Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Black Widow Miko ❯ More ( Chapter 11 )

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

I admit it. I did a really, really mean thing at the end of the last chapter. But, … I made up for it by being super nice at the end of this one. ^_^ I most humbly thank youkos girl and all of you wonderful reviewers for bringing the review tally on this story to 250+!! I appreciate each and every person who takes the time to read my fevered writings.

DISCLAIMER: “You say you’re looking for someone, Who writes stories that are always strong, To entertain you and amaze you, With the way their plots go along, Someone like Togashi and Takahashi …
But it ain’t me, babe. No, no, no, it ain’t me, babe. It ain’t me you’re looking for, babe.”
(My most sincere apologies to Bob Dylan, whose lyrics to “It Ain’t Me, Babe,” -- made most popular by the legendary Johnny Cash, -- I just completely paraphrased to suit myself and any lawyers lurking about who might think I’m crazy enough to lay claim to “InuYasha” and/or “YuYu Hakusho.”)

talking
mental/telepathic conversations - “Hiei” “Kurama” “Youko”
(thoughts to self)



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Last time:

“You bitch!” Kagura swung at Kagome, but she deftly dodged the blow. “Ginjiro IS Sesshoumaru’s, and as such, he is entitled to half of the Western lands.”

“You will have to prove that, Kagura,” Kagome said calmly.

“Perhaps I should just wait until they do lock you up for murdering him.”

“Then you will still be waiting long after your soul has been delivered to the Reikai,” a deep, smooth voice came from behind her.

She whirled around to face the interloper. “Sesshoumaru?!!?”
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Kagura looked closely at the tall, imposing figure of a male standing there in front of her. “Wait. You’re not Sesshoumaru! Who the hell are you?!!?”

He raised an eyebrow in an eerily, haughty imitation of the very male she had briefly mistaken him for. “I am his son, -- his only son.”

Completely forgetting Kagome behind her, she stepped up to him and raised a hand as if to touch his face, but the frosty look in his eyes had her halting her movements just inches before she actually touched him. “I don’t believe it. Except for the kaikyuushou stripes and the eyes, you look exactly like him. I had heard you did, but, …” She kept staring at him. “What did you do to your hair? You should never have cut it. Sesshoumaru’s hair was his pride and glory.”

“For you to say something like that shows how little you actually knew about him,” Kagome spoke up, as she stepped around her to stand by her son. “Sesshoumaru took pride in a lot of things, but his looks weren’t among them. The only things he viewed that way were the things he had earned and mastered, or been given through love, -- like his son.” She looked up at Eishumaru with a smile, and put a hand on his arm. He smiled back at her.

Kagura’s eyes widened in surprise. “I see he is different from his father in more than his hair.” When Kagome looked at her questioningly, she gestured towards his face and continued, “Sesshoumaru would never have shown his emotions like that, -- it was beneath him. Ginjiro is like him in that regard.”

“You show more and more how little personal contact you had with him. Eishu’s smile is just like Sesshoumaru’s. You are correct that Sesshoumaru did not show that side of himself to people he considered enemies or simple allies, -- but those of us who were privileged enough to know him more intimately, as true friends and family, are well-acquainted with his more gentle, caring ways and expressions.”

“You are merely saying that to make it seem you had a true relationship with him. But that’s not so. Or if it was, then obviously it took more than some kind of glorified ningen to satisfy him, or he wouldn’t have come to my bed,” the wind-user said, with a sneer.

Eishumaru backhanded her, sending her flying backwards all the way out of the garden. When the other three detectives, who had been looking out the window, saw her, they quickly came outside to see what had happened. In an instant, the inu was standing over her, with no expression at all on his face as he said, “You will watch what you say to her. I have had enough of your lies. If your son had my father’s blood in his veins, then he would have made a bid to claim the Western lands long before now.”

Kagome came running up beside him as Kagura wiped the blood from her mouth and stood. “Ginjiro did not try to take the western lands because as Sesshoumaru’s second son, it was not his place.”

“You are either a liar, or he is a coward, and I am leaning toward both being the truth,” Eishumaru told her, his voice dripping with contempt.

“You talk awfully big to be as young as you are,” Kagura glared at him. Then a look of dawning realization crossed her face. “Wait a minute. You look like you’ve barely passed your hundred-years -- what kind of sorcery is this?” She looked at Kagome, and the calculation in her eyes was evident to all of them. “I really never did give you enough credit, did I? No wonder my hired assassins could never find you -- you weren’t just hiding out-of-sight, you were hiding out-of-time. This changes things. You see, now my son is the eldest! He will rule the Western lands the way Sesshoumaru would have wanted him to,” she proclaimed triumphantly.

“Tell me, Kagura, just how will he take the lands back from the nekos? Eishu is right, -- if he could have taken the lands, he already would have by now. That’s the whole purpose of this deal you proposed in the first place, isn’t it? He isn’t strong enough to win the lands on his own, and you knew Sesshoumaru’s true son would be, so you want him to ride Eishu’s coattails to power,” Kagome accused her.

“Think what you like. It doesn’t matter anymore. Now that Ginjiro is the oldest, the lands are rightfully his, and when that becomes known, I will be able to gather an army to get them for him.”

“That’s not the way it works,” Kurama spoke up. “Their current age doesn’t matter. If Eishumaru was born first, then he is the heir, -- especially since his mother was mated to the Western Taiyoukai. Your son is still a bastard second son.”

“No, he isn’t!” Kagome cried. “He’s not a second son at all -- at least, not Sesshoumaru’s!” She stepped up to Kagura and stared directly into her eyes. “You will never be able to raise an army without proof that he is who you claim. Where is your proof?”

“Where is your proof that he isn’t? He is half inu, and he resembles his father greatly, -- maybe not quite as much as your son, but enough to tell his parentage.”

“That’s not good enough. There must be some way to tell for sure. DNA testing?” Kagome looked at Kurama hopefully.

His brows furrowed in thought. “Like a paternity test? Youkai DNA is too complicated to be mapped like that -- their youki is intermingled right down to the nucleus of every cell, but not in identical amounts, and no one has been able to figure out why, or how to identify it when the quantities and qualities of it differ from cell to cell in the same individual. And we don’t have a sample of the Taiyoukai’s blood and youki to test against, anyway. Though I suppose we could test his bones just to see what, if anything, could be determined. Where is he buried?”

“You are thinking to test his bones for other things, aren’t you?” Hiei asked, still staying out of sight near the edge of the garden.

“Hai. I’m hoping to determine the type of poison used on him, and look for other weapon marks that might have been left,” Kurama confessed.

Kagome looked down at the ground and clasped her hands together tightly. “He isn’t buried anywhere,” she said quietly.

The detectives all stared at her. “What do you mean he isn’t buried anywhere? You don’t have his mummified body in some closet or something, do you?” Yusuke asked.

“Oh, for crying out loud, Urameshi! Even I know better than to ask something that stupid,” Kuwabara said, giving Yusuke a hard shove that nearly knocked him over.

Kurama stepped closer to Kagome. “Where are his remains?”

Eishumaru put his arm around his mother. She looked the avatar straight in the eye. “I purified them. After his body was burned on a ceremonial funeral pyre, I gathered his bones, and I purified them. I did the same with Inuyasha and Kouga.”

“Why?”

She took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Because I wasn’t going to let anyone do to them what happened to Kikyou.”

Kagura smiled at the revelation. It was obvious that the kitsune avatar had thought he might be able to find something out from the bones. Kagome was obviously desperate to prove Ginjiro wasn’t Sesshoumaru’s, but all she had done was make herself look more guilty of his murder to the Reikai’s investigators.

Eishumaru spoke up, “You are saying there is no way to disprove that her son is my sibling? Not even through our ki or power?”

“I’m afraid not. You are a full-blooded inuyoukai, while Ginjiro is half-inu, half-elemental. Your powers would not be close enough to be able to tell, especially since we have no idea how your mother’s celestial powers may have boosted yours. And ki is completely individual,” Kurama told him. He felt sorry for the young male, but … “Wait. I’m not at all certain of this, but perhaps something could be determined by examining your auras. Maybe a comparison of them, along with the mothers’, might reveal enough similarities or differences to show if you are related. I believe the Reikai have several individuals who are gifted in aura examination. We could look into it.”

“You think Genkai will be able to tell something by examining them.”

“Hai.”

Kagome looked hopeful, and Kagura seemed to be considering what he had said very carefully. “All right. I will talk to my son. We will be in touch with Lord Koenma in a few weeks, since you prefer to deal through his office.” She smiled at Kagome. “I believe Tobikuma will also be interested to learn that his opponent has not nearly the age, nor the experience we had thought. You did hide all of your sons away with you, I assume.” And she turned and walked back to the house so Yusuke could call Botan for a portal.

When the others had gone, Kagome covered her face with her hands, and Eishumaru wrapped his arms around her and stroked her hair on the back of her head. “Why didn’t you tell me, kaa-chan?” he asked quietly.

“Because it isn’t true. I promise you, it isn’t true.” She said in a shaky voice. Then she looked up at him anxiously, her eyes pleading with him to believe her.

“Of course it isn’t. Did you really think I would believe such obvious lies?”

Breathing a sigh of relief, she shrugged slightly. “I … I didn’t know. I didn’t want you to doubt your father, or think poorly of him. You didn’t know him …”

“I know you.” He grinned at her. “I’m sure you never would have mated with anyone stupid enough to go looking for bronze when he already had gold.”

She laughed at that. “You know, most people who knew them think you got your charm from Kouga, but Sesshoumaru had quite a way with words, too. I wish he could have seen you, -- he would have been so proud.”

Seeing how misty her eyes were becoming, Eishumaru hugged her. “Don’t go getting weepy on me. I may not have known my otou-san, but I’m positive he wouldn’t have liked to see you cry.”

“Hai, you’re right. I suppose we should join the others so we can go to this wonderful new place Shippou found for us.”

And as the two of them headed for the house, Hiei frowned to himself. He had no doubt that Eishumaru had come to the correct conclusion about the wind-user’s son. She wanted power and the Western lands for him, and he obviously wasn’t strong enough to win them for himself. And if they agreed to the deal she had offered, and gave Ginjiro half of the lands, they would basically be acknowledging him as Sesshoumaru’s son. He wouldn’t put it past them to then turn around and later have Eishumaru killed, so it would all belong to Ginjiro without question.

And he was uneasy with how confident the wind-witch seemed about them not being able to prove her son wasn’t the Taiyoukai’s. There was something going on there, because he was absolutely positive Eishumaru was also right in the other matter -- no male in his right mind would go looking around when he had Kagome, especially if she loved him. And from the way she talked about her mates, he knew that she had loved all three of them.

But something else bothered him about the whole scene. It was obvious the wind-user was nowhere near powerful enough to kill Sesshoumaru. So, either she had teamed up with the dead miko, or hired someone, OR, -- and he was beginning to really lean towards this, -- it wasn’t the damned females at all. He had to talk to the others. And he still needed to kill Kurama.
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The new place Shippou had chosen for them was located about 50 miles south of Toba in the Mie Prefecture in the Kinki Region. The Spirit Detectives were a little surprised, but grateful, that he had actually taken their request to be closer to Kyoto into consideration. And Kagome was delighted to discover he had purchased a secluded estate on the Shima Peninsula, right along the coast. This was a much larger estate than the one near Tokyo, and was set back along a forest line on two sides, with lots of sandy beach and the Pacific Ocean on the other two.

The house itself was three stories tall, and it had three wings that were shaped like a giant “U,” without the middle wing being curved. Behind the middle wing, to the East, between the house and the forest, was a smaller one-story building, which Shippou told them housed the 5 youkai who served as cooks and household help. To reach the house by normal means of transportation, you would either have to arrive by boat at a small dock, which was located a mile away from the house, or drive along a narrow path through the forest, which would bring you out on the beach along the long, south wing. The main entrance to the house was through the courtyard between the north and south wings.

As they went inside, Shippou explained the layout to them. On the ground floor, the south wing had a huge kitchen and formal dining room, with long, tall windows allowing them to enjoy the beachfront view. Half of the middle wing was set up as a large formal sitting room, and the other half served as a large library with a desk for each of the retainers set up in the four corners, and one right in the center for Kagome. The north wing had an informal sitting area, an entertainment room, a smaller dining room and another kitchen. The walls of this wing were also dominated by long, tall windows and a view of the forest, and at the back corner there was a door leading out into an enclosed garden. Shippou told Kagome there was a small teahouse in it, but that it needed repair.

The north and south wings also had an underground level. Shippou had had the entire length of the north wing fixed to serve as a dojo. The entire area of the south wing had been turned into an incredible game room, complete with a pool table, a ping pong table, several arcade style video games, and all the latest audio/visual entertainment equipment. The far end had been walled off and a movie center had been set up, complete with surround-sound, projector, and a huge screen. Yusuke and Kuwabara whooped and hollered at the sight. This place was even better than the other one!

It was on the 2nd and top floors that they ran into trouble. These were the bedrooms, and there was some dispute again over who would stay where. Each floor had a total of 12 bedroom suites, with four on each wing. On the north and south wings, the suites were set up with two along each wall. On the middle wing, there were two corner suites, and one suite on each side of the hall in between them. There was a large spiraling staircase just across from each of the corner suites. Shippou had designated the top floor for the family again, giving Kagome and her sons the rooms on the middle wing. Kagome had the beachfront corner suite and Daitano had the one with the forest view, with Sassouta and Eishumaru’s rooms in between them. Shippou had taken the suite on the south wing next to Kagome‘s, and had put Zhang in the one next to him. He had put Kuwabara and Kurama in the north wing, and Hiei and Yusuke in the south wing on the 2nd floor, with Ginta, Hakkaku, Jaken, and Myouga in the north wing on that level.

“I don’t think these are the best arrangements,” Kurama spoke up. He smiled sardonically at Shippou. He knew what the kitsune had been thinking, -- that he would have a very difficult time trysting with Kagome with all three of her sons’ rooms in between them. “We don’t need two of us on the second floor, -- one will be sufficient, and it might be more prudent to have three of us where the family is. As a matter of fact, one of us should stay in the south wing.”

Shippou raised a brow at him. He had expected him to object to the arrangements, and to suggest one of them stay in the south wing. So, he smiled and nodded. “All right. Yusuke can stay in the room across from mine.”

“That would work, … but I’m sure Yusuke would be more comfortable staying in the north wing with Kuwabara,” Kurama pointed out thoughtfully. “So, I would be happy to switch rooms.”

“Good. That will work out fine. Yusuke, you and Kuwabara will take rooms in the north wing, and Hiei will stay in the south wing with me and Master Zhang. Kurama, you may choose any room you want in either the south or east wings on the second floor,” Shippou said, with an amiable smile. “Now that we have that settled, why don’t you all take a few hours to get your stuff in order and familiarize yourselves with the house and area. Jaken and Myouga are still in the Makai, and won’t be back for a few days yet, but Ginta and Hakkaku are here and want to speak to Sassouta. And Kagome, I know Master Zhang wants to talk to you. So, why don’t we all meet again at dinner?”

The edges of Kurama’s mouth twitched. So, he thought he had spiked his guns, did he? “You did say I could take any of the rooms in either the south or east wings on the second floor, right?” At Shippou’s nod, his smile grew. “Then I will take the corner suite directly below Kagome’s -- with the stairs right there, I will have direct access to the top floor, if needed,” he stared intently at Kagome, “or I can easily be reached the same way. Any time you need me, dear lady.” His eyes glowed gold.

Narrowing his eyes, Shippou glared hotly at him, but the avatar merely gave him a triumphant smile and suggested to his teammates that they all help each other move their things to their new rooms. Hiei glanced briefly at Kagome out of the corner of his eye. He didn’t know about anyone else, but he was pleased with the new arrangements, too. He was taking the room directly across from Shippou’s, even though he knew the kitsune would expect him to take the one further down the hall. No point in Kagome having to walk any further than necessary. Maybe he wouldn’t kill Kurama after all. He smirked to himself, and as he walked past her, he could have sworn he saw an answering sparkle in her eyes.
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As Kagome walked along the beach in companionable silence with Master Zhang, she couldn’t help but shake her head and smile. She still wasn’t quite sure how it had happened that Hiei had ended up practically across the hall from her, but it did simplify things. Hmmm. Perhaps she should thank Kurama.

“What are you finding so amusing, daughter?” Zhang asked her.

“I’m just pleased with this place Shippou found for us. He said we actually own several estates in different areas of Japan, so it was just a matter of determining which one would be best suited for our present needs.”

He glanced over at her and saw how the color rose in her cheeks at his obvious skepticism regarding her answer, but he let it go. “And are you still determined to learn the jian?”

“Hai.” Her expression grew grim. “We don’t have much time. The boys have decided Eishumaru will issue his challenge first. He thinks he will be ready in another month, -- as soon as Kurama is satisfied with his training with his whip. But, we really don’t hold any hope that Lord Torao will accept, so Jaken, Myouga, Ginta, and Hakkaku have already begun making discreet inquiries in the Makai to track down our old allies, and to try to gather new ones. That is what may take more time than we would like, since they must be so cautious. We don’t want to alert too many people to the boys’ return yet. So, it will probably be 2-3 months before he can actually issue the challenge.”

“But now Daitano’s situation is in question, since Kagura and her sons already know they have returned, ne?”

She nodded. “Even if we do somehow end up with Ginjiro as an ally in the battle for the Western lands, I think that once Lord Tobikuma finds out what Daitano is capable of, he will also refuse his challenge and call for battle.”

“You may be right,” he agreed. “And Sassouta?”

Kagome let out a sigh. “I just don’t know. I thought I was helping by getting Lord Yemon to agree to a courtship period, so Sassouta would have more time to train. But, it’s getting complicated, and I am wondering if I have made things more difficult for him. I’m beginning to think Yemon will be more angry than disappointed when I refuse him, and I don’t know how that will affect things.” She sighed again. “Master Zhang, I’m afraid all three of my sons will have to battle for their lands, and I don’t know if our allies will stand with us for that much fighting.”

“That is why you have decided you must learn the jian.”

She stopped in her tracks and turned to face him, searching his eyes for a minute. He knew. “Hai,” she whispered. “Please don’t tell them. They would get …very upset,” she asked him beseechingly.

Now the old priest gave a sigh. “A month or two may not be enough for you to learn what you will need to know.”

“It will have to be. I will have to issue my challenges before they do. As the former Lady of the East, West, and North, I have as much right to lay claim to the lands as my sons do. And I was the one who lost them. I have already failed them once, … and my mates. I will not fail them again.”

He saw the fierce resolution blazing in her eyes. “And are you so sure your challenges will be granted?”

“Not one hundred percent, but I think so. All of the current leaders are male. They will assume they can defeat me in one-on-one combat, -- especially since my purification powers will be tempered by the Makai personal challenge rules,” she told him.

“Your sons would rather win their lands by their own might to prove their worth as the rightful leaders.”

She gave a small, bitter laugh. “They will prove that many times over. I’m sure they will have to fight more than once to keep them. And I may not be able to help them then. That is why it will be so important to have our allies already gathered.”

“So you still think you will be incarcerated in the Reikai.”

She looked away, towards the ocean, and watched the waves rolling in for a few minutes before speaking. “I think … the truth will come out, and when it does, … it will be very difficult for all of us. I don’t know if I will be able to …”

“Daughter,” he rested a hand on her shoulder, “thoughts like those are not productive. Come, let us meditate a while. We will begin the jian in the morning.”

“Arigatou gozaimasu, Sifu. But, can we start this evening, instead?”
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“ We thought you would like to know that Princess Ayame is the reason Lord Yemon had to return to the Makai. According to our spy, she sent him a message summoning him back to the Northern lands,” Ginta told him. “And apparently, he wasn’t too happy about it.”

“So, she is the trouble he is taking care of?” Sassouta asked.

“Hai. Though, she didn’t really seem to be stirring up any unrest or anything, so Miwako can’t tell if she knows about your return or not,” Hakkaku said. Then he and Ginta exchanged an uneasy look with each other.

“What is it? Obviously, there is more to it than you are saying,” the young ookami pressed them.

“Well, Miwako said that … Princess Ayame was waiting for Lord Yemon in his bedchamber when he returned,” Ginta confessed.

Sassouta’s eyes narrowed, then his expression eased until he was smiling. “Very interesting. Arigatou! Let me know if you learn anything else.” And he got up and left the room.

Now Ginta and Hakkuku exchanged puzzled looks. “He took that a lot better than I thought he would,” Hakkaku commented.

“Hai, he did. I thought he would go berserk and demand Lord Yemon’s head on a platter. I wasn’t sure we should even tell him,” Ginta confessed.

Hakkaku nodded, and thought for a minute. “You know, we have known him since he was born, and are used to thinking of him as a boy, but I think we may be guilty of underestimating him.”

“I think you are right.” Ginta grinned. “And I think Lord Yemon is guilty of that, too, and it will be his downfall.”
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When Sassouta joined his brothers, he was smiling widely. “Well, something sure has put you in a good mood, gaki. I take it Ginta and Hakkaku had good news for you, ne?” Daitano asked.

His youngest brother smiled smugly. “Hai. It seems Yemon had more than one mistress tucked away in the Northern lands. And you’ll never believe who the other one is,” he paused and looked around to see that he had their full attention. “It’s Ayame.”

“Damn! I didn’t see that coming!” Eishumaru exclaimed.

“Neither did I,” Daitano said thoughtfully. “That definitely complicates things.” He sighed. “We have to tell okaa-san right away.”

“Of course we do. That way she can kick him to the curb,” Sassouta said gleefully, “and Jaken and Myouga can start introducing her to some real prospects.”

“There’s more to it than that,” Daitano began. Damn, but he really didn’t want to have to tell them this.

Turning serious, Sassouta nodded. “Hai, there is. Because if Ayame is with Yemon, that means she must know we are back. Unless Yemon is keeping it from her. And if she does know, then that means it is very likely that she and Yemon are working together against kaa-san. The question is, what is their plan? I can’t see how Ayame would benefit from Yemon taking kaa-san as his mate.”

Well, that wasn’t what Daitano had been thinking about, but the kid had a good point. “I don’t see any benefit in it for Ayame, either. Perhaps he never really intended to take okaa-san as his mate. Maybe he is just trying to get her to fall in love with him, then is planning to toss her aside in favor of the bitch.”

“Well, that plan was doomed from the start. There’s no way kaa-chan would ever truly be interested in him,” Eishumaru laughed, and Sassouta joined in.

Daitano took a deep breath. “I really didn’t want to have to tell you two this, but, … she may have taken him as her lover.”

They stared at him. Then, “WHAT?!!? You can’t be serious!”

“It may not be him, -- it may be Kurama. And I don‘t know if it’s a real relationship, or just an arrangement of convenience.”

“You mean kaa-chan really has taken a lover?” Eishumaru stood up and walked over to stare at the painting of his mother and father that was already hanging on the wall of his room. “Well, this is embarrassing. I always thought I was prepared for that, -- hell, I’m the one who’s always teasing her about doing just that. And I’m even starting to actually think about a relationship myself, but, …” He reached out and touched her face in the picture. “I guess I just always thought that she would find someone like our otou-sans and take a mate, not just a lover.”

Daitano blinked at his brother’s unexpected reaction. He had thought he might not like who she had chosen to be her lover, but he would have never guessed he would be upset over the fact that she had taken one. “Shu, …”

But Sassouta got up and patted Eishumaru on the shoulder. “I know what you mean. It’s not that I disapprove, -- it’s perfectly natural. But, somehow, with kaa-san, … I just never thought she would go for less than ‘forever.’ I mean, she went for a hundred years without taking up with anyone. I always assumed she needed more, and just hadn’t found the right male to give it to her. Shit! It had better not be Yemon! I’d rather that damn kitsune avatar search her naked body for clues every time they’re together.”

“WHAT?!!?”

Eishumaru started laughing, but Daitano just scowled at them both. “Yeah! Since he thinks she’s guilty, he’s probably afraid to close his eyes when he comes. OW!” He rubbed his arm.

“Will you two knock it off? Though I’m glad to see you got over your shock. I was afraid you were both going to start blubbering like a couple of little girls. I can’t believe you guys. I was just glad to find out okaa-san still has normal needs and desires, -- she suppressed hers for so long, I was beginning to wonder. Sure, I want her to find someone to really love, too, but this is a step in the right direction. At least she she’s not alone anymore,” Daitano pointed out.

“Hmph. She was never alone. She’s always had us,” Sassouta grumbled.

“Hai, she has,” his eldest brother agreed. “And I believe her when she’s told us that she never needed anyone else while we were growing up. But, things are about to change. What do you think she will do once all of this is over? When we have won back our inheritances? We will have great responsibilities that will take a lot of our time, and we will need to spend most of our time in our own territories for years to come. What will happen when you do decide to take a mate, Shu?” He held his hands up to ward off their protests. “I know she will always have a home with each of us, but she won’t want to interfere with us establishing ourselves as leaders.” He walked away from them and looked out the window. “I don’t think she ever planned for anything past our battles. I think she believes she will be taken to the Reikai and executed.”

“That’s not going to happen!”

“They’ll have to get through me first!”

“I know that, too. We won’t let anything like that happen to her. But my point is, maybe now that she has someone else to think about, she will start to think about herself and her future more. All she’s ever focused on was us, and getting us settled. And even if this is just a casual affair, perhaps it will open her up to the possibility of seeking more. Do you understand?” Daitano asked them.

They nodded. “But what the hell are we going to do about Yemon? What if it is him? We sure can’t let her fall in love with him just to have Ayame throw it in her face,” Sassouta growled.

“Hai. That would be all she needs now, along with the shit that bitch Kagura is trying to pull,” Eishumaru frowned fiercely.

“What are you talking about? Did you hear something when you followed them this morning?” Daitano asked.

“She is claiming her son, Ginjiro, is my younger brother.”

“You’re kidding!” Sassouta shouted.

“He is not your brother,” Daitano swore.

“Don’t worry. I don’t believe it any more than you do. But kaa-chan was afraid I would, and that I would think less of my otou-san. Kurama said the Reikai may have someone who can examine our auras and determine if we are related, but he wasn’t positive it could be done. He’s supposed to check and see,” Eishumaru informed them.

“Well, this has just been one hell of a day, hasn’t it?”

They all agreed. Daitano volunteered to talk to Kagome, and to try to find out if her lover was Yemon, and to warn her about him.

“Hey! What if it’s Kurama? Should we tell Shippou and have him switch those room assignments again?” Eishumaru wanted to know.

“No. If okaa-san isn’t ready to tell us yet, then we shouldn’t go acting like it’s public knowledge. I don’t think any of the other detectives are aware of it. Besides, Kurama managed to come out with a nice little arrangement of his own if they are rendezvousing. They’ll have more privacy on the second floor,” Daitano reminded them.

“Oh, crap!” Eishumaru smacked a hand over his eyes. “Now every little sound I hear at night is going to have me wondering if it’s them.”

“I could have done without that thought,” his youngest brother shoved him.

“Me, too,” his oldest brother agreed.
--------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------


As the detectives all sat down for a moment in Kurama’s room, Yusuke started laughing.

“What’s so funny, Urameshi?” Kuwabara asked.

“I was just thinking about the way fox boy here outsmarted Shippou. He thought he had managed to keep you away from Kagome, but you showed him.” He gave Kurama the ‘thumbs-up’ sign.

Kurama allowed a small smile to curve his lips. Seeing it made Hiei want to shove his fist in the avatar’s gut. He wanted badly to confront him about the way he had put Kagome in danger by tying her to a tree, but he was hindered once again by the secrecy of their relationship. It was getting damn tiresome. He would have gone ahead and done it anyway, if he didn’t know Kurama well enough to know that he would be careful not to endanger her like that again. Still, it was frustrating not to be able to give him the beating he deserved. “We need to discuss some things.”

“Hai. This morning’s meeting with Kagura was very interesting. I will go into the Makai this evening to speak with Lord Koenma about the possibilities of aura examination,” Kurama said.

Kuwabara scowled. “I can’t believe that lady said her son is Sesshoumaru’s. I don’t think one of Kagome’s mates would cheat on her like that.”

“Don’t forget, -- Kagura claims she and Sesshoumaru had a prior relationship. Even if he did grow to have feelings about Kagome, if he had loved Kagura first, …” Kurama suggested. “And Touya did say Ginjiro resembles Eishumaru.”

“Yeah. I guess I can see how that could happen. It might have just been a one-time thing, with old feelings taking over or something,” Yusuke agreed.

“The miko told the wind-witch that the Taiyoukai had told her they were never lovers,” Hiei spoke up.

“She did? How interesting. What else was said before Kagura was thrown out of the garden?” Kurama wanted to know.

“When Eishumaru joined them, the wind-user mistook him for Sesshoumaru. Then she made some comments about his hair and the way he showed his affection for his mother being so different from his father. The miko told her that proved she didn’t know the Taiyoukai very well.”

“This is really confusing,” Yusuke shook his head. “Someone explain to me again what all this means for our case.”

“The whole question surrounding Sesshoumaru’s possible relationship with Kagura speaks toward motive. Our original assumption after we found out about Kagura, was that Kagome killed him out of jealousy, or fear of losing him, or possibly her son’s inheritance, if he chose to acknowledge Kagura’s son and set her aside. When we found out that all three of her mates had other women in their lives, we expanded our theories to account for the possibility that that the other women had killed them, -- either separately, which doesn’t seem very likely, or by working together, -- with Kikyou killing Inuyasha, Kikyou helping Kagura to kill Sesshoumaru, and finally Kikyou helping Ayame to kill Kouga, possibly with Kagura also assisting. The motive for all three of them would be because they were spurned. The problem that Kagura’s revelation that she and Sesshoumaru had a child together after he and Kagome were truly mated, is that it points the motive back to Kagome,” Kurama explained.

“But if Kagome doesn’t believe her, then she wouldn’t have had any reason to kill him,” Kuwabara said.

“Good point. Hey! When did you get so smart?” Yusuke demanded.

“If she truly doesn’t believe Kagura’s claims, then why was she so upset, and why did she keep it from us and her sons?” the avatar questioned.

“After everyone else was gone, she told her son that she was afraid he would believe it, and she didn’t want him to doubt his father,” Hiei told him.

They all sat there in silence for a while, mulling over everything that they knew or suspected. Finally, Hiei spoke again, “When we began this assignment, we approached it as gathering evidence against the miko. Then, when the other females’ involvement came to light, we began exploring the possibilities that they may have done it. But, we are still letting our previous assumptions dictate the way we are looking at this. There are other possibilities we have not taken into consideration.”

The others stared at him. Then Kurama nodded. “You are right. I take it you have another theory you think we should look into.”

“Hai. Instead of just looking at people with motives to kill the Taiyoukai, I think we should look at people with motives to hurt the miko,” the apparition suggested.

“Well, … shit. You think someone might have killed her mates just to get at her?” Yusuke asked.

“That isn’t a bad theory. She was directly affected by all three murders. It also plays into why the Taiyoukai might have been killed in ways that implicate her, -- if she isn’t the killer herself. It doesn’t rule out the other women, but expands the possibilities. I am beginning to wonder if we will ever get to the bottom of this. It seems that the more we learn, the more we need to explore.” Kurama let out a small sigh. “I suppose we need to compile a list of her enemies. And the best person to help us with that is Shippou. So, I guess Yusuke and Kuwabara will have to take care of that, since he is a little put out with me right now,” he smiled wryly.

Kuwabara walked over and stood in front of Kurama and stared down at him. “After everything we’ve found out, you still insist on reminding us it could have been her. Why?”

Kurama looked him straight in the eye and said, “Because she is still the one with the most motive and opportunity. She is still the only one we know who is proficient in the bow, knows about powerful poisons, and knows how to use the Death Touch. She is still the only one of our suspects who I think is powerful enough to have killed Sesshoumaru. We still cannot explain away his claw marks on her arm or his blood and skin underneath her fingernails. She is a powerful miko, and could have purified their souls, just as she apparently did all of their remains, which is suspicious in itself. Kuwabara, I’m not the bad guy here. I am merely stating the facts as we know them. We may very well turn up something else that will shed new light on this, and I am not discounting the possibility that the other women may be guilty. But from what we have seen, and know, about Kagura and Princess Ayame, neither of them could have destroyed those souls. And while Kikyou could, I don’t think she could have overcome Sesshoumaru’s physical presence -- not without hitting him with several hama no ya. But every account we have heard or read says he only had the dagger wound in his chest and the scratch marks on his arm. And I can’t even check his bones for other marks because our widow destroyed them.”

Kurama stood up. “I won’t lie to you. Youko and I both are concerned about the effect her reputation will have on those boys’ attempts to seize control in the Makai. She will destroy their credibility. And the only way to mitigate her influence on them would be to lock her away in the Reikai and execute her.” His eyes turned a frosty shade of gold. “And if she is guilty, then she deserves to be executed for taking their fathers away from them and losing their inheritances.”

Kuwabara clenched his fists. “And if she’s not guilty?”

“If she’s not guilty, then there should be some way to prove it, right? If there is, we’ll find it.”

They stared at each other a little longer before Kuwabara nodded. “Just like you figured out a way to prove Ginjiro isn’t Sesshoumaru’s son? All right. As long as you promise to keep that brain of yours thinking about all the possibilities.”

“Of course.”

“Okay, now that that’s settled, I think we should go take a look around the grounds here. Koenma said no one has picked up Kikyou’s trail in the Makai yet. So, she may still be here in the Ningenkai,” Yusuke said, getting to his feet.

“Hn. Then the miko should still not leave the house without one of us with her.” That thought made Hiei check just to see where she was. She wasn’t in the house. Maybe Kurama had the right idea after all -- someone needed to tie that damn onna up. He swore viciously to himself. “She’s not here. And the old priest is gone, too.”

“Well, hell. Let’s go find them.” And Yusuke headed for the door.
----------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------


When she slumped forward on him, he wrapped his arms around her. He liked this new house already. Or, at least, he liked her way of christening it. He looked at the way the shadows danced along the walls in the flickering candlelight. She had brought over some of her oils, and some candles to warm them, and had treated him to another very thorough massage. He shook his head a bit. He still couldn’t believe how much he enjoyed just having her touch him. He smiled and tightened his hold on her when she made no effort to move after several minutes. “Comfortable?”

“Gomen. I’m squashing you, aren’t I?” And she started to get off of him, but he held her firmly.

“Don’t be ridiculous, onna. You could barely squash a fly. Now be still. You were comfortable and so was I.”

“Then why did you say something in the first place?”

He thought about that. Why did he feel compelled to talk to her? To ask her such a stupid, obvious question? Because he wanted more. More than the sex. More than the touching. He wanted the whole thing. He wanted the talking. And the caring. He wanted the real intimacy of a real relationship. He wanted all of her. “Because obviously I don’t know any better. Are you sure you didn’t put a spell on me?”

She giggled at that, and he smiled again. “And what would it have turned you into this time to make you talk? Not a pussycat or a cow.”

“Hn. An onna, -- what else?”

“What?!?” She propped herself up to look down at him with a fierce frown on her face. “I don’t know if I should laugh or smack you for that.”

“Well then, why don’t you just … lie still, instead?” (Damn. I almost said ‘kiss me.’ But she has to decide that. When she does, then I’ll know. Then it will be real, and she will really be mine.)

She settled back down. “Hmph. If I put a spell on you, it certainly wouldn’t be to turn you into a woman, -- I definitely prefer you as a male. And you wouldn’t make a very pretty woman, anyway.”

He chuckled at that. “I daresay you are right.”

When she was still awake some time later, he started rubbing her back. She was tense, and he could tell she was thinking hard about something. “Are you still upset over the wind-user’s visit?”

She seemed startled that he had asked that. “Well, … maybe a bit.”

“Your mate didn’t father her son.”

He felt her take a shaky breath. “I know,” she said quietly. “Arigatou.”

“Something else is bothering you, too. What is it?” he asked, as he continued to rub her neck and shoulders.

“Daitano came to me a little while ago. He and his brothers wanted to be sure Lord Yemon isn’t the one I’m involved with. They found out Ayame is his mistress.”

“What?” (How did they find out something like that when we haven’t? Yusuke said Touya had reported that Ayame was in the Northern lands, but he definitely didn’t mention anything like that. That adds to our list of possibilities.) “You knew him from before, didn’t you?”

“Hai. He came to see Kouga several times.”

When she didn’t say anything else, but remained stiff, he frowned. “What are you not saying?”

“The boys think he asked me to be his mate as part of a plan he and Ayame have to get revenge on me. And he was … somewhat less than his usual charming self over that bite mark. I am concerned about what he may do when I refuse him,” she confessed.

His hands stilled on her shoulders. “What do you mean he was ‘less than his usual charming self?’ Did he threaten you?”

“Well, not exactly. He just ranted and raved a bit about me sleeping with Kurama. And then he told me that as his mate, I would be protected from the Reikai, and pressured me to prove that I’m still really considering him as a mate. Fortunately, the fire alarm at the hotel went off. For a moment, though, I thought he was going to … well, I don’t know what I thought he was going to do.”

So much for their problems with the Northern lands. He would kill the ookami lord, and Sassouta could have the lands. Why didn’t she say something sooner? “You don’t have to worry about him. I will make sure he doesn’t bother you anymore.”

“Oh, I’m not worried about me. He’ll get a chance to get over his anger with me. But, I’m just afraid he’s going to stir up trouble that will make things difficult for Sassouta,” she said.

“What kind of chance is he going to get to get over his anger with you?” He lifted his head up to look at her.

“Um, … well, … he’ll get to yell and call me names or whatever when I turn him down.” She fidgeted a bit and just stared at her hand on his chest. “Wait a minute. If his courtship is just some kind of plan for Ayame to get revenge on me, and he doesn’t really want me as a mate, then he shouldn’t be angry when I turn him down. Not the way I thought he would.” She lifted her head and smiled at Hiei, then she frowned again. “Damn. That means he never intended to grant Sassouta’s petition for challenge in the first place. He’s been planning to make it a battle all along.” She slid off of Hiei and sat up and clenched her fists. “That dirty, rotten, no-good, lying bastard!”

He sat up and put his arms around her. Leaning forward, he saw that her eyes were a bright, flashing, violet, and since her anger wasn’t directed at him, he found it rather attractive. “Now you can just call the whole courtship off, and you won’t have to deal with him or the fox.”

“No, I can’t do that,” she said stubbornly. “He probably already has his plans for battle in effect, but we are still not ready.” (Damn it! There’s so little time. I have to master the jian and issue my challenges as soon as possible.) “I can’t give him any more advantage than he already has. I have to make him think their plan is working so he won’t push forward his other plans.” (And then when I confront him, maybe I can anger him enough on a personal level to accept my challenge.)

(Damn! I thought I could finally be rid of those two thorns in my side. But what she says makes sense. I need to tell the others tomorrow about the wolf. ) “There’s no point in letting it keep you up. You said you need to get up extra-early in the morning.” He pushed her back down.

“I know, but I just can’t get to sleep with all these thoughts running through my head.”

He smirked and straddled her hips. “I have a remedy for that.”
---------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------


The next day was an exhausting one for most of the house’s occupants. Kagome and her sons attacked their training sessions with grim determination. Kagome and Master Zhang left the house before anyone else was up, and Hiei followed them, having told the others the night before that he would, when they had found out the two planned to begin their work so early. When the detectives had come across them on the beach the day before, Yusuke had read Kagome the riot act about not leaving the house without one of them along. That had suited Hiei just fine, as it saved him from having to yell at her.

He had hoped to watch Master Zhang’s session with her, -- he had never seen any instruction with a Chinese double-edged straight sword before, -- but, they had raised their black barrier, and he was left standing outside of it. They brought the barrier down at dawn and joined the others. Reverting to their regular routine, they meditated, ran along the beach, and then went through their Tai Chi Chu’an forms. When they broke to spar, Yusuke stood guard as Kagome and Zhang re-set their barrier to continue with her lessons. They didn’t join the others for lunch.

After lunch, Kuwabara took Yusuke’s place. When it was time for dinner, the barrier finally shimmered and disappeared. And her sons, who had been waiting there for her with Shippou and the four detectives, started cursing. “Damn it! Can’t you teach her without injuring her?”

“Watch your manners when you’re speaking to Master Zhang, Daitano. And it’s just a shallow flesh wound. See?” Kagome showed him the back side of her arm as she admonished him. “It’s not his fault I turned my side like some rank novice.” She grimaced at her own stupidity.

“Actually, other than that one error in judgment, your mother did quite well. But, until she becomes proficient, you had better get used to the smell of her blood. By tomorrow evening, we will reattach the tassels.”

“What does that mean?” Kuwabara whispered loudly.

“Traditionally, with the jian, the tassel becomes part of the weapon. In addition to sometimes being used to wrap around the wrist to make sure the sword isn’t lost from the wielder’s grip during combat, woven among the streamers of ribbon or yarn are tiny wires and thin, sharp-edged pieces of metal. It can be used both as a distraction, to disguise the sword’s movement, and also as a hindrance to the opponent, since the cuts made by the wires will sting,” Kurama.

“Ah, you are very knowledgeable about the jian. Have you attempted it yourself?” Zhang asked him, curiously.

“No. I am more comfortable with my whip, and my hands. But I saw many battles where the jian was employed during my time in China.”

“Then you know the major target of the tassel.”

“Hai. The eyes, or right above them, so the blood dripping down will blind your opponent,” Kurama answered.

“Oh, crap! You are not going to blind her. Kaa-chan, why don’t you stick to the Tibetan Hop Gar?” Eishumaru demanded.

“I appreciate your faith in my abilities,” she said dryly.

Kurama walked over to where they had been practicing and looked at the ground.

“What are you looking at?” Yusuke asked him.

“I was just curious to see what effect her blood had on the sand. It causes grass to wither and die, and then bloom with white lilies. Apparently, it turns sand black,” he pointed out as the sand in a small area continued to grow darker and darker. “What will happen to it by tomorrow?” he asked Kagome.

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve never been injured at a beach before.”

And they all went in for dinner. When they were done, Kagome and Zhang got up and headed for the door. “And just where do you two think you’re going?” Daitano stood up and walked over to them.

“To practice some more.”

“Okaa-san, …”

She smiled and touched his cheek. “The sooner I learn, the sooner you can stop worrying, right?” And she turned and left.

Kurama stood to follow them, and all three of her sons turned to look at him. Then Hiei signaled the other detectives and said, “We should all go for a little while. We need to talk.”

And as they sat on the beach and watched the waves roll in, Kurama told them that Koenma did think there was a possibility Genkai could tell something by examining Eishumaru and Ginjiro’s auras. He had said he would meet with her as soon as possible to check into it. They turned to Yusuke, who pulled out a piece of paper.

“Kuwabara and I talked to Shippou. Do you see this list of names?!!? This is just a preliminary list of her enemies. Listen to this: Naraku, of course, Kagura, Kikyou, and Ayame, we already knew about, Yura, Hiten, Manten, Kanna, Goshinki, Urasue, Juromaru, Kageromaru, Musou, Tsubaki, Akago, Hakudoshi, Entei, Bankotsu, Jakotsu, Kyokotsu, Mukotsu, Renkotsu, Ginkotsu, Suikotsu, Chokyuukai, Abi-hime, Hoshiyomi, Moryomaru, Kaou, and Byakuya. Now, Shippou insists that most of them are already dead, -- killed by Inuyasha, or Kagome, or the others during the Quest. But he isn’t sure about Chokyuukai, Moryomaru or Byakuya. And there are lots more, he just has to think about it. Hell, she racked up quite a number who were after her during the hundred years after her mates were killed, too. You remember Kagura mentioning she had hired assassins? Well, apparently, she and Princess Ayame put up rewards for her head. Shippou also mentioned there were humans, mostly groups of bandits, who might have held a grudge against her, and while they would all be dead, you never what might have been passed down to their descendants.” He looked at Hiei and Kurama. “Shit, she’s pissed off as many people as you two.”

“We need all of those names checked out. Koenma needs to confirm the ones who are dead,” Kurama commented.

“There is something else,” Hiei spoke up. “Her sons have discovered that the wolf is sleeping with the ookami bitch.”

“What?!!? Holy crap! He’s sleeping with Ayame while he’s courting Kagome? How the hell did they find that out?” Yusuke wanted to know.

“The youngest son has set a spy on the ookami. But the point, detective, is not the fact that he has a mistress, -- it is who she is. Her sons believe the two of them are out for revenge by having him court their mother and then toss her aside in favor of the bitch. And that may be their plan, but the question is, was he also working with her all those years ago?”

“And so it continues.” Kurama smiled. “This case has given us more to think about than any other I can remember. You all can go back in now. I’ll wait to escort our widow back.”
---------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------


That night, when Kagome quietly entered his room, put up a barrier, and walked over to the bed, he noted how slow her steps were. And when she had shed her dark gray robe and gown, he joined her. But before he did anything else, he examined the cut on her arm. “You must have practically turned your back to him. Do not be so careless.”

“I know. My attack was off, and it put me too close to him, and I turned too far in my retreat. I was too hasty.” She stifled a yawn.

“You are tired. Are you planning to get up so early again tomorrow?”

“Hai. That’s how I was able to escape Kurama with a minimum of trouble,” she grinned and winked at him.

“Hn. Then you should get some sleep.” He moved to lie down next to her.

“Oh, think you’re getting off that easily, huh? I was thinking you could do all the work for a change,” she poked him in the side.

He raised a brow at her. “And I take it you have something in mind?”

“Actually, hai. You’re pretty strong, aren’t you?” He just stared at her, so she continued. “And I know how much you like to be in control, so, …why don’t you sit over here on the edge of the bed?” She patted the bed on the other side of her.

When he sat down, she climbed onto his lap facing him. “Now what?” This time she raised a brow at him. “Don’t look at me like that, onna. I was under the impression you had something different in mind.”

Her eyes sparkled and the edges of her mouth twitched. “You’re just adorable.”

His eyebrows disappeared under his bandanna. Hiei had been called many things in his life, but ‘adorable’ was not one of them.

“I thought we agreed you were going to do everything. But, I’ll be nice and start us out.” And she leaned into him, rocking gently against his already-hardened member as she ran her hands up his back and rubbed her breasts against his chest. Taking his earlobe in between her teeth, she nibbled on it gently.

If Hiei was the type of youkai who became embarrassed when he realized he had done or said something stupid, he would have been blushing. The onna was not in the same state of readiness that he was. So the answer to his ‘now what?’ was blaringly obvious: her arousal level needed to be elevated. Well, that was taken care of easily enough. But what was it about this onna that made him lose his senses and react like some virgin in awe of his first female? He was so eager to have her that he lost sight of the need to make sure her body was physically prepared to accept him. Oh, he was adorable all right, -- appallingly, adorably stupid. Would even Kuwabara be so ridiculous as to ask such a question at such a time? He didn’t even want to think about it.

Applying himself to the situation at hand, Hiei pulled her even closer to him and bent his head so he could run his tongue down the side of her neck. Hearing her murmur of pleasure, he lifted her slightly, so he could continue his leisurely descent until he captured a dusky nipple between his lips. Sucking gently at first, then more firmly, he brushed the other one with the pad of his thumb. As she continued to move against him, it wasn’t long before he felt that heavenly moisture coating the underside of his cock. But, instead of moving on to other things, he simply made a lateral move to latch onto her other breast. The truth was, he would have been perfectly content just to suckle at her breasts for hours. The feel of the soft, yet firm mounds against his face was both erotic and comforting. And the smell and taste of her skin was so pleasant, along with the contrasting texture of her nipple to the surrounding flesh, that he wondered why any child allowed himself to be weaned.

He felt her fingers dig into his shoulders, and he could tell by the sound of her breathing that she was more than ready, but he wasn’t done yet. When she started to lift herself up further, he knew she intended to slide down on him, and the hand he had on her lower back moved down to her bottom and pressed her tightly against him instead. Now he rocked against her as he continued his ministrations to her breasts.

“Hiei, …” she panted.

Her responsiveness was one of the things he loved about her. It made their time together extra-satisfying. And when he finally let go of her breasts, he moved one hand down in between them and let his fingers lightly spread her juices before dipping his thumb inside her in a firm upward stroke. Then he held very still while she came with a soft cry. And when her quivering spasms stopped, and she looked at him, he raised his thumb to his mouth and slowly licked it, watching her eyes start to darken again already. Then he leaned forward and whispered in her ear, “Am I still adorable?”

She responded by whispering back, “You’re a devil.”

He nodded at that and then smiled wickedly at her. “Now what?”

And she rotated her hips and rubbed herself firmly against his hard length as she once again lifted herself up. But when she had lowered herself onto the head of his cock, she stopped and just hovered there, continuing to rotate her hips as her warmth enveloped and circled him just around the tip.

“Onna, …”

Then she stared into his eyes as she lowered herself fully onto him. He watched as the already-dark blue turned to midnight, and felt the slight hitch in her breathing as she slowed her downward movement to allow her body to accommodate his length and girth. As always, it felt like he was slipping into a second layer of his own skin, and he couldn’t restrain a low groan when he saw her lips part to take in another breath. It didn’t matter how they did it, the simple act of coupling with her was always obscenely pleasurable. He was surprised the Reikai didn’t have a law against it. Then he smiled to himself. They practically did, since they had charged Kurama and Yusuke to keep her from mating with any powerful, influential males in the Makai.

When he was completely sheathed inside her, she smiled at him. “The rest is up to you.”

He cocked a brow at her. This was a position where the female usually took the lead, or at least an active part. “And what are you going to do?”

“I’m going to lie back and get the kinks out of my back,” she grinned. And he watched as she stretched her arms up over her head and arched her back, then let them fall to her sides as she scooted her bottom closer to him on his lap, and then leaned back and draped herself down his legs over the side of the bed. He continued to stare at her as she stretched her arms out over her head again, and shook her head slightly, so her hair fanned out in an inky black cloud on the red carpet that covered the floor of his rooms.

(As the detective would say, “Holy shit!”) She had turned herself into a waterfall of living, breathing, visual sensuality. And he would have just sat there drinking in the sight for a while if she hadn’t tightened her muscles around him, pulling him out of the lust-induced stupor he had fallen into. Taking her hips in his hands, he saw that she hadn’t lied -- this was one way that he was in complete control. And he could either hold her still and simply use his hips to thrust in and out, or he could sit still himself, and move her on him. He decided he liked the second way, though it took a lot of effort to keep himself from jerking forward to pound into that hot, wet haven.

This position was definitely right up there with his favorites. It was not only the control that appealed to him, but having her displayed like that so his eyes could feast on her while he sated his body’s hunger for hers. His eyes roamed up and down her body for a while, taking in the delicious way her abdominal muscles were pulled so taut, and how the fingers of one of her hands lightly stoked her skin there, while her other arm was bent at the elbow beside her head with that hand twining into the mass of hair there. She was … breathtaking. And he didn’t think he would ever get tired of looking at her.

And as his focus shifted to the point where their bodies met, he couldn’t hold back the urge to thrust into her forcefully a few times, as if his most primal self had to claim her. He forced down the need to keep going in that manner, so he could enjoy this a little longer. Watching how her delicate, feminine flesh caressed the sides of his cock as he slowly moved her up towards the end of it, and then parted slightly as if to welcome him back in as it slowly engulfed his entire throbbing member when he moved her back down it, he was completely fascinated by how the motion seemed different this way. Hai, it was the same irresistibly erotic sight that always held him transfixed when he took her from behind or with her lying at the edge of the bed while he stood beside it, -- the same undeniably satisfying view that appealed so greatly to that primal side of him that loved to watch the part of him that most inherently defined his maleness plundering and being accepted by that part of her that was the very center of her femaleness. But somehow, although it was the same type of motion, the fact that he was moving her on him, instead of moving himself into her, seemed more … lascivious. And he liked the slightly wicked feeling he got from it. But, the sight and the feel of her was too much for him to hold out much longer, and he could already feel tiny tremors deep inside her, causing her muscles to clench around him.

“Kagome, …” He slid one hand under her lower back, and lifted her up slightly. Taking his cue, she arched her back farther and pulled herself up, where he immediately clasped her to him, and began thrusting up into her at a fast, hard pace. She wrapped her arms tightly around his shoulders and buried her face in the crook of his neck. And he closed his eyes and just let himself feel. As his movements began to lose their rhythm, he felt her breathe his name against his neck, and then her breath caught and her fingernails drew blood. And with a growl, he joined her in blessed release.

He sat there with his eyes still closed and swallowed thickly, before taking a deep breath. He was beginning to wonder if he had ever really had sex before he met her, because he knew he’d never felt anything to compare to this. He felt a small wave of calming, soothing warmth settle through his shoulders and realized she had healed the tiny puncture wounds her fingernails had made. He chuckled lightly. “Those were hardly worth the bother,” he said, as he rubbed his cheek against her silky hair. But she didn’t say anything. “Kagome?” He listened to the soft, even sound of her breathing and chuckled again. She really had been tired. She had been tired, but she had still wanted to be with him. He closed his eyes again and hugged her tightly. And in that moment, he considered himself one lucky youkai.
--------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------


The next day began like the one before, with Kagome, Zhang, and Hiei making their way to the beach before the others were up. But, when they dropped their barrier at dawn to join everyone else, Kurama was waiting there with Hiei.

“Ohayo, Kurama,” Kagome greeted him.

“Ohayo, my dear. I came to see the sand where your blood soaked in yesterday.”

“Oh, I forgot about that.” They looked around and found the area where the sand had turned black. Only now, the sand was a glowing, pristine white, and there was a thin layer of large black onyx stones on top.

“Fascinating,” the avatar murmured as he knelt down and picked up a stone.

“Why?” Hiei asked.

“The onyx is considered a ‘grounding stone.’ It is sometimes used as a reminder of our connection to the earth. Its energy is supposed to be slow moving, and therefore soothing, and it is sometimes worn to help release and banish grief. All in all, this is a very appropriate reaction if the earth truly mourns when her blood is spilled.” He turned to Kagome. “Would you mind if I took some of these? I would like to examine them further.”

“No, not at all. Please, help yourself.”

“Arigatou,” he said, as he picked out several and put them in his pocket. Then they walked on to meet the others and begin the morning’s meditations.



After dinner that evening, Kurama walked out again with Kagome as she and Zhang went back to the beach to practice some more. He had been thinking about his continued failure to entice her into his bed. He was truly astounded that she had held out so long. Of course, it seemed pretty obvious now that he didn’t have to seduce her to keep her from mating with the Northern lord. And Youko’s feelings about repaying Sesshoumaru for his slight all those centuries ago had lessened the more he got to know Sesshoumaru‘s son. But he was still convinced she was the most likely suspect for the Taiyoukai’s murders, and he was determined to find out the secrets she was keeping. He knew that once he got her in his bed, he could weave a seductive hold on her so strong, that she would break under his interrogation, and spill the whole truth. And the longer she held out, the more of a challenge she became.

She wasn’t frigid, by any means. No, she was a very passionate woman. He saw it in the way she cared for her sons, and in her meticulous attention to detail, -- whether it was simply about making sure everyone was served the dishes they enjoyed for their meals or in the detailed maps and plans they had seen her sketch for the possibilities they might face in the Makai. And he saw it in the way she trained, with a fierce, fiery determination. Oh, her outward demeanor was always calm, but he could see the passion burning in her eyes. And he would see it burn for him.

He sat on the beach outside the barrier and tried to figure out how to make it happen. Youko still thought that overpowering her senses with blatant sexuality would work. The female really should be ready for a good fuck by now, -- she hadn’t had a lover since she and her sons were revived, and he didn’t know how long she had gone before they went into hiding. Goodness knows he could sure use a good fuck. But Kurama thought they needed to revert to more subtlety. Before he had tied her to that tree, she had responded to his charm and had relaxed in his presence, -- something she rarely did. And ever since Youko had protected her and been hit by that arrow, she had been friendlier and more solicitous of him. Ah, guilt and gratitude, -- always two potent weapons when it came to females. So, he needed to take advantage of those feelings, and continue to be charming, but perhaps back off a little with the overt seduction.

But Youko did have a point, -- the all-out assault might get results quicker, if he could ever get the right opportunity and time to employ it. If Kikyou hadn’t appeared when she did, … No point in dwelling on ‘what ifs.’ He had his plan of attack, but he needed something else. He really was getting tired of waiting for her to succumb. He needed to help it along. As he thought, he pulled one of the onyx stones out of his pocket to look at it. Then he smiled. Other than some flowers, he hadn’t given her a gift yet. And he knew exactly what to give her.



When she and Master Zhang called it a night, it was already dark. Kurama offered her his arm to keep her from stumbling, and Zhang walked on ahead with his long, slow strides. The avatar could see, and smell, that they had indeed attached the tassels to their jians. She had lines of scratches on her forehead, neck, and the back of her right hand. She was probably grateful her Tai Chi-style uniform had long sleeves. “So, will there be more onyx stones on the beach tomorrow?” he joked with her.

She smiled at that. “I don’t think so. I think my clothing soaked up all of my blood. I really am going to have to start wearing my black uniforms instead of these white ones, -- they’re impossible to get bloodstains out of,” she laughed.

When they reached the house, they walked side by side up the stairs, and he noticed she put her hand to the scratches on her neck a couple of times. “They sting, don’t they?”

“Hai. I know they’ll be gone in a couple of hours, but they really do sting like the dickens. I think I’ll mix up a salve to put on them.”

“I believe I have something in my room that will work. Wait right here. Unless you’d care to join me, of course,” he said with a teasing smile.

“Arigatou, but I believe I am too tired to even take a few extra steps,” she answered back. She was surprised when he didn’t press her. He was still flirting with her, but at least he hadn’t tried to overwhelm her again since the incident with Kikyou.

He came out with a large jar and dipped his fingers into it, then carefully spread a thin layer of the gel-like salve over the back of her hand, and then across her forehead. He got a little more before running his fingers slowly along the slim column of her neck. She closed her eyes as the cool, smooth substance instantly stopped the stinging pain that had been nagging her. “Better?” he asked, looking intently into her eyes.

“Hai. Arigatou, Kurama.”

“Good,” he said, and lightly brushed a kiss across her lips, startling her with both the suddenness of the movement and the brevity of it. “I’ll just put this back and walk you on up to your room.”

“No, that’s all right. I’ll see you tomorrow.” And she quickly continued up the stairs, much to his amusement.

He smiled to himself. Hai, this was the best course of action. She was much more susceptible to a gentler approach.
------------------------------------------------------------- -----------------------------------------------


Hiei waited for an hour after he knew she had gone into her room. (What the hell is taking her so long? No one is about.) He slipped out into the hall and tried her door. It wasn’t locked, so he went in. He looked around, but he didn’t see her. “Kagome?” he called quietly. He stepped into her sitting room, but still didn’t see her. When he went into her bathroom, he saw that she had fallen asleep in the bath. He frowned for a minute. She was pushing herself awfully hard in her training. As he came closer, he saw the faint lines where she had been hit by the tassel on Zhang’s jian. That made him frown harder. He debated on whether or not to wake her, or just grab a towel and pick her up. He ended up grabbing the black robe he saw laying out, ignoring the gown, and just lifting her out of the tub and carrying her across the hall to his room. He didn’t bother drying her off, -- he just put her down on the bed, shed his clothes, and crawled in with her. She stirred briefly, automatically put up a barrier, then snuggled up next to him and dropped right back off to sleep. He lay there contentedly for a long time, until his Reikai communicator went off.

“Kagome?” (Damn, I hate to disturb her.) “Kagome?” When she slowly opened her eyes and blinked up at him a few times, he told her, “I have to go somewhere for a little while. You’ll have to take the barrier down.”

“All right. I’ll just go back to my room,” she said, as she sat up and looked around for her gown. All she saw was her robe. “Hiei? I don’t really remember coming over here. Did you bring me over?”

“Hai. You fell asleep in your bath. You are exhausting yourself with your training,” he told her sternly. He really didn’t want her to go back to her room, but he didn’t know how long he would be gone. Damn it.

“I just have to build up my stamina.”

“Hn. I could help you with that.” He smirked when he saw the color start to rise in her cheeks.

Tying her robe, she reminded him, “Don’t forget to use a drop of the oil. I assume you are going somewhere with the others.”

“Just Yusuke and Kurama. Kuwabara will stay here,” his voice was curt in his irritation. He wasn’t happy that the idiot was the only one who would be here to watch over them. He would feel much better if one of the others was staying, too, but Koenma had insisted it be all three of them.

She nodded. She realized he was reluctant to leave her and her sons with just Kuwabara for protection. She almost smiled at that. None of them really felt they needed any protection in the first place. “We will be fine,” she assured him. “Arigatou, Hiei.” And she reached out and caressed his cheek, “Be careful.”

He just nodded once, and then he left before Kurama and Yusuke came to get him.
------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------



Kagome sat straight up in her bed and looked around frantically. (Not again!) She had dreamed about Hiei again. And when the passion had burned away, he had simply … disappeared. And in her dream, she had searched for him. She covered her face with her hands. (I just can’t do that again.) Even though her rational mind knew it had just been a dream, she couldn’t help but expand her senses to locate his aura. She breathed a sigh of relief. He was here. He and Yusuke and Kurama were all on the second floor.

She got up and headed for her bathroom. When she had dreamed of her mates, she had been left with the desire and the lingering sadness of their loss. With Hiei, it was the desire and fear. She wasn’t sure what was worse. No, that wasn’t true. The sadness was something she had learned to live with. But the fear that it would happen again … She shook her head and stepped into the cold shower.
--------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------


After stomping upstairs to drag Kuwabara down to tell him what was going on, Yusuke was pacing around Kurama’s room in a foul mood. “What the hell are we going to do?!!?”

“There’s no need to yell, Yusuke,” Kurama said.

“Oh, no. Of course not.” He flung his arms around wildly. “We’ve just got a dead miko on the loose who is now killing young youkai females in the Makai for their souls!”

Koenma had sent them to the Southern lands of the Makai to take a look at the latest victims. Lords Mukuro and Yomi had petitioned the Reikai to investigate after the 7th young female was found. Tonight, there were 3 more. All of them had been killed by a single hama no ya through the heart, and none of their souls had shown up in the Reikai. Koenma had suspected right away who was behind it, but he had wanted his team to confirm it was the same miko. Hell, how many mikos would be roaming around the Makai?

Kurama had confirmed the arrows held the same dark energy as the one that had struck Youko. After they had talked to Mukuro and Yomi, they had searched the sites where each of the bodies were found, starting with the first one, and tried to determine the path Kikyou must have taken. It looked like she was heading towards the East.

“It makes sense that she would head to the Eastern lands, -- that was Inuyasha’s territory. That’s probably where she has been living all these centuries,” Kurama surmised.

“Why was she in the Southern lands, then?” Yusuke wanted to know.

“I don’t think she had a choice. When she escaped the Ningenkai, she must have just randomly passed the barrier into the Makai.”

“But why is she suddenly killing youkai girls?” Kuwabara asked.

“She told Kagome that when she became a kuromiko she started using youkai souls as well as human ones to sustain her body and use their power,” the avatar explained.

“You mentioned that before, but I thought she was just taking the souls after the girls died. We’ve never had reports of any being killed by hama no ya before, or you can bet we would have been investigating them,” Yusuke pointed out. “So why is she killing them now?”

“Because when the miko hit her with her hama no ya, she was severely injured. She needs more fresh souls to repair the damage to her clay body. She can’t wait for her shinidamachu to gather enough,” Hiei suggested.

“I think you may be right, Hiei.”

“So, what do we do about it?” Kuwabara asked. “What if she comes back into the Ningenkai and starts killing human girls for their souls?”

“Well, shit, Kuwabara. That kind of thinking is not helping.” The leader of the Spirit Detective team was getting more agitated by the minute. He ran his hand through his hair in frustration. (If she comes back to the Ningenkai, then Keiko could be in danger. Or Yukina. Or Shizuru.) “Shit! I want the girls brought here.”

Hiei and Kuwabara both stared at him for a minute as what he said sunk in.

“Yusuke,” Kurama said calmly, “if Kikyou comes back into the Ningenkai, the one place she will be searching for is here. From what I saw and heard, she only has one goal, and that is to kill Kagome. And she told Kagome that she could find her anywhere. They would be in more danger here than anywhere else, -- especially if she was injured again while fighting. Then she might look for the closest source to strengthen herself.”

Hiei clenched his fists. The idea of leaving Yukina at Genkai’s while there was even the remotest possibility that the dead bitch might wander into the Ningenkai for more souls was unacceptable. But Kurama had a good point. From what Kagome had said about being able to feel that piece of her soul that the dead miko had, he was sure that was how the bitch could always find her, -- since Kagome had most of the soul, she could probably be sensed a lot easier. And that meant that when she had replenished her powers sufficiently, she would be coming here.

“I don’t care! If Yukina is here, I’ll be able to protect her. If she’s in Kyoto, then … damn it! If she can’t come here, then I’m going there,” Kuwabara announced. “And if Koenma doesn’t like it, he can kiss my ass!”

All three of his teammates stared at him. “Actually, I think it’s a good idea. And Keiko and Shizuru can stay at the temple, too. We can switch off who stays there until this mess is over,” Yusuke said.

“And don’t forget, Chuu and Rinku are going to keep searching the Makai for Kikyou,” Kurama reminded them.

“Yeah, but I’d feel better if it was Touya or Jin,” Yusuke grumbled.

“Touya is keeping an eye on Kagura, and Jin is watching Princess Ayame. And he did find out about her and Yemon before we told him, so he’s doing a pretty good job for an outsider.”

“So, do we tell Kagome and the boys about Kikyou?” Yusuke threw out to the group.

“I don’t know. They are already on the alert for her, and they are focusing hard on their training. What good would it do them to know she is killing for her souls now?” Kurama stood. “I say we let them go on as usual. And speaking of that, it is almost time for Kagome and Master Zhang to begin their day. Kuwabara, why don’t you go pack a few days’ worth of clothes? I will go back into the Reikai to inform Lord Koenma of our plans, then I need to make a quick trip into Toba. When I return, you can have Botan take you to pick up Keiko and Shizuru and go on to Genkai’s.”

Yusuke and Kuwabara nodded their agreement. “What do you plan to do in Toba?” Hiei asked him.

“There is something I need to have done there. I won’t be long. And don’t worry, -- Kuwabara will guard Yukina with his life,” the avatar tried to assure him.

“Hn. He’d better, because if anything happens to her, his life will be forfeit.”
--------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------


Kuw abara’s leaving was easily explained and readily accepted as a desire to spend time with his fiancée and plan their wedding. Ginta, and Hakkaku also left to meet with Jaken and Myouga, and to continue their subtle inquiries into the state of affairs in the Makai, and to search for possible allies. The rest of the household continued their dogged pursuit of higher levels of proficiency in their combat skills, stratagems, and weapons of choice. And for the next few days, Kagome continued to sport various cuts and scratches, and several more patches of onyx stones covered the section of beach where she and Master Zhang trained. To the detectives’ relief, there were only two more accounts of young female youkai being slain by hama no ya, and they were found closer to the Eastern lands.

Then one evening, as Kurama, still being a rather gentlemanly version of his charming self, was escorting Kagome back to the house for dinner, while Zhang stayed behind to meditate, Shippou and Daitano came rushing up to them with grave expressions on their faces. “Okaa-san, you need to come quickly, -- Hakkaku is injured.” And she quickly hopped onto Shippou’s back so he could take her there faster.

When they reached Hakkaku’s room, they saw Sassouta sitting beside him on the bed holding his hand and reassuring him that he was going to be all right, though he was not responding, while Ginta paced worriedly about the room. “Nee-san! Thank the kamis!” It only took one glance to see what had happened, -- he had an arrow in his side, and most of the flesh, muscle, and bone, along with most of the major organs, had already eroded away.

“Leave us,” Kagome commanded, as she immediately grasped the tainted arrow with both hands and poured her ki into it, ignoring the burning sensation that spread from her hands all the way up her arms.

“But kaa-san, …”

“Go!” And as she began to glow with a bright pink light that grew in intensity as it engulfed her and the ookami, Daitano ushered everyone else out of the room.

The outpouring of power had Eishumaru, Hiei, and Yusuke running up the stairs the second they reached the house. The three of them had been sparring, and they had stayed out later than the others. “What the fuck is going on?” Yusuke demanded, as they hit the 2nd floor and saw the others all standing around in the East wing, looking down the hallway into the north wing.

“Ginta brought Hakkaku back from the Makai. They saw Ayame head into the Eastern lands and they followed her. She met with Kikyou, and they were arguing, so they tried to get closer to hear what they were saying, and Kikyou hit Hakkaku with a hama no ya. Fortunately, Ginta knew the quickest way to pass through the barrier from there, and he carried Hakkaku out,” Sassouta told them, patting Ginta on the back.

“Is he going to be okay?”

“Of course. Kaa-san will heal him,” the young ookami asserted.

Kurama stepped over and put a hand on his shoulder. “Sassouta, … most of his vital organs had already been purified …”

Eishumaru started to go down the hall to see for himself just how bad off Hakkaku was, but his older brother grabbed his arm. “Don’t go any closer,” Daitano cautioned him. “As a matter of fact, I think we had better go downstairs.”

“What? Why?” Yusuke asked.

Just then, Zhang came up the stairs. “Because her power is spiking, -- can’t you feel it? I’d suggest you go quickly.” And in just a few long strides, he was at the door to Hakkaku’s room. “Hurry, before I open the door.”

But even without the door being open, that bright pink light began to leak out and fill the hall. So, they quickly went down the stairs. When they got to the bottom, Yusuke was trying to figure out what was going on. “Why are we fleeing from her healing powers? They wouldn’t hurt us, would they?”

“No, of course not,” Shippou took them aside, and left the boys to try to keep Ginta’s spirits up. “But to counteract Kikyou’s dark energy, she has to use her purifying powers as well. Kagome told us how difficult it was to stop the spread of Kikyou’s purification in Youko, and he had some dark energy of his own to mitigate some of the effects. Hakkaku doesn’t. And, as Kurama pointed out, Hakkaku was already much farther gone when they got here. He isn’t nearly as powerful as Kurama and Youko.”

“Can she save him?”

Shippou shrugged. “I really don’t know. She will do everything she possibly can.” He glanced at the ceiling, which was starting to take on a pink glow. “But I haven’t seen her release that much power since …”

“Since when?” Kurama asked curiously.

Shippou sighed. “Since we found her crying over Kouga’s body.” And he turned and walked away from them to join the others.
--------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------


Hiei brushed the backs of his fingers along her jaw line, before lightly cupping the side of her face. He wanted badly to just gather her up in his arms and take her to his bed so he could hold her, but her sons and Shippou were checking on her periodically. It had been two hours since the old priest had carried her to her room and he and Shippou had put her to bed, and this was the first chance Hiei had had to slip in and see her. He really didn’t like her being in this vulnerable state. And she had poured so much of herself into her efforts to heal the ookami that there was no question she would be out the rest of the evening and all night, too.

Kurama had been amazed that she had actually managed to save him. He had shared a mental image of the wolf’s condition with Hiei, and frankly, he was amazed, too. She had healed what could be healed of what was left of his torso, while combating the further spread of purification with her purification powers, and regenerated the already-purified parts of his body with her own ki. How she had done all that, and sustained enough energy to keep herself conscious until it was done, was beyond his comprehension. She was incredibly strong. Or maybe just damned stubborn and determined. The wolf’s restored flesh was still raw and sore-looking, but his own youkai powers of recuperation would be able to heal the rest, -- it would just take some time. He would probably be completely out for at least a week as his body continued to heal, and to fight off the lingering effects of the purification.

Yusuke had contacted Koenma to let Chuu and Rinku know where Ginta and Hakkaku had spotted Kikyou, but she had been nowhere to be seen when they got there. Hiei would have liked to have gone and looked himself, but he wasn’t going to leave when Kagome needed to be protected. Damn, but he wanted to just stay here with her or take her with him across the hall. This was not how he had planned to spend the night.

Her monthly courses began tomorrow, but at least he had convinced her that she could still come to his room to sleep. As addicted as he was to the unbelievably fantastic sex, he had come to realize that he was every bit as addicted to her presence, and even if he couldn’t satisfy his still completely out-of-control desire for her, he knew he would be able to rest with her next to him. It sure beat the hell out of swimming in a cold lake -- or ocean.

But for tonight, … He brushed aside a strand of her hair that was lying across her forehead, then picked up one of her hands. The palms were still an angry-looking red, and each had a thin scorch mark across it, but Kurama had used some gel from one of his plants, and it had already helped the burns considerably. He knew someone would be by soon, so he leaned down and rested his cheek against hers for a minute, and inhaled that wonderful scent of hers. Gardenias. He remembered when the fox had first told him what flower it was, and the way he had described them: creamy-white, with smooth, slick petals that unfurl into rich, full whorls of delicate beauty, -- extremely fragrant, but not overpowering, -- a treat for the senses of sight, touch, and smell. Kurama had commented that it was a very appropriate scent for her. He had no idea how right he was. And, unfortunately for him, he was never going to get the chance to find out. He rubbed his cheek against her and whispered, “You may not have cast one, but you still have me under your spell. Damn onna.”
---------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------


“Hie i!” Her sleep-laden eyes struggled to focus as she looked around the room. Where was she? (The new house.) She was in her room. Alone. “Hiei?” she whispered, even though she knew he wouldn’t answer. But the silence just reinforced the gnawing fears her dreams had invoked. Covering her face with her hands, she loosened the sweat-dampened tendrils of hair that were sticking to the sides of her face and neck. Taking in a calming breath, she reached out with her senses. Once she had located Hiei’s aura, she would be able to shake off the dream’s effects.

“Hiei?” (Oh, kami!) He wasn’t across the hall, or anywhere on this floor. She expanded her senses. He wasn’t in the house at all. Or if he was, … she couldn’t sense him … In her haste to get out of the bed and to her feet, she tried to fling off the covers that had become wound around her waist and legs in her thrashings, but she ended up falling to the floor in a tangled heap. (No …) When she was finally free, she quickly went to the door and opened it, stopping just for a minute to try to be rational. (Maybe he just had to go somewhere again. The Reikai, or the Makai.) But she could tell that Yusuke and Kurama were both still here.

She opened his door quietly and slipped inside. (Please don’t be here …) His rooms were empty. She didn’t know if she should be relieved or terrified. She didn’t want to keep looking, but she had to. She made her way down the stairs and searched the kitchen, the game room, and the dojo. He really wasn’t in the house. (He’s out doing something for Lord Koenma. Or maybe he just went for a run. Hai, that’s it.) But when she ran a slightly trembling hand through her hair and closed her eyes, she saw Kouga lying there on the floor, … and then Sesshoumaru, with Jaken and some of the other servants kneeling over him and crowding the hall, … and … Inuyasha. Inuyasha had been … outside. She had to go look.

Leaving the house, she quickly walked around the north and east sides, scanning the trees, and praying she wouldn’t see anything. She tried searching again with her senses as far as they could reach, but there was still no sign of him. She kept telling herself she was panicking over nothing, but as her memories kept playing out in her mind, she began to run. She ran down the beach along the coastline, looking out into the dark waters in case he had gone for a swim. There was a full moon out, and as the clouds passed in front of it, it cast eerie-looking shadows on the waves. The cool breeze off the ocean sent chills running over her skin. In her desperation to find Hiei, she had neglected to put on a robe, and her long, thin, sleeveless white gown was little protection against the night air, but she didn’t notice.

All she could think about was that she had known immediately upon waking that her mates were gone. While she hadn’t always been consciously aware of feeling them through their youki in their mating marks, -- even though she had always been able to find them and sense their well-being when they were alive, -- when they were dead, she had been achingly aware of a feeling of emptiness there. It was a void so palpable, that she had had to cover the marks with her hand to try to keep it from spilling out and taking over. It had reminded her sharply of the ache she felt from the missing piece of her own soul. It had taken months for that feeling to fade away, and she suspected it would have taken longer, if she hadn’t had the births of her sons to fill her heart and keep her focus on the living, instead of the dead. But, at the time, because she couldn’t feel them, and their bodies no longer projected an aura of any kind, she had had to search for them, -- for Inuyasha and Kouga, just like she was searching for Hiei now. And she didn’t have the kind of connection to Hiei that she had had with her mates through their marks, so all she could go by was the feel of his aura. And right now, she couldn’t find it.

She had to stop to catch her breath. Her body still hadn’t fully recovered from the amount of energy and personal ki she had used while healing Hakkaku. As she listened to the sounds of her own harsh breathing, she closed her eyes to try to focus once more. Nothing. Wait, … (Is that …?) She lifted her hands to her face and just stood there a moment, scarcely daring to breathe as she made sure it was really him she was sensing. Then she wiped her hands down the sides of her cheeks and clasped them together and rested her chin on them. (He’s alive.) And he was heading her way at a very rapid pace.

(I am going to borrow some of Kurama’s vines, tie her up, and toss her into the ocean. It will save me the wait before someone else kills her.) Just how many times did she have to be told not to go wandering around outside by herself?!!? And in her weakened condition, she would be an easy target right now. Well, this was the last damn time she would ignore what he told her. When he got back from his run and she wasn’t there, he had almost alerted the whole house. But he had pinpointed her location with the Jagan, and saw that she was alone and didn’t seem to be any danger, -- at least not until he got ahold of her.

Coming to a stop directly behind her, he grabbed her by the shoulders. “Damn it, onna! What the hell do you think you’re doing?!!?”

“Hiei!” And she turned around and threw her arms around him, burying her face in the side of his neck.

Startled by her reaction, he wrapped his arms around her, too, and asked, “Are you all right? Did something happen at the house?” He wondered if maybe the wolf had died after all. He hadn’t bothered to check to see that everyone else was there.

Breathing in the faint charcoal scent that she associated with him, she shook her head. “No, everything’s fine. I just … I had that dream again, -- where you disappeared like … like my mates. And when I woke up, I couldn’t sense you.” She tightened her hold on him.

(She was looking for me. She really is afraid someone will try to kill me because of her.) “Kagome, nothing is going to happen to me.”

So quietly that he could barely hear her, she whispered, “I’ve heard that before.”

He couldn’t think of anything to say to that, so he nuzzled her temple gently, pressing a few soft kisses to her skin there. Kagome went completely still at the comforting gesture. (When did this happen?) Her relief that he was all right was still tempered by her fear and guilt that she might have put him in danger. He should be angry. He should turn around and walk away from her. The convenient arrangement they had wasn’t worth getting killed over. But, … this wasn’t the convenient arrangement she had proposed.

Keeping one arm tightly wrapped around him, with her hand on the back of his shoulder, and moving the other one to rest on his chest, she leaned back just a little so she could look at him. He could see the emotions swirling in her eyes as she studied him, -- as if she was searching for the answer to something important. She knew their relationship had been changing, but she had been telling herself it was just that they were more comfortable with each other and knew each other better now. And that was true, but that wasn’t all of it. She knew she had come to care about him, and that was where her fears came from, -- that her feelings for him would get him killed. She should let him go, but, she didn’t know if she could. At the very least, she should hold back any real signs of her affections and stick to the relationship the way she had outlined it. But that seemed like so much less than what they had now, and she didn’t want less. She wanted … more.

She knew Hiei’s thoughts and feelings about her had changed, too, but she thought he was content with their relationship since he had come right out and admitted he liked her touch. Was it possible he wanted more, too? And if so, what? She knew what she was yearning for, but she wasn’t sure he would welcome it. But, … he had been the one to offer her comfort just now in such a caring, affectionate way. She had been so sure in the beginning that he wouldn’t care about such things. Would he even consider it more? Very tentatively, she raised her hand and lightly touched his lips with her fingertips. When he closed his eyes and pulled her even closer, she knew. “Hiei, …”

He didn’t move when he felt her hand come to rest on his chest again, and the warmth of her breath ghosted across his lips where her fingers had touched him. She barely applied any pressure at all when she first pressed her lips to his, and he could feel her hesitancy, so he remained still, silently encouraging her to continue by lightly stroking her back with his thumb. He didn’t dare move more than that, or he would crush her to him and force her lips apart so he could plunder her mouth like he’d wanted to for so long.

Her lips left his for a second, before pressing against his again in a slightly different spot. This time when she pulled back slightly, she dragged her lower lip across his, then settled into yet another spot. His impatience melted away when she brushed her bottom lip all along his and then partway back, before pausing to kiss him again briefly. He had wanted her to kiss him, but he had been unprepared for the reality of it. He had yearned for the taste he had sampled for those few fleeting seconds the very first time she had come to him, but the feel of those soft, delicate lips so chastely touching his was enough to make him forget there was more. How could such an innocent touch be so incredibly sensual?

He felt a shiver go down his spine when she lightly traced the outline of his lips with her tongue. And when she drew his bottom lip into her mouth and nipped it with her teeth, then sucked on it lightly, he could hear his heart pounding in his ears. She slowly let go of it, and just stood still for a minute, with her lips not quite touching his, then she leaned in closer and slanted her mouth over his, with her tongue gently parting the seam of his lips as if asking permission to explore inside. He knew he was letting her completely take the lead, and part of him was astounded at his willingness to do so, but he was almost afraid to push her any farther than she was willing to go. It was infinitely sweeter to have her give herself to him. And even if it weren’t for that, he still would have let her have her way, because while he had half-jokingly wondered if he had ever had sex before being with her, he now knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he had obviously never really been kissed before.

As she stroked his tongue with hers, the taste of strawberries burst in his mouth, and he couldn’t hold back any longer. Taking control, he swept his tongue into her mouth to search, and explore, and claim. She had just given him far more than their original deal called for, and he was taking it. All of it, -- all of her. And he didn’t think he was going to give her back, either. No, he certainly wasn’t going to give her up to the fox, or the wolf, or even to the ghosts of her dead mates. He hadn’t looked for this. He hadn’t wanted it. But the kamis had finally given him something worth having, and he wasn’t fool enough to turn it down. And as the ocean’s waters rushed in along the sand towards them and receded, time and time again, the two lovers remained locked in each other’s embrace, … exchanging simple kisses in the moonlight, that promised so much more.
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Well, uh, …heh heh, … *looks down and stubs the ground with her toes* , … I guess some of you were probably ready to throw rotten fruit at me after reading that first scene. No Sesshoumaru. I honestly didn’t expect his name at the end of the last chapter to evoke such a response. To quote my own version of Yusuke, “Holy crap!” Thirty-nine people actually wrote reviews -- 11 of them were reviewing this story for the first time! So, I seriously hope that your disappointment in Sess’ non-appearance was tempered by the Hiei/Kag fluff at the end of this chapter. I actually had an evil cliffy planned for this one, but it would have taken me another 3 or 4 days to get to it. So, you’ll have to see what I had in mind next time.

*AND … * I have another goodie for you!! Wanna see Hiei and Kagome on the beach? Do ya? Do ya? Check out my artwork section on my profile page again -- the extremely talented Mikarabidkitsune drew that scene for me! It’s so sweet and romantic, and she really got them just right. Kagome is looking at him so wistfully, and Hiei is so ready for it, but waiting for her to make the move. It’s awesome! -- It makes me go “Awwwww!! Kiss him, damn it!!” You really have to go check out Mika’s gallery on Deviant Art, -- she’s got lots of Hiei/Kag goodies, along with a whole lot of other fabulous pieces!

I really love it that so many of you are able to take the time to review -- you keep me pumped about this story!

Methos - Thanks so much for reviewing! I’m glad you enjoy the detail I try to put in. I do my best! You were right -- lots of people were yelling about that cliffhanger. Heh heh! No cliffy this time -- just a fluffy feel-good moment.
AnonymousO - Not as long a wait this time! We’ll have to wait and see what Genkai sees in their auras, before we know whether Kagura’s son is Sesshoumaru’s. I hope for Sess’ sake, (and mine!) that he isn’t! Heh heh!
Alchemy - I admit it: I do have an evil streak. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, too!
Purplebabe - Sorry, no Sess. Kag even purified his remains. But there’s still LOTS going on!
Animeboysrock23 - Yep, you’re right -- Ayame and Yemon are plotting against Kagome.
Kawaii-KeKe-Chan - No freaky vibes this time, because you’re enjoying your vacation! I’m glad you thought Kagome’s comment in that last lemon was a keeper. And I’m really glad you appreciated my lead-in line to Kurama’s sneaky little tactics -- I have to confess, I giggled to myself when I typed it. I just couldn’t resist having Eishu toss aside Shizuru’s cigarette and go in for the kiss. You guessed it! It was Eishumaru who Kagura saw. Hiei got kissed!! You likey?
PureMiko_Kagome69ner - Well, we know Sess isn’t going to show up alive , since Kagome told them his body was burned and his remains purified. I hope you continue to like what’s coming -- the next couple of chapters should be packed with good stuff!
Selenity potter - Well, you didn’t quite have to wait forever. ^_^
Angelwings21 - No cliffy this time! Just a warm and fuzzy feeling until the next chapter. I’m really flattered that you like my take on Hiei/Kag so much. And I’m glad my story comes across as easy-to-read. Your English is very good, though! I’m glad you enjoyed the cow comment in the last chapter -- I was giggling like a schoolgirl myself. My husband thinks I’m looney.
SadBrokenWings - I hope the non-Sesshoumaru sighting wasn’t too big of a letdown. This chapter is building up to some big stuff in the next chapter with Hiei and Kagome, Eishumaru and Ginjiro, Kagome and Kagura, and Kurama’s new plans for Kagome, just to whet your appetite a little.
Raeko - Just a couple of weeks this time. It would have been even shorter, but we had a birthday to celebrate here. Hiei is definitely leaning towards making a decision about this relationship he’s found himself in. Glad you enjoyed Kagome’s grandfather’s ‘sleepwalking’ last time! So, … Kagome’s got you thinking about the killer(s), huh? Heh heh! I love it!
Latch - Thanks so much for reviewing! I’m so glad I could make you laugh -- it’s good to know I’m not laughing alone. ^_^ I restrained my wicked impulses this time and decided to give everyone a nice Hiei/Kag moment to reflect on before I get back to my usual evil form in the next chapter. Heh heh!
Alissa - Glad you liked the way Kagome gave it right back to Kagura at the end of the last chapter. Then Eishumaru took over. He’s not as nice as his momma. Heh heh! Hope you had a great vacation!
Silvermisttaleweaver - I thank you so much -- I’m delighted to accept the prize for the World’s Most Embarrassing “Sleepwalk.” I completely agree -- I can’t think of too many things that would be more embarrassing than running into your grandfather while you’re both bed-hopping. Heh heh!
Seiteki_Tenshi - Not Sess or Youko, though Youko was a good guess. Ah! Another “sleepwalking” fan! Yay! I love jii-chan.
Hikariz - The truth about Ginjiro is going to surface soon, -- the question is: is anyone ready for it? Heh heh!
TAJE - Wow! You caught up with me -- I knew you would. I loved your comment on chapter 7 and 8 -- that what was really killing you is Kagome having to do without the three sexiest males. You know, it’s been harder to write them being dead than I thought it would be. (I want them, too!!) And you are SO right, I really do love Hiei and Kagome together, so I’m glad it shows through in my writing about them. (You know, I was talking with another fanfic writer, and I described my parents to her and she said, “OMG! That’s why you write about them -- your Mom is Kagome and your Dad is Hiei!” Which completely opened a can of worms I don’t even want to think about, -- after all, I’m writing all these lemons for them … LOL!!) Speaking of which, I just about died laughing at your comment about Hiei and Kagome banging every night!! Even my husband said, “Do they have sex every chapter?” LOL! All I can say is, he’s a demon, and she’s been celibate for 100 years. LOL!! Ah, but even Kagome was too pooped to perform in this chapter. Poor Hiei. Thank you so much for the three “R’s!” I’ll try to keep the party rolling!
Sardave - I cut this chapter short, (could you tell?), and decided to leave everyone with a happy feeling this time. Did it work? I’m glad you thought the humor in that lemon in the last chapter worked. And even though I’m writing a rather wicked version of Kurama/Youko, I don’t want him to be the villain. Of course, his new plan for Kagome … Heh heh!
Babygirl20008 - Thanks so much for reviewing! I hope this wait wasn’t too long, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter, too! I know you were hoping for Sess, -- I hope you’re not too disappointed.
StarletAngel - Thanks! I’m glad you think my writing is worth the wait, but I tried hard not to make you wait too long this time. They didn’t clarify things yet, but at least they think they have a way to do it.
Ebi-chan - You know, there were a lot of “Holy Cow!”-type comments after that last chapter. I wonder why? Heh heh! This chapter didn’t have the bombshells of the last one, but I hope it was pretty good, anyway. I had to set the stage for the action to come. Yeah, that Yemon is a sneaky character. Glad I could surprise you with him and Ayame. Kikyou is definitely still her same sweet, charming self in this. I’m glad you enjoyed Youko and Kurama’s method of interrogation. Heh heh! And Hiei is definitely starting to believe in her innocence, … for the most part, anyway. (She’s got to explain what happened with Sesshoumaru.) It’s great to be in such exalted company! NJC and Pink Floyd make for good cellmates. LOL!
Jen9 - Thanks for reviewing! No, I’m afraid Kagome confirmed that all three of them are really dead. She even purified their remains. So, we still have to figure out what happened some other way.
BrokenSouledPoetess - Well, Hiei got his kiss! And it was everything he hoped it would be and more. Heh heh! I think the denial stage just left town. Thanks so much for the catch about Kagome’s mother’s name! I could just cry. I actually wrote it as “Izumi” instead of “Ikumi” TWO times, but I caught it once. *sigh* I’ll have to get back in there and fix that.
SKnFS - Thanks so much for the kind words! I agree: I think Jii-chan is awesome! I love the way you’re thinking about the murders, -- even if it is giving you a headache. Funny that you were going through a list of Kag’s enemies, since that’s exactly what I did! Oh, I have a couple of curveballs coming your way. *winks*
VB - Thanks for taking the time to review! Don’t throw your computer -- I want you to be able to read the rest of the story! (Please?) No anger at this chapter’s ending, right?
HeartStar - Sorry, I do have a strange affinity for cliffhangers, and they usually get more evil as the story peaks. But, I gave everyone a break this time. (But next time … Heh heh!) You called it -- it was Eishumaru. Kudos!
Inuyasha_1234 - Nice to hear from you! Yeah, what would Hiei have done if it had been Sesshoumaru? He would have had to give Kagome up. I can’t let that happen to our favorite little fire demon. LOL!
Porygon75052 - Thanks so much for the reviews! I hope you got my email. I still haven’t found the place where I referred to all three boys as inu, so if you get a chance, please let me know where it is! *grumble-I can’t believe I dumbed up like that!-grumble* And “HB” is now complete on AFF -- it only has 20 chapters there because I combined the first 3 chapters. I really liked it that you mentioned that chest in Kagome’s room. I may just do something else with it.
Drachegirl14 - Yay! I’m really glad you loved the confrontations -- that chapter was packed with them. This chapter had more discussions than confrontations, and just some good introspective thinking. (And a few hints about things to come. *winks*)
Melmo - Thank you so much for reviewing! Reading this at work, huh? Ah, a worker after my own heart! I guess the chapters have been a little long to read there, though, huh? Sorry you have to stay up so late to finish them. (But, I’m glad you do!)
Sango Tajiya - Wow! All this flattery is going to go to my head! (And now I’m trembling under the pressure … must write … decent chapters!) Oh, don’t kill Kurama -- he’s so smexy, -- even if he is wicked. I’m glad the argument and the lemon scene worked for you. And you got your wish -- the kissing has commenced! Heh heh!
Youkos girl - Thanks so much for writing the 250th review for this story!! I’m really glad you decided to check it out. I know what you mean about the long chapters being a blessing and a curse -- I feel that way myself. To me, they’re a blessing because I get to cover so much in them, but they’re a curse because I’m anxious to get them posted and it takes me a while to get everything in them that I planned. As for how many chapters this will be, I think about 5 more, if they continue to be so long. I have all of the major events and scenes planned, but sometimes getting from “A” to “B” takes a lot longer than I thought it would. And I’m never quite sure where the dialogue will lead. So, like I said, tentatively, 5 more. (Yes, that means a LOT will be going on in them!) I do the exact same thing -- after I read a chapter in a fanfic, I will quite often let my imagination fill in the blanks and try to come up with what will happen next, and what I want to happen next. I’m glad you enjoy my ideas. As for my inspiration for this story, well, I guess I was just thinking about the way Yusuke and the guys are called Spirit Detectives, and I thought it would be fun to have them solve a murder mystery. I love Hiei/Kag, so it was easy to come up with her as the suspect, and I wanted it to be an important enough “case” for Koenma to have them investigate even after 500 years. That’s how she became a possible serial killer of Taiyoukai. And I liked the idea of her being more experienced for once, since in most of the Hiei/Kag stories I’ve read, he’s the super sex stud and she’s an inexperienced virgin. And I wanted their relationship to come about differently, too -- the sex first, and then the love. The rest just flowed as I thought about the whys and hows. Why would the case just come up now? Because they had been in hiding. Why? Etc. You see how my mind works? Scary, isn’t it?
Angie..who? - Thanks so much for the review! Your comment struck me as exactly what I always hope to achieve -- that the chapter was real long, but somehow too short. Ah, if I could just achieve those results every time … I hope some of your questions were answered in this chapter. (But probably not the ones you were hoping for, huh?)
D: - Thanks so much for taking the time to review! I just … I just can’t help myself. All that evil just has to come out sometimes. Heh heh!
Beckyducky - Well, it really wasn’t Sesshoumaru, so maybe it wasn’t so evil to leave it off there, right? *ducks!* don’t cry -- think of Hiei and Kagome on the beach. That’s my happy place. *sigh*
Halfblackwolfdemon - Your review came in right before I was going to post this chapter! Thanks so much for all your kind words. I’m just glad you got a kick out of the last chapter. This one was different -- I’m building to several big events. (And I can’t wait to get started on the next chapter as soon as I get this one up!) You called it: Hiei’s pretty much accepting his feelings now, even though he’s still in awe of them, and Kagome is the one who is reluctant to admit to them. And even when she does admit it to herself, she tries to talk herself out of it. At the end of this chapter, though, she couldn’t hold back because her fears and her physical condition made her feel vulnerable and needy. However, … Heh heh! Yeah, in the chapter before this one, I tried to show how she watches out for him to make him comfortable, and how his possessiveness had turned to outright jealousy. And, … did you swat Kurama on the nose with that rolled-up newspaper?!!? Bet he liked it. ^_^ Thanks so much for taking the time to comment and even point out specific lines -- I always breathe a sigh of relief when I know someone else enjoys my quirky sense of humor. (I really wasn’t sure if I should let Hiei compare himself to a cow or not, but I just couldn’t resist. LOL!!) As for what Eishumaru said to Shizuru to make her blush, I think that he was suggesting that the next time they see each other, she could do something else with her mouth. She was in shock because she finally realized he really is old enough for her, despite his looks. Heh heh! Well, I’m going to finish my 2nd editing run-through and get this chapter up. I hope you like it, too!