Looking Forward by Venomqueen83

Prolouge- Life is good

The spring sun was warm and shinning bright down on the earth below, an appreciative miko paused in her work to smile and breath in the fresh air. It had been a long winter and her supply,of medicinal herbs had taken a beeting as many of the villagers had gotten sick over the cold winter months. Kagome was happy that Spring had been quick to come and supply her with the much needed medicine, the futuristic supply having long since been used up on the worst cases.

Dusting her hands off she gathered her full basket and began the long trek from the forest,back to the village, her robes fitting a little more snug than usual. She smiled as she thought of how her small hut that she shared with her husband would soon be filled with the sounds of a growing family. Shippo had been the first to be told, they had surprised him with a new spinning top that had 'Big Brother' carved almond the edge. He cried and had even called her 'momma'.

Sango and Miroku had been happy of course, Kohaku congratulated them as well, the twin girls had shouted with joy they woke up their little brother. Kaede had been a bit quiet but wished them good fortune and health, Rin was beyond overjoyed and said she couldn't wait to help take care of the baby. All in all it had been a wonderful occasion, even if it had been the dead of winter, the day had been a bright one in her mind.

"Kagome!" a voice shouted

Snapping out of her musings Kagome focused on the village below and the voice that was hollering her name.

"KAGOME!" Inu Yasha yelled franticly

Picking up the pace Kagome broke through the tree line before responding "I'm right here Inu Yasha."

Before she could take another step Kagome found herself swept up in Inu Yasha's arms, his face buried on her rapidly growing baby bump. She relaxed and let him continue to inspect for any changes or injuries. While it had been endearing at first, she had quickly tired of it but allowed him to continue, if she stopped him he would only shadow her every move and THAT was even more annoying.

After a few more sniffs and a solid lick at the mating mark on her juncture of her neck and shoulder, he gently set her down, satisfied with his findings.

"How are the repairs going?" she asked as the continued the walk back to the village as if nothing had happened.

"Fine, Miroku thinks we have enough supplies stored up to fix all the weak patches in the roofs but we need to replace our supply soon in case one more storm comes through." he replied.

Noticing the tight grip she had on the basket he quickly took it and carried it over his head without a word. Kagome smiled, thinking just how considerate Inu Yasha could be, life it seemed had finally settled him into the person he had always wanted to be. Sure he still had his quirks, but no one was perfect, she herself had her own flaws but some how they made it work.

Just as they began to enter the village a roar was heard from above, and as if on cue, Rin dashed out from Kaede's hut and rushed to the open field and greeted Sesshomaru,and his retainer Jaken who was riding the two headed dragon Ah-Un that seemed to be rushing to get to the girl.

"Keh" scoffed Inu Yasha "Looks like he couldn't get them to wait another day."

"It has been a long winter." Kagome replied "He didn't get to visit very long last time and she is growing up fast."

Changing their direction the couple went to to greet the stoic lord. It was a tense agreement but as the chief protector of the village Inu Yasha was responsible for the safety of the Western Lord's ward when he wasn't present, which meant reporting to him every visit. The fighting had stopped, but it was still a long way from the familial bond of a normal family.

Watching Rin 'oo' and 'ah' over the new kimono, tabi and geta she had just received,Sesshomaru seemed more like a loving father than the cold demon Kagome remembered from so long ago. It was amazing what human females seemed to do to the sons of Inu Taisho, not that she would ever point it out to them of course. She did have some sense of self preservation.

"Ohayo Onii-chan!" Kagome greeted.

Sesshomaru only looked mildly annoyed,before pausing and taking what could only be described as a delicate sniff in her direction. His eyes looked over to Inu Yasha as he seemed to be re-assessing something in his mind.

"Greetings Imouto, Inu Yasha"

Kagome glowed with joy as she looked over to Inu Yasha who seemed to be rooted to the spot, his jaw slack.

Yes, life seemed to only be getting better and better.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Disclaimer: I don't own, just playing with other's toys. I do not make any profit from this, please don't sue!

Author's Notes:

So I have been writing this in my head for years and now I said 'okay, just do it!' No beta, just me and the late night muse. Please leave comments, updates will be sporadic as I learn how to get into,a routine for this.