InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Never Gonna Let You Go ❯ Epilogue: Never Gonna Let You Go ( Chapter 33 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

The sun broke through the trees signaling the start of a new day. It was late spring and the sakura blossoms were flying through the air and covering the ground as thick as snow.

In the eastern wolf den, wolves yawned and stretched as they prepared to rest after a fruitful night of feeding. Since the death of Sesshoumaru, many of the peaceful western wolves had joined the eastern den for protection, leaving behind the lesser demon wolves and their followers who were simply wolf. The lesser demons posed no real threat to the humans and were left alone as they desired.

One female half-demon wolf lay in her den nursing her newborn female pup, Amaya, meaning 'night rain', since she was born overnight during a light rainstorm. Her brothers, Takeo and Takehiko, now almost 10, fawned over their baby sister, anxious to hold the little bundle. Her father, Takeshi, had left with the morning light to go and tell his parents of the new arrival.

The small village near the wolf den was home to a few demons. Hachi had decided to settle here with his mate, Fumiko, a sweet raccoon-dog demoness. Two months before, she had birthed their first child, a daughter named Hana. Another resident, Shippou, and his human mate Satsuki also saw the birth of another child, their sixth, a son named Saburo. He joined five other fox kits, Sango, Miroku, Kagome, brother Shinji, and sister Aki. Rin and her mate, wolf demon, Toru, also live here, with their son, Nao and daughter, Sayuri.

Off to the far side of the village, under a huge maple tree and next to a trickling stream and waterfall, sat a larger house. Inside that house lived Inuyasha and Kagome. The couple decided to move here for the peace and quiet. Sesshoumaru's mother had told Inuyasha that, since Isamu wasn't old enough to accept responsibility as Leader of the Western Lands, he should take the position until Isamu was old enough. Inuyasha politely (well, maybe not so politely) turned her down, saying he didn't desire that kind of power. Packing up Kagome and the pups, they found some land unoccupied by humans near the wolf tribe and began to build. The other demons followed, each longing to stay away from the huge influx of humans.

In the 8 years since they were reunited, the couple had managed to create stable, and even sometimes harmonious, family unit. The older children had accepted Inuyasha as their new father, but not without some rocky roads. Eiji wasn't a bother, being a quiet, artistic child but Akemi and Isamu were another story. Whenever Inuyasha would sit or lay down to relax, Akemi was right there brushing or braiding his hair with ribbons and flowers, the way her mother did hers. In the beginning, this bothered Inuyasha and he would get irritated, which would make the young girl cry. Unable to stand her tears, he finally relented and now it was a daily ritual.

Isamu, on the other hand, was a first class pain in Inuyasha's proverbial ass in the beginning. Aware of his mother's ability to "control" Inuyasha, he would irritate his new father to no end until Inuyasha ended up bopping him a blow across the head. He would then scream for his mother who would order a SIT command that was promptly delivered. This happened until she witnessed Isamu pestering Inuyasha one day. That night, she made a subjugation necklace for Isamu, using the word "STAY" as his trigger. Placing it on hims while he slept, he was none to happy to see it the next morning. A few well deserved "STAY"'s later and Isamu was under control as well.

Isamu did have his good side, and he and Yoshiro loved nothing better than to learn fighting moves from their mother and Inuyasha. Inuyasha had to admit, he was impressed with Kagome's fighting abilities, and would comment that "at least Sesshoumaru did something right" while he held Kagome captive.

The easiest child was Ume, who, too young to remember her birth father, accepted Inuyasha from the start as her 'papa'. Although Kagome would teach her the ways of a feudal girl, it was Inuyasha she adored and would try to emulate, even going as far as carrying around the Tessaiga and yelling out "WIND SCAR!". Whenever he was near, she wanted to be held by him or cuddle with him. As Kagome taught her to read and write, she practiced by reading stories to her father.

Inuyasha did his best to be a decent and loving father but, his temper was still something to contend with. Whenever he was in a grouchy mood, the pups stayed away and left him be. Except for Ume, who never feared his anger and would giggle in delight at his growls and barks. When he was up in the maple tree, a sign that he wanted to be alone, Ume was the only child who could bother him. It wasn't so much that he played favorites but, because she refused to listen and, as soon as she was physically able, would hop into the tree and join him.

That spring, they not only awaited news of their newest grandchild, but they also awaited the birth of their first child together. They had been unsure of whether Inuyasha could produce or not, but Takeshi and Manami's ability to breed gave them hope. They waited until the family was comfortably situated, about 5 years, before they tried. Kagome became pregnant quickly, but in the 5th month, she miscarried. It was nearly two years before she felt ready to try again. Again, she became pregnant quickly and everyone held their collective breaths. The months seem to move slowly until she finally made it to her 8th month. Now there, she knew she could give birth at anytime. The waiting had truly begun.

Takeshi burst through the door, excitedly screaming,

"It's a girl! We have a little girl!"

The pups cheered and Kagome hugged her son with tears in her eyes as Inuyasha congratulated the new papa. Kagome bemoaned the fact that she couldn't see her new granddaughter right away because of her impending birth. The house was abuzz with excitement as Takeshi described his new child, when she was born, and her name. Takeshi stayed and talked for a while, but left in the early afternoon, anxious to get home to his newborn daughter.

The pups busily worked on their chores, wanting to finish before dinner time. Dinner time and afterwards was a big deal in the half-dog house. Akemi was in charge of cooking now, and all the pups contributed something to the meal. Akemi, creative in her cooking, would take what ingredients her brothers and sister brought in and would put something together. She kept the recipe she made, for if the food was a hit, it was definately a keeper for a future meal. Usually her food did make a good impression, except for the times she would use too much spice, sending Inuyasha howling off to drink a load of water. After dinner, it was family time, as they played games, read books aloud, sang, or told stories until bedtime. In the waning hours of daylight during the summer months, the pups chased fireflies and played a game their mother had taught them called "Tag".

A week had passed since the birth of their granddaughter when Kagome started feeling labor pains. Inuyasha was planning to run and get one of the wolf mid-wives when Kagome told him not to bother,

"Akemi and Ume will assist me. My labor doesn't last long anymore.", she told the worried hanyou.

Sure enough, less than half a day after her labor started, her waters burst and the baby was born within moments. Ume dried off the baby, while Akemi cut the cord and handed the newborn bundle to her mother. A practiced mom, she immediately put the babe to her breast for a feeding, which the baby eagerly took. As she cooed over her newborn bundle, Akemi and Ume went out to tell Inuyasha,

"Congratulations Papa! It's a boy!", they chorused together.

Inuyasha hugged his girls and went in to see his mate. Walking in, he admired the picture in front of him. Kagome, with her kimono wrapped loosely around her, her demon mark clearly visable, nursing the swaddled baby. He smiled at the sight. What he had wanted for so long had finally happened. He had a child of his own. He loved the other pups dearly and treated them as his own flesh and blood, the uncertainty of whether he could actually produce a child was now gone. When Kagome had miscarried, he blamed himself, figuring it was his half-demon status that had doomed the child. They had named the child, a girl, Suzume, which meant 'Sparrow', because they felt her spirit had flown away to be in heaven. She was buried not far from the family home and Inuyasha visited her grave quite often, apologizing to her for 'cursing' her with his blood.

Kagome looked up at Inuyasha. Was that a tear she saw in the corner of his eye?

"Inuyasha?", she said, breaking into his thoughts.

He looked at her and she held out her hand for him to come to her. Taking her hand, he sat down beside her and snuggled close to her, his face buried in her hair, inhaling her scent and the scent of his newborn son,

"What were you thinking, Inuyasha?", she asked.

"Lots of things. Suzume. The other pups. Our grandchildren. How lucky I am.", he said, quietly.

"We've been through alot, haven't we?", Kagome pondered.

"Yes, we have.", Inuyasha replied.

"There's a saying, it goes, 'If you love something set it free, if it comes back to you it's yours, if it doesn't it never was'.", said Kagome.

"I like that saying. So I guess we belong to each other forever now, right?", Inuyasha mused, as he touched the baby's head.

"Yup. We came back to each other. That's all that matters.", said Kagome, leaning into Inuyasha and sniffing his fragrance.

Inuyasha hugged his mated, kissed her her neck, and said, "And I'm never gonna let you go."