[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Chapter 21
"Inuyasha!" she bawled to the night, collapsing to her knees, knowing he was long gone. She
heard a splash as someone came through the waterfall, and she was enveloped in the smell of
wolf.
"Kagome, it's alright, we're here, you're safe," Kouga crooned, trying to hug her and make her
feel welcomed and loved. She wanted to pull away, but she didn't have the strength anymore.
She cried into Kouga's chest, clinging to him for dear life. Inuyasha was gone...
She pulled away, her tear-filled eyes boring into Kouga's. "Where is Inuyasha?" she demanded in
a throaty whisper. He shook his head.
"He's long gone Kagome. He left before the sun came up and it's high in the sky now. He's
gone, but I'm to take care of you until he returns." Kagome looked up, hope alive in her face.
"He's coming back? Tell me where he's gone!" Kagome shook the prince, not taking `no' for an
answer. Kouga sat back on his heels and sighed.
"He's gone after Naraku, Kagome. He doesn't want you to get hurt," Kagome frowned and bit
her lip, wiping tears away without much effort. "But, Kagome," she looked up at his pleading
tone, and he bit his lip. "If he doesn't come back, he asked you to stay here." Kagome stared at
him, trying to drink in the words he was saying. Not come back?
"But he will come back, he will," she reassured him, as well as herself. Kouga shook his head
sadly. There was little chance that Inuyasha could defeat Naraku on his own, with no manner of
help at all. He knew that, and so did Kagome. So why had he left?
"Kagome, you have to know something," he said hurriedly, before she could rise to her feet. He
pulled her back down and met her eyes with a seriousness she hadn't seen on his face in a long
time.
He looked away, trying to think of the words to say to her. "Before he left," he said slowly, "he
wanted to talk to me. About you and the... pup."
~~~*~~~
"Wolf -turd, come over here for a sec," he muttered, his patience and will to do what he must
dwindling. He needed to go before he lost his nerve. Kouga snorted, but came over at the look on
Inuyasha's face. It wasn't anger or jealousy, but it was a worried panic that sent warning signals
up the wolf's spine. He walked slowly over to the campfire.
"What is it, Mutt-face?" he responded in kind. Inuyasha shook his head, careful to keep his voice
in a whisper so no one could overhear. Kagome was safely tucked away in the straw; she was too
tired to wake up just yet. He'd say his goodbyes then.

---

Inuyasha was silent for a few moments, and Kouga waited patiently, knowing this had to be
something important. The hanyou would have never left Kagome inside his cave willingly,
otherwise.
"I need... a favor." Kouga nodded, permitting him to continue. "I have to go... but I can't take
Kagome with me." He looked up then, and Kouga could see the pain etched on his face and in his
amber eyes. The wolf gulped; this was serious.
"I'll keep her safe." Inuyasha yanked his gaze away from the fire. "And the pup?" he asked
coldly. Kouga's eyes widened.
"Of course, we'll care for... the pup as our own. And Kagome as well," he added. Inuyasha
narrowed his eyes at the wolf. Serious matter or not, he kept his suspicions.
"And if I come back in one piece, you won't put up a fight when I take the two of them back?"
his voice was laced with danger. Kouga didn't need a warning, for he'd seen the damage
Inuyasha could do while he wielded Tessaiga. He would put up no fight. But his eyes widened
marginally once more at the mention of the child.
Inuyasha nodded and leaned back against a rock, a long heavy breath escaping him as he closed
his eyes. Kouga watched him sadly, for he knew what the hanyou did not. And if he said
anything, Inuyasha might just not leave, and Kouga knew that it would eat away at him if he
stayed with such an important deed needing to be done. For Kagome wasn't just carrying their
baby girl.
She carried two.
~~~*~~~
Kagome looked up after a minute or two, her face dripping with newly shed tears. Kouga held
her face in his palms, and leaned forward to kiss her forehead. It wasn't a lover's kiss, or one
intending romance. It was pack, family. He was worried for all four members of the young new
family.
"Kagome, you can't go to him, not when you're carrying both pups. Too many things can
happen, to all three of you." He studied her face as she thought.
"I was bleeding," she murmured, then pounded her fists against Kouga's chest, catching him by
surprise as she began to cry again. "I shouldn't have said anything," she whispered in wracking
sobs, her wails causing other pack members to come and look in curiously. Kouga shook his
head, wrapping his arms around her as he rocked her gently.
"No, Kagome, the three of you need to be safe, out of harm's way."He pulled back and wiped her
tears away with a quiet laugh. "I think it's the smartest thing he's ever done, leaving you in good
care and out of danger." Kagome glared half-heartedly at him.

---

"As though you did any better, kidnaping me to be hunted by those ugly bird-men." she muttered
through her sniffles. He chuckled, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.
"Well, I'm older now, and I know what I did was wrong. To some extent," he said with some
manner of authority. Kagome raised her brows and smiled.
"So you've come around have you?" she said softly, wondering about Inuyasha. It was hard to
not think about him after all; every time she touched her stomach he came painfully to her mind.
Kouga noticed this, and gently took her hands.
"Kagome, if he doesn't come back..." Kagome looked up, frowning slightly into his blue eyes
that were so desperate. "Let us take care of you." He pulled her into a gentle hug. "Let me take
care of you," he whispered into her hair.
"No," she murmured softly, then pulled away, meeting his gaze once more. "Inuyasha will come
back, and if he doesn't, then I'm going to find him." Kouga shook his head.
"You can't go, you have two pups to take care of!" Kagome glared at him.
"Inuyasha has two pups to take care of, and I'll be damned if I give up on their father like this,"
she all but shouted. Kouga stood, staring down at her with an expression she couldn't describe.
Then he turned and walked calmly out of the cave, leaving Kagome alone inside.
She sighed, resisting the urge to cry again. She crawled over to the straw and lay down on her
side, cradling her two children as they slept inside.
"Daddy will be home to see you two, I'll make sure of it." With a gentle smile on her face and a
plan in her mind, she drifted off to sleep.

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