and what we promised 'em," he said. "Now's the time we need to start making good on those promises and we need to do it soon. That's where you come in."

Kouga cocked his head slightly, his expression sobering.

"Come in how?" he said, wariness creeping into his tone.

"You are the fastest youkai either of us knows of, Kouga-sama," Kagome put in, leaning forward. "I know it's a great deal to ask of you-to say nothing of how much I have asked of you already-but you would be our best chance of getting the promised supplies out to the villages quickly."

"What's with the sudden hurry?" the youkai said, his gaze shifting from her face to Inuyasha's.

Inuyasha looked to Kagome, a question in his eyes. She hesitated for only a moment before nodding.

"The tale is more long and complicated than I can tell," she said. "But suffice it to say that we have an enemy that has been working very hard to ensure that the court remains in chaos until he can take power for himself. We also believe he is conspiring with another nation to plan an attack from outside. We need the villages to have the necessary tools and resources to defend themselves should...should the worst happen. So, please, Kouga-sama…"

She trailed off, holding his gaze for a long moment before leaning forward to bow at the waist. She felt Inuyasha shift beside her, leaning more closely against her side.

"You've got your clan to think about," came the hanyou's voice, and she sat up to look at him. "But we've got ours we gotta think about, too. The villages. The court. We've all got people we wanna protect. And if you help us protect ours, then we can help you protect yours. So…"

And then he leaned forward, placing his hands on his thighs, and bowed his head.

Kagome's hand shot out, grasping reflexively at the wood of the walkway to keep herself from slipping off of the edge in her surprise. Kouga's mouth fell open.

The silence stretched and Inuyasha sat up hastily, face reddening as he shot a glare at both of them. He spun to face Kouga and the youkai flinched slightly.

"So?" the hanyou blustered. "What'll it be, asshole?"

Kagome fought the urge to hide her face in her hands, her eyes sliding closed. He had been so close there for a moment.

"Uh," said Kouga, and Kagome could see the struggle in his face as he attempted to recover from the emotional whiplash of it. "I guess if you put it like that...sure, I'll do it."

Kagome blinked.

"You will?" she said, unable to keep the surprise from her voice.

Kouga shrugged.

"The mutt's an asshole, but he isn't wrong," he said. "If there's really an attack coming and I ignore it now, it'll eventually come back to bite my pack in the ass either way. If I can help shore up the villages, then they'll be there to help fight so my pack doesn't have to shoulder the brunt of it. Besides, I'm fast enough that it shouldn't take me too long and then I'll be back with them."

A smile stretched across Kagome's face and she reached out to grab Inuyasha's hand, giving it a celebratory squeeze in her excitement.

"Thank you, Kouga-sama," she said. "For everything, really, but especially for this. It means a great deal to us."

She nudged Inuyasha lightly, darting a meaningful look from him to Kouga when he turned his gaze to hers. He rolled his eyes at her, but turned nonetheless to face the Wolf Lord.

"Thanks, Kouga," he said with only a minimal amount of his usual surliness. "It really is important."

Kouga cocked his head, his dark brows lifting. Shifting forward, he rose to stand. He placed his hands on his hips, his tail flicking behind him as a sudden grin curled up one corner of his lips.

"Sure," he said lightly. "And all I ask in return is that you give me Kagome."

Stunned silence filled the garden, so thick that force of it almost seemed to put a halt to everything.

In a blur of red and silver Inuyasha shot up and across the width of the small garden. Kouga just barely managed to jump out of the way as Inuyasha's fist came down, splintering the wood of the walkway and sending up a wave of water from the pond.

The Wolf Lord smirked, fangs peeking out just over his lower lips as he landed and sunk into a crouch. Several dark strands of his hair slipped messily over his shoulders as he gestured for the hanyou to come at him.

"What?" he taunted. "Didn't you say it was important? A real ruler has to be able to make sacrifices, so just hand her over and I'll take care of her."

"Fuck off!" Inuyasha roared, swinging to face him. "Kagome's a person, not some fucking piece of property! And if you think for one fucking moment that I'd ever let a bastard like you anywhere near her-!"

His hand curled around Tessaiga's hilt and Kagome felt a crackle of youki along her spiritual sense as he slid the blade free of its sheath. Her eyes widened and she stumbled to her feet, reaching out a hand even as she knew she could not make it to them quickly enough.

Kouga dove forward, catching Inuyasha's hand and forcing it to halt just short of fully unsheathing the blade. His other hand swung up in an arc, his fist connecting solidly with the side of Inuyasha's head.

The hanyou fell with a splash into the shallow pond. Kouga's foot came down on his chest, pinning him there as the Wolf Lord loomed over him.

"I figured as much," Kouga said lowly.

Sputtering, Inuyasha shook his head to clear the water from his eyes. He raised a clawed hand, knuckles popping as he prepared to strike.

Kouga grinned.

He shifted, removing his foot and reaching down to offer his hand to Inuyasha. Inuyasha froze, gaping up at him as if he had grown a second head.

"Hah?"

"I figured as much," Kouga repeated. "I just had to make sure. If I'm gonna leave Kagome with you I gotta at least know you're serious. 'Sides, only an absolute shitstain of a leader would barter with anyone from his pack, so it's good to know you ain't that bad."

Inuyasha's gaze traveled from the other man's face to the proffered hand, his eyes narrowing. He slapped the hand away from him, scrabbling to sit up. His hakama and haori ballooned out around him in the water, his fringe plastered to his face and dripping water into his burning golden eyes.

"That was a fucking test?" he ground out. "I was about to cut you in half, you fucking moron!"

Kouga shrugged, pushing some hair back from his face nonchalantly.

"You'd have to be able to catch me first, dog shit."

"Catch this!"

Inuyasha reared back, planting his foot squarely into Kouga's gut. The Wolf Lord's eyes went wide as he doubled over, staggering a step back before sitting down hard in the water.

Kagome ran the rest of the way to the edge of the pond, poised to try and intervene. Kouga merely held his stomach, though, eyeing Inuyasha from beneath the dark edge of his fringe.

"Maybe I…deserved that," he wheezed.

"You definitely did," said Kagome and Inuyasha in unison.

Inuyasha rose, his clothes and hair streaming water. He glanced down at himself, grimacing, before his gaze slid to Kouga. He huffed out a sigh before bending to offer his hand.

"I get it, though," he said. "But if you ever question me about Kagome again I'll rip your fucking tail off and jam it down your throat, get it?"

Kouga grinned, reaching out to grasp his hand. Inuyasha levered him up and the two stood ankle-deep in the water, a begrudging respect in their faces as they appraised one another. Two sopping wet messes, Kagome reflected as she pressed a hand to her head.

"Wouldn't have it any other way, dog breath," Kouga replied. "Just so long as I can leave knowing she's safe."

"Keh," Inuyasha scoffed without real venom. "Just so long as you finally leave at all. But...I'll protect her. You have my word."

Kouga nodded, his gaze sliding to Kagome. His grin faded.

"Then I think it's time to go," he said, more to her than to him.

"Now?" Kagome said, brows rising. "Don't you want to dry off? You could at least-"

But he was shaking his head before she could finish the thought.

"It's now, Kagome," he said. "It's time to finally say good-bye."

Sloshing his way through and up out of the pond, he moved to stand before her. A small pang went through her as she saw the sudden solemnity in his face, her hands curling at her sides.

"You really do need to dry off," she murmured, uncertain what else to say.

Kouga scoffed softly.

"I'll be fine," he said. "Worry about yourself. You're the one who's gonna be stuck here with him."

He jerked a thumb over his shoulder in Inuyasha's direction. Kagome frowned.

"Oi!" came Inuyasha's voice, though he made no move to approach. "I can fucking hear you!"

Kagome sighed, shaking her head. She reached into the front of her robes, pulling forth several pieces of parchment rolled together and bearing the Tennō's seal. She held them out to Kouga.

"Inuyasha's been working on these," she said. "They contain the maps of where to find the villages that need the supplies and what they need brought to them, though at some point you will also have to track down the Tachibana group as they are still out there working on the mission. Haru is still with them, so if you search for his scent you should be able to find them."

"The documents also contain instructions on where in the court the supplies can be found and a letter from the Tennō allowing the holder free passage as his Majesty's servant."

"Hah," Kouga scoffed. "I'm no one's servant, least of all his."

Still he reached out, his hand brushing hers as he took the missives. One corner of his lips tipped up ruefully.

"I'm gonna miss you," he said.

"We'll see each other again," she said. "This is hardly good-bye forever."

His eyes traced her face, the look in them darkening. He shook his head, his eyes sliding shut.

"I know," he said softly. "But it's good-bye to this part. To the part where I really loved you."

Kagome felt her breath hitch in her throat, a sudden tightness there. She forced herself to swallow past it, reaching out to grab his empty hand.

"Thank you," she said. "For feeling the way you did about me. Thank you for always trying to do right by me. It is time to say good-bye to that part, but maybe that means we can finally welcome the part where we are friends in truth. If you'll have me, that is."

Kouga's hand wrapped around her own, tugging her forward into his embrace. She winced at the feel of wet fur against her face, but allowed herself to be held there. His arms came up around her, his chin resting atop her head.

"Of course I'll have you, dummy," he murmured against her hair.

She smiled, resting her forehead against the damp leather of his chest armor.

"Then take care of yourself until the next time I see you," she said.

He snorted, his arms tightening about her

"You're one to talk," he said. "I still remember the woman who thought she could take down a whole mountain full of bird youkai on her own."

"Hey!" she said indignantly. "I came pretty close, didn't I?"

A low growl sounded from behind them before Kouga could answer. Kagome tensed, suddenly recalling the hanyou standing not far from them. She shifted, peeking warily around Kouga's arm.

Inuyasha still stood in the pond as if rooted there, ears pinned back as he shot Kouga a glare that might have sent another man fleeing. Surprisingly, though, he made no move towards them.

Kagome blinked, realizing that he was trying to give her the chance to say her farewells. She offered him a small, grateful smile before tilting her head back to meet Kouga's eyes.

"Time's up, huh?" he said. She nodded.

"You know you'll always have a place with my pack, right?" he said, his eyes searching hers. "As a friend, if you ever need it."

Kagome smiled, nodding once more.

"I appreciate it," she said softly. "But for better or for worse, my home is wherever he is."

Kouga's eyes searched hers, finding the truth of this. He brought a hand up to her face, one clawed thumb tracing the line of her smile.

"Good for you," he murmured, leaning down to press a chaste kiss to her forehead. "Good-bye, Kagome."

"Good-bye, Kouga."

Kouga shifted, the feel of him against her vanishing abruptly. She blinked as Inuyasha landed where he had just stood, his patience obviously having been strained to its limit. The hanyou wrapped a possessive arm about her, pressing her to his side. Kagome frowned, feeling the water from the sleeves of his haori soaking her robes even further.

"Still too slow, dog shit!" Kouga called, alighting on the walkway opposite them.

"Just hurry the fuck up and leave already, you stupid wolf!" Inuyasha shouted, fangs flashing.

"Yeah, yeah," Kouga said, rolling his eyes. "Just watch out for Kagome, alright? And if I ever catch wind of you even thinking about hurting her, I'll be back to kick your ass so fast it'll knock the dog stench off your ancestors!"

He grinned wolfishly, tossing a wave to Kagome. She only just managed to lift her hand to wave in return when a gale kicked up, forcing her to shield her eyes. When the wind subsided, Kouga was gone.

Kagome pushed back the hair that had fallen into her eyes, looking after him. She reached out, grabbing Inuyasha's sodden haori as a bittersweet mixture of heartache and closure swept over her. Inuyasha ceased swearing under his breath, glancing at her.

"Kagome?"

"Sorry," she murmured, lifting her free hand to swipe at her eyes. "I just...I'm glad we could be friends in the end. He really is a good person."

Inuyasha glanced from her to the place where Kouga had just been, some of the irritation leaving his expression. His arm tightened around her, pressing her close.

"...Yeah."

The sun was beginning to set as they departed Kouga's temporary residence which Kagome was thankful for as it made sneaking back to the Dairi easier. Inuyasha was in no fit state to be seen as even after shaking himself thoroughly he still looked like a soggy mess, and Kagome wanted to avoid encountering any further courtiers lest they be able to detect the change in her scent as Kouga had so easily done.

Inuyasha attempted to assure her that only youkai like himself and Kouga who both had strong noses and knew her scent well would be able to smell any difference, but this did not stop her from chastising him for most of the ride on his back back to the Dairi for failing to warn her.

She insisted he drop her off at the Chūgū's residence that she might bathe and put in an appearance so that the servants there would not grow worried. Inuyasha reluctantly agreed after she made it clear she was not budging on the matter, departing to head back to his own chambers.

The servants greeted her return warmly, asking if they could prepare for her her sleeping clothes or a meal if she had not yet eaten. She surprised them by asking for a bath to be readied instead.

It was late in the day, after all, and she usually despised the fuss that bathing in the court entailed. Still they went to work readily on preparing it for her and it was not long before she was sinking into the perfumed waters.

The women made idle talk as they helped to wash her and Kagome was careful to let slip that she had spent the previous night at the Tachibana residence lest rumors begin to grow up around her absence. She had a number of acquaintances among the Tachibana beyond Sango and it did not seem too far-fetched that she should be asked to stay the night there.

The mention of the clan did stir an ache in her, though, and suddenly it felt as if it had been ages since she had last seen her friend rather than the matter of a few weeks.

The servants seemed to see the shift in her mood and doubled their efforts, complimenting her skin and hair and alluding lightly to the successes Chūsei had already had in securing servants willing to participate in the selection of the appointments. Kagome thanked them, but could not entirely draw herself back from the nagging worry of what might be happening to her friends outside the court at that very moment.

At last when they deemed her clean enough, they allowed her to exit the bath and escorted her to her chambers to finish getting her ready for bed. One of the women began the process of combing through and drying her hair while another brought food for the evening meal.

Kagome thanked her profusely, realizing at the sight of the food exactly how hungry she was. She invited the women to join her in eating and after a bit of wheedling managed to get them to accept, the three of them conversing until darkness had settled in fully. It reminded her very much of times she had spent with Sango doing much the same, the feeling at once comforting and somewhat lonely.

When it was dark enough that lanterns would need to be lit for them to continue, the women begged off, asserting that Kagome needed to rest. She echoed the sentiment back to them, thanking them both once more for indulging her before settling in to her futon.

She lay there for what seemed a long stretch of time, tired but unable to drift off. The wind whispered just outside of her window and she shifted to a more comfortable position, hoping the sound might lull her.

"Psssst, Kagome!"

Her eyes popped open. So, not the wind, then.

She sat up, her gaze going to the single high window of her chambers. The light of the moon edged a familiar silhouette there, illuminating just enough of his silver hair and inhuman ears to leave her certain.

"Inuyasha? What are you-?"

"C'mere!" he hissed, sticking a hand through the rounded opening and reaching it out to her.

"You realize this is getting ridiculous, right?" she sighed even as she rose to go to him.

"Just hurry up!" he said, beckoning impatiently. "I've got something you need to see!"

"Is everything alright?" she said, a flicker of worry curling through her.

"It's fine," he said, grasping her hand as she stretched it up to reach his. "Hold on. I'll pull you up."

He tugged her up until he could grasp her shoulders, helping her to slip through. He caught her by the waist on the other side, their feet still hanging above the ground of the garden as he used one hand to hold them suspended. As soon as she was through he allowed them to fall, his legs taking both of their weight easily as he landed.

He shifted her weight, looping his free arm under her knees to carry her more easily. Instinctively she wrapped both arms around his neck to stabilize herself, and she noticed he had switched out his usual haori in favor of just his suikan. Likely it was hanging out somewhere to dry after the soaking it had taken that afternoon.

Inuyasha's nose twitched and she heard a faint sniffing. He wrinkled his nose, frowning.

"You smell...clean," he said as if the word somehow offended him.

"That is the point of a bath," she returned archly,

clinging more tightly as he crouched before springing to bring them up and over the outer wall of the Chūgū's residence.

He grumbled something that she decided she was better off not hearing. One of his forelocks tickled her nose as his momentum blew it across her face and she reached out to grasp it, tugging lightly.

"Where are we going?" she asked. A faint grin flickered at the edge of his mouth.

"Just wait and see," he said with barely concealed excitement.

A few more bounds brought them to the roof of a building just off of the walkway that led the rest of the way to his chambers. He ran along the roof, skirting the walkway and his chambers.

Behind his chambers was a large garden that Kagome had never seen before. Winding stone pathways, bridges arching artfully over ponds, and lush greenery seemed to stretch on for a small eternity before her. Kagome drew in a breath, dazzled at the sight it made cloaked in shadow and caressed by the soft light of the stars.

"It's beautiful, Inuyasha," she breathed, her eyes widening.

The hanyou's grin widened, fangs glinting in the starlight as they peaked over his lower lip.

"Just wait," he said, eyes bright as they sought out his destination.

After several more moments a large tree, comparable almost in size to the Goshinboku, came into view. It occupied the furthest corner of the vast garden, its expansive branches casting the area into deep shadow. Inuyasha leapt, alighting nimbly on one of the thicker branches.

Setting her down carefully, he squatted beside her and pointed downward into the darkness near the base of the tree.

"You see it?"

Kagome squinted, leaning forward to peer down at the spot he had indicated. He placed a hand on her shoulder, steadying her. It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust, but a vague shape soon emerged.

"Is that...a building?" she said.

She felt more than saw him nod, his hair brushing lightly over her shoulder.

"Servant's quarters," he said, as much pride in his voice as if he had constructed the building himself. "Or at least it was. It was abandoned awhile back when they built a larger one and then everyone forgot about it when this tree got so big that it hid it."

"How did you know it was here?" Kagome asked, turning her head enough to see him.

Some of the excitement drained from his expression. He lifted his shoulders in a small shrug.

"After my mother left, every now and then some asshole relative would get the bright idea to try and move the bastard son of the Tennō into the Dairi," he said lowly, his gaze sliding away from hers. "Usually to try and catch my old man's attention or something. Never worked, and I'd usually just end up hiding out here until I could get out again."

"Oh," Kagome said softly.

She reached out, placing a gentle hand on the side of his face. The glow of the moon reflected in his eyes as they flicked back to hers, the gold there made almost liquid by the light. She met his gaze steadily, hoping he could see there the feeling she was not quite sure how to put to words.

The corner of his lips quirked up and she was sure that somehow he did.

"It's alright," he said.

"It's not," she replied. "But thank you for sharing it with me. What made you think of this place all of the sudden?"

His former grin resurfaced, a hint of pride in the way his chin tilted up.

"You wanted a solution," he said. "Well, I found you one."

He gestured to the barely visible building, eyeing her as if expecting a sudden outpouring of praise. She looked from it to him, confusion furrowing her brow.

"Solution?" she echoed, the word faintly apologetic.

He deflated instantly, even his ears drooping. A scowl surfaced to cover the disappointment and he sat back on the branch with a huff.

"'You realize this is getting ridiculous, right?'" he said in taunting falsetto, pressing a hand to his face histrionically. "'If we carry on like this we'll be found out, Inuyasha!' That! This is the solution to all that!"

She blinked, feeling her mouth drop open slightly.

"Was that supposed to be me?" she said. "I do not sound like that!"

"You're missing the point!" Inuyasha snapped. "This is it! This can be our place!"

She frowned, choosing to let slide for the moment the unflattering imitation. She could find another time to get revenge for that slight.

"But we would still both have to sneak out of our residences every night," she pointed out. "And sneak back in each morning. We're bound to be noticed by the guards or the servants, coming and going at odd times like that."

Inuyasha shook his head.

"Not with this place," he said. "There's a door in the back of my chamber that leads out into these gardens. The guards would never even know I was gone. And you see the wall around the garden? There's this tiny opening there that leads into the garden of a residence on the other side. I think the servants used to use that, too, but it would be easy for you to go out into the garden and come through."

"But I would have to sneak all the way from my residence and into that person's garden," Kagome said. "If anything, that would be worse."

Inuyasha shook his head.

"The place is empty," he said. "Used to be for foreign emissaries, but now…well, you know. I'll have you moved in there. Problem solved."

"You don't think people will find it strange?" Kagome pressed. "Having me moved like that again?"

Inuyasha shrugged.

"What for?" he said. "They already know you're my closest advisor. Is it that strange that I'd move you closer to make things easy?"

Kagome's eyes widened slightly. A flicker of pleasure curled through at the easy admission on his part. She leaned toward him, a shy grin playing about her lips.

"Closest advisor?"

Inuyasha flushed faintly, glowering at her.

"Yeah, yeah," he huffed. "Don't let it go to your head, wench."

Kagome's smile widened, but she decided to let him off without further comment. Her gaze slid back down to the shadowy outline of the building below them, scarcely larger than the huts of her village, as she considered what he had laid out.

She had to concede that he seemed to have put a good deal of thought into the matter. The new arrangement would allow them to move more freely without drawing the notice of their guards or the servants and would prevent him from having to dismiss his guards entirely to hide her movements.

She could not help but think that there would still be raised brows and fluttering fans at her being moved into even closer proximity to the Tennō, but most people did now seem to acknowledge her position relative to his, so perhaps not so many as there might once have been.

It was not the ideal situation, not by far. But it would give them a place, a way to maintain this fragile footing they had found with one another. And she realized suddenly that for that she was more than willing to bear all the rest.

Kagome nodded to herself.

"Alright," she said, turning her gaze to meet his. "This place is ours, then."

The unguarded joy that lit his features then was worth anything. An answering smile stretched inexorably across her face, a small laugh bubbling over.

He leaned forward, catching the sound with his lips against hers. She smiled into the kiss, her arms twining about his neck as she leaned into it.

They had a place.

They spent their first night in the place that night at Inuyasha's insistence. She was grateful to find that he had had at least enough time to smuggle a futon into the place, though, he admitted slightly shamefacedly, not much time to do anything else to prepare it.

Consequently a film of dust still covered most of the three small rooms that made up the entirety of the place, cobwebs glittering here and there throughout the room like ghosts.

Tucked against the warmth of Inuyasha's body, Kagome could not much bring herself to care.

The sensation of being gathered up and lifted half-roused her at some point. Blinking blearily at the face above hers, she realized that it was Inuyasha and he seemed to be taking her somewhere.

The placid grey light of pre-dawn filled the sky outside as he stepped out of the ramshackle building, and it occurred to her that he must be taking her back to the Chūgū's residence.

He glanced down at her as she began to stir in his arms, a faint frown creasing his brow. He murmured something about her going back to sleep, shifting her to rest more comfortably in his arms.

She nodded, already feeling herself beginning to slip back down into sleep's warm embrace as his carefully even pace lulled her. Her eyes slid shut and in a few moments she was gone.

The next thing Kagome was aware of was a strange sudden chill, the sensation akin almost to having been enveloped in freezing water. She gasped, coming abruptly to full wakefulness in the hanyou's embrace.

Her gaze darted rapidly about, taking in her surroundings and absorbing the fact that she and Inuyasha were no longer moving. After a moment she realized that they were in the garden just outside of her chambers, but there was no sign of whatever it was that had disturbed her.

She had turned to ask Inuyasha if he had felt it, as well, when a gale kicked up around her strong enough that she was nearly lifted out of his arms. The feel of it was like ice pelting her skin, so bitingly cold that she yelped.

The whooshing of the wind in her ears was so loud that it drowned out all else. After a moment, though, the sound seemed to resolve itself into something else. Into words carried like whispers along the breeze.

We need to talk. Come find me. You know where.

And then the wind was gone, simply ceasing as if it had never been.

Inuyasha clutched her to himself, eyes darting about the garden in search of an enemy. Failing to find one, his gaze slid to her.

"What in the seven hells was that?" he said.

Kagome blinked, frowning. She brought a hand to her ear, the skin there still chilled.

"I think I am being summoned," she said. "Kagura-sama wants to speak to me."

Inuyasha's eyes went wide, brows jumping almost to his hairline. His lips drew back in the beginnings of a snarl.

"The Taira woman? The shit just now was her?"

Kagome nodded, shifting enough that he was forced to put her down. She eyed the sky, the grey of it lightening rapidly as dawn approached.

"I should hurry and go while it is still dark out," she said. "I imagine she called me now to avoid being seen as much as possible."

Inuyasha reached out, grabbing her arm..

"You can't be fucking serious," he snapped. "You told me yourself that that woman works for Naraku! And what, she sends you a little windstorm and you go running to check on her?"

Kagome frowned, attempting to pry her arm from his grasp with little success.

"She told me herself that she works for Naraku, remember?" she snapped. "And she wouldn't risk herself by calling for me if it was not something important. I have met with her before and it was fine. Just let me-"

"Let you what?" the hanyou snarled. "Let you run headfirst into a trap? Naraku could be pulling her strings, forcing her to lure you in!"

Kagome paused, the truth of the words nettling her. It could very well be a trap. Perhaps Naraku has learned of their previous meeting somehow and was now forcing Kagura's hand.

She frowned, biting her lower lip. There was also the chance that Kagura genuinely was in trouble

and needed her help. If that was the case then she could not simply leave her to whatever cruelty Naraku might inflict on her.

She eyed Inuyasha. His jaw was set stubbornly, every line of his face telling her he had no intention of budging on this. Kagome knew she would never be able to get past him. Perhaps, though, she did not have to.

"Then come with me," she said. "If it is a trap, she will only be expecting me, right? It will be much harder for her to do anything if you're there. And if it's not a trap...well, I doubt she'll be thrilled about you being there, but we can figure that out."

His eyes narrowed as he considered this, his scowl easing into a frown. He nodded.

"Fine," he said. "But if there's even a hint of something about to go wrong, I'm pulling you out of there, got it?"

Kagome nodded, eager to get going before they lost fully the cover of darkness. She moved around him, pressing at one of his shoulders until he bent low enough for her to situate herself on his back.

"Let's go," she said, gripping his shoulders.

He lowered himself obediently into a crouch, body tensing beneath her as he prepared to spring. Mid-launch he stumbled, tottering forward a few awkward steps.

"Uh...where exactly are we going?" he said.

"Oh…"

She frowned, realizing that Kagura had not actually said where she was to be found. The youkai woman seemed to think that she would know where it was, though. If it concerned the two of them, that really left only one place.

"I think I know. We're going to Naraku's place."

"The place reeks," Inuyasha said lowly, grimacing as the stink of it hit him. The scent was a hard one to place, but it was something like hatred and decay. Like a battlefield. Like the passing of a man not ready to die.

Kagome slipped down from his back, moving towards the small opening in the low wall. As convoluted as her memory was of how she had gotten here the first time, it had been no small feat to find it again. Thankfully between what she could recall and Inuyasha's ability to cover ground quickly it had not taken them too long.

"It used to be Naraku's place," Kagome said by way of reply. "Back when he lived here in the court. At least that's what Kagura-sama said the last time that we were here."

His scowl deepened, his ears going back against his head.

"Then why in the seven hells would she want to meet here?" he said.

"Perhaps because he despises the place," came a voice from just beyond the wall. "Perhaps because he cannot bear the thought of his past weakness, and so he abandons it. Or perhaps I simply enjoy reliving my past torments over and over again. Who knows?"

Emerging from behind the wall, Kagura crossed her arms over her chest as she considered them both through narrowed eyes. She slipped her closed fan out from the depths of one of her trailing crimson sleeves, bringing it up to tap almost threateningly just beneath her pursed lips.

"You brought your pet dog to sick on me," she drawled, sliding the fan open. "How cute. Very well. If it is a fight you came for-"

Youki flared in Kagome's spiritual sight, coiling around the fan in Kagura's hand. Behind her she felt Inuyasha tense. She threw out an arm to hold him back.

"We did not come here seeking a fight," she said. "I swear it. Inuyasha-I mean, the Tennō-sama was merely wary of a trap and wanted to make sure I would be safe. Can you blame his Majesty after all that you have told me?"

Kagura seemed to consider this, her gaze sliding slowly between them. She quirked a dark brow, her eyes narrowing.

"He knows, then?" she said.

Kagome nodded.

"I have told his Majesty everything you told me of Naraku," she said carefully. "His Majesty deserved to know. He was a victim in this, as well."

She hoped that Kagura was sharp enough to pick up on the bit she was omitting. She had told Inuyasha nothing of Kagura's involvement with his older brother, the circumstance which had led to their meeting in the first place.

Some of the sharp edge eased out of the youkai woman's expression and Kagome was relieved to see she had indeed caught her meaning. After a moment her fan snapped shut.

"Very well," she said. "I suppose it works in my favor, as this matter concerns the both of you to a degree. Just know that should you choose to attempt it, I will not be so easy to kill as you might hope."

She turned, disappearing behind the wall in a faint whisper of silken layers.

Inuyasha and Kagome looked to one another. He nodded, hand wrapping warily about the hilt of Tessaiga as he moved to follow Kagura. Kagome went after him, both stepping into the small plot of overgrown grass and weeds that culminated in the dilapidated shack near which Kagura waited.

She settled herself on the rotting wood of the porch with as much grace as if it were a throne, the layers of her juni-hito drifting and arranging themselves as if guided by some preternatural wind.

"Allow me to start us off," she said, her gaze measuring as it slid over each of them in turn. "Consider it a trade of sorts. I offer up a piece of information in the hope that you will reciprocate in turn."

She paused, eyes narrowing as she cocked her head slightly to one side. She lifted her closed fan, using it to gesture between them.

"This," she said. "Naraku is aware of it. I do not think he yet is aware that the two of you are intimately involved, but he knows enough of your relationship to want to use it against you. Be on your guard."

A smirk curled up the edges of Kagura's lips as Inuyasha and Kagome both blanched. Kagome felt as if her stomach had dropped out from its proper place, a chill worse by far than Kagura's earlier windstorm racing across her flesh. Inuyasha's eyes had gone wide, his grip on the Tessaiga white-knuckled.

"How...how did you…?"

"Know?" Kagura finished for her. "Well, the part about the two of you already being intimately involved was more of a guess until right now. As to the to the two of you being in love-"

"We're not!" Kagome snapped hurriedly, almost reflexively. "I mean, it isn't...things are not like that between us."

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Inuyasha's gaze shift to her. She fought the urge to meet it, her hands clenching at her sides as she willed herself to be still. To not not feel it or betray herself. Still she could feel his gaze on her face for long moments, could see enough to watch his shoulders sink. She bit her lip.

"Is that so?" Kagura drawled, her red gaze fixed closely on the hanyou's face. "Well, whatever you wish to call it, Naraku has been aware of the closeness between you since your guard dog here abandoned everything to rush to your aid when Akago had you. He has asked me to keep an eye on you, though he has made no mention as of yet of what he intends to do. I can only advise that you be on your guard."

"And what of you?" Kagome said, forcing her gaze up to meet the other woman's. "What of what you know? How do we know you will not try to use it against us?"

Shrugging lightly, Kagura spread her hands open before her.

"Short of locking me away, you have no way of knowing that I won't," she said. "All I can give you is my word that I have no plans to use it or to share it with Naraku. It would go entirely against my own interests to do so, after all, and even you can understand that self-interest is a great motivator."

"And how exactly does it go against your interests?" Inuyasha broke in. "Before today the only thing I've ever seen you try to do is stir shit up. How's this any different?"

Kagome glanced at him, the genuine anger in his voice catching her off guard. Fangs bared, his eyes bored into the woman. Kagura returned his look, her brows arching.

"Such language," she said, pressing a hand to her chest with feigned indignation. "And you had been doing so well as of late, too. Well, as I am certain your lover has already informed you, much of what I have done has been at Naraku's behest. If I wanted to continue living, I had to do as he said."

"Then what's changed?" he challenged. "Because from where I'm standing it looks like a lot of the same bullshit."

Kagura's look sobered. Her gaze fell to her fan where she twisted it idly between pale, slender fingers.

"You," she said after a moment. "The both of you are what has changed. I was free once, more free than anyone. For a long time I thought I could never be free again, and so I resigned myself to doing the bidding of a man I despised above all others."

"But in the both of you I finally see a way out, a chance to be free once more. You have the potential, you've gathered enough strength to stand a chance of opposing him. And you are a fool if you think I will not grasp at any chance with both hands. I will either be free or I will die trying for it. There is nothing else for me now."

"Then you're using us," Inuyasha said, though some of the edge had gone out of his expression.

"I am," she said without flinching. "But we share an enemy, one that any of us on our own stands little chance of defeating. You want to protect your lands? Your precious miko? Well, I have things that I want to protect, as well. And keep in mind, were it not for me, neither or you would have any idea of what it is that circles you like a carrion crow."

Inuyasha's scowl deepened. Kagome reached out, placing a gentle hand on his forearm. He glanced at it, unable to lift his eyes to her face.

"Kagura-sama is right," she said softly. "She was under no obligation to tell me anything. And if we can all band together to beat Naraku, isn't it worth at least hearing her out?"

His jaw clenched, mistrust written clearly in the deepening lines around his mouth. At last he huffed out a breath, shaking his head.

"Fine," he bit out. "Let's hear it. What is it that you want from us?"

"It is simple enough for the time being," Kagura replied. "The time for the appointments is drawing near, correct? When it does come, I need you to select myself, Kanna, and Byakuya from among the Taira. Well, in truth I could do without Byakuya, but to leave him out would be to raise Naraku's suspicions. I need him to believe that Byakuya is keeping an eye on me."

Kagome frowned, considering this.

"What advantage is it to you that you and Kanna-sama be selected?" she said warily. "If anything, would not Naraku benefit from having you so close to us?"

"Precisely," Kagura said, her fan sliding open with a snap. "Naraku will see himself gaining the advantage. He will think that you have allowed spies into your midst who will report back to him."

"But I will be free of the prying eyes of my clan-or most of them, at least. Enough that I can feed him misinformation without him noticing. Moreover, I will be close enough to warn you of whatever he might reveal to me without drawing suspicion down on myself."

"And what about the other two?" Inuyasha asked.

"Kanna I have plans for," Kagura said. "Though it is difficult to know with her if she will heed them.

At the very least she will not actively go against me. Byakuya...well, he will be an inconvenience, but as I said he is necessary to Naraku believing that I remain obedient. I should be able to work around him. So, what do you say?"

Kagome and Inuyasha looked to one another, each trying to gauge the other's thoughts. Kagura sighed.

"You do not have to decide right now," she said. "Talk it over amongst yourselves if you must. Only consider this: if I am lying, what real harm have you done yourselves? You place me in closer proximity and you know to keep your eyes on me. But if I am telling the truth, you stand to gain a great deal from the alliance."

Kagome glanced from Kagura back to Inuyasha, hesitating. It was difficult to find fault with Kagura's argument, but looming behind it was the ever-present specter that was Naraku's control of the woman.

Kagome could believe the woman was in earnest in all of this-or as much in earnest as someone could be who had only known coercion and manipulation for so long a time-wbut what if Naraku was to find her out? In an instant she could again be made into a tool to hurt herself, or worse, Inuyasha.

But could they afford to turn down a chance to gain an advantage over Naraku?

And could she live with herself if she looked into the face of someone who was so clearly struggling for her life and turned away? Could she live knowing that she could have done something and fear had stilled her hand?

"I think we should do it," Kagome said softly.

Inuyasha's ears twitched, his eyes widening as he met her look. His eyes searched hers as if trying to follow the line of her thoughts.

"She's a victim in all of this, too," she said. "Can we truly just abandon her to whatever Naraku might do if we have a chance to do otherwise?"

The line of his mouth tightened for an instant, his hands flexing at his sides. Quickly it eased, though, his eyes darkening with something like resignation.

"Fine," he said. "But we don't turn our backs on her ever, understand?"

Kagome nodded, offering him a small smile of gratitude.

"Then it is settled," said Kagura, drawing their attention back to her. "Until Naraku can be destroyed, we are allies. Beyond that…"

Kagura trailed off, but the words she had not spoken hung heavy between the three of them. Beyond that there was only uncertainty because there was no way of knowing if there was a beyond for any or all of them.

Still, for better or worse, they were allies.

Shortly after the agreement was reached the three decided it was best to part ways. The sun was climbing rapidly into the sky and none of them wished to risk discovery. Thus the meeting dissolved with promises that they would be in communication should anything change before the time came to announce the appointments.

Hardly a word passed between Inuyasha and Kagome as he carried them back to the Dairi, each struggling to sort through the tangle of their thoughts. To Kagome it seemed she had barely blinked before he was setting her down in the garden just outside of her chambers.

He explained that he had a Council meeting and several other matters that he had to deal with, so he would likely not see her for the rest of the day. Lifting her up and through the window back into her chambers, he ordered her to try and get some rest before departing.

Though Kagome would have liked nothing more in that moment than to comply, she found that she was unable to. The buzzing of her thoughts was simply too loud.

After a few abortive attempts to sort herself

out, she decided a trip to the Chūwain might be best. A little quiet and meditation would do her well.

She dressed herself and set out, letting the servants know as she went that she would not be needing breakfast. They chided her lightly for skipping meals again, but thankfully allowed her to go off without too much fuss beyond that. She greeted her guard where they waited outside of her residence and the three of them were off.

The sky outside had grown dark and still with the promise of rain. Kagome was grateful for it, not only because the cool air helped to soothe her but also because the threat of rain kept many of the courtiers indoors. She was able to make it to the steps of the Chūwain without encountering another soul.

Halfway up the stairs, though, she heard one of her guards mutter a curse, stumbling a step. She reached out, assuring herself that the guard was uninjured before turning to look for the source of the slip.

A little girl, no older perhaps than eight if Kagome were to hazard a guess, sat rubbing her shoulder on the step below them. What was visible of her face through the matted tangle of her dark hair was deeply begrimed, dirt clinging to her like a second skin. Her robes were of the rough material of a servant, the color hard to distinguish beneath the layers of dust that covered them.

She turned her gaze up, wide brown eyes blinking owlishly up at Kagome. At the sight of the three of them she bolted up, quickly enough for the curtain of her hair to lift and reveal a mottled bruise on the ridge of one of her cheeks.

She dipped in a series of apologetic bows to them before racing ahead up the steps. Kagome called out after her, concerned at the rough look of her, but the little girl either ignored or did not hear her. Within the span of several moments she had disappeared up over the top of the stairs.

At the top Kagome looked for her again, but she was nowhere to be found. After she and her guards had completed the purification ritual, she stopped a passing disciple of the temple to ask if he might have seen her.

The man said he had not seen her that day, but that there had been several sightings matching Kagome's description spread out over the last few weeks among the disciples. No one was quite certain what the little girl was doing there as it was rare to catch more than a glimpse of her before she skittered off. Nor was she among the servants who were in dedicated service to the Chūwain, making her frequent presence there all the more strange.

Kagome thanked him for the information, puzzling it over to herself. She tried searching the grounds for a bit longer in the hopes she might cross paths with the little girl again, but her efforts were in vain. At length she resolved to ask Midoriko if she might keep an eye out for her.

After taking up her usual spot in Amaterasu's pagoda, she settled in to meditate for a time. The atmosphere of the place helped to soothe her as it always did, allowing her to refocus herself after the strangeness of the morning.

Even after Kagura had told her of Naraku, she had never expected that the woman would go so far as to actively seek to destroy him. For someone in Kagura's position it was an exceedingly dangerous game to play, one that might very well end in the loss of her life.

Still, she was willing to play it. She was willing to risk everything to regain her freedom. Kagome could not help but think that it was partly to do with the inu-youkai being held only several buildings away from her.

Whatever her reasons, Kagome felt with a kind of bone-deep certainty that their best chance of finding and defeating Naraku lay in them banding together. She was still uncomfortable with the knowledge that Kagura knew more of her and Inuyasha's relationship than she would wish, but she had seen enough to know that Kagura had a kind of honor all her own. Kagome knew that so long as she kept the secret of Kagura's feelings, her own sense of honor would compel Kagura to do the same.

Naraku, on the other hand...she shuddered to think that he might suspect something of the relationship between Inuyasha and herself. He had already proven himself adept at manipulating the feelings of those around him-Kagura's, Inuyasha's father's, even her own when he had targeted her village-but that she might be used against Inuyasha...the thought left her cold.

She and Inuyasha would need to be on their guard now more than ever to keep from being discovered. Thankfully Kagura at least would not be feeding him that information any longer.

With the tangle of her thoughts set in order, Kagome thanked Amaterasu and ended her meditations for the day. Finding that she had a good deal of daylight left, she decided to join Midoriko out in the court. The disciple from earlier had informed her that she was out visiting the Michinaga residence where a few people had fallen ill, and Kagome thought she might be able to lend a hand there.

Gathering her guard, she set out.

Kagome spent the remainder of the day assisting Midoriko with a number of healings and blessings throughout the court. The work was satisfying for a number of reasons, not the least of which was being able to help people in much the same way she once had in her village.

It also allowed her to ease some of the burden on Midoriko, though the elder miko insisted she should concern herself more with her own health than hers. Kagome dismissed this out of hand, the simple work hardly tiring her in the least.

It also allowed her to interact with the courtiers in a different manner than she was accustomed to, one that was far less formal. It allowed her to see their lives outside of the court meetings and social events, to see them as people who loved and worried for those around them as much as the people of her village did. It was a welcome sight.

Late in the day the rain that had been threatening at last began to fall. Kagome and Midoriko were forced to part ways, Kagome promising to come out to assist her again soon and Midoriko promising that she would be on the lookout for the little girl Kagome had encountered near the Chūwain.

Upon returning to the Chūgū's residence, Kagome found the place in a flurry of activity. One of the servants informed her that they had received orders to have her moved to a residence closer to the Tennō's.

Kagome was slightly surprised at how quickly Inuyasha had set the move in motion, some part of her having thought it would take at least a few days. Still, she could not help the pleased flutter that darted through her.

She followed some of the servants moving things out of the Chūgū's residence to the new one, grabbing a parasol to help shield them from the rain as they navigated the paths of the Dairi. She attempted to convince them to hold off until the rain had passed, but they would hear none of it and instead tried to persuade her to retire to the residence. Kagome was their equal in stubbornness, though, and followed them back and forth until they at last decided to stop for the night.

Kagome was relieved when they did, her clothes soaked despite the parasol. A couple of the female servants were quick to strip her clothes from her, insisting on preparing tea and a hot bath to warm her. Kagome submitted to their attentions, requesting that food be brought, as well, as her stomach reminded her in no uncertain terms that she had yet to eat anything.

After the meal and the bath she went to her new chambers, eager to explore a bit. The room was slightly smaller than her previous one, but if anything the more compact space suited her. Too much space often made her feel uneasy, as if she were sleeping out in the open.

The new room also had the advantage of multiple shoji, allowing her more freedom of movement. One of the shoji in particular opened out onto a small walkway leading into a well ordered garden, something Kagome was particularly pleased to find.

She realized also that it must be the garden that Inuyasha had mentioned the previous night. Kagome crept out into it, sliding the shoji closed carefully behind her to avoid making any noise.

The rain had ceased by that point, leaving the paths beneath her feet damp and thick with mud. She hitched her sleeping yukata as high up as she could to avoid dirtying it, fumbling about as well as she could in the dark.

At last she made it to the low wall that surrounded the garden, reaching out to slide a hand along the cool stone of it in search of an opening. It did not take long for her to discover it, an overgrown bush concealing the small opening.

Kagome wriggled through it, elated to find on the other side of it the place from the night before. Their place.

As her eyes adjusted she could make out a shadowy figure sitting cross-legged on the porch. She hurried forward to meet him, a smile lighting her features.

"Inuyasha!" she said, careful to keep her voice quiet just in case. "It worked!"

The hanyou shifted where he sat, half-rising to meet her before he stopped. He crossed his arms over his chest, his expression shuttered.

"Took you awhile," he said, "I thought you might not come."

Kagome paused, frowning.

"Why wouldn't I?"

Inuyasha's gaze slid away from hers. He seemed to hesitate, his ears swiveling back to pin against his head.

"What you said to that Taira woman…" he muttered, almost too lowly for her to hear.

He trailed off, eyes darting about as if in search of the rest of the words. Kagome watched him, a sinking feeling growing in her stomach. At length he groaned, shaking his head.

"Forget it," he snapped, spinning on his heel. "Let's just go to bed already."

He pushed past the moth-eaten entryway hanging of the small hut, leaving it swinging in his wake. Kagome blinked, her frown deepening as she moved to follow him.

"Are you sure you're alright?" she asked as she pushed past the hanging, pausing to slide off her muddied slippers near the entryway. "Did something happen with the Council?"

Inuyasha glanced at her from where he had thrown himself down atop the futon, sprawling there on his side with one hand supporting his head. She half-noticed that he had finished cleaning out the place, all hints of dust swept clean and a few new items scattered throughout. It had a certain coziness to it.

"I just thought…" he said, drawing her full attention back to him. "I thought that...we-"

He cut himself off, his eyes searching her face. After a moment he looked away.

"...Yeah," he said quietly. "It was the Council. Bunch of bastards."

Kagome moved to kneel beside him on the futon. She wanted to reach out to him, but something kept her hands planted firmly in her lap.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" she asked softly.

"Yeah," he said. "I want to. But I won't. Not yet."

He reached out, tugging her down to rest beside him before Kagome could make much sense of the cryptic statement. He tucked her head beneath his chin, his body curling protectively about her own.

A part of Kagome wanted to press him on this, to demand some sort of an explanation. Another part of her quailed at the thought of walking down that path, one that could lead to anything or nothing at all.

And so she lay silent within the cage of her own indecision until at last the steady pulse of his heart beneath her ear dragged her under.

Kagome awoke the next morning to find herself back in her new chambers, tucked snugly into her futon. The warmth of the rising sun slid gently across her face as she lay there for long moments, trying to muddle through how she had gotten there.

She could only conclude that Inuyasha must have moved her at some point early in the morning, so carefully that she had not even stirred. Truly this new arrangement was far superior to all of their previous fumblings around. She smiled to herself, the thought that they might really be able to maintain this delicate balance warming her.

"O-Miko-sama?" came a voice from behind the shoji that led into the inner hallways of the residence.

Kagome blinked, forcing herself to sit up. From what she could tell from the light against the shoji, she had slept in a bit later than she was accustomed to. Likely this was her call to begin her day.

"Please enter," she called, running a perfunctory hand over her sleep-mussed hair to settle it.

The figure behind the shoji bowed before sliding it open. She stepped into the room before lowering herself to bow once more.

"My apologies for waking you, O-Miko-sama," she said. "But there is a messenger here for you from the Chūwain. He insisted that you would want to be made aware as soon as possible."

"Be made aware of what?" Kagome asked. "Is something the matter?"

The servant woman hesitated, shaking her head after a moment.

"Nothing like that, I think," she said. "Or at least nothing that he said. Only...his message is a little odd."

"Odd how?" Kagome said, frowning.

"Well...it seems that you are being summoned," the woman said hesitantly. "...By Sesshoumaru-sama."

Kagome blinked, her eyes growing wide. Slowly a grin stretched across her face.

It was finally time.

That's all for now, friends. I hope you enjoyed it! Leave a comment if you feel so inclined (I promise you that they are invaluable to me and just make me so, so happy) and if not I hope you enjoyed the read.

Also, it seems that some kind soul out there nominated this story for Best Action in the Feudal Connection for Quarter Three! Thank you to whichever one of you angels it was! Voting will take place between July 29th and August 12th, and the links to vote can be found on the feudalconnection Tumblr page. So cast your votes and find a few awesome new stories/pieces of fan art on the nominees list!

As always if you have any questions/concerns, please feel free to send me a PM.

Until next time,

E-n-B