Lyra rode on top of Taiyo as they journeyed alongside Sesshomaru. Rajah was asleep, all cuddled up in her lap. She gently stoked his head as she gazed at Sesshomaru. He wasn't speaking much but she knew he had a lot on his mind. She was worried too. That nightmarish vision she had and then it starting to come true as Josei betrayed them.
At least they knew that Naraku wouldn't harm her. For the moment. They had to end him before she was due to give birth. That's what Sesshomaru was focused on. Naraku was only getting stronger and he needed to act quick.
"Lord Sesshomaru! Lady Lyra! You've returned!"
Jaken's excited voice could be heard as he ran over to them. Lyra looked at him, still not used to him being happy to see her. Although it had been over two weeks since she had seen them. Rin ran over as well, grinning brightly.
"Lyra!"
Sesshomaru helped Lyra down and she was instantly hugged by the little girl.
"Rin, I'm so happy to see you again," she smiled. "And you too, Jaken."
Jaken awkwardly scratched his cheek. "Uh, yeah..."
Rin gasped. "Your horse is so pretty!"
Taiyo instantly took a liking to Rin as she stroked her face. She giggled happily as Jaken suddenly let out a squeal.
"What is that in your arms?!" he asked.
Lyra looked down at the still sleeping cub. "He's my pet from Sesshomaru. He's a tiger. I named him Rajah."
Jake's eyes widened. "But they are dangerous creatures! It will be fully grown in just six months!"
"Uh-"
"But I suppose with Lord Sesshomaru around, it wouldn't dare harm anyone."
"Yes, and-"
"He will be trained in-"
Rin completely cut him off. "I'm so happy we have two new members!"
"Rin, how dare you interrupt me!"
Lyra laughed at them and shook her head before looking to Sesshomaru. He gave a nod of his head in confirmation. She looked at Rin and Jaken again.
"Actually, it's not two new members," she hinted at them.
Rin tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
Lyra's smile widened slightly. "Well-"
"Spit it out, woman!" Jaken yelled impatiently. Sesshomaru glared at him and he scrambled down in a bow. "I'm sorry! I meant to say please tell us, my Lady."
Lyra laughed quietly before smiling again. "Sesshomaru and I are having a baby."
It took a few moments for the news to register for the both of them. Their eyes moved in sync down to her stomach and they saw the slightly raised bump. Then both their expressions changed, both completely opposite. Rin's entire face lit up as she jumped up and down in excitement whereas Jaken's mouth hung open in complete shock.
"Yay!" Rin clapped her hands and stepped forward to have a closer look at the bump. "When is the baby coming?"
Lyra smiled as Rin put her hand on her bump. "Not for a few months still."
"Lord Sesshomaru will have an heir!" Jaken gasped.
Sesshomaru looked down at Jaken. "Naraku will come for the child the day Lyra gives birth," he informed.
The imp scowled. "Let him try! He won't get anywhere near the child!"
"It's a risk I am unwilling to take, Jaken. We must end him before the time comes."
"Y-yes, milord."
He could tell his master was deadly serious. And he knew he would be the one to go along with him, putting himself in danger.
"Lyra," Sesshomaru called, now turning his attention to her.
"Yes?"
"Remember what I have said."
She nodded. "I must stay with you at all times unless it is too dangerous to do so. If that happens then I must remain with Taiyo and A-Un and wait for your return."
She knew he wasn't taking any chances. He was going to search Naraku out and kill him no matter what the cost.
***
They had been walking for a while. They were walking beside a running stream and there was a light mist in the air. Sesshomaru was trying to find Naraku or even just a sign of him but it was proving to be difficult. Rajah was awake and he was playing with Rin and also terrorising Jaken throughout the journey. They were ahead as Sesshomaru and Lyra walked behind. Much to Sesshomaru's disapproval, Lyra decided to walk most of the time.
"It's not like I'm ready to pop," she told him.
He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. "Pop?"
She shook her head. "Not literally. I mean it's not as if I'm going to give birth tomorrow. I'm still able to walk fine."
"Should there be a moment you need to escape-"
"Sesshy," she stopped him from talking any further and held his arm. "Walking will be good for the baby. And the moment you sense the slightest amount of danger, I'll stay with Taiyo. I promise."
He breathed out softly. "Very well."
Lyra made a sound of victory causing Sesshomaru to furrow his brows at her. She just grinned at him in return.
"Ha ha, you can't scold me because you love me," she teased in a sing-song voice before adding something extra. "Plus I'm having your baby, so you have to keep me happy. Hey, that rhymed!"
Sesshomaru just looked ahead again. "I am surprised at how I'm able to put up with you."
She gasped as though she was offended. "Put up with me? I'm pretty sure you knew this was part of the package when you declared your love for me all those months ago."
He just made a sound of disapproval and decided not to say anything more. She was right after all. Her constant chattering had initially annoyed him when she first arrived but he grew to love it. Even those childish moments she had was something he loved about her as well. Lyra knew she was right. She slipped her hand into his and interlocked their fingers together. Sesshomaru subconsciously just held her hand in return.
"Lyra, two. Sesshomaru, zero," she noted.
Again, he glanced at her from the corner of his eyes before looking ahead once more. But something caught his attention. He stopped walking and turned his head to look up towards his right. Lyra turned to him.
"What is it?" she asked.
At that moment through the fog, she saw a silhouette of something flying down. It split, a large feather blowing away as the person sitting on top dropped down. 'Kagura?' She had only seen her a few times but she knew about her and how she wished to be freed from Naraku's grasp. Kagura landed in the water, causing Lyra's eyes to widen. She was unconscious.
"What is that?" Jaken asked, trying to get a good look at who it was. "Huh?"
Lyra let go of Sesshomaru's hand. "It's Kagura!" she exclaimed as she stepped forward.
He quickly caught her arm so she didn't get too close to the edge of the stream. It was quite rocky so she could easily fall in. Rin went towards Jaken out of curiosity.
"I think something's wrong with her," Rin said.
Jaken looked to his master. "Whatever shall we do, Lord Sesshomaru?"
"Forget about her," he answered. "We're going."
He resumed his walking, making sure to keep hold of Lyra. She frowned softly as she tried to resist but his hold on her arm was firm.
"Sesshomaru, she's hurt," she tried reasoning with him. "We should help her."
"I said no."
"Hey, Rin!" Jaken yelled.
Sesshomaru and Lyra stopped walking and turned their heads to see that Rin had entered the stream without permission. Lyra's eyes nearly popped out of her sockets as she automatically tried to go after her but luckily Sesshomaru still had hold of her.
"Rin!" Lyra called. "Get out of there!"
"She'll be washed away!"
Rin grabbed Kagura's hand and tried pulling her. Unable to do so, her hand slipped out of Kagura's and she fell into the water before flapping her arms about. Lyra thought her heart was going to stop but she saw Jaken jump in to grab her.
"Honestly! What are you thinking?" he asked, having enough of all the drama.
"Master Jaken!"
"Grab onto this, stupid!"
Jaken held out his staff. But just as she grabbed hold of it, they both fell into the water. Lyra watched in horror as they both got pulled along the water with Kagura. They both screamed.
"Help! Save us!" Jaken yelled. "Don't leave us like this!"
"Sesshomaru!" Lyra called in a panic.
When she looked at him, he was just staring at them being washed away. It was such a bother. Lyra frowned and slapped his arm.
"Go and save them!" she ordered, placing her hands on her hips.
Sesshomaru sighed out in frustration before running after them at his high speed.
(Only Lyra can slap him and get away with it.)
Luckily, she still had Taiyo, A-Un and Rajah with her so at least Sesshomaru had nothing to worry about. She picked up Rajah before climbing up onto Taiyo.
"Let's catch up to them," she told them.
On that cue, Taiyo neighed and began going ahead in the direction of the stream with A-Un following behind. She prayed that Rin or Jaken wasn't hurt but she wondered what happened to Kagura. Did Naraku hurt her or was it something else?
Soon, the mist started to disappear as they reached a more grassy area. The sun was shining and the skies were blue. Ahead she could see that Sesshomaru had managed to save all three of them. No doubts there. Rin and Jaken were drying off and Kagura was still unconscious. She was on her front on top of some flat rocks. Once Lyra reached then, she saw there was a huge gaping hole going through her torso. Her kimono was only covering her from the waist down so they could clearly see her injury.
"Is she dead?" she asked as Sesshomaru helped her down.
"It's doubtful," Sesshomaru answered. "Something like that wouldn't kill Naraku's incarnation."
She placed Rajah down before going to take a closer look. It looked almost frightening but she hoped Kagura was okay. Lyra always felt sorry for her since she didn't have a choice but to carry out Naraku's bidding. Also, she recalled being told that Kagura wished for Sesshomaru to kill Naraku for her. Obviously he refused to take orders from another.
Lyra reached out and touched Kagura's shoulder and she was instantly taken over by a vision. She saw Kagura in a field of white flowers but she was on her knees. She was dying. Sesshomaru was there also and even though she was dying, she was smiling serenely at him.
Returning to reality again, Lyra quickly moved her hand away and stood up. There was a faint sadness on her face as she continued to look at Kagura. It wasn't her injury they could see that would kill her. It was something else. 'Naraku..?' Sesshomaru frowned softly, wondering what she had seen in her vision. He moved from the small gathering and sat upon a large boulder, turning away from them. Rin and Jaken were standing beside Kagura, looking at her curiously.
"She drifted all the way in this condition?" Jaken questioned in shock. "She's a goner if you want my opinion."
Just then, the hole began to close up. They all gasped quietly. As the hole healed, it revealed a marking on her back.
"What on earth?" Jaken said aloud in horror.
The marking was in the shape of a spider and it covered her entire back. It made sense since Naraku was half spider demon and she was his incarnation. Kagura began to stir and regain consciousness.
"Lyra," Sesshomaru called.
She knew why he was calling her and went to stay beside him. She remained standing, too engrossed in seeing if Kagura was okay. Kagura whimpered quietly as she opened her eyes and pushed herself up slightly. She gasped as she suddenly realised who was there with her. Sitting up with her back towards them, she looked at them over her shoulder and used her arm to cover her breasts.
"You people," she spoke.
"Lord Sesshomaru was the one to save you, you know," Rin told her.
Jaken frowned in disgust. "Only because Lady Lyra asked him to."
Kagura seemed surprised as she turned her attention to Sesshomaru. "So you have some compassion in you after all."
Jaken huffed. "How dare you?! You should be grateful that he rescued you! You should thank him at least!"
Sesshomaru stood up. "We're going."
He began walking forward before Kagura called out to him.
"Hold it. Aren't you going to ask what happened to me?"
Sesshomaru continued walking. "Look. I have no interest in what happened to you."
Kagura looked at him angrily. "Even if I told you I found Naraku's heart?!"
Sesshomaru instantly stopped walking and turned to look at her.
"Listen, Sesshomaru. You must have noticed by now. Naraku never dies no natter how many times he's slain," she told him. "That's because his heart is located somewhere else. In order to destroy Naraku, you have to destroy his heart."
Jaken turned to his master. "Lord Sesshomaru! Be careful! Don't trust her! It may be some kind of trap!"
Kagura sighed. "It's up to you whether you believe me or not. But it won't hurt you to hang on to this."
She moved her arm and pulled something out of her kimono. Lyra was very tempted to put her hand over Sesshomaru's eyes since her breasts were exposed but she was more curious to see what Kagura had. She pulled out some sort of light green crystal.
Lyra looked at it. "What is that?" she asked.
Kagura turned to her as if just noticing she was there. "A demonic aura crystal. Naraku stole a jewel named the Fuyoheki that can hide his demonic aura. He uses it to completely hide the location of his heart." She split the crystal and threw one to Jaken. "That crystal stops glowing when it approaches the Fuyoheki. That's what happened when I attacked Goryomaru's temple. From what I can tell this Goryomaru fellow is the protector of Naraku's heart."
Kagura was truly serious. That must have been the key to ending Naraku.
"Wait a minute here, Kagura," Jaken said with a frown. "That would mean Goryomaru must be a part of Naraku's group. Why wouldn't you of all people know that already?"
She smirked softly. "Naraku doesn't trust me enough to tell me things like that."
"If what you say is true," Sesshomaru spoke suddenly, causing everyone to look at him. "Then Naraku must already know that you're after his heart. He's smart enough to figure out that much."
At his words Kagura gasped, her eyes widening.
"Lord Sesshomaru..." Jaken said in surprise.
Sesshomaru continued. "And that means it's useless for you to take any further action."
"What about you, Sesshomaru?" Kagura asked. "Why don't you get him?"
"Kagura, are you planning to use me to kill him for you?"
"Naraku can't possibly be killed except by someone of your calibre." She looked directly at him. "No one else surpasses you in terms of your skill or demonic power."
Jaken seemed completely shocked at her flattering words. However, Sesshomaru stared at her for a short while before turning away.
She stood up. "Thanks for everything today. I'll be going now."
"Already?" Rin asked. "Didn't you come to ask Lord Sesshomaru for help?"
Kagura thought for a moment. "No. Nothing of the sort," she said softly before walking away.
"Kagura, wait," Lyra called before going after her.
Kagura halted in her steps, surprised that Lyra had stopped her. Sesshomaru looked at Lyra but he wasn't worried that Kagura would hurt her in any way. He stayed put, listening to what Lyra had to say.
Kagura looked back over her shoulder. "What?"
"Stay with us," Lyra suggested.
Kagura's eyes widened in surprise. Lyra knew she should have consulted with Sesshomaru beforehand but she needed to say it before she left. Naraku was going to kill her so Lyra hoped she would be safer staying with them.
"Are you serious? That's not possible," Kagura denied.
"Why not?"
"Naraku can kill me no matter where I am," she explained. "He holds my heart."
Lyra frowned softly. "Sesshomaru will kill him," she said to try and assure her.
Kagura looked down to Lyra's belly and noticed the bump. "You're carrying his baby."
Lyra's hand automatically went over her bump. "Yes."
At that point, Kagura turned away. "You're lucky you have someone like him to protect you."
All Kagura wished for was to be free. And Sesshomaru was her only hope. Lyra looked at her sadly. 'Does she have feelings for Sesshomaru..?'
"Kagura, I-"
"You should stand back," Kagura said as she pulled a feather from her hair.
Lyra sighed quietly before making her way back to Sesshomaru. There was a strong gust of wind, causing Jaken and Rin to shield their faces. Sesshomaru had pulled Lyra to his other side as his mokomoko and their hair blew from the wind as Kagura flew away.
Kagura looked down at Sesshomaru and Lyra together, seeing how he had shielded her. 'I wanted to see him again before I died. Just...one more time. That's all. Lyra, you truly are a lucky woman. I almost despise you for it.'
"She went away," Rin said as they watched her disappear into the distance.
"Put on your clothes!" Jaken yelled before realising he still had the crystal. "Lord Sesshomaru, what should we do about this?"
"I'll leave it to you," Sesshomaru replied.
"Please, my Lord. That puts me in such a bind," he whimpered.
Rin smiled. "You should hang onto it, Master Jaken."
"Do you think so?"
"That lady didn't seem like she was trying to trick us or anything this time," she answered before grinning. "I bet she was secretly in love with Lord Sesshomaru."
"Huh?!" Jaken gasped.
"She praised him. Don't you remember that?" Rin recalled.
Jaken just looked at her in disgust. But Lyra had the same thought as Rin as well. She looked up at the sky in the direction where Kagura had flown off. Even in her vision, as Kagura was dying, she looked so happy to see Sesshomaru.
He looked at Lyra who was still deep in thought and locked their fingers together.
"Let's go," Sesshomaru said, having had enough of the diversion.
She gazed up at him for a couple of moments. He lifted her hand and placed a kiss on the back of it.
"Are you ready?" he asked her.
Lyra smiled softly and nodded. "Yes."
***
By the time they had set up camp, it was quite late. Jaken and Rin were fast asleep, as were A-Un and Rajah. Taiyo was close by just eating some grass.
Lyra was still wide awake. Sesshomaru sat against a tree with his knees up so that she could lay back against his thighs. He watched her as she stared off into the distance, absentmindedly playing with her necklace. His hand was on her bump, his thumb stroking over it back and forth. It helped her to relax but she still couldn't sleep.
"What ails you, Lyra?" he asked.
She turned her eyes to him and breathed out softly. "I'm just thinking about Kagura."
He narrowed his eyes slightly. "Why?"
"I guess I just feel guilty," she shrugged. "She's longing to be free and she loves you. Yet I'm here with both the things she craves for the most. She's all alone..."
Sesshomaru moved his hand to cup her cheek. "That is no reason for you to feel guilty. It's not your fault."
"I know, but-"
"Silence, Lyra," he said but he wasn't angry. His voice was still soft. "Don't concern yourself with her. Go to sleep."
Lyra nodded once and closed her eyes. Sesshomaru kept his eyes on her as he continued to stroke her cheek and brush his fingers through her hair. After a short while, he could see her breathing become more relaxed as she finally fell asleep.
He couldn't understand why Lyra was feeling so guilty. He knew that even if Lyra hadn't entered his life, his lack of feelings towards Kagura would have remained the same. It wasn't as though Lyra being there had halted something that might have been because nothing would have ever happened. He doubted he would have even fallen in love at all.
He leaned his head back and gazed up at the stars. "Foolish woman..."