A disturbance rippled through the 'mon during a training session some months after, something super-sensory that no human could feel. Kagome called a halt and listened as they all tried to tell her at once what was disturbing them, then recalled all but Sesshoumaru.

"Let's go," she said, and swung her backpack onto her back before jumping onto Sesshoumaru's, her thighs around his hips as he took off at speeds impossible for any other 'mon and that nearly left Kagome breathless – simply because it was so physically hard to breathe when moving at that speed. Fortunately, she had some practice.

When the land ran out, Sesshoumaru leapt into the air and kept moving. He was forced to slow down a bit though, as the weather became turbulent, unstable, and, to put it simply, so wild it could be called bat-shit-crazy. Sesshoumaru didn't have the powers of Dragonair to calm the weather around him, after all. He simply had to compensate for the buffeting.

Before long, Sesshoumaru had to slow down so that he could manoeuvre around other 'mon that were heading in the same direction. Every sort of bird-type 'mon shared the air-space with them, as did a large array of bug-types that could also fly, and in the water below were water-type 'mon. All of those 'mon, each and every one, was headed in the same direction.

"We left other 'mon behind at the shore as well," Sesshoumaru commented to Kagome as they kept moving.

Kagome nodded in understanding. "This is big," she noted.

He nodded solemnly, and kept moving.

The storm halted, though the waves grew larger, and then the water calmed a little as it started to not merely snow, but to blizzard. Considering that they were headed for (and had almost reached) the tropics, that was a serious issue.

The storm finally calmed as dawn of the next day broke and they passed over one of the islands in the Orange Archipelago, where they bore witness to a worrying sight. Some sort of air-ship was firing upon Articuno, even as Articuno was turning the islands of Fire and Lightning into frozen tundra.

Then Moltres and Zapdos broke free of the airship, and sent it crashing into Lightning Island before promptly taking up issue with Articuno for all the ice she'd spread around. The pecking order had been upset, the territorial bounds over-stepped, and the sky was definitely not a safe place to be.

"Let's go see who crawls out of the ship," Kagome suggested to Sesshoumaru as he dodged a lightning bolt.

Sesshoumaru silently nodded, and started to drop. Controlled free-fall was the fastest way down at this point, so Kagome just held tightly while Sesshoumaru aimed to land near the crash-site.

They managed to land in the back of a boat that held Ash, Misty, Jesse and James of Team Rocket, and two faces that were unfamiliar to Kagome and Sesshoumaru. A boat which was shortly thereafter sent backwards over a waterfall and caught by an inexplicably controlled water-spout that then carried them back to the main island, at which point the boat was roughly launched off.

"Hurry!" one of the unfamiliar faces urged when the boat tilted – backwards off the edge. The inexplicable water-spout hadn't displayed the best aim.

"Well, that was fun," Kagome commented once they were all safely on the snow. Well, Team Rocket was MIA, but that was normal.

"And, you are?" the unfamiliar girl asked.

"This is Kagome," Misty presented happily, "and Sesshoumaru. Kagome, Sesshoumaru, this is Melody," Misty introduced with a gesture to the girl, "who's big-sister's boat just got totalled, and Tracey, a 'mon artist."

"Pleased to meet you both," Kagome said with a smile. Sesshoumaru folded his arms and nodded in silent agreement.

"Take the treasure, and put it there," a new voice said, drawing their attention.

Ash, on his bum in the snow, stared up at the Slowking that stood on the steps above him. "You can... talk," he noted.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu reminded him, and tugged at Ash's vest before running up to a stone shrine.

"Oh right!" Ash agreed, and pulled two glowing balls from his pockets before he got to his feet and hurried after Pikachu, up the shrine steps so that he could place the baubles.

"So, you're Ash," the Slowking said to Ash as he looked over the boy's shoulder into the shrine. "You're one treasure short," he noted.

"Yeah I know but," Ash answered, "how did you know my name?"

That answer, if it had been coming at all, was cut off by the angry cry of the titanic bird-type 'mon that were battling in the sky above them, each trying to lay claim to the sea that surrounded their island homes.

"Kagome, do you think one of your miko chants would work here?" Misty asked with nervous hopefulness.

Kagome didn't get a chance to answer either, as at that moment, the water-spout rose up once more, between an explosion of the collided powers of Moltres and Zapdos and them. Lugia, the legendary 'mon himself, emerged from within.

That... didn't seem to go down too well with the other three that were already battling for control, though it did unite them (for now) against a common foe.

"The guardian of the sea shall rise to quell the fighting," Melody recited, "but alone its song shall fail. Thus the earth shall turn to ash."

"Then he won't be alone," Sesshoumaru growled, and launched himself into the sky.

"Sesshoumaru!" Kagome called out after him, concerned for his safety as he flew towards the battle.

"Uh... how can he do that?" Melody asked, confused as she pointed after him.

"Sesshoumaru is a 'mon," Misty answered with a sigh and a shrug.

"Mew!" Kagome summoned, and threw the pokeball. "Please help!" she begged.

"Oh my gosh that's a Mew," Tracey breathed in awe, eyes wide.

The addition of Sesshoumaru and Mew made it a three-on-three fight though, which gave Lugia some breathing room in the battle, even as thousands of 'mon congregated on the ice, just beyond the outer edges of the battlefield. All concerned, all hoping to be able to assist in some way, all clueless as to how they might actually be able to do so.

Kagome watched too, feeling helpless as she stood on the edge of that cliff with the others, unable to help her 'mon at all. She had every confidence in the world that they would be strong enough to defeat the three great birds, but that didn't stop her worrying about them.

"Kagome?" Misty asked softly, and lay a hand on Kagome's shoulder. "Will Sesshoumaru be able to handle a fight like this?"

"Yeah," Ash agreed. "When he was that massive dog at the finals back at the Indigo League, he could have grabbed Moltres, Zapdos or Articuno between his teeth, not problem. Now he's..."

"Ash!" Misty scolded harshly. "Don't be so insensitive!"

"Sorry," Ash apologised quickly.

Kagome shook her head. "It's alright," she said, forgiving. "Sesshoumaru doesn't have the physical presence he used to but... he is actually stronger now. I just... I love him, so I worry about him. When he was big, I worried about him. Now that he's human-sized and mostly human-shaped, I worry more, because I know how fragile people are," she explained, then shook herself and turned to Ash. "Now, what's this about treasures and being one short?" she asked.

Ash, Misty and Melody quickly explained about the festival that was going on at Melody's home island, how Ash had been selected as that year's "chosen one", what the mission was, how Ash had dived into the whole thing head-first in his usual hard-headed way, and how there was a collector who had caught Moltres and Zapdos once already, and it was his ship that had crashed on Lightning Island.

Ash even dragged Kagome up to the shrine so that she could read the legend/prophecy that was written on the stone tablet above it.

"Thus the world shall turn to..." Kagome read out. "Ash, you're a little more 'chosen' than the locals probably intended," she informed him, wide-eyed and unable to tear her gaze from the tablet.

"What?!" Ash yelped.

"It's not talking about cinders," Kagome said, eyes fixed on the tablet. "It's referring to 'Ash' in the sense of a proper noun, a name, not using it to describe a burned state of being."

"If the earth is going to turn to Ash, then Ash is going to turn to Kagome," Ash answered firmly, his eyes wide with panic. "Training 'mon is tough enough, but saving the world?"

"Prophets don't know everything," Kagome agreed, "but they foresaw you. I'll help, but I get the feeling those little balls won't light up like that for me," Kagome pointed out as she pointed to the treasures that Ash had gathered already.

"They never have... before," Melody agreed from behind them.

~oOo~

"If you've got a need for speed, then the options I've got are Fearow and Rapidash," Kagome said as she and Ash headed down to the frozen-over shoreline. "Mew and Sesshoumaru are clearly occupied, Kadabra's laid up after a bout with Arcanine, Lapras would need the crossing melted in front of her, and Dragonair would attract way too much attention."

"Rapidash," Ash decided with a grim look up to the skies where the battle still raged on. "They'd probably notice Fearow, and there are enough angry bird-types in the sky already."

Kagome nodded shortly and called on her fiery racer.

"Emergency situation," Kagome said as she leapt onto Rapidash's back and pulled Ash with her, though it didn't need to be said. Rapidash could feel it just as clearly as every other 'mon that stood hesitantly at the edges of the battle field. "Ash, hold on tight to me," Kagome advised.

Rapidash took off without needing to be told what direction to take, that was what the bridle around her head was for after all.

Ash made an inarticulate exclamation of shock as the 'mon beneath him lurched into an incredible, ground-eating speed. As they passed beneath the battle, he looked up in fear, desperately hoping that they would go unnoticed.

The great bird-types didn't notice them, at least, not at first. Not until one of Zapdos' attacks – aimed at Lugia – went astray and almost hit them, only to be blocked by Mew at the last second. Then they noticed, and suddenly the race to Ice Island became a gauntlet as the three legendary 'mon started to attack the pair racing on Rapidash's back.

Kagome gathered her miko-ki.

"Ash, take the reigns. Rapidash, you get him where he needs to get," Kagome ordered firmly.

"Kagome what?" Ash asked, wide-eyed as he accepted the reigns. "What are you going to do?"

"Something only a miko can," she answered grimly, and threw herself off Rapidash's back – an act which allowed the 'mon to run even faster, with less weight on her back.

Sesshoumaru caught her before she could hit the ice, a concerned expression on his face.

Kagome kissed his cheek quickly and wiggled to be put down.

Standing on the ice, and with Mew trading places with Sesshoumaru to stand guard (his psychic powers being better for defence than Sesshoumaru's acidic attacks), Kagome brought her hands together and began to chant. It was the same chant that she had used, so long ago, to calm a flock of angry Spearows and send them back to their nests. This time, she had only three 'mon to try and calm, but they were legends, old and powerful, and focused on a battle with other 'mon as much as they were trying to stop Ash and Rapidash from reaching the treasure at Ice Island. It was a different sort of strain.

Regardless, progress was being made. The attacks stopped. Articuno, Moltres and Zapdos still circled angrily, but the attacks stopped. Sesshoumaru left the sky behind to stand by Kagome, on the other side of her to Mew, the pair flanking her like bodyguards. Lugia alone remained above, still working to quell the fighting.

Ash raced past on Rapidash, headed back to the main island.

"Right," Sesshoumaru decided, and scooped up Kagome. He wasn't permitting his lady to stay where there was still a chance of danger any longer, though Kagome kept chanting as he carried her, slowly catching up to Rapidash and finally pulling level.

"I got it!" Ash yelled over to Kagome.

"Good!" Kagome called back, breaking her chant.

But not everything was good. Great triangular metal frames flew at Lugia from Lightning Island, sparking with intent to capture, and the other three took up their battles once more, fighting each other and creating an even greater storm than before as Lugia attacked the crashed airship – and successfully disabled whatever was controlling the capture devices around him – before falling himself, back into the ocean.

Rapidash screamed with surprise as her frozen-over racecourse began to break up. Yes, she could swim (Kagome had made sure of that) and yes, she could jump easily enough, but that didn't mean she liked racing over broken, unstable ground that was melting under her hooves.

"You can do it Rapidash!" Ash urged. "It's just a little bit further before we're on solid ground again!" he promised.

It was true. Rapidash recovered from her shock and closed the remaining distance quickly, for all that her stride had been upset by the changed conditions. She refused to be slowed down any more, and was soon racing up the steps to the shrine, where Melody was already playing the song from the legend, hoping against hope that it would revive Lugia.

Ash set the last treasure in place, and Kagome stepped up to stand beside Melody and start her chanting again.

The tune that Melody played and Kagome's mikonic chant harmonised, and as they came around to the beginning again, the great stone pillars around the shrine started to glow, one pillar corresponding with each note of Melody's tune.

Moltres, Zapdos and Articuno – finally exhausted by their battles – calmed at last to the harmonies being sent out, amplified and echoing out from the centre of the shrine where Melody and Kagome stood. As well as their melody of peace, healing waters of glowing green also flowed out from the altar where Ash had placed the spheres, with no apparent source.

They didn't know that the glowing water was healing at first. It was only when that water washed over Sesshoumaru's feet and he gasped, as it flowed around Rapidash's hooves and she visibly relaxed, as Mew dropped down to splash some over his face before giggling happily, as the water flowed out to the sea and spread the glow there – and Lugia reappeared, strong once more. Then they knew.

Even the storm had calmed and stilled, the clouds breaking to let sunlight through once more.

As the glow spread out, stopped only by the ice and by the shores of the other islands, Moltres, Zapdos and Articuno took to the sky once more, but this time together, as friends, reunited, rather than as fiercely bickering foes.

Eventually, the song was over, the chanting complete, and the group stood together and watched, awed, as five legendary 'mon played together in the sky – Articuno, Lugia, Mew, Moltres, and Zapdos – until the sun began to set and the three titans of fire, ice and lightning returned to their home islands. Mew flew back to where Kagome waited for him, and Lugia followed.

"I thank you," Lugia said, and though his great jaws opened slightly, they all heard him between their ears, rather than with them. Lugia, it seemed, had a few psychic-type skills. "The beast of the sea shall always remember you, who helped him this day." And with that, he turned and dived beneath the surface of the seas once more.

"Mew," Mew chirped to Kagome.

She nodded. "Yeah," she agreed softly, and leant back into Sesshoumaru's embrace contentedly. It had definitely been quite the day.

~oOo~

Of course, Kagome and Sesshoumaru had other adventures together, often in the same places as Ash and Pikachu – and often it was pure chance that saw them all thrown into the same adventure together. For the purposes of this story, however, this is The End.

~The End~