The next morning they set out at dawn, heading straight towards Sesshoumaru's citadel. The citadel, was in the center of the Western Kingdom, where Sesshoumaru's father ruled, the great Inu no Taisho. In the lead, head held high, was Sesshoumaru, his long silver-white locks floating in the breeze behind him. Following behind him was the dragon youkai, Ryurika. Kagome took this opportunity to study Sesshoumaru's Captain, since she hadn't had the opportunity the evening before.

Ryurika was a handsome youkai, his hair was just as silky looking as Sesshoumaru's, but where Sesshoumaru's was light Ryurika's were dark. Starting at his roots, the black silken locks faded to a deep blood red, and flowed in the breeze, only slightly shorter than Sesshoumaru's. He stood tall, but several inches shorter than his lord, with broad shoulders, and a strong body. Parts of his skin shimmered with luminescence like the scales on a dragon, catching the sunlight and sending it every which way.

Kagome's eyes traveled from his feet, up the length of his body to meet deep brown eyes, glowing with amusement. Stiffening, Kagome blushed several shades of red at being caught staring and immediately ignored the dragon. Ryurika's chuckle of amusement drew two pairs of curious inu eyes, but neither chose to comment on his and the females interaction.

Around noon the small group shuffled onto the banks of a small river, Sesshoumaru gesturing for them to stop. It was time for a break, mostly because the small human girl could not travel much further without food. The young girl, Rin, had spent most of the morning animatedly chatting with Kagome. They had made quick friends, and Kagome had listened to her tell many interesting stories about the Citadel and traveling with Sesshoumaru.

Kagome's first impression of the youkai had not been a pleasant one, however, listening to Rin speak of him, it was as if she viewed Sesshoumaru as a sort of Father figure. She watched as Rin ran up to Sesshoumaru and wrapped her small arms around his legs. Her jaw dropped in shock when all he did was pat her on the head and tell her to gather her fish from the river. The water was flowing slowly and allowed Rin and Kagome to wade into it and wait patiently for fish to come closer to them. They had about a dozen in no time, and Kagome set to starting a fire to cook them over. In no time the two were chowing down on freshly cooked fish, and the others were quick to join them.

Sesshoumaru sat on the edge of the clearing, leaned up against a large tree, ignoring the rest of the group. His senses were spread out, keeping alert for any potential danger. At the rate they were traveling, it would take possibly 3-4 more days to reach the citadel. It was an acceptable pace, considering there were two females with them, one of them being human. They would reach the Citadel soon enough. And then father would decide what would be done with the female hanyou.

A/N: Well here's the next chapter! Thanks for all of your reviews. I hope you guys are enjoying this. If you have any ideas, any constructive criticism, I'd be more than happy to hear it!