It's a double!

The faces of all the people Kagome helped or had helped her passed through her mind. It was a whirlwind of faces and voices. Wishes and promises, curses and fears. If Kagome were to take anything back which would last? Which would disappear? Would anything change? Could anything? But despite this she felt a calm descend on her. The world was hers to protect and watch over, all beings her children. She had a job to do, a purpose…and she was going to complete it to the best of her abilities.

"How soon can you be ready to leave Sesshomaru? I wish to depart for the south in two days' time, the day after the party."

"I will have my affairs in order by then."

Kagome gave him a small smile before standing up and moving to leave the room.

"Goodnight Sesshomaru."

She didn't wait for his reply but left him to his work. She wasn't going to sleep yet.

She had someone she had to meet.

Kagome wasn't sure how far she walked but soon she came upon a spring in the center of a clearing. Moonlight filtered down and shined through the bows of the trees. She felt that this was a good place and focused a thin sheet of aura on her feet, with enough power to push against the water without displacing it too much. With that she walked to the center of the spring. Steam began to rapidly rise around the edges of the spring and soon she felt the water rippled toward her. She saw a figure emerge from the steam and she cracked a small smile.

"Glad to see you have a pension for the dramatic old friend."

"Old friend? But we have not met in this life young one." The figure stepped fully into view. She was taller than Kagome by a hand span. Her skin was dark as spruce and shown with an inner light, her eyes were a bright green. The last time Kagome had seen those eyes they were a burnished copper that told of an early fall. Her hair was a tumble of curls that brushed her heels and was a flowing blue and green that seemed to be made of the water of the earth. She wore a crown of brambles and thorn adorned with dew drops. She was barefoot and wore a dress that seemed to be made out of moss that had flowers growing out of portions of it.

Kagome couldn't help but smile softly.

"I remember everything from all of my lives now. It is in a sense…irritating. I am not those people anymore but their experiences and thoughts are starting to muddle with me own."

The woman nodded and embraced Kagome.

"What are you doing here child and why does your heart cry out so loud?"
Kagome let herself relax and released a shaky breath.

"What we feared has come to pass, I'm at your service till the end of time."

The woman nodded but didn't look surprised.

"It was bound to happen child, you and I knew that when your first run through began…I see now that you aren't as excited as you once were."
"I have children now, a family. I don't want them to leave me behind in time."

"You'll meet them again in their next lives child."

"They wouldn't know me, they wouldn't love me as they do now. And I will not do to them what Inuyasha did to me."
The woman held out her hand, palm down and a handful of sand shot from the bottom of the spring. She cupped her hands around it and blew onto it, her eyes glowing momentarily. She then plucked a flower from her dress and cut a lock of her hair. After a moment she presented it to Kagome. It was a mirror inlaid into a Water Lilly, the lock of hair was braided and glowed softly, hanging from the mirror like a strap. She handed it to Kagome.

"This way you can watch over them wherever they are and whoever they are. If they ever need you they will remember their past lives and seek you out." Kagome held the mirror and when she looked down she saw Shippo and Rin asleep in her bed. Sango was talking with Miroku, throwing dirty looks over her shoulder at Kikyo and Inuyasha. Her mother was still awake knitting and drinking tea with Ji-chan and Souta slept and a friend's house, they stared at each other and on the count of three they both took off their concealments.

Kagome couldn't help the tear the rolled down her cheek. She didn't need to voice her thanks, her face said it all. After a moment the steam dispersed and she was the only one standing in the center of the lake, and soon even she left.