Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or anything associated with it.

A/N: I can tell that many people reading this story have not read The Curse of Brides. I'm not saying that you have to, but this story will be much less confusing (as far as the first couple of chapters go) if you do read it. This is a sequel, so I'm not really going to recap anything for you, not after writing an entire story that you can use for reference here. For those of you who have read it, I really hope you enjoy this story as much as the first one!

Chapter One: The Young Lord

Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku, and Shippo were sitting around a large fire quietly. They hardly talked anymore, not since Sango had left five years ago. Their whole lives were shrouded in a certain despair. They all missed Sango terribly, and both Miroku and Kagome were feeling tension with Inuyasha because of his revealed feelings towards Sango. After Inuyasha had said goodbye to Sango that fateful night, and after he had informed Sesshomaru of his runaway bride, Inuyasha had at last confessed to Kagome that he was sure he loved Sango. Kagome was now clinging to Miroku for support, and as emotionally wounded as Miroku was, he did support her. Shippo was the only one who loved Inuyasha now. And perhaps Sango, wherever she was.

Kagome had initially left the feudal era, distraught and enraged. She wanted to blame Sango, she couldn't blame Sango, but she could hate Inuyasha with every fiber of her being. No matter the circumstances, there was always one woman more important to Inuyasha than her, it seemed. She couldn't bear it any longer, she had told herself. But in the end she did return, vowing to finish the final task of defeating Naraku and gathering the shards of Shikon no Tama.

Naraku was dead.

But in the massive explosion resulting from Naraku's final defeat, the shards were scattered once more. They had accumulated many, but the search was not over, not in the least.

Sesshomaru hadn't been seen in four years since Naraku's destruction. And Sango never came. She had promised them all many times that they would fight together. Inuyasha kept waiting. And wherever he was, Sesshomaru also continued to wait.

"Miroku, let's go take a walk." Kagome suggested. Inuyasha sighed. He could have left them all, searched for the jewel shards alone, but they had all agreed that that would have been immature. Besides that, Shippo had begged him to stay.

Shippo crawled into Inuyasha's lap as Miroku and Kagome headed off into the forest alone. Inuyasha knew what they were doing. They hadn't fooled him, if they were even trying to anymore. They had gotten rather close. And who was he to expect any different? Shippo clutched onto Inuyasha's sleeve lovingly and slowly drifted off to sleep. Inuyasha continued sniffing the air. He was determined to find Sango, no matter how long it took him.

Rin was getting bigger now, much bigger. She was twelve years old and slowly transforming into a woman. Sesshomaru had imagined that Sango would have guided her through this sensitive time, but she had left him. Fortunately for him, Rin was an unusually strong girl; she endured all of her womanly changes silently without complaint. Sesshomaru eventually took her to a village and left her with a kindly priestess. He had brought her new things as he saw fit, but one couldn't really call his occasional visits pleasant.

Jaken was about as pathetic as always, even more so now that Sesshomaru was less talkative than before. He knew that Sesshomaru was either wondering about Sango or their son, whom he had never met. Sesshomaru had lost touch with Sango years ago. But Jaken recalled Sesshomaru saying that he was sure he had smelled Sango nearby the day he and Inuyasha's friends defeated Naraku. Around that time Sesshomaru had really begun to close up.

Yet everyday Sesshomaru silently wondered, Where are you, Sango?

They didn't travel anymore. They sometimes lingered in a place Sesshomaru referred to as "Paradise", but Jaken was always left just outside of the precious location. Jaken wasn't aware of its significance and sometimes longed to visit the waterfall he could hear but never saw.

Sesshomaru had taken over a vast cave and carved spectacular tunnels through it, creating the castle of a true lord. But he employed no servants; he simply made Jaken slave to fulfill his occasional wishes. After a few years, he brought Rin to the castle and she too was put to work to keep her busy. Sometimes she would be allowed to go collect vegetables and water with Aun; she was the most productive of the group.

"My Lord, are we taking another trip to Paradise?" Jaken asked.

"No, not tonight." Sesshomaru replied. Rin had begged and begged to be taken to Paradise, but she had been denied as well. To her the place seemed spectacular.

The one thing neither Rin nor Jaken could determine was whether or not Sesshomaru's slight change in behavior had anything to do with Sango, or if he was simply assuming his uneventful duty as the Inu no Taisho.

Sango stood at the mouth of the cave silently observing little Shukun examine the wildflowers. He was growing into a stoic boy, just like his father, but he was still playful at four-years-old. Even still he had an unusual wealth of knowledge and nearly full vocabulary. Shukun at last picked a small pink flower and carried it over to his mother.

"This is for you, mother." he said quietly. Sango accepted it with a sorrowful smile. It seemed every day she felt lonely, despite raising such a beautiful boy.

Shukun in every way resembled his father. He had the same flowing, silver hair, pale complexion, and crescent on his forehead, which happened to be black instead of purple. He even had the same strange markings on his face. His eyes, however, were that if his mother's: the unusual electric blue Sango had gained on Mount Fukachi. Perhaps it was his striking resemblance to his father that made Sango so unhappy. With each passing day Shukun reminded her of her husband, who had hurt her so deeply.

"Thank you," she said just as quietly. "Come inside then." Shukun followed his mother into the cave obediently. Sango placed the flower in a basket she had designated for the flowers she acquired daily; each day it was a different flower, even if it was in the slightest detail. Shukun never picked one like the others. And though they withered, they were still beautiful to Sango and symbolic of Shukun's love for his mother.

"Mother?" Shukun asked.

"Yes,"

"Why is it that my father does not reside with us?" Sango nearly dropped the flower. In the four years that had passed, Shukun had never asked about Sesshomaru. "Was he an evil demon, like Naraku?"

"No, not at all." Sango replied calmly. "He never loved me, though. I left. Perhaps I shouldn't have, but I did."

"I thought you said it was not customary for demons to love." Sango smiled. Shukun remembered everything she told him.

"It isn't. But for some foolish reason I still expected him to." Sango explained. "And although he is supremely powerful, he is not evil, not like Naraku was."

"Is he the Inu no Taisho, then?" Shukun asked. He was aware his father was a dog-demon.

"Yes."

"Did Father ever love me?" Sango swallowed hard.

"He has never met you, but he seemed prepared to raise you with me."

"Mother, I would like to meet Lord Sesshomaru."

"You would?"

"Yes," Shukun sat down beside his mother and grabbed hold of her hand. He gave it a gentle squeeze, and did not let go. "I don't expect him to love me, but I would like to meet him just once."

Also-

*Shukun (or "Shu" as he will sometimes be referred): lord