Friday, August 27, 2004

   continue of the fanfiction someone wrote!
this is the rest of that fanfiction if you have not read the rest of it then go one post below and read it before you read this part, k!

Chapter Eight

"As effective as those tactics seem to be, Inuyasha, I don't think showing off your body to her every chance you get is the right way to go about this." Miroku advised. The two men were sitting outside by the pool the next afternoon, plotting. Or at least Miroku was. Inuyasha didn't see anything wrong with his original plans!

A very satisfied growling sound could be heard coming from Inuyasha. "If you had only seen the look on her face Miroku! I think my plan is working just fine."

Sigh. "Think about it my friend. Do you see your father walking around mooning your mother so she'll love him and stay with him? Of course not! He's thoughtful to her, brings her little gifts, gives her compliments, and takes her out to have romantic dinners. Those are the kinds of things women go for."

This gave Inuyasha a pause. "If that's true, then why do you go around asking women to bear your child and all that other crap?"

"It's a very effective ice breaker!"

"More like bone breaker."

Miroku gave a theatrical sigh. "Trust me Inuyasha, you just don't understand women the way I do."

"Thank God."

Ignoring this, the dark-haired man chose to instead carefully consider Inuyasha's love life -or lack of one rather. There had to be some way to fix it or all his skills with the opposite sex would be for naught! And you know Miroku, he couldn't bear the thought of that! To him, Inuyasha's problem was becoming personal.

"I think you should try something more subtle. Spend time with her, shower her with compliments, or give her a small gift. And of course the classic dinner by candlelight can never go wrong, even for someone as romantically impaired as you."

Inuyasha scoffed at all these suggestions, though mostly at the last one. "I don't get it. What's so romantic about people eating in the dark anyway?"

A stunned expression crossed Miroku's face, and he had to stop himself before he tried to strangle Inuyasha. "You really are hopeless, aren't you? Candlelight sets the mood, the romantic tone! And the darkness makes things more intimate and mysterious." Under his breath he added, "Besides, it would probably be better if she can't see you anyway. Your table manners are awful!"

"Oi, I heard that Miroku!"

"Hehe, forgot who I was talking to for a moment."

"Keh. Be glad I'm letting you live."

Miroku sweat dropped before deciding he would be better off ignoring that. "So, are you going to take any of my advice or what? I don't think I need to bother pointing out exactly how limited your experience with women is."

Inuyasha finally seemed to be considering what Miroku was saying, and seriously at that! Maybe it wouldn't hurt to try something new. After all, things like that worked for his father all the time, and he wasn't known for being a very gentle, romantic man. Maybe there was something to that stuff after all.

"Okay, fine! I guess I can try some of your ideas. I'll try the gift thing first."

Miroku smiled, looking lost in his thoughts. "Ahh, gifts. A small bribe never hurts."

Inuyasha scowled. "It isn't a bribe!"

"Believe what you like."

* * * *

"This whole gift giving thing is a lot harder than I thought." Inuyasha muttered to himself. He had been thinking of ideas for over an hour now, and he still didn't have a good one! Miroku had suggested jewelry, but that seemed too much like a bribe to Inuyasha. He didn't want her to feel obligated to like him.

The pervert had then suggested lingerie, and was promptly pushed into the pool by the peeved hanyou. At least no one could accuse Inuyasha of being completely stupid where women were concerned. Even he knew better than that!

Still sitting by the pool, Inuyasha paused in mid thought when he heard a soft noise. With his excellent hearing, he could easily tell that the sound he heard was a footstep, and a light one at that. It sounded suspiciously like someone trying not to get caught.

Inuyasha smiled in amusment when Kagome's scent drifted in his direction. Did she really think she could get away that easily? He had expected an escape attempt, but not quite so soon. He could have a little fun with this!

Moving stealthily, Inuyasha stood and slowly crept towards his mother's garden where the sound had originated. It was a large area, with confusing paths and a huge variety of flowers. The ideal place to go if you didn't want people to find you. Unfortunately for Kagome, she forgot to take into account Inuyasha's exceptional senses.

'Out of hundreds of different scents, I could pick out Kagome's anywhere.' The hanyou thought smugly. 'Too bad for her she uses shampoo that smells like fruit instead of flowers.'

She had obviously picked a path she thought would lead her to the perimeter of the gardens, where the forest started. He had to hand it to her. The plan might have worked if he hadn't been outside at the time, although even if he had been in the house, he would have heard her leaving.

Meanwhile in the garden, Kagome was almost giddy with relief and nerves! If she could only make it to the woods, she'd finally be home free!

'I know I almost didn't mind staying at first, but after that little stunt he pulled yesterday, there is NO WAY I am sticking around! The pervert!' Kagome refused to admit to herself that the reason she didn't want to stay was because she'd liked what she had seen just a little too much for comfort.

Peering around the corner of a rose bush and not seeing anyone, Kagome breathed a relieved sigh and stepped out into the open. The forest was just ahead!

"Admiring my mother's garden?" An amused voice spoke behind her.

"AAGGHH!" Kagome jumped and turned around, pressing one hand to her heart. Inuyasha couldn't help himself and busted out laughing at the terrified look on her face, which earned him an evil glare as soon as she could muster one.

"You scared me to death! What were you doing following me anyway?"

Inuyasha snorted. "From your reaction alone I'm pretty sure you weren't taking a tour of the garden. Why the sudden hurry to leave?" His eyebrows rose in question, and he waited for her response.

Kagome's own eyebrows lowered in annoyance. "Do I really have to have a good reason?" When Inuyasha waited expectantly, she continued. "Fine, if you want one, I'll give you one. You're a disgusting jerk with no manners that kidnapped me and then mooned me!"

Understanding slowly dawned on Inuyasha's face, and he looked more amused than ever. "You're still upset over that? But I could have sworn you liked it. Or maybe THAT'S the problem, and that's why you want to leave so badly!"

Kagome suddenly looked very flustered, and she refused to look at him. Instead, she moved around him to walk back towards the house without bothering to respond. Inuyasha frowned, not wanting her to leave quite yet.

"Where are you going?" Inuyasha suddenly blurted, and could have kicked himself for sounding so desperate.

"Back to my room and locking the door! Maybe I should stay in there the rest of the month! Then I won't have to deal with a jerk like you anymore!"

Inuyasha growled. "Why do you have to keep calling me a jerk? You won't even give me a chance to prove you wrong!"

"I don't WANT you to prove me wrong!" Kagome yelled. Suddenly realizing how much she gave away, Kagome stiffened and started to walk away again without looking back.

Inuyasha watched her leave with a very thoughtful look on his face. 'So that's the problem. She's afraid she might start to like me if I prove to her that I'm not really the huge jerk she thinks I am.'

Moving his gaze from where Kagome had disappeared in to a bush beside him, a slow smile spread across his face. He finally knew the perfect gift to give her! Hurriedly grabbing what he needed, Inuyasha took off running, planning to beat Kagome back to the house.

* * * *

Sango eyed Miroku warily after they had both happened to see Inuyasha run by like a mad man. It didn't take a genius to guess what he was up to, and Sango couldn't help but worry. "Do you really think YOU giving Inuyasha advice was such a good idea? He's not exactly the romantic type, and I'm pretty sure your advice is far from foolproof."

"Don't worry about it Sango." He assured her as his arm snaked around her shoulders, before traveling a bit lower. "He got advice from the master of love. What could possibly go wrong?"

*CRACK!*

"Hands off, pervert!"

Miroku sighed, putting both his hands over his chest. "Sango, your hostility towards me, the man who loves you so much, just breaks my heart! Can't we work things out?"

"I'll break more than your heart if you touch me there one more time!"

The perverted bodyguard perked up at that. "What if I touch you somewhere else then?"

Miroku never saw that last hit coming before he blacked out completely. I guess it's true what they say, love and pain really do go together!

* * * *

"Inuyasha is a jerk, Inuyasha is a jerk, Inuyasha is a jerk." Kagome chanted, trying to calm herself down with a comforting mantra as she climbed the stairs. She wouldn't have been trying so hard if she knew where the 'jerk' was right at that moment.

Pulling open her bedroom door with a sigh, Kagome nearly tripped and fell on her face when she was greeted with the unwelcome sight of the LAST person she felt like seeing! How the heck did he manage to beat her back?

With fierce frown in his direction after she managed to recover her footing, Kagome pointedly left the door open and faced him with her hands on her hips. "What do YOU want?"

Inuyasha didn't answer right away, and instead began to fidget nervously. He had both his hands behind his back, looking suspiciously embarrassed and grumpy. Poor guy! This was the hardest thing he'd ever tried to do in his life! It had sounded like a great idea when he first thought of it, but now he wanted to run and hide somewhere!

"I was.um.Keh! Why should I tell you, it's none of your business what I do!"

He knew that was the worst thing he could probably have said right then, but he couldn't seem to stop himself from becoming defensive when he got embarrassed! Inuyasha cringed and waited to see exactly how she would respond.

A dark look stole over Kagome's face. "It IS my business cause you're in MY room!" She argued furiously.

When the hanyou stayed quiet, Kagome opened her mouth once again to let him have a piece of her mind but suddenly stopped and stared as if in shock.

Inuyasha's stubborn look faded into one of confusion as she gawked silently at him. "Uh, aren't you going to try to kick me out or yell at me or something?"

Kagome blinked, then shook herself out of her stupor and frowned. "Forget about that. Let me see your hands."

Inuyasha's eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected demand. "Why?"

"I want to see your hands." She instructed more slowly. "The ones behind your back that are dripping blood on my floor."

With a dazed look, Inuyasha did as she asked and revealed what he was holding. Sure enough, the idiot had grabbed a bunch of roses with one hand and completely ignored it when the thorns had ripped the flesh of his palm and fingers in several places. It looked a lot like he'd been playing with an angry cat.

Kagome took the flowers, and almost started laughing at the sight of the mangled stems where he'd ripped them from the bush. She smiled dryly at him. "Thank you, I think."

Laying the flowers down on the bed, she then examined his hand and sighed. "Geez, don't demons feel any pain at all?"

This caused Inuyasha's face to turn bright red, though she couldn't figure out why. "Yeah, we do. I was just kind of.distracted."

Kagome rolled her eyes. "You really need to clean this up before it gets infected."

"Keh, demons are fast healers! It will be fine in a couple of hours." Despite his gruff tone, he could feel his heart beating like mad. Partly from her touch on his hand, but also because she was actually concerned for him! Hadn't she been mad at him just a moment ago? This really was too good to be true!

Giving him a look that clearly said 'men are stupid', Kagome tried again. "Baka, you should still clean it anyway! Where do you keep the medical supplies?"

The things her touch was doing to him! He needed to get away before he did something that would ruin the tiny bit of progress he'd finally made. Inuyasha pulled his hand out of her grasp and backed off quickly.

"I-I'll take care of it myself." He muttered.

Watching him hurry out of the room looking flustered, Kagome couldn't help but feel a little dejected. 'Why didn't he want my help? And why do I even WANT to help him in the first place? I was furious with him five seconds ago, and now I'm practically looking for an excuse just to hold his hand!' A sulky look appeared on her face. 'If that's the way he wants to be, fine! It's only because I felt sorry for him. Nothing else.'

But if that's the way she really felt, then why did she miss touching his hand so much? No man had ever affected her like that before! Was she losing her little battle already, when it had only just begun?

Chapter Nine

Lady Rumiko tried. She really did! But seriously, if Inuyasha sat down and told you everything that had happened so far between him and Kagome, could you keep a straight face? I rest my case.

Light, amused laughter drifted around the library where Lady Rumiko and her son were talking privately, and it lasted for several minutes before the former could compose herself. Inuyasha just glared at the floor as he waited.

"I'm sorry Inuyasha." Lady Rumiko apologized as sincerely as she could manage. "I know I should help you and not laugh at you. But really!" Another huge smile broke out on her face. "Couldn't you have done something a little more subtle than mooning her or giving her bloody roses? MY roses no less!"

Inuyasha winced as the smile vanished as quickly as it had appeared, since Lady Rumiko was obviously not happy to have a huge hole in one of her favorite rose bushes. She wondered for a moment if she ought to make him replace it with his own two hands later, but then decided against it. It would be safer for the rest of her poor plants if he stayed away.

"I wasn't planning on doing any of that stuff." He finally muttered in his own defense. "It just kind of happened that way."

Lady Rumiko gave her son a dry look. "Everything 'just kind of happens' with you, doesn't it? That could almost be your entire life story summed up in four little words. You really should start thinking before you act."

Inuyasha just continued to watch the floor as his ego took a beating at the hands of his own mother. For once he was regretting not taking his problems to Miroku even though he knew he deserved every word of it.

Finally, Lady Rumiko decided to take pity on him, and seriously turned her attention to his dilemma. "Inuyasha, I think your problem is that you're expecting things to move much too fast. Just because you're ready to get married and settle down doesn't mean she's even begun to think about it. After all, you're three hundred years old and she's only seventeen." As an afterthought, she added "Cradle robber" under her breath and smirked at him when he glared at her.

Both were silent for several moments before Inuyasha finally decided to try defending himself again. "I am not expecting things to move too fast. She's just refusing to see things my way!" He sounded just like a petulant little kid.

"Oh really?" His mother raised her eyebrows. "May I remind you that YOU'RE the one that wanted to share a room with her the very first day she was here."

Inuyasha's shoulders suddenly slumped in defeat, finally taking Lady Rumiko's well- made point. Noticing this, his mother smiled at him in understanding.

"Don't worry, I think you have a very good chance with her! I'm sure it won't take her long to see that you're trying hard because it's very obvious. And while most men are rarely sincere in their pursuing, you are. Very few women can resist a man like that."

"What else could I do to get her to see it?" Inuyasha questioned. The look on his face was nothing short of anxious now, and the sight tugged on his mother's heartstrings.

"Well." Lady Rumiko knitted her eyebrows together thoughtfully, one finger pressed to her lips. "Be kind to her, and don't push her. No matter what she does, you need to be polite and maybe even a little affectionate."

Inuyasha gulped nervously. "Polite? Affectionate?" His nervous look turned into a grimace. "Why are things always a lot harder than they look at first."

Lady Rumiko laughed again and patted her son on the back. "Don't worry too much. If you really care, then it will come easier than you think. Just try it, okay?"

This made Inuyasha smile slightly and he finally nodded in agreement. In turn, Lady Rumiko patted him on the head playfully for being a good doggy, causing him to growl.

* * * *

During dinner that evening, Kagome was trying to eat and just ignore Inuyasha, but the task was more difficult than she thought it would be. Every time she turned around, he would be offering her something or giving her some screwed-up compliment! Once he even told her she smelled good, which promptly got his leg kicked under the table.

Lady Rumiko watched helplessly, wondering how a son of hers could have ever turned out so socially challenged! But then, glancing at Lord Tai as he ignored everyone around him and concentrated on eating his food more than answered that question.

Sesshoumaru seemed to be ignoring the two lovebirds at the table, but the slight smile on his face that appeared every time Inuyasha got kicked gave him away. He had to admit, it was fun watching his little brother suffer at the hands of a mortal girl. Sesshoumaru made a mental note to himself to buy a video camera so he could humiliate Inuyasha in front of his grandchildren one day. The thought brought another small smile to his face.

By the end of dinner, the white-haired hanyou's shins were black and blue, despite the quick healing ability. He tried really hard not to let it get to him though. Closing his eyes and counting to ten, he was startled when Kagome suddenly called his name after trying to ignore him so long.

"Inuyasha?"

His eyes snapped open, and he glanced at her across the table in surprise. "Huh?"

Kagome suppressed the urge to roll her eyes at his intelligent response. "What has gotten into you tonight?"

Inuyasha schooled his features and muttered the same thing he had been trying to drill into his brain all night under his breath. "Be polite."

"Excuse me?" Kagome's eyes widened in outrage. "Are you calling me rude?"

A small snort of laughter came from his mother's direction, but Inuyasha ignored it frantically tried to get himself out of this one.

"I didn't mean that!"

"Yeah right." Kagome stood up and looked towards the three people at the table who were in her opinion, the only other mature people in the room besides herself. "May I please be excused?"

Lady Rumiko frowned. "What's wrong Kagome? You don't want any dessert?"

Kagome shook her head. "Not tonight, thank you." With that, she stalked out of the room stiffly, Inuyasha watching her go.

'That wench!' He fumed silently. 'I try hard all night, and that's the only response I get? Keh! If she wants to be that way, why should I care?'

"Inuyasha?"

His mother's voice shook him out of his thoughts, and he glanced at her questioningly.

"That was the most pathetic thing I've ever seen."

Inuyasha scowled at her, but she held her hand up to stop him from talking so that she could continue. "I think I gave you bad advice, telling you to act like someone you're not. Why don't you just do whatever feels comfortable for you?"

Inuyasha considered this suggestion carefully. If he did things his way, he probably wouldn't get very far. And doing things someone else's way didn't work well either. Maybe he could compromise.

* * * *

The next morning, Kagome stretched as the sun shining through her window finally woke her up. Being able to sleep in was nice, and knowing she didn't have to deal with shrine chores was even better. But did she really have to pay such a high price for the break by living with someone like Inuyasha? Kagome's mood suddenly went sour at the thought.

Sitting up in bed, Kagome was startled to notice something lying on the pillow beside her. Turning to get a better look, she saw another rose. A small laugh escaped her.

"His mother isn't going to like this."

This rose had been carefully cut, unlike the last ones, and all the thorns had been removed. Probably so she wouldn't accidentally get stabbed while she slept. The startling thought left Kagome feeling oddly touched.

Beside the rose was a folded piece of paper with her name on it, written in slightly messy scrawl. Picking it up with mounting curiosity, she read the contents out loud.

"Kagome. I'm really sorry for everything last night and I want to make it up to you. Please join me for dinner tonight. There will be candlelight and everything. Miroku told me girls like that. Oh, and it will be just the two of us!"

The note was hastily signed 'Inuyasha'.

Kagome had to stifle a laugh as she read back over the messy scrawl. "Inuyasha really needs to take a lesson on writing romantic notes! But at least I know he didn't stoop to letting Miroku write something for him."

Whether she liked it or not, Kagome could feel herself softening as she stared at the flower still sitting on the bed, stripped of all its thorns.

'Are you really that lonely after all these years Inuyasha? Even after everything I've done to avoid you, you still haven't given up. Maybe I should give you at least one more chance.' A mischievous smile broke out on her face. 'After all, everything else you've done had been pretty entertaining so far. Some more than others.'

"Should I join him, or would it be better for me to just keep ignoring him like I've been doing? I have to admit I'm curious about how this will turn out. If the note is any indication, I might at least get a good laugh out of it!" Kagome suddenly smiled wryly. "And as long as he doesn't try to cook the dinner himself, then there's a good chance I'll probably survive the evening."

Kagome remained in bed for several more moments, thinking carefully. "What the heck, I just can't resist! Inuyasha, you have yourself a date!"

* * * *

That evening, Inuyasha was setting up a table in one of the smaller sitting rooms in the house. He carefully spread a pure white tablecloth over the small round table for two, trying to make sure it looked neat enough. Inuyasha was really nervous and hopeful about what might happen, so that's why everything had to be perfect! He couldn't afford to screw things up again.

Inuyasha had finally decided on using Miroku's dinner idea, but on his own terms. Instead of it being a romantic evening, he wanted for them to take the time to get to know each other, and not rush things like his mother said. He was much more comfortable with that than trying to wine and dine her like Miroku suggested.

Once everything looked good to him, he tried to remember other suggestions Miroku had given him that day. "Let's see.I should give her some sort of little gift tonight too." His face brightened as he got an idea.

That would be easy enough! He could use that box of chocolate he'd gotten Sango to steal from his mother. Sesshoumaru and his chocolate addiction were finally coming in handy! But if anyone found out what did happen to that chocolate, Inuyasha knew he wouldn't have long to live at the hands of his brother.

Frowning suddenly, Inuyasha paused in his preparations. He had everything perfect. Flowers in the middle of the table, clean plates and silverware, candles.so why did he get the sudden feeling that he was missing something?

Not able to think of what it could be, Inuyasha finally shook off the feeling and got back to work. He was determined to show Kagome how serious he was, even if it was the last thing he ever managed to do.

Chapter Ten

It was almost time, and Inuyasha was a nervous wreck! He'd double- checked everything so many times, but for some reason he just couldn't shake the feeling that he was forgetting something!

This mysteriously missing element continued to escape poor Inuyasha though, and it didn't help that the man could barely think straight. Oh well, whatever it was must not be that important, right?

At least he was well dressed for the occasion! Tailored black slacks, black shoes, and a very sexy white dress shirt with the top few buttons unbuttoned. As long as he manages to keep it clean, then he's got it made! Even his beautiful white hair was combed neatly.

While he was double-checking everything for the ten millionth time, there came an unexpected knock on the door.

"Oh great, don't tell me she's early!"

Before he could make a move to answer the knock, the door opened and Miroku strode into the room like a man on a mission. He gave everything Inuyasha had set up a cursory glance before smiling in satisfaction.

"You've done a good job Inuyasha! I honestly didn't expect you to, so I thought I ought to come by and check. It seems though that you have everything well under control!"

"Gee Miroku, I'm awed by your confidence in me."

This earned the dog demon a frown. "No need for the biting sarcasm. I'm only doing this in your best interest Inuyasha."

"I'm thrilled and deeply touched. Oi, how did you find out I was doing this anyway?" Inuyasha asked, suspicion lacing his voice.

"I have my sources!" Miroku replied carelessly. "Everything does look good though. You seem to have thought of everything! Even the silverware is polished to perfection and almost looks too nice to eat with. Speaking of which, what's on the menu, lover boy?"

Inuyasha gave him a blank stare. "Menu?"

"Please don't tell me you actually forgot about the food!" Miroku had to resist the urge to stamp 'hopeless' on Inuyasha's forehead.

"Oh crap!" Was the simple, slightly panicked answer.

"Okay, don't get too upset yet." Miroku counseled his friend, who looked on the verge of freaking out. "Surely the cook has something made up for the rest of the family. She can probably spare you some."

"I sure can!" Came the sudden reply. Both men turned to see the stout little old lady, bearing a tray. "Sango double checked with me because she didn't trust either of you to do anything right. Smart girl she is! I have a charming dinner fit for two all ready, and just in time too I might add."

Inuyasha was so relieved he didn't even question how Sango found out his plans. Instead, he did the first thing no one thought he would ever do! He swept up the little woman in a huge bear hug soon as she set down the tray, almost squeezing the life out of her and lifting her feet clear off the floor. Talk about giving her the thrill of her life! "You saved me Baba! What would I ever do without you?"

"Yes, what would you do without me?" She replied dryly. "Besides, I owe you one after that little show the other day, sweet cheeks." With a wink, she turned and exited the room.

Inuyasha groaned and rubbed his forehead. "I completely forgot she was in there when I did that. I thought only Kagome and Sango were around to see it!"

The look on Miroku's face was priceless! "Sweet cheeks? Show? What EXACTLY did Sango see?"

Ohhh, he was gonna DIE!

* * * *

Inuyasha was still rubbing the huge knot on the back of his head, courtesy of Miroku, when there was a soft knock on the door of the sitting room. All thoughts of pain flew out the window, and he practically ran to greet her at the door.

Without waiting for him to open it, Kagome entered after she knocked, looking like she was ready to run at the smallest incentive. His running towards her like that almost did the trick, but she held her ground.

"K-Kagome! You actually came!"

She eyed him warily before answering. "Well, after that romantic note, I just couldn't bring myself to stay away. Although your lucky I found you. You forgot to tell me WHERE we were eating in your note, genius."

Inuyasha had to stop himself from saying something rude in return. 'Oh great, she's being sarcastic already! But that's okay, I can handle that. At least she showed up, which is good! That means I've got a chance!'

She looked beautiful too, like she had at least made an effort for him. Dressed in a green dress of Sango's, it was modest while still showing everything off to perfection. It took a monumental effort to keep his distance from her.

After staring at her for several moments, Inuyasha actually blushed and looked down at the floor. "I really am glad you showed up Kagome."

Since she had first entered the room, Kagome had avoided looking at him very closely. But after hearing him say that, she couldn't seem to help herself as she glanced at him in surprise.

'OH.MY.GOD!' Her mind screamed at her. 'It's got to be a sin to look as good as he does! Oh, I just knew it would be a mistake coming here! I should really leave. Turn around and walk out Kagome. Do it! MOVE, OR ELSE YOU'RE A GONER!'

Despite her thoughts, Kagome didn't move a muscle. All she could do was stare at him like a deer caught in the headlights of a Mac truck! His tanned skin along with that white shirt could give any woman a heart attack! 'And of course she'd die the happiest woman in the world too.' Kagome thought dryly.

When several moments had passed and Kagome didn't hadn't responded to him, Inuyasha finally looked up and caught her staring. He couldn't help but grin at that. Maybe he wasn't exposing anything like he had done the day of the full moon, but her reaction was still almost as good!

"So, uh, you wanna sit down?" He gestured to the table behind him. When she nodded, he moved to pull out a chair for her, just as Miroku had advised him to before he left. Sometimes even that pervert could give good advice.

As soon as Inuyasha had settled himself as well, they both sat quietly with nothing to talk about. Breaking the ice was always so awkward!

"Oh yeah! I almost forgot, I have something for you."

Reaching behind him, Inuyasha pulled out a box and handed it to Kagome with a flourish, looking very pleased with himself. She stared at it.

"You got me chocolate?"

"Yeah, I-"

*SLAM!*

The door to the room flew open and hit the wall, startling the couple at the table. In swept a very dignified Sesshoumaru, looking seriously peeved!

Giving them the evil eye, he snatched the box from a shocked Kagome. "That's where my chocolate went. I should have known it was you."

"Hey, it's not like you bought it, so it was fair game!"

Kagome looked back from one brother to the other as they tried to stare each other down. The scene was almost rather comical! She figured maybe she ought to say something before a fight broke out or something. "It's just chocolate Inuyasha, so it's not that important!"

Sesshoumaru gave her a shocked glance, before backing off with the box in his hand. "I will never understand people like you." With this odd announcement, he left while Inuyasha and Kagome stared at his retreating back.

"Your brother is weird."

"Half brother. And he has some strange addiction for chocolate. He'd never admit to it since it's such a 'human' trait to have an addiction, but he does."

Kagome suddenly giggled. "You'd think someone addicted to chocolate would have more of a perky personality!"

Both got a mental image at the same time of Sesshoumaru pumped up on a caffeine high, and busted out laughing! Do you blame them?

'Sesshoumaru barging in isn't exactly something I had in mind.' Inuyasha thought wryly. 'But now it's not nearly as awkward as it was. I don't know what it is about her, but I just enjoy being around her. I don't feel like she's judging me for what I am like so many people seem to. Why are you so different Kagome?'

Kagome noticed Inuyasha's face go from amused to what could be described as sad in the space of several seconds as he stared at her intently. "Is something wrong? You look so serious all of a sudden."

Inuyasha snapped out of his thoughts and shook his head. "No, nothing's wrong. It's just so rare for me to actually find people like you."

"Like me?"

Inuyasha grinned. "You hate me, but at least you don't hate me for what I am. Most people and youkai don't even give me half a chance on first meeting, but even after I kidnapped you, you still didn't judge me. I wouldn't have blamed you if you had." The smile faded from his face.

"I don't hate you." She whispered quietly.

Gold eyes widened as they stared at her. "But.I thought-"

"I didn't say I've forgiven you." She reminded him with a half smile. "But I don't hate you either. You haven't done anything to actually hurt me. You've just tried everything in the book to drive me crazy!"

Inuyasha laughed at her grimace. "I just have to know..Is it working?"

"I'm not answering that."

"Come on, I won't book you a room in the loony bin, I swear!"

"Are you kidding? I think this IS the loony bin."

"Don't avoid the question!"

Kagome pointedly ignored him then. "Weren't we supposed to actually eat on this so called 'date'?"

Inuyasha jumped up and grabbed the covered tray. "Yeah, the cook made something for us. I dunno what-" His voice died as he lifted the cover off the food.

"Why are there hamburger buns on top of the vegetables?"

Inuyasha picked up a small note and crumpled it in his fist, but not before Kagome had a chance to see what it said. "For you, hot buns? HOT BUNS?"

"It's not funny." He grumbled.

"Yeah right!" She gasped between laughs. "I think the cook wants your body!"

Inuyasha tossed the wadded up piece of paper over his shoulder. "Yeah well, I wish she wasn't the only one." He muttered.

Kagome stopped laughing, and smiled at him suggestively. "Maybe she isn't the only one who wants it. More than one person saw that the other day, you know."

'Is she actually flirting with me?' He wondered in amazement, the room suddenly feeling several degrees hotter under her steady gaze.

Out loud he managed to ask, "Who else?" with a hopeful expression.

"You really wanna know?"

He gulped and nodded when she leaned across the table. Closer.and closer.

By this point he could almost feel her hot breath on his face, causing every coherent thought in his head to die right then and there.

"It's...SANGO!"

He slumped down in his seat and growled when she sat back in her seat and started laughing hysterically again. So much for his little fantasies!

Chapter Eleven

Kagome lay in bed the next morning, staring at the ceiling and thinking about her dinner with Inuyasha. It had gone so well that she almost couldn't believe it. He'd been such a gentleman! Well, by Inuyasha standards anyway.

'Could I really be starting to have feelings for him? He's such a jerk most of the time, but sometimes he can be so sweet. Maybe he cares for me more than I think, but I've been too blind to see it. Even if he did kidnap me, he hasn't done anything really bad. In fact, this has been a great vacation from shrine work!'

Her early morning inner musings were cut short by a knock on her door. A second later Sango entered with a small stack of folded clothes.

"Kagome? I brought you some clothes to wear today! You can have these while I take everything else you've worn to be washed. It's laundry day, and everyone's rooms get raided for dirty clothes."

"Thanks Sango." Kagome sat up and finally got out of bed, knowing if she didn't get moving there probably wouldn't be any breakfast left after her shower.

Noticing how quiet her friend was, Sango raised an eyebrow. "So how did last night go?"

"Actually, it went rather well."

"And that has you worried."

Kagome nodded in wordless agreement to Sango's statement.

"Is it because you're still upset over him kidnapping you, or is it something else?"

"I'm not upset at all over being kidnapped anymore, although I probably should be." Kagome admitted. "Now I'm worried that I like it here too much!"

This caused Sango to laugh, and she patted Kagome's shoulder comfortingly. "Just let things happen and see how it goes. Maybe you and Inuyasha were meant to be together. I have to admit, I've never seen the jerk work so hard in my entire life!"

"How long have you known Inuyasha? And Miroku?" The younger girl questioned.

"I've lived here my whole life, so obviously I've known Inuyasha for as long as I've been alive. My parents worked here, and several generations before them even. As for Miroku, he started working here three years ago." Sango sighed. "I haven't had a peaceful, grope-free day since."

Out of the blue, Kagome gave her friend an evil grin. "You like him, don't you?"

The only answer she got was a red-faced Sango slamming the bedroom door behind her, with Kagome's dirty clothes in hand.

"Yep, she likes him. It's just too bad she won't admit it, even to herself."

Deciding to forget about her friend's love life for a while, Kagome left the stack of borrowed clothes on the bed and headed for the bathroom, knocking first to make sure Inuyasha wasn't in there. Most likely he wasn't, because he liked to shower after he ate breakfast every morning.

"Probably so he can get to the food before anyone else and make a pig of himself." She muttered. "I hope there's some food left when I get done. If there isn't, then he'll be the first one to die."

Listening a moment just to be sure no one was in there since there was no response to her knock, Kagome entered the bathroom to get her morning shower.

* * * *

Kagome's shower had taken a little longer than she'd meant for it to take. When she finally made it back into her room with just a towel wrapped around her, the growls from her stomach were getting very insistent.

Frowning, she looked around the room. "Now where did I put those stupid clothes?" She grumbled to herself. "I would have sworn I left them on the bed!"

Kagome dug through the sheets and looked around the floor carefully, but no matter how hard she searched, she couldn't find a stitch of clothing! Could someone have come in and taken them, thinking they were dirty?

"Oh great, this is just what I need to start my day off!"

"If you're looking for your clothes," A voice called from the room on the other side of the bathroom. "Then maybe you should look in my room!"

Kagome stiffened. "Inuyasha, did you take my clothes?!?!"

"If you want them, come and get them! I'm not mean enough to throw yours out the window, so you don't have to worry about that."

"YOU JERK!" She yelled, stomping towards the bathroom. "Just when I thought you were being so nice too! Bring me those clothes NOW!"

Inuyasha smiled, enjoying himself. Now that she was starting to like him a little, he could finally take revenge for her little stunt the day before. He felt like he'd been waiting forever to have his chance! Sometimes he just doesn't stop to think though, does he? That one-track mind is going to be the death of him some day. At Kagome's hands of course.

"What goes around comes around Kagome!" He called back cheerfully. "If you got to see me walking around in nothing but a towel, then I get to see you. Fair is fair, so come in here and get them yourself!"

"Ohhh, you.you.PERVERT!!!!!"

"I'm not Miroku." Was his casual reply to that accusation.

Kagome gritted her teeth in frustration. "No, you're much WORSE!"

As if it was nothing but a friendly conversation, Inuyasha's voice stayed light and friendly. "I'm waiting! You know you don't have a choice. Either come in my room where only I will see you and get the clothes, or walk around the house like that where everyone can. Your choice."

Despite how unconcerned he sounded, Inuyasha could only pray she didn't pick choice number two. He'd probably freak out and kill any guy who happened to see her running around the house barely clothed like that.

Kagome knew she was cornered. She could go raid Sango's room, but more than likely someone would see her before she could get there. That meant there was really no help for it. She'd just have to go get the clothes and try to make it out without killing him.

Grasping the doorknob, she inched it open slowly, acting like she was about to face a firing squad. "I'm going to kill him, I'm going to kill him, I'm going to kill him." She chanted under her breath. Of course he could hear this with his dog demon senses.

"You can't kill me Kagome. Maim me maybe, but at least I heal fast."

That caused the bathroom door to fly open a lot faster, and a very enraged Kagome stood there glaring at him where he was casually stretched out on his bed. One of her hands was grasping the top of her towel so tightly, you'd think she was afraid he was going to try to take it from her. The other hand was flexing slowly, preparing to choke the man in front of her.

Marching forward, she headed for the end of his bed where the stolen goods lay, and grabbed them before he could have a chance to try anything else. She needn't have worried, Inuyasha could only stare at her in awe, not able to make a single smart remark.

The white towel she had wrapped around her barely covered everything important, and didn't leave a lot to the imagination. The only coherent thought the hanyou could get into his blank mind was, 'Thank God she didn't go with choice number two!'

Kagome was about the leave the room in a fury, when she suddenly paused. "Hey, wait a minute! That morning you jumped in my window, exactly how much did you see you stupid jerk?" As she spoke, her voice took on a higher pitch.

Inuyasha went completely still, and a cold dread formed in his chest. 'Oh, this is not good! I forgot all about that, it happened so fast! So now how am I supposed to answer that question without getting killed?' Not knowing how to respond, he finally opted to stay quiet and see what would happen.

The silence (and the look of fear on his face) said it all!

"YOU ARE GONNA PAY FOR THIS!" She hissed forcefully before turning to leave. Inuyasha stared dumbly at her retreating back.

A moment later, the slamming of each bathroom door could be heard as she headed back to her own room. Inuyasha stared blankly before moving to loosen the collar of his shirt. "Man, I think it got a little hotter in here. Not that I mind a bit." A slow grin spread across his face. "I might die for it later, but at least it will be with a smile."

In her own room, Kagome was still fuming! 'How DARE he do that to me! Especially after he saw a LOT more the other day! If he thinks we're even now, then he's dead wrong! I have plenty of tricks up my sleeve, and he'll rue the day he ever decided to mess with me!'

Kagome dressed while going over ideas in her mind. 'Most of the tricks I know are pretty childish though. I could put dye in his shampoo, but I don't think I could bring myself to ruin that beautiful hair.' A frown crossed her face. 'I need to think of something that won't backfire on me this time. That means it has to be simple. But what would work?'

A sudden idea occurred to her, and she smiled. 'That could work! It's a stupid trick, but how could it go wrong? The worst results would be that I'll have to listen to him curse me for a few hours while I'm trying to sleep.'

Smiling, Kagome finished brushing her hair before heading downstairs to eat breakfast.

* * * *

"Inuyasha, are you worried at all?" Miroku questioned at lunch.

"Why should I be?"

That earned him an incredulous look. "Why? After you telling me what you did to her this morning, you'd think she'd be mad. Instead, she's been so nice to you that it's scary!"

Inuyasha shrugged, rather unconcerned. "It probably just means she plans to get revenge. It's not like I can't handle anything she throws at me."

Sighing, Miroku gave his friend a pitying look. "One day Inuyasha, you will learn to fear women like you ought to. I just pray you live long enough for it to happen."

The dog demon scoffed, obviously not believing this. "What can Kagome really do to me? As long as she doesn't try to kill me, as if she ever would, then I can handle it with no problem. You worry too much Miroku."

"Don't say I didn't warn you."

"Would you like some more potatoes?" A sweet-voiced Kagome questioned Inuyasha. In one hand she held the bowl, offering it to him across the dinner table. Her attitude was beginning to scare everyone else that was present, even Sesshoumaru, but Inuyasha didn't seem phased a bit as he accepted the dish from her.

Dinner in Lady Rumiko and Lord Tai's home was the one formal meal that every family member was required to attend. During the day things were much more lax, and so that's why Inuyasha and Kagome ended up eating in the kitchen with Miroku and Sango so much. No one knew what Sesshoumaru did with himself during those meals. Probably had a chocolate stash somewhere.

Now Kagome was sitting across from both brothers, smiling that lovely fake smile she has! Lady Rumiko couldn't imagine what her son must have done to deserve this, but it had probably been a doozy!

"Kagome dear, is something wrong?" Inuyasha's very concerned mother finally decided to ask. "You seem a bit.upset." She didn't voice her concerns about what might have caused this.

Kagome responded with a bright smile. "Oh no, I'm fine! Never been better in fact!"

Everyone at the table nodded, not believing a word of it.

A very strained silence descended on the group, but all continued to eat as if nothing were wrong. Every few seconds, an evil glare would be shot Inuyasha's way by one of his family members. They just knew this had to be all his fault!

"Inuyasha."

The half dog demon looked sharply at Sesshoumaru. "What?"

A slender, refined hand pointed to Inuyasha's dessert of chocolate cake, which he had been picking at for several minutes without any of it actually making it to his mouth. "Are you going to eat that?"

Everyone else at the table sweat dropped.

Sesshoumaru ignored this gracefully. "Well?"

With a weary sigh, Inuyasha gave in and pushed the cake towards his sweet tooth driven half brother. "Keh! Knock yourself out. Just don't come crawling to me when you're fatter than Kagome's cat."

"Hey!" Kagome protested, before she remembered what she was doing. "I mean, uh, that was so funny Inuyasha!" The scary, fake smile was directed at him full force now, causing his stomach to churn.

On the outside, Inuyasha may have seemed very calm to everyone present, but inside was a completely different matter! As he tried to eat his dinner and act normal, Miroku's warnings kept coming back to haunt him no matter how hard he tried to forget them. All the while, visions of all the horrible stuff she could do to him danced through his head, taunted him and caused him to lose his appetite.

'Do I even dare go to sleep tonight?' He wondered, carefully watching Kagome with narrowed eyes as she smiled down at her dessert. 'She seems so nice on the outside. What kind of twisted ideas could there be lurking in that head of hers?'

That question would remain unanswered though, until much later that night.

* * * *

The chiming of the clock in the hallway echoed though the house signaling that it was midnight, and Inuyasha cursed loudly at the sound. "Dammit! How can one stupid girl make me so paranoid that I can't sleep?" Flipping over on his back, he glared at the ceiling as if it were somehow to blame.

His muddled, sleep-deprived mind drifted back to just before he had gone to bed. Kagome had long since retreated to her room, and Inuyasha stopped to eye her door warily before opening his own. Just at that moment, her light voice drifted out to him.

"Goodnight Inuyasha! Pleasant dreams!"

Something like that might not have bothered anyone else, but it sure bothered him! Kagome NEVER told him goodnight before, or at least not in a friendly way. Normally she said something along the lines of she hoped he'd die in his sleep. The only night she didn't say something rude like that was the night of their dinner together.

After that, Inuyasha opened his door cautiously to look for anything suspicious. She could have done anything to his room while he was downstairs! It was much better to be safe than sorry.

After a swift, careful check that revealed nothing out of the ordinary, including no signs of her scent that would be left from her presence in his room, Inuyasha let out a sigh of relief. He was worried over nothing!

"She's probably not gonna do a thing." He muttered, stripping down to his boxers. "This is just some tactic to make me paranoid. Well, it's not going to work, and I'm gonna sleep just FINE tonight!"

HA! So much for that brilliant little plan! Here it was, past midnight and he was still wide-awake and listening for any sounds that might possibly be coming from her room. He realized he was beginning to fear her much more than he'd ever feared Sesshoumaru, which was saying something!

"This is so much worse than the time Fluffy shaved my head in the middle of the night when we were younger. Took my hair years to grow back!" Inuyasha suddenly paused. "Dang it, now I'm talking out loud to myself!"

With an angry huff, Inuyasha flipped to where he was laying on his side with his back to the bathroom door. He knew it probably wasn't the smartest thing he could do, but no way in hell was he going to show his fear and turn over!

Inuyasha lay like this for several moments, his ears twitching as they listened for any sounds. When nothing at all was heard, he felt himself finally begin to relax. Now, maybe he could get some sleep!

The soothing silence continued, and his golden eyes slowly drifted shut as he sank into that state between being awake and asleep. All his worries about Kagome drifted away, and a deep rumble of contentment sounded from his chest.

*Click*

On cue, Inuyasha snapped out of his daze and was on full alert at the small sound. The click had been the bathroom doorknob turning slowly, and a second later his ears heard muffled footsteps moving towards him. Back stiff, Inuyasha didn't move from his spot or turn around. "I'm awake you know." He warned quietly.

The footsteps stopped, before picking up once again. Kagome smiled at his back. "Who says I wanted you to be asleep? I figured you would be able to hear me."

This got Inuyasha's attention, and he abruptly sat up and turned towards her as he felt his bed shifting beside him. "What the heck are you- " His voice died as he found himself face to face with her, not even two inches separating their faces. The hanyou swallowed nervously, not realizing she'd had a chance to get so close till it was too late.

"I was feeling so lonely in my own bed Inuyasha." Kagome purred, moving just a little bit closer. By this point her hot breath on his face was doing very strange things to him, and her lovely smell wasn't helping at all. All thoughts of this being some kind of possible revenge flew out the window along with his ability to think rationally.

Kagome noticed his reaction, and mentally congratulated herself. She tried really hard to ignore the fact that him being so close was causing her to feel the same way, and concentrated on her plan. He was going to pay, and she was going to enjoy every single moment of it! Probably TOO much!

"What's the matter Inuyasha?" She breathed, moving to place a hand on his bare chest. Her hand felt like it was on fire, but she kept her focus on his face. His breathing was so rapid, she had to hold back a grin of triumph.

"K-Ka-gome!" He gasped, trying to figure out what the heck was going on. He must be dreaming, cause there's no way she would be doing this otherwise! Maybe he should take advantage, since it would probably never happen in real life.

Inuyasha acted on this thought at once, since it was the only one in his mind at the moment. Closing the distance between them, he suddenly wrapped his arms around her shoulders and met her mouth with his in a very heated kiss!

When their lips met, Kagome felt herself freeze with shock, not expecting this to happen! She'd figured that he would just get all flustered and nervous, leaving him open for her little trick. Instead, it looks like the tables had been turned on her.AGAIN!

Her hands went limp where they had been pressed against his chest a moment before, feeling like she was going to melt with this new sensation. She had been kissed once before by some guy named Hobo.or was it Hojo? Whatever, it wasn't anything like this, so it didn't matter at all!

The kiss became deeper, and Kagome's mind turned to mush. 'Wasn't I suppose to be doing something? Does it really matter? Oh, who cares, this is so nice.'

Regretfully, they had to come up for air sooner or later, and Inuyasha was the first one to pull back. He stared at Kagome with the most intense eyes she had ever seen, and she couldn't do anything but stare back, entranced.

"This has got to be the nicest dream I've ever had." Inuyasha murmured. "If only reality were half so nice."

At the word reality, Kagome's original intentions came back to her full force. 'I forgot! I was supposed to be giving him revenge, and instead I just gave him the greatest thrill of his life! Or at least I hope I did.' Shaking her head, she tried not to think about that. 'Well, it's still not too late for my plan I suppose.'

A wicked smile suddenly crossed her face. "So you think this is a dream Inuyasha?"

He nodded in response, his gaze still transfixed on her face.

"I guess I'll just have to wake you up then." She whispered. Placing her hands on his chest again, she pushed with all her might!

"WHA-"

*THUMP*

Inuyasha was now sprawled out on the floor beside the bed, looking about as aware as someone who had been hit by a bus, with Kagome staring down at him, smirking. "Awake now, darling?"

"Why you little-"

"You know you liked it."

A growl was her only answer.

"I guess I should go to bed now. If you plan on staying down there, I suggest you at least get a blanket." She tossed one on him. "Goodnight!"

Laughing, Kagome retreated from the room, leaving him to find his own way back into bed. It was a good while before he even moved an inch though.

A goofy smile slowly spread across his face. "Well, now I know it wasn't a dream. Only the real Kagome, MY Kagome, would push me out of bed after a kiss like that."

Still grinning widely, he picked himself off the floor. "She could have shaved my head for all I care, that kiss would have still been worth it!"

For the rest of the night, Inuyasha still didn't manage to get any sleep. But this time, he didn't care either.

* * * *

Kagome stood with her back to the bathroom door, breathing heavily. A bright blush stained her pale cheeks, and she had one hand pressed to her heart. Even though she'd managed to do what she had set out to do, and even put up a good front after she pushed him off the bed, her heart was still racing from the kiss. Or was it more than just that?

'I managed to get my little revenge, but in the end I think I paid a bigger price for it than I thought I would. Am I really starting to.fall for him?'

Chapter Thirteen

Sango and Miroku were already eating breakfast the next morning before starting the day's work, when a loud shriek sounded from the vicinity of Kagome's room. Miroku continued to chew his food as if nothing were out of the ordinary, but Sango grimaced and wondered what Inuyasha must have done this time.

"Those two are acting like a couple of two-year-olds." She muttered, picking at her scrambled eggs. "Next thing you know, Lady Rumiko is going to have us babysitting them and reading them bedtime stories. I wish they would grow up!"

Miroku sighed. "Ahh, but isn't it wonderful watching true love bloom before your very eyes? At this rate they won't even need the entire month to get to know each other."

Sango almost choked on her toast at this, not able to believe that Miroku thought things were actually going well between those two! But before she could gather her wits enough to respond, a very furious Kagome entered the room with water dripping from her long, black hair. Inuyasha wasn't far behind.

"That was NOT FUNNY!" She growled at him, shaking out some more of the water. A few drops slung on the half demon, but he just grinned and ignored them. "I do not appreciate you dumping water on me to wake me up!"

"But I just thought you might need some cooling off after last night!"

Miroku and Sango's eyes widened in shock, not able to believe what this statement was implying! Could they really have gone and done something like that?

Kagome ignored the statement, the bright flush on her face being the only indication that she actually heard what was said. She grabbed a plate off the counter and started piling it full of different kinds of food.

Deciding to wait till Kagome was done and out of the way, Inuyasha sat down at the table and almost started laughing at the looks on his friends' faces. He was pretty sure he could guess what they were thinking, but decided not to deny anything yet and see what they said.

Miroku was the first to find his voice, and he gave Inuyasha a sly grin and a slap on the back. "I told Sango things were going well between the two of you, but even I never realized they were going that well! I envy you my friend. May I be the first to offer my congratulations?" Leaning in closer, he whispered. "How was it?"

"HENTAI!" Sango yelled, overhearing what was said. Reaching behind him, she grabbed his little ponytail and yanked it so hard he fell out of the chair and nearly into her lap. Sango ignored this though and gave him a fierce glare. "What Kagome and Inuyasha do in private is NONE of your business! So don't you dare ask any more disgusting questions!"

Kagome watched this entire scene play out, a look of horror on her face. All the pieces had clicked into place in her mind, causing her to figure out what this was all about. "We didn't do anything like that Sango, I swear! Nothing happened! Tell her Inuyasha!"

Everyone turned to stare at the hanyou expectantly, but he just shrugged. "I dunno about you, but I wouldn't call what we did last night 'nothing'."

All eyes turned back to Kagome, who couldn't seem to find her voice. She opened and closed her mouth several times, no sound coming out. Finally giving up, she stomped over to where Inuyasha was sitting. "I hope you're hungry!" With that, she dumped the plate of food in his lap and stalked out of the room.

Looking very calm with a satisfied smile still on his face, Inuyasha began to clean up the mess. "I knew she wouldn't dump it on my head. She likes my hair too much."

Sango and Miroku couldn't think of anything to say.

* * * *

"I never knew those years my mother sent me to summer camp would come in handy." Kagome muttered. With a tug, she pulled the bed sheet tight. "I'd really love to do something worse to him, but I'm running out of ideas."

Finally satisfied with her job, Kagome stepped back and dusted off her hands. "There, that ought to do it! Now this is sure not to backfire on me! I haven't had that much luck lately with my revenge tactics, but what could go wrong with this one? Short sheeting the bed is the oldest trick in the book!"

Retreating from the scene of the crime, Kagome left Inuyasha's room and entered hers by going through the bathroom. Hopefully since he was out in the woods running or climbing trees or doing whatever it is dog demons do out there for training and excercise, her scent would be gone long before he decided to come back.

Leaving her room and stepping out into the hall, Kagome almost shrieked in surprise when she ran into somebody! A clawed hand clasped her shoulder to steady her, and long white hair trailed into her vision.

"Inu- Oh, Sesshoumaru! You scared me, I thought you were Inuyasha." Kagome's heart rate slowly returned to normal.

"Afraid you were going to get caught?" He questioned in a disinterested voice.

Kagome paled considerably. "How did you know? You aren't going to tell on me to anyone are you?"

"I see no reason to interfere. Although if you insist on being so childish, then you should at least be more creative. Something so simple isn't going to get him to hate you or get you thrown out of the house."

Looking down at the floor, Kagome felt herself blush. "I don't really think I want to him to hate me."

"Then why continue?"

Kagome had to stop and think about this carefully for a moment, not sure of the answer. Sesshoumaru waited patiently.

"I think- I think I don't want him to feel like he can just push me around, or get what he wants without having to try. I want him to want me for me, and not just because I'm a miko and the only choice he has." Kagome sighed in frustration. "Does that make any sense at all?"

Sesshoumaru was surprised at her confessing to him, but wasn't at all surprised at what she said. He had guessed that was probably the problem. His stupid half-breed brother was just too blind to see it.

"What do you feel about him?"

Kagome frowned. "I'm not completely sure. I know I like him even though he's a jerk. I feel sorry for him because he's so lonely, and I want to help. And I know that I'm attracted to him. But I have no idea if I actually love him."

It was quiet for several moments as each thought about this. Finally, Sesshoumaru spoke once more.

"Well, until you decide, may I offer you some advice?"

Looking a bit wary at any advice that might come from this man, Kagome nodded.

Sesshoumaru have her a solemn, serious look. "If you ever want him to hate you, just shave his head."

* * * *

Inuyasha yawned widely, looking like he was ready to collapse. He'd gone out to get a little exercise in the woods, something he hadn't done since Kagome arrived, and now he was almost dead on his feet. As long as she didn't try anything tonight, he was sure he'd get a good night's rest. Heck, even if she did try something he'd probably sleep through it!

Already tucked into bed in her own room, Kagome listened carefully to the sounds coming from his side of the bathroom, just waiting for him to find her little surprise. She couldn't hold back a small smile as she heard the covers rustling.

"What the-?"

Some more sounds could be heard before a light thud caused Kagome to start giggling. Any minute now she was sure he'd start yelling at her! After all, that made two nights in a row Kagome had either directly or indirectly made him fall out of bed!

Several moments passed, and all was quiet. Straining to hear something, Kagome herself nearly fell out of bed but caught herself just in time. 'He couldn't be so tired that he just passed out in the floor could he?' Kagome smirked at this thought. 'He did seem pretty much dead on his feet earlier. Maybe I should go look? Oh, what I wouldn't give for a camera!'

Just as she was about to follow through on this thought, Kagome's ears picked up the sound of footsteps, and they were headed for the bathroom! Ohhh, not good!

Closing her eyes, Kagome tried to stay still and even out her breathing so he would believe she was asleep. Maybe then he'd leave any possible confrontation until morning and just go back to bed.

One door opened, and a moment later the door to her room opened as well. Kagome cursed herself for forgetting to lock it before going to bed.

She waited for Inuyasha to say something, still faking sleep. But instead of saying a word, he continued walking towards the bed!

Still Kagome held her ground, not moving an inch. Well, until she felt the bed moving.

Eyes popping open, a very shocked Kagome stared at Inuyasha as he got into her bed! HER BED! What the heck did he think he was doing?

"I knew you weren't asleep." He smirked, making himself comfortable.

"You pervert, get out of my bed!"

Inuyasha ignored her.

"I said get out of my bed!"

"No."

Kagome finally sat up and glared at him. "Why not?"

Inuyasha closed his eyes and smiled slightly. "You mess up my bed, I sleep in yours. Fair trade."

Kagome's left eyebrow developed a sudden tic. "Arrgg, no it's not! Go back to your own! How hard can it be to fix a sheet?"

"Too hard. Besides, this is great revenge."

Trying to keep a tight reign on her anger, Kagome held her breath and counted to ten very slowly. Letting it out in a rush, she seemed a bit calmer. "Fine. I can deal with that. I messed up your bed, so I'LL sleep in it."

Throwing the covers back, Kagome slid her legs over the side and tried to stand up, but Inuyasha was a lot quicker than she was. Despite how tired he was, he was still able to reach out and grab her with one arm, wrapping it around her waist securely. Ignoring her gasp, he drug her back to him until she was close enough that he could get his other arm around her.

So now Inuyasha was lying on his side, both arms around Kagome who looked like she would have run screaming if she could have gotten up! She could feel his breath on her neck, warm and even, causing a small shiver to run down her spine.

"Inuyasha, let go of me! This isn't funny!"

There was no response out of him.

"Are you listening to me at all? There's no way you can be asleep already!"

Still not a sound was heard out of him.

Kagome sighed in annoyance and turned her attention to trying to pry his arms off of her. Her fear of him trying something was long gone, but she still wanted out of the bed! What if someone caught them like that? Not to mention the feelings she was getting from being so close.

When she pulled on one arm though, the hanyou at her back gave a low growl and tightened his arms without actually waking up. Obviously even when he was asleep, he was still stubborn!

'Acckkk! Now what am I supposed to do? I could wake him up, but then I'd have even less of a chance of getting away!' Kagome stayed still for a moment, trying to think of a way out, when she realized something. 'Why am I trying to hard to get away anyway? Is it really that uncomfortable? Actually, I have to admit I kind of like it.'

Gradually Kagome began to relax, letting her mind drift and enjoying the feeling of comfort and security his arms gave her. She had never felt so safe and protected by anyone before.

A sleepy smile crossed her face as she snuggled into his chest without really thinking about it. This action caused a deep rumbling to start in his chest, almost as if he realized in his sleep that she was finally giving in to him.

Getting away suddenly didn't matter to her anymore. It felt right, staying where she was. Why fight it? They weren't doing anything wrong.

Now fully relaxed, Kagome's mind became fogged with sleep. 'He may be a jerk most of the time, but it's moments like this that make it all worth it.' With that final thought, Kagome drifted off completely, one of her hands resting on his.

Chapter Fourteen

Kagome slept deeply, completely unaware of the rising sun as it slowly began to shine its rays through her window. Behind her Inuyasha slept on as well, his arms still wrapped around her waist and his face almost buried in her long hair. Both were sleeping deeper than they ever had before, a side effect of the comfort that the other's presence brought.

It wasn't long after sunrise when a sharp knock sounded on the door, causing the room's occupants to finally begin stirring. But before either of them could figure out what it was that had awakened them up, the door flew open and Sango walked in the room!

"Good morning Kagome! I came to bring you some more clo-" The older girl stopped dead in her tracks, staring at Inuyasha and Kagome with wide eyes.

"S-Sango!" Kagome stuttered, then blurted the first thing that came to mind. "This isn't what it looks like, I SWEAR!"

Inuyasha groaned at this and tightened his grip as she frantically tried to pry his arms off her. "How many times are you going to say that when it's always exactly what it looks like?" He muttered. "Keep this up and I'm going to start getting offended."

Sango was still gaping at them, but had also turned a bright red color after witnessing their cozy little scene. What the heck she was still doing there nobody knew, not even Sango. Maybe a little bit of Miroku had finally rubbed off on her?

Inuyasha cracked one eye open to glare at Sango while he continued to keep a firm grip on Kagome, and a deep growl rumbled from his chest in warning. "Do you mind?"

Sango flinched and dropped the clothes she had been holding in her hand as if they'd burned her. Without a word, she turned and ran from the room as fast as her feet could carry her! The slamming of the door echoed behind her, and Inuyasha smirked at her reaction before turning his attention to a much more important matter - the girl that was still securely locked in his arms.

"Inuyasha, let go of me!" Kagome moaned. "I can't imagine what Sango must think of me now! I have to go talk to her and set things straight!"

"Why? I'm a lot more comfortable right here."

"Good! Then you can stay here while I go talk to her!" She retorted in annoyance.

Inuyasha lazily nuzzled the back of Kagome's neck and almost laughed as she stopped tugging on his hands and gasped. He loved her little shocked reactions when he did things like that to her.

"You don't want to move either." He pointed out smugly.

"W-who says?" The shaking in her voice gave her away, despite how hard she tried to sound determined. If there had been a wall close enough, Kagome would have been sorely tempted to start beating her head on it at that moment.

Her question was ignored as Inuyasha picked up where he'd left off, causing her to lose all hope of fighting what she really didn't want to fight in the first place.

'My feelings are more confusing than ever!' She mentally groaned. It was all Kagome could do to keep her thoughts from crumbling to dust at the sensations his touch was invoking. 'Is this just some sort of warped desire on my part, or am I really falling in love with him? Even worse, what does he really feel?'

The last thought gave Kagome a pause and created a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. 'What if he really does only want me because I'm a miko? I-I don't think I could handle that. Just the thought of it hurts.but why? Is it because.oh God, I think it's because I really do love him!'

Inuyasha felt Kagome go completely stiff, which caused him to realize that something was upsetting her. He fervently hoped it wasn't him touching her that was the source of the problem. She hadn't seemed to mind it a moment ago!

Inuyasha finally pulled back and propped himself up a bit so he could see her better. The look on her face was serious, and her eyes.he couldn't even begin to read the myriad of emotions there. "Kagome?"

His soft, worried tone seemed to snap her out of her daze, and she turned slightly to look at him. "Inuyasha."

"What's wrong?"

"Why do you." Kagome hesitated, unsure of how to phrase the question she wanted to know the answer to more than anything. Her entire future, as well as his, depended on it.

He waited a moment for her to go on. "Why do I what?" He prodded.

Kagome closed her eyes, unable to look at him. "Why do you want me?"

Inuyasha frowned at being asked such a simple question. He had thought that everyone had made it perfectly clear to her from the moment she had been brought into this house. Did she really not understand by now?

"I need you." He replied simply. To him that said it all. For him to admit he actually needed someone when he'd spent so much of his life as a loner was in his mind the strongest statement of commitment and love he could make.

But Kagome didn't see it that way at all. When he said 'need' and not 'love', she could feel her heart breaking into a thousand pieces. 'The only reason he needs me is because of what I am, a miko. I'm probably his only chance at having what he wants, and that's all that really matters to him. Why didn't I see it? Why didn't I WANT to see it? You're such an idiot Kagome!'

"Inuyasha, I want to get up now." Kagome's voice was soft and quiet, but very determined.

He just stared at her, his confusion written all over his face. Hadn't she paid any attention to what he just said? Did she even care? "Kagome-"

"I SAID I want to get up, so please let go."

What was her problem? "Dammit Kagome, just listen to me for a minute!"

"NO!" She suddenly shouted. Inuyasha wasn't prepared for this response and lost his hold on her when she nearly jumped from the bed. She was obviously angry, but he had no clue why.

"Kagome-"

"Just go away and leave me alone! I don't want you and I certainly don't need you! Why I even stayed here in the first place I don't know!" Kagome's eyes were flashing, and her sleep-tousled hair gave her a slightly wild look.

Inuyasha winced at her 'I don't need you', the words cutting deeper than any knife. That was the response she was giving him for being honest about his feelings?

"Do you really hate me so much still?" Inuyasha whispered quietly, his voice flat with no hint of the pain he was feeling. His stubborn pride refused to let her see what she was doing to him.

Kagome avoided meeting his gaze with hers, afraid he would see her answer for the lie that it was. "Maybe I do."

Both were still and quiet for several moments before Kagome finally moved from her spot. She bent down and grabbed the pile of clothes Sango had dropped on the floor, careful not to look Inuyasha's way at all. When she had every piece of clothing, Kagome silently left the room, closing the door behind her with a soft click.

Inuyasha watched her gather the clothes before she left, no longer trying to mask anything he was feeling. It didn't matter anymore to him if she knew or not, and in a way he wanted her to see.

But Kagome never looked back.

* * * *

Sango silently stared at the broken girl across from her who was sitting on the end of her bed. Kagome had come to her bedroom about an hour ago, crying like her heart was broken. Not much later, Sango found out that was truly the case when the story slowly came out. That knowledge made the older girl very relieved that the little bed scene really hadn't been as bad as it had looked earlier.

'Poor Kagome. I personally believe that Inuyasha does care for her, and probably even loves her. It's not really my place to try and tell her that though, because I may very well be wrong. Only Inuyasha knows for sure, but he can't ever seem to do anything right where women are concerned.'

"Sango?" The hesitant question came from a sniffling Kagome, startling the girl from her thoughts.

"Yes?" No matter what it was Kagome wanted, even if it was to kill Inuyasha, Sango was prepared to do it for the friend she had come to care so much for. Though she really, really hoped she didn't have to kill him, bodily harm would do nicely.

"Can you please take me home? I don't want to stay here anymore."

Deep down, Sango had been expecting this, but she dreaded having to say goodbye. It had been wonderful to have her there, someone to laugh and gossip with, to help her tease the guys and gang up on Miroku. She was already feeling lonely.

"Are you sure that's what you want Kagome?" Sango questioned quietly. "Maybe you misunderstood him. Do you really want to give up on him so easily if you love him that much?"

Kagome shook her head, another tear running down her face. "I know what I heard. If he'd really loved me, wouldn't he have said so? It's only three simple words Sango. But he didn't say them. He didn't WANT to say them."

Sango leaned forward and gave her friend a comforting hug. "I'll take you home then. But just remember to keep in contact or I'll never forgive you." She smiled to show she was only joking.

Kagome smiled weakly in return. "Thank you Sango. If for nothing else, I don't regret coming here just because I met you." The smile on her face turned pained. 'And even if nothing came of it, I'll never regret falling in love with Inuyasha either. No matter how much it hurts, it's the only connection I'll have with him after I leave. I just hope it will be enough.'

Chapter Fifteen

Kagome crept silently towards her bedroom, careful to listen for any sounds that might be coming from inside. She didn't want to face Inuyasha again, but she knew that she needed to get her clothes back before she could leave with Sango. Hopefully the dog-eared boy had cleared out sometime during the hour she'd spent with the older girl.

Pressing her ear against the door, Kagome listened to the silence inside. It seemed to be empty as far as she could tell, but there would really be no way to know for sure unless she looked. Steeling her resolve, Kagome cracked the door open to peer inside.

'Good, he's gone, and I hear the shower in the bathroom running! Now I just need to get my clothes and get out of this house before he gets out of the shower! Surely he can't hear anything going on in the house when he's in there!'

Kagome was careful to keep the morning events far from her thoughts, and just concentrate on leaving. If she allowed herself even one small moment of weakness to think about him or her feelings, she knew she might not be able to leave him, and that was out of the question. There is only so much pain a person can take, and Kagome went far beyond her limit that day.

By this point Kagome was rummaging around in her closet, which was filled with several of Sango's outfits, as well as her original set of clothing. Each article was there down to her bra and underwear, so after collecting those, Kagome left the room without looking back.

* * * *

Inuyasha let the hot water stream into his face, not moving at all, even when it got in his ears. He needed to calm down and relax before he saw Kagome again, but the shower didn't seem to be helping as much as he thought it would. Every now and then a stream of curses that could make a sailor blush poured out of his mouth, before he would fall silent once more.

'Damn that girl, why did she act like that? Was she out to make a fool of me, waiting for me to confess before she threw it back in my face? Or does she just not feel the same way. Maybe she wasn't prepared for me to actually answer her question.' A fierce frown crossed his face. 'But if that's true, then why would she ask in the first place?'

These thoughts plagued Inuyasha's mind for a good part of an hour, and the hanyou stayed in the shower the entire time, not caring when the water finally began to turn cold. He wanted to think, and the shower had always been his favorite place for that.

Fists clenching tightly, a small trickle of blood began to flow where his claws had pierced the skin of his hand. It slowly slid down his arm, before washing down the drain. 'If she really doesn't want me, then I don't need her either! I've lived a long time without a woman, so why should now be any different? Kagome can leave for all I care.'

* * * *

Holding Sango's arm, Kagome followed her friend down the back stairs and into the area of the kitchen where Sango felt they could safely avoid detection by any demon senses, although the only one that they really had to worry about was Inuyasha. Lord Tai wasn't home, and Sesshoumaru just didn't care.

"Where's the cook? She's always in here this time of morning." Kagome whispered to Sango as they crossed the large kitchen, heading for the garage. Sango had her own car stored there along with many other vehicles belonging to either servants or members of the household. Inuyasha had strictly forbidden Kagome to go there, not that she ever planned on listening to him in the first place.

"She isn't here today." Sango whispered back. "She asked for the day off because she told Lady Rumiko she had a date with the gardener."

Kagome almost tripped after hearing this, but managed to keep her footing and let out a soft giggle. No matter how upset she was, the idea of the cook dating a man that had to be at least twenty years younger than her struck her as hilarious!

Sango smiled at her friend's amusement as she unlocked the door to the garage. Anything that could make Kagome forget about her troubles for a little while was a very good thing! Sango made a mental note to get all the gory details of the date to pass on to her later.

Pulling open the door, Sango almost shrieked in surprise when she nearly ran into a figure standing directly in their path just inside the dark garage.

"Going somewhere without me Sango?"

The voice was all too familiar, as was the hand on her chest. "Miroku, you PERVERT! You were waiting for us, weren't you?" Miroku was already rubbing a large bump on the top of his head.

Kagome paled at this information, wondering if Inuyasha had somehow found out about her leaving and had sent Miroku to try and stop them. Fear, and something akin to hope, gripped her chest painfully and nearly stopped her breathing.

"Ah, I was, Sango, but I'm not planning on stopping you."

"Huh?" Both girls gaped at his figure in the dark room.

"Does....Inuyasha know about this?" Kagome questioned quietly.

Miroku shrugged his shoulders carelessly. "He might, but I doubt it. I haven't seen him this morning, but I could clearly hear him cursing a blue streak in the bathroom. Even if someone blew up the house right now, I'm still not entirely sure he would notice."

Sango smiled wryly at this, being all too familiar with Inuyasha's temper. "I'd be more worried about HIM blowing up the house right now."

Kagome nervously looked back at the doorway, knowing that Inuyasha never took very long in the shower. "Can we just get going please Sango? I really don't think I can face him again."

Miroku obligingly stepped out of the girl's path much to Sango's shock. But her questions were answered when he started following them towards the small green car.

"Miroku, you're not coming! I don't want to be stuck in the car with you alone on the way back, because I know that's exactly what you want!"

Miroku feigned a look of extreme pain. "I don't understand why you would think that of me, my lovely Sango. I just want to see Lady Kagome home safely, and then make sure you come home safely as well."

Sango snorted in disbelief. "HA! You, more than anyone, knows I can take care of myself perfectly well. And when it comes right down to it, I'm a lot safer without you anywhere near me!" The automatic locks on the doors popped, and Sango pulled open the driver's side door.

Kagome opened the passenger door, and Miroku watched them both with a look of amusement. "I guess I have no choice then."

A look of horror spread over Kagome's and Sango's faces when Miroku turned back to the house, his body language clearly stating that he was planning to run right up to Inuyasha and squeal! He was trying to blackmail them!

Sighing in defeat, Sango called out to the dark-haired man. "Wait!"

"Yes Sango?"

"What do you want from me?"

A slow smile spread across the pervert's face, and Sango could feel her stomach quaking in response.

"Just the front seat!"

* * * *

Kagome wearily trudged up the long set of shrine steps alone, her eyes never moving from the cold cement below her feet. She didn't seem exactly thrilled to finally be home, but if nothing else, she was happy to get out of the car! Watching Miroku grope and hit on Sango the entire way was not exactly the most fun thing to have to sit through. At this point the dentist would sound more appealing than getting back in that car!

In her pocket, Kagome's hand played with a piece of paper Sango had given her at the last minute. It contained Sango's hastily written cell phone number, along with the main number for Inuyasha's family just in case. Kagome wasn't sure how she felt about having that last number anywhere on her person, but she was glad to have Sango's.

Her friends had offered to walk with Kagome up to the house, but the younger girl had insisted that she wanted to be alone. Understanding completely, Sango and Miroku bid her goodbye and headed back home, all the while wondering if Inuyasha had caught on yet. They weren't looking forward to that confrontation.

Reaching the top of the stairs, Kagome finally saw her home again for the first time since the entire mess had started. So why didn't she feel happier about it? The place was her home after all, and had been all her life.

Looking around, Kagome realized the place was awfully silent.

"No one must be home. I guess that's good, because I really don't feel like facing anyone right now and explaining anything." Furrowing her eyebrows, Kagome suddenly wondered how much her family did know. "What did that note say that Miroku left? I never asked.."

Making it to the front door, Kagome realized she didn't have her keys on her, so she reached under the doormat for the spare. After unlocking it, she entered and kicked off her shoes before calling out.

"Is anyone here?" Kagome yelled.

Silence met her ears, and she smiled slightly with relief. No awkward questions for a while at least.

Moving into the kitchen to make some hot tea to relax with, Kagome took a moment to look around for a note in case they thought to leave one. On the table was a piece of paper, along with a colorful gift bag.

"What the heck is this?"

Picking up the paper, Kagome noticed her name written at the top. Feeling more and more confused as she scanned the letter, she finally decided to read it out loud.

"Dear Kagome. Since we weren't sure when you would be back home, I decided to leave this for you just in case you came back while we're gone. You'll find your wedding gift on the table, as well as a list of things your new husband can help us with around the house. It will be so nice having a man to do things for us! Tell him I said hi and that mommy loves you! Be back sometime late this evening! Mom."

Kagome sweat dropped, her mind not able to comprehend the implications of the note. 'Husband? What husband? I have no idea what she's talking about!'

Not able to help herself, Kagome pulled the gift back towards her, and started shifting aside all the colorful tissue paper until she dug down to the bottom and found a box. If she was confused before, it was nothing compared to now!

"A-A TOASTER?" Kagome stuttered in shock. "My mother thinks her only daughter is married, and all she gets me is a toaster? I feel so loved."

Pulling another note out of the bag, she began to read it as well. "Take out the trash, mow the lawn, weed the bushes, paint the fence...maybe the best revenge against Inuyasha would be to marry him after all. My mother would work him to death."

At the thought of supposed marriage, Kagome had to wonder about that again. "Why the heck does she think I'm married in the first place? The only way she could have gotten that idea is if-" A sudden thought came to mind, and Kagome shrieked in outrage. "MIROKU! I'm going to kill him! Where's that number!"

Snatching the slip of paper from her pocket, Kagome snatched the phone off the wall and nearly broke the buttons from force as she dialed the number. A moment later Sango answered.

"Kagome? Is that you?"

"Sango, can I please talk to Miroku?"

The icy sweetness of her voice alarmed Sango, but she let the man next to her have the phone anyway. It would at least keep one of his hands busy!

"Ah, Lady Kagome! How can I be of service?"

"What the HELL did you put in that note you left my family?"

The smile on Miroku's face slipped a bit, but a moment later he looked like his usual confident self. Sango watched him warily.

"I am a romantic at heart, and at the time I fully believed love would conquer all, so I put nothing but what I believed to be the truth. It spared your family from worrying about you."

A loud click could be heard before the line went dead, and Miroku stared at the phone in surprise. "I believe Lady Kagome was a bit upset."

Sango smiled and sped up the car a little bit after figuring out exactly what Miroku had done from listening to their conversation. Inuyasha was gonna want to kill someone when they got back, and she was going to enjoy watching every moment of Miroku's demise.

Seeing that look on Sango's face, Miroku gulped nervously. 'Why is it that when Sango looks happy, that never means anything good for me?' He decided to keep his hands to himself the rest of the way home.

Chapter Sixteen

Inuyasha felt like someone had just punched him in the gut, and he suddenly had the urge to tear something apart. Deep down he had somehow expected it, but thinking about it and her actually leaving were two different things altogether.

"YOU'RE LYING!" He raged, lashing out at the bearer of bad news.

"Like I said before, she left."

Inuyasha glared at his calm brother from his spot across the library, not wanting to believe what he was hearing! Kagome actually left him while he was in the shower? After everything between them, she suddenly just left without a single word?

Even though he kept telling himself that he didn't need her, some part of him still wouldn't accept the fact that she was gone, that she would leave him without giving him a second thought. Was she lying that night when she said she didn't hate him?

"Why didn't someone stop her? Why didn't YOU stop her?" Inuyasha growled at Sesshoumaru, furious and determined to take his anger out on someone.

"Oh? My mistake. I didn't realize you cared for her so much."

That statement almost caused Inuyasha to snap, but he managed to hang onto the one small thread of sanity he had. "For your information I DON'T CARE FOR HER! I only need her because she's a miko!"

Looking nothing short of bored, Sesshoumaru reluctantly put his book down and shrugged his shoulders carelessly. "I didn't stop her because I saw no reason to stop her. She obviously wasn't happy here, and another miko would do just as well if that's all she was good for."

Inuyasha had to bite his lip to stop himself from denying this statement, drawing blood with his sharp fangs. If Sesshoumaru noticed any of this, he gave no sign.

The hanyou settled for glaring daggers at his half brother and pointing out the problem with that idea. "You know we can't find another one that easily!"

Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure? What if I told you I found one?"

The younger demon paused, not quite sure what to make of this odd statement coming from his brother. "What do you mean?"

"About the same time that your mother found Kagome, I happened to locate one myself. I would have told, but because of Kagome I saw no reason to."

The shock Inuyasha felt at hearing this was beyond description. "I don't see what this has got to do with anything!" He finally snapped.

"I can tell you where to find her." Was Sesshoumaru's only response.

"But I don't want an-" Inuyasha paused, refusing to finish what he was about to say.

"I figured as much." Sesshoumaru smirked.

Inuyasha gaped as his brother's facial expression, trying to process what it meant. It didn't take long before understanding finally dawned, causing him to point an accusing, clawed finger in his brother's direction. "You just set me up, you bastard!"

Sighing, Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes. "Someone had to. A hanyou like you is too stupid to do anything without help - unless it involves kidnapping girls." Another look of amusement crossed his normally blank face.

Inuyasha couldn't seem to form an answer for this, even if it was insulting. The only thing he could think and manage to actually say was "Why?"

"Why am I actually helping you, or why are you so stupid? I can't answer the second question, but I suppose I ought to answer the first." He ignored Inuyasha's angry spluttering and growling. "I'm helping you because I heard your stupid blunder this morning."

"What blunder?!?! I told her exactly how I felt!" Inuyasha yelled. "And you shouldn't have been listening anyway!"

For the first time since their conversation had started, Sesshoumaru's face turned dark, and slightly angry. "You really are an idiot. All you did this morning was confirm her biggest fear, and now she may very well hate you for it."

"H-hate me? Why?" All Inuyasha's anger turned into a cold dread in the pit of his stomach. What could he have possibly done to upset her so much?

"You told her you needed her, just like you told me you needed her just a few moments ago. Or at least that's how she thinks you meant it."

The simple answer took a moment to seep into Inuyasha's brain, and when it did, he let out a deep groan. "Oh God, how could I have done that? She thinks I only need her because she's a miko? I didn't mean it that way!"

Sesshoumaru watched his brother wallow in misery for a moment with a rare look of pity on his face. "I'm sure you can fix it if you just go talk to her."

Inuyasha ran one of his hands through his hair, not at all sure about that. "She probably won't have anything to do with me now."

The bland look was back on Sesshoumaru's face, realizing he'd accomplished exactly what he'd set out to do. Despite how he treated Inuyasha, he truly did care for his brother, and he didn't even mind Kagome, even though she was human. But those weren't the real reasons he got involved.

He would never be able to make Inuyasha's life miserable if he didn't have nieces and nephews to tell embarrassing stories to! And he really didn't want that new video camera to go to waste either. He'd paid good chocolate money for that thing!

Sesshoumaru cleared his throat and tried to get his mind back on track. he could deal with that later. For now, this problem really needed to be finished up. "Does it really matter if she doesn't want to have anything to do with you? It didn't stop you last time."

A sheepish smile crossed Inuyasha's face at the pointed reminder that he'd had the gall to kidnap her once. If nothing stopped him from doing that, surely he could do something as simple as getting her to talk to him.

"I see what you mean." Looking outside, Inuyasha noticed exactly how late it was getting, and decided that he had better get moving if he planned to make it to the shrine before dark. "Do me a favor and don't tell anyone where I went."

"For a price little brother."

Inuyasha groaned and checked his pockets for money. "What kind?"

A small, slightly dreamy smile made it's way to Sesshoumaru's normally stoic face, and he pressed the tips of his fingers together lightly. "Reeces. Extra large bag."

* * * *

After making a short trip to the store and dropping the goods off with his brother, Inuyasha headed across Tokyo, careful to keep his ears concealed from people on the streets. He didn't feel like taking the time to skirt the city like usual, and instead went right through. Quite a few people knew of the existence of Youkai, but very few had ever seen one with such obviously demon traits as his ears. That was the main disadvantage of being a hanyou, and a very good reason why he preferred to be a recluse.

By the time Inuyasha made it to the shrine, the sun was beginning to set, slowly dropping behind the tall buildings in the area. He still had a little daylight left though, so he took full advantage of it.

Without blinking an eye, Inuyasha took a strong, flying leap and ascended the shrine stairs as easily as someone might jump over a small mud puddle. He wasn't even breathing hard by the time he made it to the top.

Skirting the shrine grounds, he sniffed the air carefully, trying to figure out exactly how many of Kagome's family members were home. He didn't particularly relish the idea of having an audience when she tried to kill him.

"That's funny, I can't really tell anything." He muttered to himself while sniffing more carefully. His sense of smell just didn't seem to be as sharp as it usually was. "Maybe going through Tokyo with all those strong smells instead of around it is causing problems."

Deciding to check around the house and listen carefully instead, he slowly made his way around the place, looking in windows and checking for sounds. He could detect no movement or sound in any of the rooms downstairs, and he could think of no reason for everyone to be upstairs or in bed this time of day.

"There doesn't seem to be anyone home at all." He muttered, worry lacing his voice. "Where could Kagome have gone?"

At that very moment, he suddenly felt that familiar cold chill run down his spine, along with the pulsing, burning feeling of his demon blood as it began to ebb.

"Oh great, please not now!"

At just that moment, the final rays of the sun sunk below the horizon, and Inuyasha cursed loudly. This had to be most awful day of his life, and it was getting worse by the moment! What would Kagome say when she saw him?

He honestly wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer to that question.

* * * *

Miroku and Sango listened to the peaceful house in shock, not sure they could really believe that death and destruction had not reigned while they were gone on their little errand. A tremor of fear shot down Sango's spine at the possible reasons why.

"Do you think he's so upset that he might have killed himself or something?" Sango whispered quietly.

Miroku shook his head, doubting that was the case since he had his own theory. "No, I don't think so. More likely, he's probably off sulking somewhere after killing everyone ELSE in the house."

Sango slapped his arm, causing Miroku to yelp in pain. That joke was decidedly NOT funny and she let him know it.

Both of them were carefully searching the house for any signs of horror or destruction after arriving home that day, but they couldn't find anything out of the ordinary. Peace and quiet was the last thing they expected to come home to!

"Hey!" An idea had suddenly occurred to Sango. "Maybe since it's his time of month, he's off hiding somewhere and he doesn't even realize she's gone!"

Miroku nodded thoughtfully. "That is certainly a possibility. I had lost track of the time, so I forgot that tonight is the new moon. Do you think he ever told Lady Kagome his secret?"

Sango frowned. "Probably not. If he had, she probably would have been more interested in staying long enough to see."

Miroku's hand snaked out and grabbed Sango, but for once it wasn't in a perverted location! The action startled her out of her thoughts, and he smiled disarmingly at her.

"Since the house is so quiet Sango, we could take advantage of it."

"YOU PERV-" Sango's voice cut off when Miroku's lips made contact with hers.

Immediately melting into his arms, Sango let her mind go blank, and just enjoyed the feeling of finally getting something other than grabbed. If you have ever wondered why she puts up with such a lecherous jerk, then this is your answer. It's moments like these that Sango waits for.

Too bad for both of them that Miroku never takes his own romantic advice. If he did, then maybe, although not very likely, the poor guy wouldn't be a regular at the nearby emergency clinic.

Watching from a short distance down the hall, Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes and turned to head towards his room. 'Sometimes I wonder if it's really a good thing that people forget I'm alive so easily. I like my privacy, but really, this is absurd.'

Holding his bag of chocolate almost as tightly as the two lovebirds were holding each other, Sesshoumaru left them alone.

Sango and Miroku never noticed a thing.

Chapter Seventeen

Night had fallen, yet Kagome still remained at home alone. Her mother, grandfather, and little brother would all probably be home sometime that night, but she had no clue as to when. Taking advantage of this, Kagome decided it would be best to shut herself up in her room and get some sleep. Dealing with her family could wait until morning.

Flopping down on her pink bedspread, Kagome gazed around her familiar room with a sad look in her eyes.

"You'd think I'd be happy to finally be home." She grumbled to herself. "Everything here is familiar to me, and I'm comfortable. Or at least I used to be. How could that jerk have ruined that for me so easily?" A fierce frown marred her face. "I hope I NEVER see him again!"

With this firm declaration, Kagome got up and walked over to her dresser, where she pulled out her favorite pair of pajamas. It was the same pair Miroku had seen her wearing, with little cats all over it. Obviously her mother must have washed them and put them away for her while she was gone.

After changing for bed, Kagome switched off the lights and crawled into bed, Buyo not far behind her. She was determined to get a good night's sleep and forget all about Inuyasha and making explanations to her family. It was the only way left that she could think of to save her feeble sanity.

* * * *

A very human-looking Inuyasha sat outside the Higurashi home, sulking and staring at a particular bedroom window with a mixture of annoyance and longing. His deep purple eyes had been trained on that window ever since the sun had set, leaving him with the new moon.

How he HATED his time of the month! Every new moon his demon blood waned, causing his hair to turn as black as his mother's, and his eyes to darken to a more natural color. Even his ears became like a human's ears! Being like this always left him feeling frail and weak, and he detested it with all his heart.

Now because of this new and very unwelcome development, he had few choices about how to get inside the house. And he just HAD to get up there somehow! Even if it took him all night, he would get in there to see her.

Finally deciding to move from his spot under a huge, old tree, Inuyasha walked over to the tree next to Kagome's window. The bedroom light had just gone off moments before, so now would be a good time to try his luck at climbing trees. What he wouldn't give to have his claws back!

Inuyasha scaled the tree, making good time for a human. He might be weaker like that, but the trace of demon blood left in his veins still counted for something! Looking carefully after he'd made his way up, the hanyou-turned- human saw that the broken branch from his last visit was still hanging on, but barely. He knew trying to put any weight on it would cause it to fall, so using it would be out of the question.

What else could he do then? That was the only branch close enough to her window that it would be safe to make an entrance from. Jumping from anywhere else would be risky.

'Keh! Whoever said I like to play it safe?' He mentally scoffed. 'I won't let anything get in my way tonight, so you'd better get ready Kagome!'

Smirking in the darkness at the window that was his goal, Inuyasha prepared himself to jump. If he could only make it to the sloped roof under her window, he shouldn't have a problem from there! That was a pretty big 'if' though!

With a grunt, Inuyasha launched himself off the branch, trying not to hit his head on any of the others in the tree. It was hard, but he managed not to give himself a concussion and still latch on to the edge of the roof with his arms. He made it!

Hauling himself up with his still abnormally strong arms, Inuyasha pulled his legs over the edge and grabbed onto the window sill with all his might, happy over the fact that he was that much closer to his goal!

Pulling on the sliding window, he fully expected it not to give under his hands. Surely she would have learned her lesson after getting kidnapped by him the first time. Who would leave a window open or unlocked after that?

But the window slid open effortlessly, and that worried him like nothing else could. He frowned and stared at the window his hand was gripping, not knowing what to think.

'This has got to be some kind of trap. She wouldn't just leave me an open invitation otherwise. Not after how upset she seemed.'

Just then, he saw the answer and almost laughed out loud!

'The wench did leave a trap for me!' He grinned as his eyes took in the sight of two demon wards plastered on each side of the window, just daring him to try to get by them and in the room. 'I guess it's a good thing I am human tonight, and that she didn't know about it. Now she can't hurt me-'

*THUMP*

In his elation at getting past her trap, he didn't bend down low enough to enter the room and hit his head on the top of the window frame! Inuyasha grunted in pain at the impact, and the sound caused the girl in the bed to finally stir.

"Huh?" Kagome blinked owlishly at the figure kneeling in the frame of her window, rubbing his forehead and grimacing. At first she thought it must be Inuyasha, but her sleepy brain finally processed that the wards had done no good, and the figure had BLACK hair!

"AAAGGGHHHHH!"

Kagome screamed loudly, startling the dark-haired man and causing him to stop rubbing his head and stare at her. Grabbing the closest thing to her that might do some damage, she picked up her bedside lamp, yanking the plug from the wall, and threw it at the man with all her might!

"Kagome, stop! It's me Inu-" The figure's protests were cut off as the lamp connected with his body, and the sudden impact sent him falling backwards onto the roof and then down to the ground below. A muffled thud met Kagome's ears, and then some groaning and colorful cursing. That voice sounded very familiar..

Kagome crept out of bed and walked over to the window, cautiously sticking her head outside to look down. Even though it was dark outside from lack of a moon, she was just able to make out a figure sprawled on the ground.

Listening to his voice rant and curse, recognition suddenly hit her like a ton of bricks! Even though he had black hair, that voice couldn't belong to anyone else!

"Inu..yasha?"

* * * *

A sulky figure with black hair perched on Kagome's bed, legs and arms both crossed despite the pain he was in at the moment. A stubborn glare was firmly planted on his face.

Across from him Kagome sat on her desk chair, an almost identical expression on her face, along with her arms crossed. It would be a fairly comical scene if it weren't for the tension in the air.

Kagome was the first to break the silence.

"Care to explain?"

If possible, Inuyasha's frown got deeper. "No."

"You try to sneak into my room, scare the heck out of me, and now you won't even explain why you're here?"

A shocked look crossed Inuyasha's face, and he blurted out what caused it. "You mean you don't want to know why I look like a human?"

Kagome smiled grimly. "Of course I want to know that, baka! But I can only deal with one insane problem at a time." She stopped to roll her eyes. "And I used to think my life was so dull and normal."

Inuyasha remained silent for several moments, suddenly unsure. It had been so clear to him earlier, his need to confront her and confess his feelings. Now, instead of jumping at the chance, he felt like jumping out the window instead. She wouldn't even need to give him a push this time!

"Inuyasha, if you don't start talking right now, I swear I'll throw something a lot bigger than a lamp at you!" Kagome threatened.

"Keh! Like you could hurt me!"

A book connecting with his head proved otherwise.

After the pain subsided, Inuyasha finally decided to give explaining a try, although he started with his human appearance. Best to start with the easiest first!

"I turn human once a month."

Kagome had to try really hard not to roll her eyes again at his inability to elaborate, and decided asking questions might be the best approach. Maybe then she could get some information out of him before she killed him!

"Why do you turn human once a month? And what does that do to your demon powers and senses?"

Inuyasha struggled to form an answer. "I turn human on the new moon, and that's when I'm at my most vulnerable. Very few know about it. I only tell those that I care about and trust." He made sure to put a lot of emphasis on that last bit of information.

Kagome's eyes widened some, but other than that, she stayed silent and didn't acknowledge what he said. Instead, she waited for him to continue.

"As for my demon powers, I lose them. I'm almost as weak as any human. I'm normally pretty careful to stay at home during my time of the month."

Kagome couldn't help but let out a small giggle at the way he worded that, and Inuyasha glared at her. "What's so funny?"

"You sound like a woman talking about her 'time of the month'!" Another small laugh escaped, and Inuyasha turned beet red when he figured out what she meant.

"It's not funny."

Kagome smirked. "Keep telling yourself that if it will make you feel better."

A small sound that was suspiciously like Inuyasha's normal growl escaped him, but Kagome ignored him and continued to laugh for several moments. It didn't take her long to get herself together though.

"So why are you here, even though you normally stay at home during your 'time of the month'?" She raised her eyebrows at him.

"Keh! I wanted to talk to you! Do I have to have a good reason?"

"You do since you were trying sneak into my room!"

Inuyasha refused to look her in the face, and instead was looking everywhere else. He was obviously embarrassed, but Kagome wasn't sure why.

"I wanted to know something." He finally whispered, gathering every drop of courage he possessed. "Why did you-"

"KAGOME!" A voice yelled, flinging open the bedroom door and nearly giving the two occupants of the room a heart attack! Kagome's mother stood there, looking happy to finally see her daughter again!

Inuyasha and Kagome both froze in horror, not knowing how to react at seeing her mother. How in the world would they ever manage to explain this one?

"Kagome!" Her mother cried, ignoring Inuyasha and hugging her daughter. "We missed you so much!" Before Kagome could respond, she turned around and stared at Inuyasha. "Who is this dear? Your new husband?"

Inuyasha began to splutter. "H-HUSBAND?!?!"

Kagome buried her face in her hands and groaned loudly.

Chapter Eighteen

The silence was deafening as Inuyasha and Mrs. Higurashi stared at Kagome, one with shock and the other expectantly. Kagome could only stare at her feet, unsure of how to explain things without her mother trying to kill her for being alone in her room with a boy she wasn't married to!

After waiting several moments, Kagome's mother sighed in exasperation and turned back to Inuyasha. "Well, it seems Kagome has suddenly turned shy so I suppose we must introduce ourselves. I'm your new mother-in-law, but you can call me Mom!"

Before Inuyasha could form an answer, Mrs. Higurashi hugged him with all her might! Kagome could only watch the scene in horror from her desk chair.

"So what's your name?" Inuyasha's new 'mother-in-law' inquired. "And how did you two meet? I have to admit, I think you two make a darling couple!"

"I-Inuyasha.." The stunned boy managed to mutter. His poor brain was still trying to process everything that was happening.

"Wonderful!" Mrs. Higurashi clapped her hands. "Now I finally have a name to put on all the announcements I planned to send out! I've already told all your little school friends Kagome, but formal announcements are needed for distant family and friends."

One of Kagome's hands clutched at her chest, willing herself to keep breathing as she stared at her mother. "Y-you told ALL MY FRIENDS?!?!"

Mrs. Higurashi frowned thoughtfully. "Of course I did. I was so proud of my little girl! I'm sorry if you wanted it to be a surprise."

While Mrs. Higurashi's attention was focused on Kagome, Inuyasha finally had a chance to gather his thoughts and figure out how he should be reacting. A vast array of expressions crossed his face in a matter of moments as he considered everything.

'Why the heck does this woman think I'm married to Kagome? We didn't even DO anything when we slept together last night! Did she actually tell her mother about that? From the horrified look on Kagome's face, I doubt it.' His frown slowly reformed into a smirk. 'Then again, who cares why? I mean, is this really a bad thing? If nothing else, I can probably get her mother to leave us alone so we can talk, and if worse comes to worst, I have a valid reason for hanging around!'

His smirk was now a full-blown grin, and Kagome could feel her last hope of explaining her way out of this mess with help from Inuyasha shatter into a thousand tiny pieces. He looked WAY too happy about the whole thing for her comfort.

Although neither Kagome nor Inuyasha was actually listening, Mrs. Higurashi was at that moment picking out names for her first grandchildren. She'd made it to child number six, when Inuyasha cleared his throat loudly to get her attention.

"Mrs. Higurashi?"

"Mom."

"Oh, sorry about that!" Inuyasha shot the embarrassed Kagome a smug smile. "MOM, I loved meeting you but Kagome and I really need our privacy now."

A small gasp escaped Mrs. Higurashi's lips, and she covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh, I can't believe I was so rude! It didn't even cross my mind that you two might have been busy, and I just barged in like I usually do!"

Inuyasha, hoping she wouldn't remember, decided not to bother pointing out that they had been sitting on opposite sides of the room when she had barged in.

Ignoring Kagome's frantic motions of denial, her mother continued. "I will leave you two alone now! I do need to ask that you keep the noise level low though. Sota is in the house, and that really isn't something he's old enough to know about yet."

"MOTHER!" Kagome finally shouted, causing Inuyasha to let out a snort of laughter behind Mrs. Higurashi's back. And he'd been doing such a great job of keeping a straight face up to that point! "INUYASHA AND I ARE NOT-"

"Kagome, you can deny it all you like, but I am your mother so I know the kinds of things couples do behind closed doors." Mrs. Higurashi gave her an amused smile. "But I think you and I need to go shopping soon young lady. Those cat pajamas are NOT exactly something a man goes for."

"But-"

"Anyway, good night you two! Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" With a wink, Kagome's mother exited the room without bothering to listen to any more of her daughter's protests.

As soon as Mrs. Higurashi was out of sight, Inuyasha couldn't stand it anymore, and he busted out laughing and almost fell off the bed. He was still pretty sore from his fall out of the window, but he couldn't seem to help himself, no matter how much it hurt! The situation was just too ridiculous and perfect to be real!

Kagome stared at him, and if one looked hard enough they could see steam rising from her head as she debated who she wanted to kill first. Miroku had the number one spot on her hit list, with Inuyasha and her mother coming in second and third respectively. But since Inuyasha was the closest to her hands, which were itching to strangle someone, he had the most to worry about!

With a small cry, Kagome launched herself at the still laughing Inuyasha and ended up sitting on him with her hands around his neck. Inuyasha grunted in pain, but instead of getting mad like he usually would have done, he just grinned at her suggestively. "I didn't know you were so eager to jump into bed with me. Just remember, we have to keep it quiet!"

Kagome growled in her best Inuyasha imitation as he started laughing again.

* * * *

Kagome's mother listened to the squeaking of the bedsprings in the next room, and shook her head. "Those two, I told them to keep it down! But I just don't have the heart to be upset with them. Young love is so fragile!" A small, dreamy smile formed on her face. "And I really, really want some grandchildren!"

Humming happily, she got ready for bed and went to tuck Sota in and tell him goodnight. He probably wouldn't sleep well, because he was so excited about finally having an older brother just like he'd always wanted.

Just as Mrs. Higurashi was climbing into bed, a particularly violent bang sounded on the wall, and she rolled her eyes. "Kids, they just get too excited these days!"

* * * *

Inuyasha's body was sprawled across Kagome's bed, and his eyes were swirling dizzily as Kagome fumed from her desk chair. Obviously his human form wasn't holding up as well against Kagome as he thought it would! When his brain was finally functioning again, Inuyasha made a hasty mental note to avoid making her mad on the new moon if he planned on living much longer.

Kagome watched him slowly pull himself together, counting the moments until she could kick him out of the house and go to bed. She just wanted this bad day to be over with once and for all! She didn't think she could take much more.

Finally sitting up, Inuyasha rubbed the fingerprints on his neck and sighed. 'I always like things a little rough, but that isn't exactly what I had in mind.' He knew better than to voice his thoughts out loud, so he settled for going back to the reason he was there in the first place.

"Oi, Kagome..."

"What?" She snapped, clearly still in a bad mood.

"Would you get over it and listen to me for a minute?" He muttered. "I'm trying to be serious this time." When she didn't answer him, he just took her silence as consent and decided to keep going. "I was trying to ask you something before your mother barged in here, so I had to get her to leave somehow so I could talk to you again! I'm not a pervert or anything. That not why I was trying to get you alone."

"Could have fooled me."

Inuyasha coughed lightly and frowned at her, signaling that he wasn't done yet so she should just listen. "I wanted to ask you about this morning when you left."

"Maybe I don't want to talk about what happened this morning. It's over with and I want to forget about it."

Inuyasha had the sudden urge to smile at the role reversal. Normally it was she who wanted him to talk, and he was the one refusing. This time it was the other way around, and even though it was frustrating it was also pretty amusing.

"You forced me to answer your questions earlier, now it's my turn to get my questions answered." He reminded her smugly.

"Keh!" Kagome slapped a hand over her mouth, and her entire face turned red as he started laughing at her again. Kagome thought faintly that maybe it would be better to answer the stupid questions before she embarrassed herself anymore.

After Inuyasha had a moment to compose himself, he cleared his throat and glanced at her nervously. "I wanted to know Kagome..why did you react the way you did this morning? And be honest, I'll know if you're lying to me."

The girl across from him paled a bit, and refused to meet his gaze as she thought about how to answer such a question without revealing any of her feelings. She didn't want him to know she cared about him, because all that would do is give him another way to hurt her again, and she didn't want that.

"Well?"

"That's not a question I'm willing to answer." Kagome whispered.

Inuyasha could feel the frustration building up in his chest, but he tamped it down and tried to keep a level head. It wouldn't help any to get angry with her, and he had to know if she cared for him at all! He wanted to tell her exactly how he felt, but he needed to know first if he had any chance at all.

"Kagome, please tell me. I can't make things right if you won't tell me anything!" When she stayed silent, he tried another tactic. "And I'm not leaving until you tell me!"

"Fine!" Kagome hissed, picking up a pillow off the floor and throwing it at him. "Then you can go make your bed on the couch and explain to my mother why you're sleeping there in the morning when she finds you!"

Inuyasha's face darkened. "If you'd just tell me.."

"I said NO! Now get out of my room because I want to get some sleep tonight!"

Kagome pulled a blanket out of her closet and tossed it at him, and he caught it without really thinking about it. He was too busy glaring at her and trying to figure out why she was being so stubborn about everything!

'If I can't get her to answer me, then what do I do now? Stay here and keep this husband and wife ruse going? She's obviously hiding something, and I don't plan on leaving without knowing what it is!'

"Fine then, I'll go sleep on the couch and we'll talk about this again in the morning." Turning, he walked out of the room, but looked back and winked at her before he shut the door. "Goodnight, DARLING!"

Kagome froze at this and stared at the spot where he had been standing a moment before. The wink and the darling comment had made her blush, but she was still pretty furious as well as shocked. 'Darn it, I didn't think he'd actually take me up on it! I thought he'd just get mad and leave, or insist on doing something perverted like sleeping in here with me. Does him knowing the answer to his question mean that much to him?'

Frowning, Kagome switched off the light in her room and crawled into bed. But she didn't get to sleep for a long, long time.

* * * *

Downstairs, Inuyasha flopped down on the lumpy couch and let out a groan as it jabbed at his numerous bruises. What had he gotten himself into? Maybe he should have insisted on at least sleeping on her bedroom floor or something.

Closing his eyes, he tried to forget everything and get some sleep when something large, heavy, and furry fell with a painful thud on his chest.

"Ooommpphh!"

Opening one eye, Inuyasha found two eyes peering back at him. Buyo cracked open his mouth and meowed, giving Inuyasha a whiff of some pretty bad breath.

"Ugh, you stupid cat! Get off me!"

The fur ball just rubbed his head against Inuyasha's face.

"Oh, so you like me now that I'm not part dog demon." He grumbled, pushing the cat away. "It's all your fault Kagome doesn't like me. You brainwashed her and made her a cat person, even though we're meant to be together. Kagome's mine, not yours!"

The cat just purred and settled in to sleep on his chest, making Inuyasha feel a bit silly for trying to argue with a cat. Grumbling under his breath, he finally just left the cat there and closed his eyes again, praying for sleep to come and put him out of his misery.

Chapter Nineteen

"I hate mornings." Grumbled a bleary-eyed Kagome as she exited her bedroom, already dressed for the day ahead. But even though she was up early, there were very obvious dark circles under her eyes, evidence of her nearly sleepless night.

After clomping down the stairs and making enough noise to wake the dead, Kagome entered the kitchen to see if anyone else was awake yet. Sure enough, a once again white-haired, dog-eared Inuyasha had parked himself at the table and was now slurping down a bowl of Ramen noodles. The only unusual thing about him was the tuffs of cat fur clinging to his shirt.

"That little traitor." Kagome mumbled, catching sight of the fur. "I was wondering where he went last night since he normally sleeps with me."

"Good morning to you too, sunshine!" He greeted her, smirking at the death glare she shot him. "I see someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. Could it be because you slept alone last night?"

Making a face of disgust, Kagome ignored his pointed remarks and focused on his choice of breakfast food instead. "Who in their right mind would eat Ramen for breakfast?" She slapped her forehead in a sarcastic manner. "Oh, I forgot! Someone who can't cook anything else!"

Inuyasha growled at her. "Quit making fun of me. It's not my fault you're in such a bad mood this morning."

"Oh, it isn't, huh?"

Inuyasha wisely decided to stay quiet as it dawned on him that is probably WAS his fault, and went back to eating his breakfast in silence.

Kagome walked over to the refrigerator and pulled out a carton of orange juice, and then went over to the cabinet to get herself a glass. Without bothering to sit at the table with him, she leaned against the counter and watched him eat and drink her juice.

"Why are you up so early anyway? Couldn't you have waited for someone else to wake up and fix a normal meal?" She put her now empty glass down on the counter and waited for him to answer.

Inuyasha opened his mouth to answer, but snapped it shut a moment later as he questioned exactly how to respond. 'Wouldn't I look a little too pathetic if I told her I missed eating yesterday just because I was in such a hurry to come here? But then, if I told her that, maybe she would see exactly how serious I am. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to try it and see how she responds..'

"Inuyasha?"

The hanyou snapped out of his thoughts at the sound of his name, and looked up from his Ramen to answer her. "I-"

Inuyasha cut off at the sound of a door being opened upstairs, even though it was low enough that Kagome couldn't hear it. He had to restrain the urge to groan, knowing they were about to get interrupted AGAIN!

"Good morning!" A chipper voice called out from the stairs. A moment later, Kagome's mother entered the kitchen, smiling brightly. "I see you two are up early! Eager to get a start on the day ahead?" Mrs. Higurashi suddenly stopped and stared at Inuyasha. "Kagome, may I ask who your new friend is?" Her voice had taken on a disapproving tone.

Inuyasha was confused for a moment, but he finally remembered that he had been in his human form the first time she'd met him. 'Oh crap! I can't believe I forgot all about that! How are you going to explain this one, you moron?'

"Well, you see.." He muttered under his breath. "I'm really a hanyou, so-"

"I can see that from the ears." Mrs. Higurashi broke in calmly. "You don't live in an old shrine like this one all your life without learning a few things about demons. I just wanted to know who you are, because I don't think Kagome's new husband would like her being alone with another man."

Kagome and Inuyasha both sweat dropped and looked at each other in confusion, each silently questioning the other about how to deal with this new problem. The last thing they had expected was for her to be so calm and matter-of-fact about the whole thing!

Mrs. Higurashi approached Inuyasha while both were distracted, and started looking him over with a critical eye. "Kagome, I don't approve of you two- timing your husband, but if I do say so myself, you have good taste in boys!"

Kagome's jaw dropped, and Inuyasha turned a bright red color. "But mom! He-"

"I know Kagome dear, he has dog ears. But why should that be a problem? They are so adorable!" She reached out and started rubbing the two furry white triangles, causing Inuyasha to turn redder than anyone would think possible.

Finally removing her hands from his ears, Kagome's mother smiled at him and walked over to whisper something in Kagome's ear. "I don't know about you, but if I had to pick, I would go for the one with the dog ears. He's so cute!"

Inuyasha's ears twitched as he picked up what was said with his powerful hearing, and he almost fell out of his chair! He couldn't have heard right! Her mother liked a half dog demon better than a full human?

"Mama!" Kagome hissed, trying not to look Inuyasha's way. "I am NOT two-timing! That's the same guy from last night, Inuyasha!"

Mrs. Higurashi blinked with surprise and turned to look more closely at the boy sitting at her kitchen table. "You ARE the same boy, aren't you?" She started laughing. "Well now I feel silly, accusing my own daughter of two-timing with her own husband! I'm sorry Kagome dear, I should trust you more, shouldn't I?"

Kagome felt like banging her head on the cabinets behind her, but refrained. 'My mother must be crazy, she's so accepting of everything! She hasn't even questioned why he's half demon, or why he was human last night! Even worse, it doesn't even seem to bother her that her 17-year-old daughter is married to a strange man she met for the first time just last night, one that she knows nothing about!'

"Well, how about some breakfast?" Mrs. Higurashi offered, pulling some dishes out and setting them on the counter. "We'll have a big meal to celebrate both of you coming home!"

Inuyasha nodded eagerly, completely forgetting everything else at the thought of food, just like any normal man. Kagome would have dearly loved to strangle him just then!

"Mom, aren't you bothered at all that he's half demon?" Kagome questioned, hoping for some sort of clue as to why her mother was taking everything so well.

"No dear, not at all!" Mrs. Higurashi hummed happily. "In fact, marrying one is the best thing you could have done!"

Inuyasha and Kagome both stared at Mrs. Higurashi in shock for what seemed like the millionth time that morning, before the latter one managed to ask why.

"Well you see, ever since your father died, Kagome, this place has been getting pretty run down. After all, the shrine is hundreds of years old. And your Grandfather is just getting too old to care for it as it needs to be cared for."

Inuyasha did NOT like where this was going.

"So," Mrs. Higurashi concluded. "A strong young man is exactly what we need to fix the place up a bit! And everyone knows a demon is much stronger than your average human, so he can work that much harder!"

"I feel so loved." Inuyasha muttered under his breath. The hanyou was starting to have second thoughts and wondered if maybe he would do better if he kidnapped Kagome again, even if she ended up hating him for it.

"Good morning!" Another voice called out, and Inuyasha mentally cursed himself for not hearing him approach. A moment later a little boy entered the room and stared at Inuyasha in awe.

"Wow, cool! You have dog ears!"

Inuyasha glared at him. "Isn't anyone in this house scared of demons? The claws and teeth have got to count for something!"

His question was completely ignored as Sota stared at him with that hero worship that just seems to come naturally to small kids. "Are you my sister's new husband?"

Inuyasha yawned and decided to tune the little kid out. "Maybe."

"Are you a dog demon?"

"Maybe."

"Are you strong?"

"Maybe."

"Did you and my sister do 'that' together last night?"

"Maybe-"

*WHAM!*

Inuyasha rubbed the painful lump on his head and looked up to see Kagome holding the frying pan her mother had been planning to use to make them breakfast. She was giving him the most evil look he'd ever seen, and Inuyasha growled at her warily.

"What was that for wench?!?!"

"I can't believe you said that to Sota!"

"Huh?" Inuyasha's fierce look turned to one of confusion. "What did I tell him? All I said was maybe to everything he asked!"

"You are such a pervert!"

Sota was watching this scene with a look of amusement. He knew full well that Inuyasha hadn't been listening to any of his questions and had been answering 'maybe' to everything, so he'd thrown that in just for fun. His sister was so easy to make mad!

While the 'newlywed couple' fought it out at the kitchen table, the last member of the family entered the room and broke out into the most horrendous wail at the sight of Inuyasha and his fuzzy ears!

"How did a demon get in this shrine!" Kagome's grandfather moaned, getting ignored by everyone. "My demon wards are foolproof!" He pulled one out to attack the evil creature invading his home, when Sota grabbed his sleeve.

"That's Kagome's new husband Grandpa, so you can't attack him." As an afterthought, the little boy added "Or at least you can't when either mom and Kagome are around."

"Breakfast is ready!" Mrs. Higurashi called, breaking up the little drama going on around the kitchen table. She placed all the dishes on the table, and Inuyasha was almost drooling at the sight of so much home-cooked food. Any memory of the Ramen he'd been eating earlier was long gone.

Everyone took a seat except for Kagome who stayed right where she was, leaning against the wall behind Inuyasha. She was infuriated that her family was excepting him so easily. How the heck was she supposed to get rid of him now? Her whole family already believed she'd slept with him!

"Kagome, we seem to be one seat short don't we?" Mrs. Higurashi frowned. "I suppose we could get the desk chair from your room."

A sly smile spread across Inuyasha's face, and he shook his head no. "That would be too much trouble. Kagome can sit in my lap."

Sota started to gag at this, and Mrs. Higurashi let out a small snort of poorly concealed laughter at her daughter's embarrassed face. The grandfather was obliviously eating his breakfast and planning his next attack on the unsuspecting hanyou.

In response to Inuyasha's little offer after gathering her wits, Kagome huffed furiously and stomped out of the room. "I think I'm going to be eating breakfast out today! ALONE!" The front door slammed and Inuyasha's ears heard her as she picked up speed once she was outside, trying to make a quick getaway before he could follow.

'If that wench thinks she can leave me behind before we have our little talk, then she'd better think again because I won't let her!' He thought to himself with determination. 'I'm a lot faster than she is!'

Inuyasha stood up to follow her, but Mrs. Higurashi pulled on his shirtsleeve to stop him. "Inuyasha dear, I know you want to be with Kagome since you just got married and all, but you can't leave!"

"Why not?" He bit out, caring little whether he sounded rude not.

"For one," Mrs. Higurashi pointed out. "You haven't eaten your breakfast. Number two, there is still the little matter of that list of chores I left for you to do."

Inuyasha stopped trying to shake her hand off his sleeve and got a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Uh, what list?"

Mrs. Higurashi sighed in exasperation. "You mean she didn't tell you about the list that I left with the toaster?"

"Toaster?"

"Your wedding gift."

Inuyasha blinked. "We got a wedding gift?"

Mrs. Higurashi sighed and instructed Inuyasha to sit back down and eat his breakfast. When he reluctantly did as she asked and began to shovel food into his mouth at an alarming rate, Kagome's mother had to stop herself from laughing. "I can already see that non-communication will be a big problem in your relationship."

The half dog demon stopped eating and stared at her blankly. "Huh?"

"Never mind." She answered hastily. "Now, about those chores.."

Chapter Twenty

"The things I do for that wench and her family!" Inuyasha muttered to himself. Each word was punctuated by the sound of a hammer as the irritated hanyou pounded a nail into the roof of the shrine. He had been suckered into fixing it by Kagome's mother, who had given him a guilt trip when he tried to go after Kagome that morning. Inuyasha was now completely convinced that Mrs. Higurashi was out to get him.

Moving on to the next nail, he continued his small bout of ranting. "How am I gonna get Kagome alone to talk if I'm busy being her mother's work horse? You'd think I was a lowly horse demon and not the son of a great demon!' A deep frown marred his face. 'Who does she think she is, telling me what to do? I should just forget this and go look for Kagome."

"Oh, Inuyasha dear!" Mrs. Higurashi called from the ground below. "When you're done with that, I need you to sweep outside today since Kagome seems to have vanished!"

"But that's her job!" He complained, just like a little kid being forced to do his sibling's chores. "Why can't you make her do it when she gets back?"

Mrs. Higurashi rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Well, I suppose you could give Buyo a bath instead. He got into the trash again this morning and smells awful! I was going to have Kagome do it, but you can if you would like."

For a moment Inuyasha was actually tempted, but his vivid imagination took over. He could see it now, trying to catch the cat to give him the bath, and Kagome showing up just in time to accuse him of chasing the cat like a real dog would! Then she would kick his butt out of the house, and he would be teased about it for the rest of his long life. NOT an option!

"I'll sweep." He announced gruffly.

"Oh good!" Mrs. Higurashi clapped and smiled at him. "I'll call you when it's time for lunch, so work hard!" Kagome's mother walked back to the house and left him alone to wallow in his misery.

* * * *

Miroku finished the long climb up the shrine steps, just in time to see Inuyasha throw something off the roof where he was working and heard him curse loudly. The amused bodyguard had to hide a smile as he approached the angry dog demon.

"I see Lady Kagome finally found a use for you!" He called up to Inuyasha. "I guess this means you won't be coming home for a while!"

At first Inuyasha was surprised to hear his friend's voice, but that quickly turned to annoyance. "What are you doing here? Did my lying bastard of a brother tell you where to find me?" He looked down and gave Miroku a glare that that would have sent a cold chill of fear down a normal person's spine.

Miroku sighed and shook his head in disbelief. "Do you honestly think anyone had to tell me where to find you? Even the cook knows you so well that she told me to tell Kagome hello before I left. EVERYONE knows where you went!"

Inuyasha groaned loudly, knowing without a doubt that Miroku was probably telling the truth. And after he'd taken the time to bribe Sesshoumaru to keep him quiet!

The dark-haired man smiled up at his friend in amusement. "When I was told to come here by your mother, I was truly hoping to catch you in a compromising position. Even though this isn't exactly what I had in mind, it's much more shocking! The great Inuyasha, doing real work! Wait until I tell your brother!"

Inuyasha growled and lifted his hammer up in a threatening manner, causing Miroku to back up a bit and watch the other man warily. "You do and I promise you'll regret it!"

Deciding he'd better quickly explain his presence, Miroku held one hand up in a placating gesture. "Calm down! Don't you want to know why I'm here?"

"Make it quick!"

Miroku held up a small black duffel bag that he had been holding in his other hand, and pointed to it. "Your mother sent you clothes and clean underwear!" He almost laughed out loud at Inuyasha's dumbfounded look. "She decided you weren't stupid enough to actually kidnap Lady Kagome again, so she concluded you would probably be staying a while and would need this, so she sent me with it."

Inuyasha wasn't sure if he was relieved to have the clean clothes, or annoyed that people could read him so easily. In the end he settled on his usual "Keh!" and went back to work without another word to Miroku.

Unhappy at not getting a more interesting reaction out of Inuyasha, Miroku decided to try another tactic. Very few people were brave enough to try and provoke the temperamental dog demon intentionally, but Miroku did it quite often for fun!

"Your father sent along something for you as well." Miroku stopped to pull an item from the bag. "I believe they are identical to the boxers Lady Rumiko bought him for his birthday. (HA! Probably the same pair, just trying to get rid of them) He said the smiley faces would at least get Lady Kagome's attention and perhaps turn her on, since she likes sleeping in cute little kitty cat pajamas." He smirked, waiting for the reaction that was sure to come.

Inuyasha's left eyebrow had developed a tic during Miroku's little speech, and his hand slowly tightened on his hammer as he willed himself not to kill the man below him. Hurt him, yes, but not kill him. Even if he DID deserve it for commenting about Kagome's choice of clothes like that..

* * * *

"Hello Lady Kagome, how are you?" Miroku called from the shrine steps, him heading down while she was heading up. One hand was holding an ice pack to a large lump on his head, and the other waved at her cheerfully. Slung over one of his shoulders was a piece of white cloth with little yellow smiley faces printed on it.

'Do I even want to know what he did to deserve that?' Kagome wondered to herself, suppressing a groan. 'Please God, tell me he didn't actually grope my mother! And are those actually BOXERS hanging on his shoulder?'

But instead of voicing any of her suspicions out loud, Kagome just smiled at him warily and kept a safe distance from his hands, expressing her concern over his heath.

"What did you do this time?"

Yep, she sounded really concerned for his well being.

Miroku gave her a hurt expression. "Why Lady Kagome, I'm shocked that you would think such a thing of me! All that happened was that I was talking to Inuyasha, and he-"

"NO!" Kagome broke in. "I know your perverted mind! If it involves him then I'm probably involved as well, so I don't want to know or I might be tempted to hurt you too."

Miroku laughed nervously at her much too accurate reasoning and hastily bid her farewell before heading to his car, which was parked at the bottom of the shrine steps. Kagome sighed in relief and jogged up the stairs without looking back.

* * * *

Reaching the top of the stairs after a pretty long walk up, Kagome looked around for Inuyasha. Her mother had most likely put him to work just like Kagome hoped she would. If anything could run the stubborn hanyou off, someone trying to boss him around and make him work hard would do the trick!

The poor girl had to stop and blink, convinced she must have been seeing things! Far off to her right, Kagome saw Inuyasha sweeping in front of the shrine building, looking completely at home! Well, sort of, if you didn't count the annoyed expression on his face.

'He actually stuck around and put up with my mother and maybe even my grandfather telling him what to do? Even I run off every chance I get, so what would cause him to stay here and put up with it?'

Kagome stood still and watched him as he swept the stone path, the very ill- humored look still plastered on his face. She giggled when Sota ran across the already clean section of the path and he threatened the small boy with the broom.

'He's starting to act like Grandpa or something. It's kind of scary, but funny too! Just as long as he doesn't start chasing people with demon wards.' Kagome's eyes narrowed when she spotted some movement behind Inuyasha. 'Hey, wait a minute..is that Grandpa?'

Inuyasha's white, fuzzy ears flickered backwards, a sure sign that he heard the old man trying to sneak around behind him. But he didn't stop sweeping and just ignored Kagome's grandfather, even when the small man yelled and plastered a demon ward to Inuyasha's back. Kagome had to work hard to stifle her laughter before Inuyasha heard her.

With a flick of his claws, Inuyasha reached around and plucked the little piece of paper off his back as if it were nothing more than a flea or some other small, unimportant insect. Not bothering to even look at it, he crumpled it up and tossed it in the pile of swept-up debris.

Kagome smiled as she watched her grandfather rant and rave behind Inuyasha, while the hanyou just growled and ignored him. It was obvious he'd love to do something about what was annoying him, but he also looked determined not to let it bother him.

'It's like he's going out of his way to be nice to my family, but why?' A small, hurt frown appeared on her face. 'Is having a miko that important to him? If that's the case then he can go crawl back under whatever rock he came from!'

Her furious thoughts suddenly stopped when she noticed Inuyasha was alone now, and he wasn't acting nearly as grumpy as he had been a moment ago. There was a slight smile on his face, and he seemed to be lost in his thoughts.

Kagome blushed, finding that look on his face to be more than a little attractive. 'Maybe it isn't just because he wants a miko. Is it possible he's thinking about me when he looks like that?' She bit her lip. 'And would it really be so risky to let myself hope a little again? Maybe he isn't going to break my heart after all. I should talk to him..'

Steeling her determination, Kagome moved away from the shrine steps and headed towards Inuyasha. She made it about halfway to him when he finally snapped out of his thoughts and focused on her.

'Kagome's back, and she doesn't look upset anymore!' A strong feeling of hope started to build in his chest. 'Maybe she'll talk to me now. I hope no one interrupts us this time or I swear I'll rip them to shreds, Kagome's family or not!'

When she was standing a few feet away from him, he cleared his throat nervously. "Do you, ah, wanna talk now?"

Kagome's blue eyes watched him seriously, trying to decide exactly what she should do. 'Do I talk to him now, or wait a little longer? I'm not sure I'm ready yet..'

Inuyasha waited patiently for her answer with an anxious, hopeful gaze.

"No."

His heart sunk, and he stared at her with the hurt written plainly across his face. "Kagome, why won't you-"

"I said I'm not ready to talk, but that doesn't mean I won't later." She offered him a small smile. "Just give me some time Inuyasha, because I really need to think about this."

He sighed in resignation, and gave her a weak smile in return. 'At least she seems to be giving me a chance. I guess I've got to remember that I may have been waiting for this for a long time, but she's only seventeen. Most girls her age just date for fun and aren't looking to get married for a while yet.'

Turning to go back to his sweeping, he completely missed her sudden movement when she shot forward and planted a small, quick kiss on his cheek.

"Wha-" He stared at her, stunned. "What was that for?"

She gave him a wide-eyed, innocent look. "For not killing my grandfather a little while ago of course. I would have."

He grinned like an idiot when she turned and headed back to her house, happier than he'd been in days. 'It's amazing what a kiss from the girl you love can do. Accckkk, what am I thinking, getting all sappy! I need to get back to work!'

But no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't wipe that goofy smile from his face.

Chapter Twenty One

Kagome sighed in relief as she washed the last dirty dish and placed it where it could dry before being put away. Dinner had actually gone fairly well that evening, partly because of her effort to get along with Inuyasha, and partly because her mother took the demon wards away from her grandfather. Things suddenly seemed to be going so well! If only she could figure out what to do with him and this whole marriage thing now.

After drying her hands, Kagome walked out of the kitchen and headed towards the sound of the television in the family room, figuring everyone must be in there. Well, almost everyone. Sota was most likely asleep by now since he had an early bedtime.

Slipping quietly into the room, she first noticed her Grandfather snoozing in his favorite chair, dead to the world. A little past him her mother was sitting with her eyes on the television, laughing quietly at the humorous parts.

Looking around more carefully, Kagome was more than a little surprised to see no sign of Inuyasha whatsoever. 'Where could he have gone? I guess he could be in the bathroom or something.'

As if she had spoken aloud, Mrs. Higurashi turned to her and smiled. "If you're wondering where Inuyasha is, I sent him on to bed. The poor dear was so tired after helping me out today that I just couldn't help but take pity on him."

Kagome had to open and close her mouth a few times before she could find her voice, which sounded a bit raspy. "You sent him to bed?"

"That's right." Her mother hummed, nodding her head. She was no longer looking at her daughter, and was instead watching the TV intently. It struck Kagome as a little strange for her mother to be so interested in a commercial.

She brushed off her mother's weird behavior and instead focused on the problem at hand. Inuyasha was probably sleeping in her bed! HER BED! How was she supposed to fix this problem? She couldn't throw him out or everyone would get suspicious, and she certainly didn't plan on sleeping with him again!

Turning abruptly, Kagome stalked out of the room and up the stairs to her bedroom, leaving her smiling mother and snoring grandfather behind without a single word of goodnight to them, not that either noticed.

* * * *

Kagome entered her bedroom quietly and was relieved to find the light was still on, even if Inuyasha was sleeping on her bed. Closing the door behind her carefully so she wouldn't wake him up, she then moved a few steps closer to him. He sighed and rolled over on his side, but didn't wake up.

'I can't believe him! He's made himself so at home that he didn't even hear me when I came in! I thought his demon senses were better than that.' She smirked a bit at the next thought. 'He's probably not used to working so hard since he's spoiled and his family is rich.'

Watching him sleep a little longer, Kagome finally huffed lightly and crossed her arms in annoyance. She really wanted to sleep in her own bed tonight, but she didn't want to share it. That would just give him ideas that she did NOT want him to have.

Kneeling down beside the bed, she folded her arms and rested her chin upon them. This put her close to his face and she smiled at the innocent look he had.

'He looks like a little kid when he's sleeping, and it's so cute! I wonder what he dreams about?' She blushed, hoping that maybe she might be the one he had dreams about. 'I should get a picture of him like this, then when he acts like a jerk during the day I can just pull it out to remind myself he's not always like that.'

Kagome sat there for several more minutes, the idea of taking a picture still nagging at her brain. The thought just wouldn't leave her alone. When a certain idea slowly started to form in her mind, she couldn't stop herself from releasing a small giggle.

'I can't laugh and wake him up, but I want to SO bad! This will be the perfect way to find out if he's really as serious as he seems to be about me! Anyone can stand a few chores, but if I know Inuyasha at all, then I know the hardest thing for him to handle would be a blow to his pride. This could work!'

Moving carefully so that she wouldn't wake him up, Kagome stood up and walked over to her desk. She pulled open the top drawer and removed a small camera, then grabbed a small object off the top of the desk.

Sporting a smile that could only be described as evil, Kagome turned back to Inuyasha. 'This is going to be so much fun!'

With that last thought, she set to work.

* * * *

The sun dawned brightly the next morning, streaming in through Kagome's bedroom window and hitting the hanyou straight in the face. He cringed and blocked the bright light with one arm, then cracked open both of his golden eyes to take a look at his surroundings.

'Where the heck am I?'

Glancing around, he took in the girlish décor of the room, and the strong scent of Kagome in the air. He relaxed when he remembered being sent to bed by Mrs. Higurashi, explaining how he ended up there.

'I must have fallen asleep cause I was so tired.' He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. 'But I thought Kagome would have woken me up though and kicked me out. So where did she sleep last night?'

Turning his head a bit, his sleep-fogged brain suddenly realized exactly why Kagome's scent was so strong to him. She was sleeping next to him! The sight made him roll back a little in surprise, and he quickly regretted the action when he found out exactly how close to the edge of the small bed he really was!

*THUMP!*

A muffled curse could be heard from the lump on the floor as he tried to untangle all of his limbs and pull himself up into a sitting position. A moment later Kagome peered over the edge of the bed and giggled at the sight of him.

"Good morning sunshine!" Kagome mimicked him from his greeting to her yesterday. "Did someone not only wake up on the wrong side of the bed, but fall off it too?"

"Leave me alone." He grumbled, picking himself up off the floor.

Kagome smiled brightly and stretched like a lazy cat. "I need to wake up to a sight like that more often! It does a lot towards putting me in a good mood!" She suddenly laughed again. "And just think, I didn't even have to push you this time!"

He rolled his eyes at that little reminder of the time she pushed him out of his own bed after a pretty steamy kiss. Inuyasha didn't mind getting reminded of their kiss, but the memory of getting pushed out of bed he could live without.

When he didn't respond to her and instead headed for the door, Kagome raised an eyebrow at him. "Where are you going to in such a hurry?"

"I smell food."

Kagome started to laugh because it was such an Inuyasha thing to say! After being in the same bed with her, he could walk off in favor of food! She had to admit, though, that the smells coming from the kitchen were making her stomach growl.

Still smiling, Kagome finally got out of bed and dressed, eager to eat breakfast and take care of a certain errand. Before she left the room, she remembered to grab a small roll of film sitting on her desk. Nothing could ruin her mood today!

* * * *

Inuyasha pulled another weed in the small garden, the first task Mrs. Higurashi had given him to start off his day with. Kagome's mother liked to grow many different kinds of plants, so she had a large plot for him to weed and the task was taking him most of the morning.

"That darn Kagome, where did she go?" He muttered as he yanked up a small plant he seriously hoped was a weed. "First she kisses me yesterday, then she's nice to me the rest of the day. I wake up with her sleeping with me, and she actually sat in my lap this morning at breakfast! Something's wrong with this picture."

Obviously he knew by now not to trust Kagome when things were going well. That always meant she had something up her sleeve.

'She seemed so sincere yesterday! I think she meant it when she promised she would talk soon, didn't she? I wonder what changed between yesterday and today?'

Inuyasha stopped to wipe a bead of sweat off his forehead, and ended up smudging dirt on his face. Not that he noticed though, because he felt like he had dirt everywhere else anyway! It had collected under his claws, and all over his jeans. He even had some in his hair, and a few small particles clung to the fur of his left ear.

"What I wouldn't give for a bath right about now."

Sighing, he went back to the task at hand, wondering when Kagome would get home. He missed her, and he admitted to himself that he always felt more dedicated to working hard when she was around. He wanted to see her smile at him whenever he managed to do something right.

"Inuyasha!" A voice suddenly called out to him from across the shrine grounds. His ears recognized the voice immediately, and he smiled in relief. She was back, and she actually sounded happy to see him!

He looked over his shoulder to see her jogging towards him with something in one of her hands and a big smile on her face. Dusting off his dirt-covered hands quickly, he stood up.

Kagome wanted to laugh at the sight of Inuyasha! She almost wished she still had her camera, because it looked just like he'd been rolling around in the dirt! She had to remind herself that the picture she had taken the night before was just as good though, if not better.

Striking his classic pose with arms folded, Inuyasha tried to make his voice as gruff as possible when he addressed her. "Oi, where have you been? You keep running off without telling me and I don't like it!"

Kagome just rolled her eyes at his not so polite 'greeting'. "I had to take care of an errand. If you want, I'll show you what I got."

Inuyasha couldn't help but be curious, and took the object she held out to him, finally noticing that it was a photo of some kind. He stared at it for several moments, unable to comment.

Kagome grinned as she watched his face go pale, causing the dirt smudges to stand out even more than they had before. "Like the picture?"

Inuyasha's hands made quick work of ripping up the photo, the small bits falling to the ground like snow. When there was nothing left of it, he glared at her as he took ragged breaths of air. He was mad and it showed! Any minute Kagome expected him to start breathing fire.

"What the HELL was that picture!?!?!"

Kagome smiled, not at all scared of him. "One of many copies, I assure you."

This caused Inuyasha to stop breathing for a long moment as he considered the implications of her statement. "Please tell me you're joking!"

"Nope!" Kagome sung out. "In fact, several pictures are in the mail right now to certain people! I suggest that if it means that much to you, then you should head home and intercept the pictures."

Inuyasha's jaw dropped. "Are you actually trying to get rid of me?"

Kagome could see the hurt in his eyes, but didn't back down. She needed to know what he would do. Would he leave her in favor of saving his pride, or would he stay? The choice was completely in his hands.

"I really did send the pictures Inuyasha. It's up to you whether or not you leave because I'm not forcing you. You can stay here if you'd like, or you can go and stop these pictures of you sleeping with a teddy bear from falling into the hands of your family." She couldn't help a little smile now. "That includes Sesshoumaru."

Inuyasha's mind frantically raced as he tried to decide what to do. He would never live it down if his family got their hands on those pictures, but he knew if he left now, Kagome would probably have nothing to do with him ever again!

'Which is more important to me?' He questioned himself, knowing he had to be completely honest. 'My pride, or Kagome?'

He couldn't help a small, rueful smile from crossing his face as the answer came to him. It just wasn't a question that needed a lot of thought, since the answer was plain. "That's not as hard a question as you believe it is, Kagome."

The dark-haired girl held her breath, suddenly afraid of the answer. 'What if he really does leave?' A cold feeling suddenly flooded her chest at the thought.

Inuyasha moved forward a step until there wasn't much in the way of space between the two of them. Disregarding the dirt on his hand, he lifted it and caressed her face lightly.

"It's not a hard question." He repeated quietly. "Because the answer's right in front of my face. I'm not going to leave you Kagome. Ever."

The girl in front of him smiled in relief and reached up to gently wipe some of the dirt off his face. "How about I help you finish up and you take a bath?"

Inuyasha grinned playfully and smudged some dirt on her face with his hand. "No, how about you finish and I take a bath? Even if I don't leave, you're still going to pay for sending that picture!"

"No way! You deserved it after sleeping in my bed last night!"

Kagome shrieked when he grabbed her around the waist to pull her down to the ground with him and held her still while he dropped a handful of soil down the back of her shirt.

From inside the house, a lone spectator smiled at the scene before going back to cooking lunch, and made a mental note to hose the two down before she let either of them set foot again in her clean house.

Chapter Twenty Two

The next morning in the usual style, the Higurashi family gathered for breakfast at the kitchen table and all seemed to be relatively peaceful. Kagome and Inuyasha were getting along quite well after the picture incident, and the hanyou had long since forgotten his injured pride. The two were even considering spending the day together, or at least they were till Mrs. Higurashi dropped the latest chore bomb.

All was quiet for several moments, and Inuyasha stared at Mrs. Higurashi in horror. Now he was more sure than ever that she must be out to get him! "You want me to do WHAT?"

Kagome's mother flashed him a slightly amused, tolerant smile from across the table. "You aren't afraid of a little paint are you? The fence is so small that it won't take you any time at all! Be a good boy and do this for your mother."

From her spot at the breakfast table next to Inuyasha, Kagome watched a look of near panic cross his face, before looking down and becoming very interested in the food sitting in front of her. It was taking all her effort not to laugh at him!

Frowning at Kagome's obvious amusement, Inuyasha growled and crossed his arms in a classic pose. "Keh! Maybe I don't want to."

"Don't be like that Inuyasha." Mrs. Higurashi admonished him.

He opened his mouth to argue with her again, but was abruptly cut off when Kagome laughed and placed her hand on his arm. "If it will make you feel any better, I'll help and it will get done faster, okay? The little fence surrounding the Goshinboku tree won't take very long at all to paint!"

The shock on his face was priceless! Kagome was actually offering to help him? His brain became a little fuzzy and all he could do was nod dumbly.

"So it's all settled then!" Mrs. Higurashi announced. "The sooner you two get started, the faster you'll finish! In the meantime, I need to do some shopping if we're going to have food to eat around this house."

With the plans for the day settled, everyone went back to eating without giving it another thought. And because of the pleasant surprise of Kagome offering to help, Inuyasha completely forgot the reason why he didn't want to paint.

* * * *

While waiting for Kagome to change into some old clothes, Inuyasha stared at the huge tree in front of him with awe, and a little something else.

'Something about that old tree gives me the creeps! I'm not sure what it is exactly, but it's almost like a feeling of déjà vu.' Scanning the trunk of the tree carefully, he noticed a small groove, surrounded by a scarred area. 'What the heck caused that?'

"What are you staring at, demon?" A slightly cranky voice suddenly spoke behind him. Inuyasha turned around and saw Kagome's grandfather standing what he deemed to be a safe distance away.

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Inuyasha turned back to the tree. "I wasn't staring at anything old man." They were such a mature pair, calling each other names!

"Yes you were, so don't try lying to me! You were staring at that spot on the ancient Goshinboku tree. It actually has a story behind it."

"Yeah, like everything else around here." Inuyasha muttered.

"Once, a long time ago, there lived a half-" The old man paused. "It was a half something! It might have been a half wolf creature, or was it a half horse?"

Inuyasha smirked. "A half demon maybe?"

The grandfather shook his head. "No, no! That wasn't it! Oh, I remember now, I think it was a half monkey! Anyway, he got pinned to the tree by a-" The old man stopped again. "Was it an old woman? No, I think it might have been by a little girl. That's right! Well, she took her bow and arrow (At least he got something right) and shot the monkey because he stole her favorite jewelry. He slept for five years I believe, before-"

"That's enough!" Kagome cried, coming up behind her grandfather and grabbing him by the shoulder. "I've heard that story so many times that I'm sick of it! Go pray for rain or something in the shrine!"

Muttering under his breath about 'ungrateful youth', Kagome's grandfather wandered off in the direction his granddaughter had pointed as she spoke. Inuyasha breathed a sigh of relief once the man was gone. Even chores beat listening to such a confused story! Although deep in his mind, it did strike a familiar chord. Perhaps he'd heard it somewhere before?

Shaking off his strange thoughts, Inuyasha gathered his wits just in time to see Kagome trying to pry the lid off a can of white paint. She didn't seem to be getting anywhere with it though, and he motioned for her to move aside.

"Keh! You humans are so weak!"

Kagome made a face at him behind his back, and briefly considered shoving his face in the paint as soon as he opened the can. But to her credit, she only thought about it seriously for a moment or two.

When Inuyasha took control, he quickly popped off the lid without a problem. Turning to Kagome, he smiled arrogantly. "Next time you should ask me instead of trying to do it yourself! Humans are so-" Inuyasha suddenly stopped and blinked, making a strange face.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome leaned towards him. "Are you okay? You don't look so good."

"I-I dunno.." He answered in a faint voice. Before Kagome could respond though, Inuyasha's unfocused gold eyes began to swirl and he fell over without another word.

"Inuyasha!"

* * * *

The first thing Inuyasha noted when he began to wake up was the pounding in his head, about the same feeling you would get if someone decided to use your head as a drum. The second thing he noted was the feeling of the lumps in the couch, jabbing him in the back.

Wondering how the heck he got there and why his head hurt so bad, Inuyasha pried open his eyes and ignored the pain of his intensified headache.

"You're awake!" A relieved voice cried.

Inuyasha turned his head to see Kagome sitting beside him, her eyes looking suspiciously teary. He couldn't help but feel baffled and a little touched that she would be so worried about him, even if he wasn't quite sure yet what had happened.

"Can you remember what happened?" She inquired anxiously.

Trying to ignore the pounding in his head, Inuyasha thought back to before he'd passed out. 'What did happen? We were going to paint the-' Understanding dawned quickly.

"That damn paint!" He muttered under his breath. "The smell was too strong for my demon senses and it made me pass out."

Kagome blinked in confusion. "The smell was too strong?" So demons had a major weakness after all! Although it wasn't a good thing, the thought was oddly comforting to Kagome. It severely lessened the feeling of inferiority she got with Inuyasha at times because of his extraordinary abilities as a hanyou.

Inuyasha growled at her. "Why the heck are you smiling? Are you happy I made a fool of myself by fainting in front of you?" He tried to sit up, but it only made his head hurt worse so he had to lay back down.

"No, baka!" Kagome blushed and looked down. "I was smiling because I was worried about you. I thought it must have been something much worse to make you pass out like that. I-" She hesitantly picked up his hand. "I'm just really happy that you're okay."

The astounded look on Inuyasha's face would have amused Kagome, had she actually had the guts to look him in the face when she said that. Instead she was staring at the floor, blushing and fiddling with the hand she was still holding.

'I can't believe she just said that!' Inuyasha's headache was quickly forgotten at this interesting turn of events. 'Does this mean she's starting to care for me more?'

Sitting up without a problem this time, Inuyasha's intense gold eyes stared into Kagome's, who had looked up when he moved. "Do you really mean that?" He whispered.

Kagome's eyes softened at the hopeful look on his face, and she smiled at him. "Of course I do. I wouldn't say it if it weren't true."

The next thing she knew, Kagome found herself being pulled from her chair and into the hanyou's waiting lap. Wrapping his arms tightly around her, Inuyasha just breathed in her scent and held her close. He had wanted to do that for so long, and he could feel the pain in his head lessening from the familiar, comforting smell of her.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome gasped loudly, more than a little embarrassed at the situation. "What do you think you're doing!"

"My head hurts." He admitted gruffly with a satisfied smile that she couldn't see. "It's making me act this way, so deal with it wench!"

A small laugh escaped Kagome, and she tried to push herself into a more dignified position. "Well if it hurts so bad, then let me get up and get you some medicine for it."

Keeping a firm grip on her so she couldn't escape, he sighed and placed his head between her neck and shoulder. When he answered, all his previous gruffness had faded away. "You're the best medicine for it Kagome. Let's just stay like this for a while."

Kagome stopped her struggling, and could feel herself melting at his words and the feel of his warm breath on her neck. She suddenly wondered why she'd even tried to get up in the first place. Even though she didn't really want to admit it, there was nowhere else on earth she'd rather be.

'I was so worried when he passed out today. I guess it just goes to show that no matter how hard you try to ignore them, your feelings are always there, and stronger than ever. I don't know what I would do without him anymore.'

Inuyasha smiled at the sudden acceptance he could feel from her, and it just grew wider when she actually laid her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.

'I've wanted this so much that it hurt.' He admitted to himself. 'Ever since I first saw Kagome, I couldn't help but wonder what it would feel like to hold her, knowing she was mine, knowing that she loved me. I'm not sure that she loves me yet, but I have hope now. I don't feel like I have to be alone anymore.'

Kagome's sudden shifting in his arms pulled Inuyasha from his intense thoughts, and she smiled up at him a little mischievously. Wondering what she could be thinking, he soon found out when she moved to rub his ears.

She giggled when he started purring like he had done once before.

"What is it with you and my ears?" He questioned mildly, happy that she seemed comfortable and didn't look like she was planning on moving any time soon.

"They're cute!" She stated simply.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow at her, a thought suddenly occurring to him. "If you can touch me where you want to, why can't I do the same? I personally don't think it's fair."

Kagome blushed to the roots of her hair and quickly let go of his ears, causing him to laugh at her. "Because you're a pervert!" She hurried to respond, voicing the first excuse that came to mind.

Inuyasha growled in mock annoyance. "I'm not a pervert! I've slept with you twice and didn't try anything!"

If possible, Kagome's face got even redder. "You were out cold both times! Even Miroku could behave himself when he's passed out!"

Inuyasha laughed out loud then, and pulled Kagome closer to him where her head could rest on his shoulder once more. Rubbing his cheek on the top of her head, he smiled. "I would never hurt you or take advantage of you Kagome."

Kagome responded by wrapping her arms around his waist, because she could honestly say she believed him without a doubt. The man who had once kidnapped her and turned her whole world upside down, had somehow become the center of that world.

Realizing his headache was now completely gone, Inuyasha marveled at the feeling he got from just being with Kagome. 'She's become my home now. Even if I have to stay here and take orders from her mother the rest of my life I could be happy. I feel like I'm finally home.'

Leaning back on the couch and cradling her figure to him closely, Inuyasha couldn't help but hope with all his heart that the feelings he had, as well as the moment, would last forever. He didn't ever want to let her go.

* * * *

Sesshoumaru sat down at his desk to sort through the daily mail, when a curious-looking envelope caught his attention.

"What could this be?"

Picking it up, he neatly sliced the seal open with one of his built- in letter openers (claws), and pulled out the contents. A moment later a smile graced his stoic face, and it was wider than anyone would think possible for the normally expressionless dog demon.

Placing the contents of the letter on his desk, he moved to pick up the phone and dig out his phone book. Flipping it open, he searched for a certain number.

Finding what he wanted, Sesshoumaru dialed the number and was rewarded with an immediate answer on the other end of the line.

"Yes, I'm calling to find out if you make things like coffee mugs, T- shirts, posters, and calendars using personal photos. *Pause* Good. Then I would like to have a few things made as a surprise for someone. *Pause* I'll have the picture delivered within the hour..

Chapter Twenty Three

The front door of the Higurashi home opened that afternoon, and Kagome's mother entered the house with a bag of groceries. As she was pulling off her shoes, Sota came running towards her with a disgusted look on his face.

"Mama, Kagome and the dog boy are sleeping together on the couch!" He complained quietly, hoping his mother would take care of the embarrassing sight in the family room. Just like all little boys, he couldn't understand why people would actually like doing stuff like that!

Mrs. Higurashi raised her eyebrows and then headed for the living room and peeked inside. She smiled when she saw the very adorable sight of the two snuggled on the couch with each other, Kagome wrapped in Inuyasha's arms.

Silently sliding the door shut, Mrs. Higurashi motioned for Sota to follow her to the kitchen. When the little boy complied and they entered the room, she spoke for the first time.

"I think we should just leave them alone." She advised. "They aren't doing anything wrong or bothering anyone, even though it seems they didn't finish painting the fence around the tree. I wonder why?" She mused.

"Because Inuyasha fainted." Sota informed her, rolling his eyes. How could a half demon be so pathetically weak? Sota couldn't figure that out!

"Oh dear!" Mrs. Higurashi frowned. "Maybe I've been working him too hard after all." Thinking about it for a moment, she finally made a decision and nodded firmly. Turning to her son, she gave Sota a pointed look. "If that's true, then that's all the more reason to let them sleep. He probably doesn't feel well so he needs plenty of rest, and all couples need time alone. So DO NOT disturb them, understand?"

The little boy reluctantly agreed to this, and Mrs. Higurashi laughed lightly at the defeated look on his face before turning to put away the food she'd bought. It wouldn't be long before it would be time to cook dinner. Time just seemed to fly by lately!

Humming lightly, Kagome's mother thought about her only daughter and the boy with the adorable dog-ears. 'Those two are so cute together! I really hope this means I'll get those grandchildren soon, while I'm young enough to enjoy them. And I certainly wouldn't mind it if some of them got those ears!'

Mrs. Higurashi smiled widely at the thought.

* * * *

A newspaper snapped loudly as the reader turned the page in an irritated fashion. Across the room, his wife gave him a pointed look that told him to give it up before he ripped the paper in two. She was intentionally ignored as he raised the paper in front of his face.

"Tai." The name was said as a soft warning.

A grunt was the only answer she received along with another loud snap and then a rip as the tortured paper finally gave under the strain.

Lady Rumiko chuckled as her husband growled loudly and crumpled the pieces in his fist. "I warned you, didn't I? One little newspaper against a great youkai isn't going to hold out very long. What's has you so tense, love?"

With a look that could almost be described as sulky, Lord Tai glared at the crumpled, torn paper still in his hands. "There wasn't anything interesting to read about today anyway." He grumbled.

His wife raised an eyebrow. "Well? I asked you a question so quit avoiding it."

"Why isn't that boy back yet?" Lord Tai suddenly burst out in an agitated manner, shocking Lady Rumiko speechless for a long moment. That was the last thing she would have guessed was making him so upset!

Finally locating her voice, she smiled slightly. "Care to explain?"

The normally dignified Lord Tai slumped down in his chair and folded his arms in a very Inuyasha fashion and mumbled his answer under his breath. "No son of mine should be so incompetent with the ladies."

Lady Rumiko's jaw dropped in surprise before giving in to the helpless laughter that welled up inside her, and before long she found herself gasping for breath as her insulted husband glared at her.

"Is that the ONLY reason you're worried?" She teased him, obviously more than a little amused over the situation. "Some father you are! Your son's whole future is at stake, and you can only sit there and worry about the fact that his failure is making you look bad!"

Opening his mouth to defend himself, Lord Tai snapped it shut when a subdued knock sounded on the study door.

"Come in!" Lady Rumiko called out cheerfully.

The large wooden door opened and Sesshoumaru stepped in looking as serious and formal as usual. The only hint that he had probably overheard the couple's conversation was a slight amusement in his golden eyes.

"I'm sorry to disturb you." He began, nodding slightly to both in way of a greeting. "But I could not help but hear what you were talking about as I was passing by." He ignored the growl from his father and continued. "I thought you might like to know that I have it on good authority that Inuyasha is making fair progress with his human girl."

"But what about those damn pictures we got in the mail?" Lord Tai argued fervently. In his opinion, if a girl would send embarrassing pictures of you to your very own family, then you haven't made much progress at all!

"That is over and done with between them, and mostly likely forgotten for the moment at least." Sesshoumaru informed them in a bland tone of voice.

Lady Rumiko smiled. "You make it sound as if you have spies watching them."

"I suppose you could say that." Sesshoumaru answered, his voice giving absolutely nothing away. Not even people who knew him well could accurately judge what his true feelings were on the subject being discussed.

Lord Tai finally spoke up once more, and for the moment he seemed to be mollified. "For that boy's sake, I hope you're right. If he screws this up then there will be no living with him! I don't know where he got his rotten attitude from!"

Sesshoumaru and Lady Rumiko exchanged dry looks with one another and decided not to touch that statement.

"Thank you for your information Sess." Lady Rumiko told him warmly. "I don't know why you seem so interested in helping your brother, but it's wonderful to know someone is looking out for him."

Nodding his acknowledgement at her statement, Sesshoumaru turned to leave. But before he made it out the door he turned back. "Oh yes, I almost forgot that I have a question for both of you before I go, if you don't mind."

Both of the room's occupants watched him expectantly and waited.

"What T-shirt sizes do you wear?"

* * * *

Sango sighed and wiped the kitchen counter clean, a small frown marring her face. She was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she didn't even hear Miroku's approach behind her until it was too late.

"HENTAI!" She screeched loudly as she turned and plastered her dirty, wet rag to his face. Miroku immediately let go of her butt and pulled the piece of cloth calmly from his face, giving Sango a tolerant smile.

"What was that for, my love? Didn't that kiss we shared the other day mean anything at all to you?" He gave her the saddest look he could muster.

"Yes, it did!" Sango bit off, still fuming. "The grabbing means something to me too, but I refuse to sink so low as to say those particular words out loud!"

Miroku laughed loudly and gave Sango a light kiss on the lips, causing her to blush and frantically turn back to her cleaning. She hated how he affected her both in a bad way and in a good way. When he groped her she felt like she wanted to kill him, but when he was sweet to her like that, she could almost forget that anyone else existed but the two of them.

"What were you thinking about before I came in?" Miroku questioned, sitting down at the table to keep her company while she worked. As long as Lady Rumiko was at home, his time was his own to do with what he pleased. And he chose to spend most of it with Sango.

Sango frowned once more. "Inuyasha and Kagome. I wonder how they are doing?"

"I don't know since I haven't seen them since I dropped off his clothes. But I can safely guess that the answer is probably not well, if that picture Lady Kagome sent everyone is any indication." Miroku laughed and patted his pocket. "No one but Lord Sesshoumaru has ever been able to get the better of Inuyasha like that! I plan to take advantage of it, so I carry the picture everywhere with me in case he suddenly comes home!"

Sango laughed. "You're cruel Miroku! Although I have to admit I plan to keep that picture as long as I live. I never thought I'd see the day that Inuyasha would sleep with a teddy bear!"

"I know what you mean." Miroku agreed. " I always considered that about as likely as him sleeping with a cat." Both found that thought amusing, but if they only knew! Maybe Kagome should have gotten a picture of that instead, since Buyo sleeps with him every single night now. Who would have thought they'd actually see the day that Inuyasha, a half dog demon, would become a cat person?

Both were still laughing at the mental image when Sesshoumaru stepped into the room, giving each a cool glance before getting right down to business and inquiring about their T-shirt size, and if Sango knew Kagome's.

"Why do you want to know that?" Sango questioned him in confusion after giving him the information he had requested.

Not batting an eyelash, he answered in a flat voice. "I'm having them matching shirts made as a wedding gift."

"Huh?" Both humans stared blankly at the youkai before them.

Sesshoumaru had to resist the urge to roll his eyes at the dense pair and reluctantly explained. "I'm using the picture that human girl sent. I find it rather..amusing."

Miroku and Sango started at him a moment before turning to each other and bursting into loud laugher. Sesshoumaru just sighed, barely tolerating their mirth.

"I wish I had thought of that first!" Miroku cried, still laughing. "Maybe we can get boxers made too!"

Sango shook her head, smiling at the thought. "That would be really dangerous to your health you know!"

"And getting shirts made wouldn't?"

"Good point." Sango conceded.

Both of them continued to laugh and make jokes at the absent hanyou's expense, while the silent Sesshoumaru listened with a small amount of curiosity, something he rarely felt.

'Mortals are so strange.' He mused mentally. 'Maybe I should look into getting one as a pet to entertain me.'

If Miroku and Sango had only been able to read Sesshoumaru's thoughts at the moment, they would have been laughing a LOT harder.

Chapter Twenty Four

The sun was just beginning to set at the Higurashi shrine behind dark, foreboding storm clouds, and at that moment the fuzzy white ears on top of Inuyasha's head twitched, which was a sure sign that he was beginning to wake up. The hanyou hadn't had such a peaceful sleep in his life and that made him very reluctant to move. He knew it had to be Kagome's acceptance of the situation, as well as him finally feeling like he wasn't alone anymore.

When a deep roll of thunder sounded in the distance, Inuyasha finally stirred a little more and yawned widely. Lazily he opened his eyes and just watched the sleeping form in his arms with one of his rare, gentle smiles.

'I wonder how long it will be before she finally wakes up? I personally think it's about time for that little talk she keeps putting off. I know she loves me, I can just feel it! As much as I'd hate to admit it though, Sesshoumaru was probably right about the miko thing.'

Inuyasha frowned when a loud peal of thunder disturbed the sleeping girl in his arms, so he slowly ran his fingers through her hair in an attempt to soothe her. The motion obviously worked, and she settled back down.

When he was satisfied, the white-haired boy settled back in and turned his mind to past events, wondering how he could even begin to explain himself.

"I'm so sorry I put you through that." Inuyasha whispered, careful to keep his voice low since the words were meant for her ears alone. He could hear her family close by in the house, and he didn't want them to overhear. "I never meant to hurt you like that. I only wanted to express exactly how I felt about you. Unfortunately I'm not really great at that sort of thing." He smiled ruefully.

With a sudden startling burst, rain began to pour with a vengeance on the small shrine house, and Inuyasha wondered in passing if Kagome had left all the paint supplies outside.

"Keh, I hope she did! That would mean she was too concerned over me to think about stupid paint supplies." He smirked and felt a deep satisfaction brought on by the memory of her earlier concern.

For the first time since waking up, Inuyasha noticed it was unusually dark outside for just an afternoon storm. 'I wonder how late it is? Don't tell me the sun has already set!'

Carefully shifting positions slightly so he wouldn't wake up Kagome, Inuyasha managed to get a good look at the clock on the wall behind him so he could check out the time. His stomach growled at the same moment, reminding him that they had both missed lunch.

"We slept that long?" He cried out loud, forgetting to be quiet in his surprise at the time. In about 15 minutes the Higurashi family would be sitting down to dinner.

Since he had forgotten to be quiet, his loud exclamation caused Kagome to stir, and she blinked sleepily and tried to pull away.

"Inuyasha?" A light blush stained her cheeks when he wouldn't let go of her, and she began to stutter helplessly. The position they were in did not look good, and she was more than a little aware of that! "W-what are we, I mean, what w-were we doing?!?!"

Inuyasha laughed and pressed his forehead to hers, causing her to abruptly stop trying to get out of his arms. "What does it look like we were doing?"

"INUYASHA!"

"Owww!" Inuyasha rubbed his abused ears. "Don't screech like that, okay? It hurts my ears wench!"

Kagome's face darkened at his favorite little nickname for her. "Would you please stop calling me wench? I hate that about as much as you'd probably hate being called..dog turd or something!" She had hastily picked out the first stupid nickname that had come to mind.

Inuyasha was instantly contrite and it showed on his face. The last thing he wanted at the moment was for Kagome to be angry with him.

"I'm sorry Kagome." He whispered quietly, taking both her hands in his own. "I tend to get rude when I get nervous, or when I'm trying to say something important. Please don't hold it against me right now, just when we really need to talk."

Kagome stared at him with wide eyes, and Inuyasha stared back with a serious expression. His faced showed that at the moment nothing mattered more to him than the person right in front of him. He was aware of nothing but the feel of her hands in his and her beautiful blue eyes.

Everything was coming down to this one moment, and in his mind it was now or never. "Kagome, I really need to-"

"Kagome! Inuyasha! It's time to eat dinner so hurry and get up!" Her mother's voice called from the kitchen, causing them both to jump.

'Damn!' He cursed mentally. 'Just when I think I've got her right where I want her, something else comes up! Figures her mother would be finished early today!' A stubborn feeling began to set in his chest. 'Screw food, we are gonna talk right now!'

"Inuyasha, come on! We need to get up so let me go!" Kagome insistently tugged at his hands that were still tightly holding hers, but he refused to yield.

"No." He stated firmly. "We need to talk."

Kagome shot him a dark look and pulled harder. "It can wait!" She hissed. "We can't talk with my family around! They are waiting for us to go eat!"

"I know that, but I don't care! I have been waiting so long for this Kagome that I just can't handle the wait any longer! Do you realize how hard this has been for me? Every time I think the wait is finally going to end, you drag it out!" The hanyou was unintentionally taking out his frustration on her and raising his voice.

"Just leave it alone for now!" Kagome muttered. "If I want it to wait, then it will! It's not like you can tell me what to do, cause you aren't really my husband!"

Just then a startled gasp came from the direction of the door and the couple turned to see that Sota had slid the door open slightly to call the two to dinner. The small boy had heard Kagome's last statement very clearly, and he was obviously shocked.

'I can't believe I didn't hear him open the door!' Inuyasha thought to himself. 'This isn't good at all, because what if he tells? If her family finds out, then it will really hurt Kagome, and that's the last thing I wanted to happen. This is all my fault, I shouldn't be such a stubborn jerk!'

"You..were lying to everyone?" Sota whispered, staring at the pair.

"Sota, it's not what you think!" Kagome frantically tried to explain. "Just listen to us a minute and don't tell mama! It's all a misundersta-"

"MAMA!" The little boy yelled, slamming the sliding door shut behind him. He had looked so upset, and it broke Kagome's heart to see him like that. And now her mother would know, and Kagome couldn't even begin to imagine how she would react.

"Oh my God..Sota must hate me now." She whispered, and Inuyasha tightened his grip on her hands. She was so pale that he worried she might pass out.

"It's okay Kagome. I'm sure they'll understand." He rubbed his thumb over her painfully tight fists. "And I'm sure Sota doesn't hate you."

"Just go away."

"Kagome-"

"I SAID JUST GO AWAY!" She cried loudly, pulling herself from his grip with the sudden force of her anger. "This is all your fault, and I hate you!"

A rumble of thunder punctuated her cruel words as they stared at each other.

Inuyasha reached out with one clawed hand. When he spoke, his voice sounded broken and rough. "Kagome, please tell me you don't mean that."

At that her tense shoulders drooped, and a slow tear made a wet track down Kagome's face as she shook her head. "No, I don't. It's all my fault and I know it. If I hadn't been so stupid and played along, this wouldn't have happened. Then maybe I wouldn't have-" She suddenly broke off and stifled a sob, then turned and ran from the room.

She ran past her mother who was standing in the hall with a shocked look on her face and out the front door into the pouring rain.

"Kagome!" Her mother called out worriedly. She ran to the open front door and saw where her daughter headed, and sighed with relief. At least she didn't go far.

Inuyasha wasn't far behind, and he tried to get past Mrs. Higurashi's small form where she was still standing in the doorway. Kagome's mother grabbed his shirtsleeve with one hand and refused to let go when he tried to shrug her off.

"Leave her alone for a little while Inuyasha. I think you and I need to talk."

* * * *

"YOU MEAN YOU KNEW ALL ALONG?" Inuyasha roared at Mrs. Higurashi, who just sipped some of her tea and nodded calmly in the face of his rage. "You knew we weren't married and that I had kidnapped her? Why didn't you say something?"

Mrs. Higurashi sighed in regret and set her cup down on the table. "Yes, I did know, but I didn't want to interfere any more than I had to. I trust Kagome enough that I was sure she wouldn't do anything inappropriate with you unless you really were married."

Inuyasha growled as he remembered all the humiliation he'd suffered at her mother's hands. "What was with all the chores?"

"Testing you."

Inuyasha stared at her, waiting for her to elaborate.

"The best way to know if you were serious or not was to see how much you were willing to suffer for her." She suddenly smiled. "It's safe to say you passed the test with flying colors. Most men would have run off long before now."

The hanyou glared at her. "So who told you everything, and why did you go along with it in the first place? A hanyou shouldn't be your ideal son-in-law."

For the first time, Mrs. Higurashi looked unsure. "I admit when I was first told everything, I was very upset. My own daughter had been kidnapped and I didn't even realize it! But talking to your family and hearing your story, I began to understand things a little better, and I even started to feel sorry for you." A small smile appeared once again on her face. "And when I saw those ears, I was a lost cause! I wanted grandchildren so much, and the thought of them having those adorable ears was too much for me!"

Inuyasha sweat dropped before deciding to ignore that in favor of bringing up the previously ignored question. "Who did you talk to?"

"Well.." Mrs. Higurashi hedged. "They aren't going to be very happy if I tell, because I promised them I wouldn't."

Inuyasha groaned. "Tell me it wasn't Sesshoumaru!"

"Sorry." Kagome's mother stated simply. She couldn't deny the truth!

"What reason would he have had to interfere?"

This got a wide grin from Mrs. Higurashi. "The same reason I had for interfering. We had a common goal."

"Huh?" Inuyasha couldn't even begin to guess, but he was pretty sure it wasn't his happiness. His brother had never concerned with that, and never would be.

"What else? Grandchildren!"

Inuyasha almost fell out of his chair.

Seeing his reaction, Mrs. Higurashi almost laughed out loud, but instead got up and pointed in a certain direction out the window. A flash of lightning lit up a small building, and Inuyasha recognized it as the old well house.

"Now that we understand each other, I think you need to go talk to her now. She's had some time to herself and now you have exactly the information she needs to make her feel better. Tell her I'm sorry, and I will talk to Sota so she doesn't need to worry about him."

Inuyasha's ears drooped. "But what if she won't talk to me?"

"She'll talk to you." Kagome's mother patted him on the shoulder comfortingly. "Don't give up on her no matter what else you may do, Inuyasha. My daughter loves you and I'll never forgive you if you break her heart."

"Do you really think so?" The dog demon questioned hopefully.

"I'm sure of it."

Chapter Twenty Five

The old well house was dark and dusty, but Kagome didn't seem to even notice her surroundings as she continued to cry. The storm outside still raged, and a very warm, heavy feeling of moisture hung in the air. It was a sensation nearly stifling to the senses.

The sobbing girl was sitting on the steps leading down to the dry well, her back facing the door. Water dripped from every strand of hair, running down her face and mixing with the tears that were still flowing freely from her eyes. Her shoulders were hunched over, and she had the aura of someone who would just love to curl up and disappear.

The rain was falling so heavily that it masked the sound of approaching footsteps outside until it was too late for her to do anything about it. When she heard the door slide open, she didn't even bother to turn around.

"Just go away." She whispered in a faint voice. "I don't want to talk about it right now."

"Tough." The familiar voice of Inuyasha answered her. "Because I do. And even if you won't talk then you can at least listen to me."

His voice was strong and very determined, as well as infused with the hope Mrs. Higurashi had given him with her last statement. No one knew Kagome better than her own mother, and why would she give him false hope?

Kagome didn't reply to him.

Sighing in exasperation, Inuyasha moved down the steps and sat down next to her, careful not to alarm her even though he really, really had to work hard to force himself not to touch her. She looked so pitiful with her wet hair and sad eyes, and all he wanted to do was hold her and tell her it would all be okay, and confess his feelings. But unfortunately for him, it just wasn't that easy.

Inuyasha decided to start off by informing her of her mother's secret. "I don't know how you're gonna take this, but your mother told me that she knew about us all along. It seems someone told her."

When this information registered, Kagome whipped her head around to look at him, and in the process some of her wet hair flew out and slapped him in the face. She couldn't help but smile a little at the grimace on his face.

"Don't look at me like that, it's not funny."

Faint amusement tinted her voice. "Yes it is."

"Not, it's not!"

"Keep telling yourself that if it will make you feel better."

Both of them started laughing when they remembered her saying the exact same phrase once before. Inuyasha was the first to speak after the bout of amusement blew over.

"I thought this was going to be a serious heart-to-heart talk. You aren't supposed to beat me up with your hair! That picture you took of me beat up my ego bad enough." Raising his eyebrows, he thought of something. "If for no other reason, you owe me this talk after sending Sesshoumaru that picture!"

Kagome looked down at the ground guiltily. "I'm so sorry I sent that picture. I shouldn't have done it and that's part of the reason I feel so bad now. You've been trying so hard and waiting so long and I just keep ruining things for you like you said earlier."

Inuyasha placed one of his hands under her chin and forced her to look up at him. He wanted to see her eyes, something he could do even in the darkness of the well house. His demon eyesight was almost as good as his hearing.

"Kagome, I don't care about the picture. I understand why you did it, especially looking at it from your point of view. The only thing that concerns me right now is that I still want to know more than anything why you reacted the way you did the day you left. I want to hear the truth from you, and I don't want it put off any longer."

Kagome knew she had to answer him truthfully, but facing her feelings had to be the hardest thing she'd ever done in her life! 'What if I tell him, but he doesn't feel the same? I know he cares, but does he love me? After all, I'm surprised he doesn't completely hate me for sending that picture!'

The silence stretched on for several moments as Kagome sorted out her thoughts, and Inuyasha forced himself to wait patiently. After all, he'd waited so many years that a few more minutes couldn't hurt, or so he kept telling himself.

"I wanted you to tell me that y-you didn't just want me because I'm a miko."

Inuyasha smiled slightly. "That isn't all, is it?"

Kagome shook her head, not wanting to voice the next part.

"Please tell me Kagome." Inuyasha brushed some of her wet hair out of her face with a gentle hand, careful so he wouldn't scratch her with his sharp claws. The caress made Kagome catch her breath before she forced herself to ignore it and concentrate on what she wanted to say. She owed it to him to be as truthful as she could.

After several moments of working up the courage, Kagome closed her eyes and took a deep, shaky breath. "No, that isn't all. I..I also wanted to know if you felt the same way about me as I do about you."

A tense silence followed this statement, before Inuyasha's hand found her arm and gripped it tightly. It was almost as if he were fearful she would try to leave before they got to the most important part, what he had been waiting for so long.

"What is it you feel about me?" His voice was rough, yet at the same time hopeful as he stared at her with his heart in his eyes.

Kagome watched him carefully for a moment, and her face suddenly relaxed as she really saw him for the first time through the darkness. For some reason all her previous fears melted away when she looked into his eyes and saw his emotions written plainly there. Strangely enough, he was more frightened and unsure than she was!

This more than anything else gave her the courage to finally speak. "At some point I fell in love with you Inuyasha. Dog ears, white hair, claws, fangs, and all. I'm not even sure how it happened, I just know that it did." She smiled. "I love you, Inuyasha."

She had barely gotten out the final words of her little speech when Inuyasha shook off the stunned feelings that had resulted and pulled her to him in a tight hug, nearly crushing her! But instead of complaining she returned the hug with as much strength as she possessed, now knowing that all her fears had been completely unfounded.

"I love you so much Kagome. I wouldn't care if you were a miko or not because you're the only one I want. Please tell me you'll never leave me again." His voice was muffled since he had his face nearly buried in her hair.

"I promise I'll never leave you again."

Inuyasha sighed and pulled back slightly, but only to get into a much more comfortable position with her in his lap once again, causing her to blush.

"Why are you so embarrassed?" He teased. "It hasn't been that long since you were in the same spot!" A very pleased smile crossed his face, and the arrogant hanyou was back full force. Kagome had to admit that she loved his confidence, even if it was annoying at times.

"Maybe I don't want to sit here! The step was much more comfortable than it looked."

Inuyasha smirked. "I don't care, now that you're going to be my mate then you have to sit where I want you to sit. So 'sit' here!"

Kagome stuck her tongue out at him. 'The nerve of him, telling me to sit, as if I were a dog or something!'

"Don't stick that tongue out at me unless you want to find out what I'll do with it."

Kagome blushed again, looking slightly flustered. "I don't think I'm going to talk to you anymore! Better yet, maybe you should be the one to stop talking if you plan on saying anything else like that!"

"I'll gladly stop talking but only if you kiss me."

Kagome turned really bright red then and wondered in passing if she was going to spend the rest of her life looking like a tomato.

Meanwhile, Inuyasha continued to laugh at her embarrassment. If such little things could cause her to act like this, he couldn't wait to see how she would react when they officially became mates!

He tugged on her earlobe playfully when she crossed her arms and refused to look at him. "We've slept together twice and you're still shy! I guess I have plenty of time to fix that little problem though!"

"Pervert! Keep this up and you might find yourself sleeping with Buyo for a long time, and then Mama won't get those grandchildren she wants so badly!" Kagome retorted.

He stared at her in surprise. "How did you know that's the main reason she interfered? I couldn't believe it when she said that!"

Kagome scoffed. "Are you kidding? I should know, because she's been knitting baby booties since I became old enough to date!"

Inuyasha's eyebrows lowered thoughtfully, and Kagome slapped a hand over her mouth when she realized what she said. "Exactly how long ago was that? Or should I say how many dates ago was that?" He gave her a hard stare.

"Uhhh.." Kagome hastily tried to think of an acceptable answer and stay in control. She wanted to tease him about it a bit before she started laughing. "I've only dated one other guy, if that's what you're asking."

He didn't look happy with her answer. "How many dates, Kagome?"

She avoided the question with a sudden compliment, hoping to make him forget that he wanted to know something that she didn't really want to tell. "You are a better kisser than he was!"

For a moment he looked pleased until the full meaning of that statement sunk in and she laughed at his stunned look. "You kissed him?!?!"

Wrapping her arms around his neck, she finally decided to stop teasing him. "Oh, and all I did was kiss him once so don't look at me like that!" He gave her a funny look, and she rolled her eyes. "And ALL we did was kiss that one time, are you happy?"

Telling him that had smoothed his ruffled feathers and Inuyasha nodded and wrapped possessive arms around her waist, content with her answer for the moment. He could learn the name of this human brat later and tear him to shreds then. It could wait.

Kagome would have bopped him over the head if she knew exactly what he was thinking, but she didn't. But she still managed to say the right thing anyway. "The little bit of time I spent with him will only be a drop in the bucket compared to how many years you and I will have together. And it will be MUCH more fun! I get the feeling life with you and your family will never, ever be dull."

In response, Inuyasha planted a light kiss on Kagome's lips but didn't take the time to deepen it like she wanted him to. When he moved away, Kagome gave him a half-curious, half-disappointed stare.

"That's it?"

Inuyasha suddenly looked uneasy. "Yeah, I don't want to stay in here much longer, and I don't know about you but I certainly don't find the atmosphere exactly romantic. Is it just me, or does this place give you the creeps too?"

Kagome giggled and tugged on a handful of his long, silver hair. "What, are you scared that a big bad monster is going to pop out of the well and get us?" She didn't admit it, but now that he mentioned it the place did give her a really creepy sensation of déjà vu. Especially the well itself. Kagome shivered as she thought about what it would feel like to fall in.

"Let's get out of here." Inuyasha said instead of answering her. "The rain has let up a little, and we can walk back to the house now and get dried off. I don't want you to get sick. Then tomorrow we can go home and tell my family, I mean OUR family, the good news."

"Okay." She smiled at him and his protectiveness, as well as the way he said 'our family'. She supposed she could forgive him for the pathetic kiss if he kept acting like that!

Kagome and Inuyasha stood up and headed back up the stairs to the sliding door, before stepping outside into the warm, soothing rain. When they were completely outside, Inuyasha turned to her with a sudden grin and an interesting glint in his golden eyes.

"Now that we're out in the rain I'm suddenly feeling much more romantic. Don't all girls dream of getting kissed in the rain or something like that?"

Kagome looked over at the house and then back at Inuyasha with a dry expression on her face. "With my whole family watching through one of the windows of the house? Yeah, I've always dreamed of it."

Inuyasha's grin widened. "Then I guess we'll just have to give them a show! That ought to give them a good idea of how things went and then maybe they'll stop being so nosey."

"HA! Not likely!"

Ignoring her words, he wrapped his arms around her waist and met her soft, rainwater-covered lips with his own. Without even thinking about it, she responded by wrapping her own arms around his neck and deepened the kiss, suddenly not caring if the whole world was watching!

'I can't believe she's finally mine!' Inuyasha's mind shouted in triumph. It was the only coherent thought he had at the moment, but he felt it with his entire being.

When they reluctantly had to come up for air and pulled away, Kagome smiled at him and wiped a damp strand of hair out of his face. "I'm so glad you don't have to be alone anymore. All that time waiting must have been so lonely for you."

"I'd wait and be alone for a thousand years if it meant getting to be with you." He whispered. "Even longer."

Kagome suddenly felt her throat clog with tears and she hugged him around the waist. They stayed like that for several moments.

"So, ready to go back inside and face your family?" He finally questioned, pulling back some. She nodded and grabbed his hand with hers, threading her fingers through his.

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

As they turned to walk back, Kagome suddenly remembered one more thing she wanted to tell him, something very important.

"Oh, and Inuyasha?"

"Hmm?" He hummed lightly, wrapping one arm around her waist.

"From now on, you can kidnap me anytime you want."

So that's the end, folks! I enjoyed writing this story so much and I'm sad to see it end, but I hope you were happy with it! I do have another idea for a story, but I don't know how long it will take me. With encouragement from you guys though, it probably won't be too long! I hope!

~~~~~~

(Author sits and waits for all the readers to leave. Not a single person budges and everyone stares expectantly. She finally gets sick of it and throws her hands in the air, exasperated.)

Stop looking at me like that! Well, okay, don't look at the SCREEN like that! What do you want? The story is OVER!

(Reviewers giver her a 'well duh' look)

Oh, I get it! You guys want to know what happens to them after the story ends, right? Well, since you guys were such great reviewers, I will be nice and include a special bonus and tell you what happened to everyone. Ready?

Sango & Miroku: They both finally got married and had three kids, all boys. Since they took after their father, Sango had to eventually send them to an all boys school after they each got expelled from public school before the third grade. The female teachers working at the new school all quit within a week.

Lady Rumiko & Lord Tai: They got grandchildren to spoil and Lord Tai's ego was saved since Inuyasha didn't totally screw up with Kagome. His wife finally did get around to thwacking him over the head for that.

The Cook: She finally settled down with the gardener despite the age difference, but they ended up getting in a lot of fights since she still flirted with Inuyasha every chance she got. Inuyasha barely avoided getting his hair chopped off with garden sheers after she somehow got her hands on a picture of him sleeping in the buff. Kagome promised she'd never take a picture of him like that again (With her fingers crossed behind her back of course).

Sota: He grew up and kidnapped a girl of his very own just so he could be like his hero Inuyasha! Now he is married, but ends up sleeping downstairs with the cat a lot. (He ended up being more like his hero than he really wanted to be! *snicker*) Also runs the shrine and takes care of all the chores. (Again, sounds a lot like his hero, huh?) He had two daughters.

Buyo: He ends up sleeping with Sota a lot, but he really misses Inuyasha and dreams fondly of the times he and Inuyasha spent together on the lumpy couch.

Grandfather: He now chases his great grandchildren around the shrine with demon wards. Some things never change!

Mrs. Higurashi: After successfully interfering in her son's love life, she is now hoping for great grandchildren and knitting more baby booties. Some people are just never satisfied.

Sesshoumaru: He finally found himself at the dentist after eating all that chocolate (Even demon's teeth can't handle that much sugar!) and fell in love with the youkai woman working there as a secretary. Now that they are mates she won't let him have anymore candy! Love really can make you miserable! But at least something good did happen, because they have one daughter. (Bet you can't guess her name, LOL)

Inuyasha & Kagome: After getting home and having a T-shirt and picture burning, Inuyasha and Kagome settled down together and had those kids everyone wanted so badly. Five, if you really want to know how many. Yep, four girls and one boy! Oh yeah, and three cats! (He really is a cat demon now, ROFL!) Anyway, the little boy acts and looks just like his father! As for the girls, Inuyasha doesn't let any of his daughters near Miroku's sons without strict supervision! Oh, I almost forgot to say that the little boy and two of the little girls have dog-ears just like their father's! Awww! And Uncle Fluffy pulled out his blackmail videos as soon as the children were old enough to laugh at their father. (He pulls them out more regularly than most people pull out vacation pictures and video!)

And they all lived happily ever after! (HA! Don't they wish?)

wasn't that great! well, at least i liked it! well, that's it so tell me if you liked it so i can tell the guy who wrote it all about his addoring fans!
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