InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Angel ❯ Final Attempt: ...? ( Chapter 69 )

Chapter Sixty-Nine:

Final Attempt: ...?

 

June

Kagome felt her heart warm as Rikimaru nuzzled her neck with his tiny nose, his whimpering noises making her smile. Though the pups had been born in their humanoid form, the little wiggling bundles of joy reminded her of newborn puppies. The yelped and whined like canines, and their eyes had not opened until about two weeks after their births just like real puppies.

Her eyes strayed over her offspring.

Her Rikimaru was the identical image of Sesshomaru. His eyes were the deep amber, leaving no doubt as to whom he took after. Though he had his father's looks, Kagome liked to think he had her stubborn chin.

Tarou had a combination of both their eye coloring, though his were greener than golden. Against the wealth of dark blue-black hair, he was a striking child. Her daughter, Ayane looked exactly like her, though her eyes were inherited from her father, while Daichi's eyes took after his mother's.

Rikimaru was the eldest of the litter, and by far the most gluttonous. He drank and drank and drank until his little tummy was as big and round as a full moon. Kagome gently patted Rikimaru's back until the young pup burped loudly in her ear, spitting up a large dribble of milk on her shoulder.

Luckily, Kagome had learned enough to place a towel or cloth over shoulder when feeding the pups.

Babies were messy, adorable creatures.

"Ohhhh, they are so adorable," Shusui squealed for the hundredth time that day.

Kagome smiled as the two women exchanged babies. Gently, Kagome brought Tarou, the second oldest, up to her nipple. The young pup latched on eagerly, drinking vigorously, small whines of contentment filling the room as he fed.

Again, Shusui cooed over the noises, stating over and over that the pups were the most adorable babies she had ever help bring into the world.

Kagome could not help but agree. God she loved her children. Never had she thought a person could feel such great, overwhelming love for someone or something, and yet there it was, threatening to tie her belly into tight knots every time she looked at them.

They were beautiful, her babies.

And growing steadily each and every day. She looked over at her other pups nestled warmly on the furs of her bed. Her daughter Ayane was well fed and sleeping, her tiny body cuddled close against her little brother Daichi, the youngest of the litter. He squirmed in his sleep as her nose came in contact with his own.

Standing, Shusui rocked baby Rikimaru to sleep, her eyes soft.

"How are they progressing, Shusui?" Kagome asked, wincing a bit as Tarou's small clawed hand nicked the fleshy part of her breast.

Shusui considered the overall health of the pups, thinking back to their birth to now. They had definitely grown over the last month. They were nearly normal sized and they had gained a substantial amount of weight thanks to the regular feedings and modified breast milk. Still, with little pups, one never knew what to expect.

"I cannot say they are completely out of danger yet, "she said carefully, "But I will say that their health is no longer an extreme cause for concern,"

"That is good news at least," she said as Tarou released her nipple, milk dribbling down his chin.

Shifting the little bundle of overstuffed baby, she placed him over her shoulder and patted his back gently, the pats extremely soft for fear of hurting her fragile child. Every time she held her precious babies her heart clenched, and the unshakable fear of accidentally harming them road her mercilessly.

"I've been so worried about them. They were so small when they were born, and even though they're a bit bigger now, they still feel so fragile,"

Tarou burped loudly, managing to hold down his milk unlike his older brother. Kagome couldn't hold back a smile as the scent of milk and baby filled the air.

Against her shoulder, her son mewed, his little nose nuzzling in her unbound hair.

She'd never felt this way before. The protectiveness, the overwhelming love and joy, the gnawing fear and worry, all of it, muddled together and focused on four young pups had her tied in knots and yet she would not trade any of her feelings for anything.

The only comfort she had was that she wasn't the only one suffering from these feeling of uncertainty.

Her mate shared her worry. Though he was a bit more restrained and reserved, she sensed how deeply his own fear ran. She could see it in the intense way he watched his children, the way his hands shook sometimes when she placed their frail bodies in his big clawed hands, the way his jaw clenched tightly with dread whenever they developed a cough or cold.

He conveyed what he felt without words, but Kagome heard them none the less.

With this shared fear came an understanding, a bond cementing between two parents. She understood his pain and he in turn understood hers.

They took comfort from each other, drew strength, relied on each other in a way they had not before.

Truth be told, Kagome was beginning to suspect she was losing her heart to her mate, and that scared her as well as brought even more joy to her heart. She had no way of knowing if he felt this deep emotional bond growing between them, or if he was completely unaffected by it and she had found her self growing towards a one sided love.

He had certainly given her hope to believe he might come to love her.

His growing gentleness towards her, his willingness to open up and speak honestly with her about his past, the way he had told her that he'd been stripped of his title and lands, it spoke volumes to her.

She sighed as she thought back to that day.

It had been about three days after the pups had opened their eyes. With the quadruplets fed and sleeping he had asked to speak to her. Fairly healed from the unexpected premature birth, he had allowed her to venture from her bedroom for the first time.

They'd walked the length of the private gardens quietly, his strong arm slipping around her shrinking waist as they strolled.

Beneath a tall tree, he had sat her down and in a calm, unemotional voice told her what had happened.

If she had been listening to his dispassionate voice with her eyes closed she would have thought that losing all that had been his for years didn't matter to him at all, that he was unruffled by loss, but the look blazing at her in his eyes, the tightness of his clenched jaw and the tension thrumming through his body gave away his true feeling on the matter.

Her heart had clenched at the hurt he tried to hide, the anger, the rage he struggled to contain.

He'd stiffened when she'd risen from her sitting position to wrap her arms around his head, bring him to the comfort of her bosom. Even if he would not say the words, she knew what he felt, could feel his pain as if it were her own.

While she admired his strength, his restraint in the face of all that had happened, she knew that even the strongest male in the world needed comfort, needed a place of solace, a place where the heavy, backbreaking harsh realities of the world could no longer chain them down. She wanted that place to be with her; wanted him to turn to her as he couldn't any other person.

When his clawed hands had reached up, stroked her back gently before bring her into the comfort of his strong embrace, she knew he had understood what she was offering him.

And when his lips had met hers in the tenderest kiss he'd ever bestowed upon her, she knew he had accepted her offer. It was that day that had began a deep bonding, that day that had began twisting her heart into a tangled mass of love and affection, bringing feelings she had never thought to have for the tall, silver haired demon to the forefront of her mind and heart.

A sudden odor had her wrinkling her nose in distaste. Kagome lifted the babe from her shoulder and held him in her arms, staring down at him as he grunted and his little face pinched in discomfort. Even with the loud sounds of gas escaping his rear end it was not hard to conclude he what was going on in that diaper of his.

Giggling at the little stinker, Kagome waited patiently for him to finish before she stood from her place on the heavily furred bed and over to wooden changing table across the room.

As she removed the soiled cloth, she stood clear of his aim, having done this too often not to be familiar with the games little boys liked to play.

Sure enough, as the cool air hit his skin, Tarou let loose a strong stream that would have soaked the front of her kimono if she had not moved, landing on the towel that was laid on the floor making it an easy "accident" to clean.

Once he'd finished, she picked up the towel, tossed it in the dirt cloths hamper next to her and returned her attention back to the wiggling child on the table.

"Fool me once, shame on you," she said with laughter in her voice as she wiggled a finger before his wide green-gold eyes, "Fool me five times, shame on me,"

Shusui laughed at that.

"He did it again, did he?"

Kagome giggled.

"When does he not? I was ready for him this time," she commented as she wiped his bottom clean, "He won't get me again, and neither will his brothers,"

"Like father, like son I guess," Shusui said, "I cannot tell you how many accidents your mate had when he was growing up. But that little devil, he used to laugh afterwards,"

Kagome looked over at the other woman with a raised brow, amusement twinkling in her expression.

"With his eyes," she clarified at Kagome's disbelieving look.

Kagome laughed, long and hard, even more so at the startled look her son leveled on her. It felt good to laugh; she hadn't had many opportunities to do so with her distress over the pup's health. Pulling up his little hakamas, Kagome gingerly lifted him and placed him against her shoulder as she walked back over to the bed.

The women chatted for a number of hours as the pups slept, ate and pooped, not always in that order. Before long, the door opened and Sesshomaru entered the room, his eyes going instantly to his children.

Daichi slept soundly, while his brother's and sister were cuddled against Kagome and Shusui, their bodies moving restlessly, their eyes wide as they took in their surroundings.

Standing, Shusui excused herself, handing him his daughter before leaving the small family. As always, Sesshomaru tried to stifle the small tremors of nervousness that wracked him as he held his little girl. His daughter was so thin and weighed no more than a feather.

She looked up at him with owl eyes, no doubt awed at the large male holding her.

His heart clenched tightly, making it hard to breathe. Every time he held them, every time his eyes looked into their own, the feeling returned. To think, someone who had once abhorred emotion had thought it was as useless as those that indulged in it could feel them so deeply, so sharply floored him.

Yet there was the truth of it, looking back at him with eyes as golden as his own.

To think he had fathered something so beautiful astounded him. With careful hands, he retracted his claws and caressed one flushed cheek with gentle fingers. Her gold eyes followed the movement, a whining noise blooming from her chest.

Sesshomaru felt his lips curl into a smile.

He loved this little girl, her and her brothers.

"Shusui says they're doing better, they're not out of danger completely, but we won't have to worry so much. Ayane has a cough though. Shusui gave me special medication for her," she said, gesturing to the vial and small baby spoon placed on their bedside table, "It helps. She has to take another dosage in about thirty more minutes,"

Turning his attention to his mate, he walked over to where she sat against the furs and overstuffed pillows of their bed. She was beautiful. Rippling dark hair loose about her back and shoulders was shiny and looked so very smooth to the touch. Her honey eyes were soft and shining intensely. Her breasts, swelled with milk pushed against the top of her simple blue kimono, while her lush figure filled out the rest.

There was a glow of contentment about her, an earthly appearance that had desire shooting through his body.

Emotion of a different sort filled his chest this time. He was feeling something for her that had him dreading the connection even as he was drawn to her. The intensity of his growing feelings was something he was not sure he wanted.

It was natural for love to bloom in his heart for his own offspring, and yet when faced with possible love he felt for his mate, he found that such feelings were not welcome, but neither were they unwelcome.

He had no wish to love her.

Love brought weakness. His pups had already secured that title, for he could not lie to himself, they were a definite weakness. If anything happened to them, he had no idea what he would do, and due to their premature birth, it was an all too real possibility that their own underdeveloped bodies and organs could take them from him.

The pain those thoughts brought him bordered on excruciating to even contemplate let alone accept.

"How is everything?" she asked hesitantly, shifting the two pups nestled against her belly, "With your father and the Elders, I mean,"

Sesshomaru felt his jaw clench at the question. He wasn't angry that she'd asked the question, no, he was angry about the answer he was about to give her. In the weeks following the stripping of his title, the Western lands had grown quite discontent with the new arrangements.

The people's loyalties were divided.

Half believed the Elders had made the right decision in returning the title and lands to his father InuTaisho, while the other half were outraged that such an action had been taken against the young demon. Talk of rebellion was spreading, and violence between villagers were increasing. Complaints had flooded the castle, pleas to restore Sesshomaru to Lord of the Western lands, some going as far to send threats when pleas fell on deaf ears.

The Elders had spoken to him on more than one occasion, asking him to speak to the people, in the hopes of quelling the increased disquiet.

Sesshomaru refused.

He was too angry to open his mouth, too pleased to watch his father and the Elders flounder and try and keep the Western lands from erupting into a free for all of chaos.

He was no longer Lord of the land or its people.

He knew it was selfish of him, and more than a little cold hearted, but right now, he couldn't seem to give a damn. His father had wanted his lands, power and title back and now he had it, he'd gotten just what he'd ask for and Sesshomaru would be damned if he'd let his father take more from him.

His pride was all he had left and they'd not take that from him.

He'd rather dive into a lake of eternal fire than to stand before the people of the Western lands and pretend that he had agreed with the decision made, let alone pretend that he was happy for and supported his father because he didn't and he'd not tell that lie, would not scheme to smooth things over for his pompous father and those self-righteous antiques called Elders.

Fuck them all.

"The same," he responded shortly, "The people of the Western lands are steadily growing more violent. There is talk of rebellion now,"

Kagome gently stroked Rikimaru's silver hair.

"Will you not speak up?" she asked for the thousandth time since she'd been told of the unrest, "I know you're angry about what happen, as you should be, but maybe if you'd just-"

"No."

Turning, he strolled over to one of the wide windows, careful to keep his little girl covered and cuddled against his body for extra warmth. It wasn't particularly windy or cold today, but he would take no chances with his child.

"Sesshomaru," Kagome chided, "You can't just let things continue this way indefinitely,"

"It is no longer my problem, woman,"

"It will always be your problem. You were Lord of these lands for years, centuries; you can't just turn you back on your own people,"

His eyes turned to his daughter as she chewed on her tiny fist.

"I assure you I can, quite easily. Why you continue to argue I do not understand. Your loyalty belongs to me not my father or the Elders,"

Kagome sighed impatiently and sat up from the pillows.

"It's not a question of loyalty, Sesshomaru; it is a question of doing the right thing,"

"And what is the right thing, Kagome?" he asked gently rocking Ayane in his strong arms, struggling to keep the anger from his voice.

"Speaking to your people, doing all in your power to stop the brewing chaos before it begins,"

"So you would have me lie? To sacrifice my pride for the sake of smoothing things over for my father,"

A pregnant silence filled the room, interrupted only by the whines of their pups. He could tell from her silence that she had not thought such an action would affect his pride.

How little she knew of males.

"I don't want you to sacrifice your pride Sesshomaru," she said quietly after a while, "I hadn't realized that you saw it that way,"

Sesshomaru said nothing, merely stared down at his daughter.

Another sigh had his mate lying back against the furs again. She might not know much about the way a man thought, but she knew enough to know that when a male's pride was threatened, said male would do anything and everything to keep it in tact. Sesshomaru was the prime example of a proud male, and being stripped of his status had no doubt wounded that pride greatly.

He hadn't openly expressed anger or resentment towards the decision, though she felt it in every fiber of his being. He'd quietly accepted his demotion and with a hell of a lot more grace than she had.

How could she ask him to do something else that he surely found degrading?

She couldn't.

"It's not a question of loyalty," she repeated, "but it is a question of doing the right thing. I'm not sure what the right thing is anymore. Lying to keep the peace seems like the easiest thing to do, but at the same time its hardly fair to you, so how can that be the right thing to do?"

"There is no right thing to do," Sesshomaru commented, "so I choose to do nothing,"

And yet she still didn't know if he should do that. In the bigger scheme of things, it seemed wrong to let the Western lands continue to suffer. Rikimaru squirmed in her arms, letting out a shrill cry that woke his little brother Daichi momentarily before the sleepy pup closed his eyes and drifted off once more.

Picking up the little boy, she brought him to her shoulder, rocking him gently.

Even with the loud cries of their brother filling the room, Ayane was quiet and satisfied, wrapped in her father's arms while Tarou remained content to lie against his mother's belly, his claws plucking at the soft material of her kimono. Neither child joined their eldest brother in a fit of crankiness. For that, Kagome was damned grateful.

One hollering baby was one thing, four screaming babies was something else.

Sesshomaru surprised her as he moved forward, plucked the wailing child from her arms and walked back over to the window, son and daughter lying on each of his shoulders.

He was gentle with them, gentler than she'd ever seen a man be. And he loved spending time with them, a fact he didn't hide. He'd kicked out more than a few visitors curious to see the new pups whenever he felt it was his turn to hold them, which was quite often.

Though it was not obvious what he felt for her, it was absolutely clear what he felt for his little pups.

He loved them.

The realization made her feel warm inside, made her chest feel tight with welling emotion. She was falling for him, that much she knew.

Within moments, Rikimaru quieted, little mouth gnawing on the silk clad shoulder of his father.

Sesshomaru either didn't notice the wetness seeping through the clothing, or didn't care. Kagome felt her heart swell at the image. She would never have believed that Sesshomaru would have taken to the role of father so easily and yet there he was, big proud, daddy.

How the hell was she supposed to resist falling in love with him?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Vishious watched the destruction with growing discontent.

Watching the villages around him burn, watching the people be slaughtered, smelling the blood and death, feeling the heat of flames, it gave him little satisfaction.

It was not enough dammit.

A first for him; but he had to admit to the problem, had to confront the issue that caused him such ill ease.

 He was so damn bored.

The same thing, day in day out; torture the poor souls unlucky enough to be imprisoned below his domain, eat the left over victims, mid afternoon, ravage the country side, letting his little pets feast on all and any, by evening, he was itching to inflict more pain and went back to torture, before his nights were filled with drinking, eating, raping and more torture.

He was bored with the routine his life had fallen into.

Not only was he bored, he was angry; enraged to be completely truthful.

Those pups still lived and Kagura's mate still breathed. It was enough to bring forth a throbbing headache to his overtaxed brain.

Well he'd had enough; more than enough with that weak bitch he called daughter, as well as Lord Sesshomaru and his diseased offsprings. This ended, here and now. He would claim the mate that was rightfully his and finally get revenge for his imprisonment. And with the chaos occurring within the Western lands already, he had no doubt that it would be fairly easy to accomplish his goals.

They were weak now, their people fighting over who the rightful Lord should be, too wrapped up in their petty squabbles to notice that their deaths loomed just on the horizon.

They had no fucking clue.

He'd already set things in motion. Khaos and Ahgony were in route to the Western castle and would begin the attack upon arrival, while Tourcher followed at a distance, his target, Kagura's precious little wolf General from the Eastern lands who was returning to the Western lands to take his new mate back with him.

He wouldn't kill the wolf right away.

No, he would torture him first, show him agony as he'd never known and make that cow Kagura witness every moment of it through their mental connection. Show her what her disobedience had cost her, what it would cost her mate, and by God, before it ended, she would be begging to end those pup's miserable little lives.

He would drive that bitch over the edge and laugh as she crashed and broke into millions of pieces.

She would know true pain this day if he had to grab her and show it to her himself, and that was a promise he looked forward to keeping.

His eyes slanted over to the male standing a distance away.

Then there was Ehvil. There was no doubt in his mind that the other man was nervous, anxious even. There was a strong chance that the ex Northern General would finally come face to face with the young woman he had betrayed in more ways than one.

Vishious was looking forward to the confrontation.

Both individuals would suffer, Ehvil from the guilt that weighed on him heavily, and his soon to be mate from his betrayal.

As far as he was concerned, they both deserved the pain they would receive.

They had disappointed him time and time again, over and over and neither one seemed apologetic in the least.

That was okay; he would let them make it up to him by punishing each other.

"Find her," he told the other male, "Now,"

Vishious knew he understood who "she" was and waited for any objections from the silent man. Ehvil hesitated only a moment before he leapt forward, disappearing into the thick of the ruined village. A smile curved Vishious' mouth as he too went forward, but his steps were slow, leisurely.

He had some time to kill before he made his move.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ensei sped towards the Western castle, his heart light, his steps eager.

He'd only been gone from his mate's side for two weeks and yet it felt like an eternity since he had seen her, had touched her, had made love to her. As he ran through the thick forest leading to the castle gates, it felt as though he could not get to her soon enough.

He missed her, more than he thought he could.

In the beginning, he had been reluctant to leave her. The sadness, the overwhelming anguish he'd often felt radiating from her worried him. She tried so hard to hide it from him, but he felt it so deeply, as though it were his own pain.

Despite his best efforts, she would not tell him what bothered her so much.

It frustrated him to no end that his mate was hurting and he could do naught to stop it. He wanted her to trust him, to tell him all of her secrets, all of her fears, let him help shoulder her burdens.

From the little she had shared with him, he knew she had been abused in the worse ways.

Slowly but surely she had been healing, opening up to him, trusting him. Now, it seemed as though she were regressing, once more being pulled down into the void of pain, misery and depression and he could find absolutely no cause for it.

No one was hurting her, no one was abusing her, and Lady Kagome treated her more as a companion than a servant, had done so from the beginning.

He was at an absolute lost as to what was wrong.

Still, he had no intention of letting her go on the way she was. He would find out whom or what was causing her pain, and he would put a stop to it immediately.

As the large, spiraling castle came into sight, a chill slithered up his spine. Turning quickly, pulling his sword as he whirled, Ensei blocked the attack, the dark energy bouncing off his sword, the force of it sending him staggering backwards a few steps before gaining his balance.

His sword hissed and sizzled, glowing faintly with dark purple power before it vanished.

"You move fast. We will enjoy this," came a voice.

Ensei felt the hairs on the back of neck rise as the flat tone of the voice drifted over him and sent a feeling of dread to the pit of his stomach. Gripping his sword tighter, Ensei watched the male approach, eyes narrowed as he recognized the tall, blond haired male walking towards.

"Impossible," he said softly, eyes widening slightly.

Sesshomaru had slain the male known as Tourcher months ago, how then, did he stand before him, completely unharmed.

It had to be a trick of some kind.

"Who are you?" Ensei demanded.

The male blinked as if confused before tilting his head slightly, obviously considering the question. Ensei waited impatiently for the male to answer. It didn't matter if the male really was Tourcher or not, Ensei meant to engage him in battle, but he was damned curious to find out if this male was in fact the same Tourcher from prior battles.

There seemed to be a difference. His face, build and appearance were the same, but the similarities ended there.

This Tourcher, his eyes were empty, soulless, making it hard for Ensei to look him in the eyes.

The air around him felt stifling, sick even. Ensei was not one prone to fear but at this moment, he felt a healthy dose of it crawl through him and take up residence in the pit of his belly.

"Vishious says that we are Tourcher now," he finally answered.

Ensei's brows wrinkled at the way the demon referred to himself, but otherwise ignored it. He had his answer. This male was not the previous Tourcher, but somehow, he seemed to have reanimated the male's body, or stolen his appearance at the very least.

Whoever he was now, he seemed to be more dangerous than the deceased male he was masquerading as.

"Why do you attack me?" Ensei asked.

Again, that pause, as though the man had to think about the question thoroughly before answering.

"Vishious commanded us to. When we are done here, Vishious will give us women. We want women,"

Ensei was surprised by the answer. It made no sense to him. Why attack him for women? What nonsense was he speaking?

"You do this to get women?"

The male nodded his golden head.

"When we get women, we get to fuck. We like fuck,"

The male had to be out of his mind. His responses still didn't make any sense. He spoke fairly well, but it felt as though he had only just learned how to string sentences together.

Maybe he was touched in the head?

"No more talk," he said suddenly, "We will finish this now,"

Ensei brought his sword up in an offensive stance as the male advanced.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The attack on the Western castle came as a complete surprise to all that inhabited the stone structure. The whole foundation shook, screams filled the air, and the smell of blood and smoke was overwhelming. Men were shouting, soldiers were running, drawing their weapons as they moved, women were crying, rushing for safety and villagers living within the castle walls were fleeing.

Kagome and Shusui watched the chaos erupting below with increasing fear and dread.

The older woman had returned moments ago at the first sign of a threat.

Kagome had no idea if the rebellion had finally come to breaking point and this was the result, or if this was an attack from someone else.

It hardly mattered now, the threat was here.

"Get to the safe chambers below the castle," Sesshomaru commanded tersely as he handed his daughter to Shusui before turning to the wooden rack where his armor hung.

Kagome nodded as she gathered two of their pups, and Shusui picked up the remaining pups. She wasn't going to argue with him. Right now, they needed to get their children to safety. Sesshomaru could handle himself, and though she would worry herself sick about him until he was once again in her arms, she knew that refusing to leave him would only bring trouble.

He didn't need any distractions right now.

Shusui headed immediately for the door, Kagome took a detour to her mate. Quickly, she placed a hard kiss onto his lips. He returned the gesture briefly before pulling back, once more working on pulling on his weapons and armor.

"Be careful," she commanded.

"Aye woman,"

Hesitating only a second more, Kagome followed Shusui out of the room.

The two women ran for the underground chambers, pushing through crowds of running and screaming men and women as they moved.

When they reached the doors leading to the underground chambers, they pulled the door shut tightly behind them quickly, grateful for the torches that lit up the cave like tunnels. Heart pounding, Kagome held her whining pups closer to her, fear coiling in her stomach, adrenaline pumping relentlessly. As they moved deeper into the tunnels, they could hear voices, most of which were women.

As they entered the large chamber, more light flooded the tunnels. There were many women in the room, old, young, poor, rich and everything in between.

Two soldiers were posted on either side of the door.

Kagome approached the two soldiers, wailing pups in her arms.

"What's happening? Who's attacking us?" she asked the two males.

"We are not sure, my Lady," one answered tersely, "We only followed our orders to head below to guard the women until it is safe to leave. We have no knowledge of the enemy at this time,"

Kagome nodded at that and turned back to Shusui, rocking her pups in an effort to quiet them. The pups would not be silenced, and what was worse, Ayane had begun to cough. Heart clenching, Kagome turned to look at Shusui.

"Her medicine?" Kagome asked, though she knew the answer.

"Still on the bedside table, my Lady,"

She had completely forgotten to grab it before rushing from the room, and it was long past time for her to have another dose.

There was no way in hell Kagome was going to let her daughter suffer her cough. Being born premature was enough of a health deficiency, having a premature pup with a bad cough was just not something she could let go.

"I'll go and get it," Kagome said turning to one of the women next to her, "Excuse me, miss,"

A middle aged human female turned towards her. The woman seemed calm and collected despite the activity going on above and Kagome would rather have a calm woman look after her pups than one of the hysterically crying, wailing women around her.

"Yes my Lady," the woman said with a curtsy.

"Please look after my pups until I return. Shusui cannot hold all four and she will need some help caring for them,"

The woman nodded in understanding and held out her arms. As Kagome handed the woman the children gently, Shusui stepped forward to protest.

"You cannot go up there alone!"

"I have to; you know Ayane needs that medicine,"

"Then I'll go,"

Kagome shook her head, stroking Rikimaru's head as she settled him and Tarou into the woman's arms.

"I need you here in case something happens to them. You know more about taking care of babies than I or anyone else her do, especially premature pups,"

"Then take one of the guards with you,"

Again, Kagome shook her head, determined stubbornness radiating from her eyes.

"I'd rather have two guards protecting my babies than one," she decided.

Leaning over, Kagome kissed each pup quickly, lingering before her coughing daughter.

"I'll be back with your medicine princess," she said tenderly, wincing at the hard, rattling coughs shaking her small frame.

She headed back outside, ignoring Shusui's loud objections as she rushed out. As she climbed up the stairs leading to the above floor, she covered her nose and mouth at the thick smoke that clogged her lungs. Her eyes watered as she looked for the stairs. When she located them through the thick gray smoke, she ran towards them, pushing people out of the way as she moved.

A vicious quake had her staggering.

Reaching out, she gripped the wall as the tremors shook the castle. Fear clenched her heart as she waited for the shaking to cease. When it did, she was moving once more, steeling herself against the terror clenching her tightly as the smell of blood filled her senses.

Kagome sprinted for the stairs; her breathing labored as she ran up the winding staircase, grunting as descending people bumped her.

Another shudder of the castle walls had her gripping the banister.

This time, she didn't wait for it to stop. She kept moving, struggling to ascend. It seemed an eternity before she reached her bedroom. Opening the door, she did not notice the individual standing before the window as she went directly to the medicine.

"Kagome,"

She froze at the familiar voice, heart pounding loudly in her ears.

Emotions crashed over her, each one so very strong, fighting for dominance in her heart.

Anger, joy, rage, confusion, betrayal.

Her eyes took in her ex General, the familiar face, the familiar aura, he looked just like him; her second father Rykotsu, and yet she knew, deep in her heart she knew, he was not the same male at all. He was Ehvil.

Her enemy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kagura looked at the empty vial in her hand, feeling the familiar numbness come over her body. Standing from the bed, she tossed it away.

After the brief conversation with Vishious, she had made her decision.

Today was the day.

No more failure, no more excuses. Not when her mate was in jeopardy in the hands of that monster. He had taken such glee in showing her that he was through playing games.

Through their mental connection, he had let her see through his eyes.

He had let her see the fight between her and that beast Tourcher, had made her watch her mate struggle against him, had made her watch as the male defeated her mate and dragged him away.

There was nothing left to say, nothing left to think about.

She would do what she had to do to protect her mate. As she walked calmly through the screaming people, she fingered her fan, took comfort in the cold, numbness that filled her body. She knew that this would be the last time she was going to be in the Western lands. Once she had carried out her task, she and Ensei would have to vanish.

Neither Sesshomaru nor Kagome would ever let the murder of their pups go unsolved.

With her disappearance, they would probably make the connection. Kagura could care less at the moment though.

At this point, none of that mattered.

She watched Kagome dash up the stairs briefly before she headed to the doors of the underground chambers. Good. She was out of the way for now, and with Ehvil awaiting her arrival, she knew the young woman would be preoccupied with her ex General for precious minutes, more than enough time for Kagura. Stepping into the dark tunnels of, Kagura increased her speed, ready to finish the deed and collect her mate.

As she threw open the door with a loud, thundering bang, revealing the shocked expressions of numerous women and two soldiers, she snapped open her fan sending sharp gusts of wind ripping through the small chamber.

She barely noticed the blood coating her kimono.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here you go guys, I'm already working on the next chapter, so I hope to have out soon! Love you all! Sorry for the cliffy, but you guys know how I love to drum up the intensity level with them!

Hope you all enjoyed! Please review!

Laters!

~Sessakag