InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Demon's Heart and Ultimate Sacrifice (Kag/Sess) ❯ One Last Night Together ( Chapter 20 )

Miroku held Sango to him tightly. "Sango, Naraku has almost the entire jewel. His power will be immense. I don't believe I could bear to watch you become hurt or worse, doing battle with him."

She looked at him "What are you saying? You don't want me to go?" He looked at her with warmth in his eyes. "I just don't want to see you hurt." She hugged him close to her.

"Miroku, I must go. He still has Kohaku. Even if he didn't, I am a demon exterminator. It is my purpose in life." Miroku let out a small sigh, when she glanced at him she saw a look of pain in his eyes.

"Sango, do you really believe that is your only purpose in life?" She realized that her comment had hurt him. "Miroku, I love you and I want nothing more than to live the rest of my life with you, to have your children. But this has to come first. Naraku brought great pain to many people that I loved. And he still has my brother." He looked at his wife and realized that her mind was made up. "Promise me Sango, that you will try to stay out of harms way." She looked at him and nodded. They held each other, realizing that this might be the last night they spent together.

~-~-~-~-~

Kagome sat holding Rin and Shippou in her arms. The thought that she may not see them again nearly brought tears to her eyes. The children would remain behind with Lady Kaede, who would put up a spiritual barrier around them. She was sitting in Kaede's hut, where she and the children would sleep that night. She sang to them, and finally they were both asleep.

Kagome got up and left to go for a walk and found Sesshoumaru waiting for her. He asked her to come with him and together they walked towards her well.

"Kagome, Naraku will pose a great danger now that he has so much of the jewel. It is likely that not everyone will survive. Rin and Shippou think of you as a mother and need you. It is my wish that you remain here with them."

Kagome turned towards him, "I can't do that, it's my fault that the jewel got broken in the first place. Besides these are my friends, I could never turn my back on them. I would rather die fighting than to sit here and do nothing." Sesshoumaru stopped walking and turned towards Kagome and looked down at her for a moment before speaking.

"I will honor your wish to go, but I will see that you are protected. Naraku will not harm you as long as I am there." Kagome felt a warm feeling in her body. She thanked him and embraced him. This time she was not embarrassed and made no attempt to quickly move away from him. She felt his arm move around her gently but his demeanor remained stiff.

When she pulled back she looked up into his eyes. They were studying her closely with a softness that she hadn't seen in them before. He moved his face closer to hers and spoke to her in a quiet tone. "Why is it that you do not fear me?" She was taken off guard by his question and the curious tone that his voice held. She stood there for a moment and then replied.

"You protect me and have been kind to me. Why would I fear you?" He straightened himself and spoke to her in a more formal tone. "I am a demon. A demon that has tried to kill you and could do so if it was my desire. You should fear me." Kagome looked at him and noted that is words were not threats, but merely the truth.

"I trust you, Lord Sesshoumaru. I feel safe with you. I don't care that you are a demon. I know that you won't hurt me." He nodded slightly and averted his eyes from her. Kagome's words were having an affect on him. Never before had he held such a trust from any being, with the exception of Rin. Though her trust was based on her childish innocence, not something that had been built between them. He motioned for her to follow him. They walked back towards the village and Kagome went back in to sleep with Rin and Shippou. Sesshoumaru returned to his camp, waiting the day that was to come.

~-~-~-~-~

InuYasha was awake before the sun came up. He sat thinking about Naraku and the battle they would be waging with him. He sat deep in thought when he heard his name. He turned to see Kagome walking towards him. She sat in the grass next to him and the two watched the sun rise together.

"InuYasha if something happens to me please go back to my era and let my family know. I can't stand the thought of them worrying about me forever." He turned to her, with tears in his eyes.

"Don't worry; nothing is going to happen to you." Kagome continued to stare into the sky.

"Isn't it funny how you never notice some things, like the sunrise, until you know there is a chance you will never see it again?" InuYasha gave her a pained look, but did not reply. Deep inside he too, knew that there was a chance that either he or his friends might not live through this. If Naraku got a hold of the rest of the jewel, stopping him would be nearly impossible. But they had to try, even if it meant their lives were at risk.

"Is Sesshoumaru coming too?" he asked her. "Yes, he wants to stop Naraku almost as much as we do." "And Kouga?" he asked. "Yes, I believe he will come as well. Remember it was Naraku that ordered Kaugra to slaughter so many of his wolves."

"We better head to the village and get the others. I can feel the jewel much stronger today. Naraku has definitely gotten closer." Kagome stood and InuYasha followed her. Just before she turned he grabbed her hand.

"Kagome, just incase something does happen to me, I just want to tell you how sorry I am." She looked into his amber eyes. "I know you are, InuYasha. I understand why you did what you did." She hugged him for a moment, and then they both started towards the village.

Miroku and Sango were both awake and preparing themselves when InuYasha and Kagome arrived. Kagome decided to go check on Rin and Shippou; both were playing at Lady Kaede's hut. She hugged both of them and turned to Kaede. The old woman promised that she would allow no harm to come to the children. She began helping Kaede prepare breakfast; they would leave after they ate. Lord knows they would need their strength.

~-~-~-~-~-~

Sesshoumaru was about to head to the village when he spotted the red sash that Kagome had made for him. He picked it up and looked at it again. He could still smell her scent on it. He put it on under his kimono, not wanting to damage it in the fighting, yet wanting to have it close to him. He then set out for the village.

When he arrived he could sense the nervous tension. The rest of them had just finished eating, and were getting their things ready to go. They had every intention of heading towards Naraku, and not letting him reach the village.

He saw the wolf demon talking to Kagome, and then take both of her hands in his. Kagome appeared uncomfortable, and his brother seemed to be mad. Sesshoumaru found himself releasing a low growl, then subdued it. However, both InuYasha and the wolf demon seemed to have heard it. The wolf let go of Kagome and both InuYasha and Kouga looked to him.

Kagome turned away and said she wanted to see the children again before they left. Sesshoumaru followed, he too needed to see Rin before they left. Rin and Shippou were playing just outside of Kaede's hut. Kagome called to them and she knelt and picked them both up. Sesshoumaru could see her fighting back tears as she spoke kind words to them. She told them to do as Lady Kaede told them too. She then hugged them both very close to her, trying to wipe away her now free tears before they saw them.

Sesshoumaru took Rin aside and spoke with her softly. As if the girl could sense what was going on, she hugged Sesshoumaru. Lady Kaede appeared and informed Kagome and Sesshoumaru that she would need to take the children inside soon and get the barrier ready. Kagome gave them both one more hug, then sent them off with Kaede. As they began to walk away from the hut Sesshoumaru spoke, "I will see that you come back to them safely." She turned to him and smiled slightly. They went to the others, and were soon off.

They covered ground very quickly. Sango and Miroku both rode Kilala, while Kagome rode on InuYasha's back. Kouga and Sesshoumaru both had great speed of their own. Kagome could feel the jewel getting closer. Finally they came to a large clearing in the forest. Kagome could sense a jewel shard there, but not the full jewel. It was then they came upon Kohaku, he was waiting for them. At the other end of the clearing stood Kikyo. Clearly this is where Naraku intended to fight them; Kagome could tell he was getting closer. It was only a matter of time.