An Honest Woman

Disclaimer: I, miserable little squirt of humanity that I am, do not own the great and magnificent Inuyasha. I do enjoy playing at it though…

Inuyasha leaped into the tall pine near the campfire...and promptly began to shred innocent, rather large beams into matchwood. He was trying to distract himself from what he'd just overheard, and all of its rather horrible implications.

He failed miserably.

Flashback

Inuyasha crept silently through the low vegetation, making less noise than any feline-not that the cat in question would ever admit to losing to a dog. Reaching a boulder at the edge of the clearing, he peeked over it, glanced around, then sat quickly back down, satisfied that its occupants didn't know he was there. He wasn't supposed to be anywhere near them in the first place-but he couldn't help it.

How could he help it that tonight the hot springs Kagome had squealed over were downwind of their camp and out of earshot and out of sight? Really, it was the girl's fault for insisting, and the slayer's and monk's for agreeing and indulging her. And how could they ever expect him to do otherwise than he currently was in such conditions? He had tried, oh how he had tried to relax and stay put when the girls left for their bathing; but it only took minutes for his instincts, frenzied from the start, to completely derail all self-control. It had only taken moments for thoughts of what exactly happens to pretty girls caught unawares to send him speeding after them.

And now, here he lurked. Cross-legged, Tessaiga propped up against one shoulder, eyes scanning the surrounding forest like searchlights, ears twitching back and forth, guarding, tense, but very aware of how much shit he was barely keeping from the fan.

And then a stray comment caught his attention, and all thoughts of his awkward position blew away like so much dust in the wind.

"...don't worry about it Sango-chan, kissing is just a natural step in the progression of a relationship. I should know; I've done a lot of kissing! So next time..."

He missed the rest of what she said, too shocked to think straight, let alone keep up his precarious balance of eavesdropping and high-alert guarding. Rigid, he sat there, her o-so-nonchalant words echoing in his ears: I've done a lot of kissing! I've done a lot of kissing! I've done a lot of kissing...It didn't take long for a low, harsh, growl to emerge, coupled with claws raking the earth, wishing they could rake the lips of the males who had dared touch what was his...

"Kagome-chan, do you hear that? It could be a youkai-do you think we should get the boys?"

Sango's voice snapped him back to reality; swiftly he muffled his telltale growl, hoping not to be caught...

"Umm…not really...Sorry Sango-chan, but I don't hear anything."

Inuyasha breathed a sigh of relief, and felt some absurd sense of approval swell that Kagome wasn't going to give him away. Not that she knew it was him...probably...

"It could have heard me and stopped." Sango pointed out.

He swore silently; why the hell does the tajiya have to be so damn alert?

"I guess...But I don't sense any jyaki at all, do you? I think it's ok. If you're still worried about it, go ahead and investigate, but I'm staying here."

Inuyasha waited with bated breath while Sango considered her options; he let it out a few minutes later when the girls began to chat again. Furtively he made his escape, all thoughts of guard duty swept away in the need to mull over these earth-shattering developments.

End Flashback

And now here he crouched, a nervous wreck, brooding at his worst over a single, simple, innocently flung out phrase. 'I've done a lot of kissing!' What the hell does that girl think she's doing? What the hell were those fuckers who'd kissed her thinking? Haven't I made it damn obvious to every male that gave her more than a second glance that she was taken? The wimps all backed down after a few looks, cracked knuckles and grinding teeth; growling usually didn't hurt either...The only one idiotic enough to challenge me was the stinking wolf, but I know she hasn't kissed him, thank Kami; I'd be able to smell it! Unless she'd bathed right afterwards...

And there opened a whole new window of worries and fears; what if that's the reason she's bathing all the time? To lose the stench of the sonovabitch? But who is this goddamn bastard that stole her from me, that dared touch what's mine? And-he couldn't help the growl that the next thought evoked-what if there's more than one? No, Kagome's not that kind of girl, I know her that well at least; but do I?

Do I, really?

Up until a few minutes ago, he'd have thought Kagome to have never kissed anyone before, not even that stupid human boy making eyes at her in her own time. He'd tried to kiss her not long after they'd met, and she'd backed out, obviously filled with maidenly fear and sense of propriety; clearly not ready to kiss. But he'd known her since then, and had never smelled another male on her, save the kit-and for once he was happy the kit was the annoying childish brat he was. Even with her bathing all the time, when would she have the chance to meet the bastard? Or did she get the kit to make disguises so she could sneak away-I wouldn't put it past the twerp-and then sneak back, me none the wiser? Or, had she, or did she, or were they...

His thoughts spiraled ever downwards, growing more absurd and frightful and consuming by the moment, so that the jolt of Sango's return nearly tipped him off his perch; fortunately he still had some time to clear his thoughts because Kagome had wanted to relax some more, but still...And his train of thought reasserted itself spectacularly, nearly every possible implication (and quite a few impossible ones) springing to mind, one after another in a seemingly endless stream of disasters.

But it never occurred to him that the miko might have been lying.

Kagome had her face pillowed on her arms on the rocks, lazily treading water in the deep end of the pool as she whined a little, put out at being alone.

"Mou, I can't believe Sango left just because she thought Houshi-sama was peeking again...the water is so nice, and it's been so long since the last time we camped near an onsen; how could she leave, even if he was? It's not like we can really stop the hentai..."

Shaking her head, Kagome reflected on her last conversation with the slayer as she swam back to the shallows on the other side of the pool to lounge against the side. She failed to notice the shadow that shifted on the other edge of the clearing.

"And really, why does she want to? She's the one who was asking me for advice if he wants to kiss her! And it's not like they're not engaged already anyway..."

A jolt of guilt struck her just as she began to relax again; startled, she sat straight up, water streaming down her front almost violently with the speed of her move. She did not hear the low moan from the edge of the clearing, too self-absorbed as she realized: "I lied to her while I was reassuring her? What's gotten into me! I mean it's not like she'd care if I said I knew this stuff from reading or friends; what made me say that it was from personal experience?"

After a few minutes, she shook her dark mane and averted her eyes in shame. "I guess I just want it to be true so bad...It's not like all of my friends haven't had plenty of dates and kisses by now...But the one guy I want to kiss isn't interested of course…"

She missed the low groan "This one sure is."

Slapping her hands together, a look of determination on her face, she stated: "Well no more for now! I'm going to enjoy this bath with no thoughts for that baka to keep me worrying! He is gone from my mind!"

Lying back and closing her eyes with resolution, it only took moments for her to doze off again.

A chuckle answered her final statement even as she fell asleep; she thought it was a dream.

"Glad to hear that."

Ten minutes later, Inuyasha had run across another roadblock. It was a devilish, deceptive one too; small, round, ornamental, harmless in appearance; but it could easily be the ruin of him yet. Yes, the rosary could give Kagome the edge for her to leave him permanently, to the arms of that waiting bastard (he failed to suppress his shudder at the thought), or just incapacitate him in retribution for eavesdropping, (and possibly peeping) so that he never even got to ask her what she'd meant; the wench's stupid like that, getting angry over things like 'eavesdropping' and 'reading over your shoulder', rather than important things like the kit stealing your food, or sneaking off to smooch someone else in secret. Just the thought of either option made him gnash his teeth in frustration; why does everything to do with that girl have to be so goddamn complicated? and set back to brooding once again.

After a long, arduous mental marathon, Inuyasha stood at a standstill. He could either leave it, never mention it to Kagome or Sango, and try to figure out the truth on his own by staying with the girl at all times (some of them hidden of course, to catch her in the act). Or, he could pursue it directly, and risk never finding out. Neither option appealed much, as the first involved patience and deception (not exactly his specialties) and the second was almost ensured to fail.

His thoughts were interrupted by the faintest sound reaching his ears; it only took a moment before he was flying from tree to tree, cursing the distance between the onsen and the camp, his worries the last things on his mind.

He'd heard it, quiet though it was, muffled by distance; the distinctive sound of Kagome's 'Kyaa!' and a low grunt he didn't recognize as anything other than a threat.

Kagome woke with a start, her senses tingling; a year in the Sengoku Jidai had taught her to trust her instincts, even when she didn't know what the danger was, so it was with full lungs that she screamed as a hand loomed on the edge of her vision.

In only a moment, he had her mouth clamped closed with his grimy palm, but what a scream it was! He let out a few favorite expletives as he tried to dispel the ringing in his ears; the hesitation gave Kagome the time to start squirming, fiercely. With great trepidation (the skin stank of oil and unwashed flesh), but solid determination, she bit the hand over her mouth. With a grunt of surprise and pain, the hand came away, and she took no time to turn around and retreat deeper into the onsen, filling her lungs for another wail.

Seeing her intent, swearing some more, her attacker swiftly shed the tattered armor and kosode he wore and jumped in after her.

"INU-mmph!" Again the hand cut her off. Another large, powerful, bruising hand claimed her thigh, effectively paralyzing her through shock alone.

The young man (or bandit, as his armor and methods suggested) grinned wickedly at her, a carnal glint in his eye.

"That's right pretty, you stop fighting and it won't hurt a bit..."

Eyes wide with fear, Kagome went from stiff as a board to limp as a damp piece of cloth in seconds.

Chuckling maliciously, he dragged them to the shallows, pulled her out of the water, and pinned her to a tree with his own body, one hand still firmly placed over her mouth, the other holding her hands behind her back. Finally some inner strength kicked in; eyes flashing with anger, she lashed and squirmed, biting the hand over her mouth till it bled, twisting and tangling her hands, trying desperately to land some blow to free her. After a few minutes of heated tussling, she managed to score a hit; he'd leaned back farther so as to get a better grip on her hands before undoing his fundoshi, unknowingly leaving himself wide open. She took the opportunity in a flash, kneeing him in the crotch for all she was worth.

But it wasn't enough. In fact, it only made it worse; now the bandit was angry too, and he decided to stop playing nice.

He bent over slightly, but never released his hold; the look in his eyes had her inner triumph squelched as fast as a grape in a mechanical juicer.

Moving his hands too quickly for her to react, his mouth crashed against hers before she had the chance to scream. His body pressed against her, hard, strong, and overwhelming; it was with barely concealed panic that she realized how aroused he was as well.

His tongue drove into her mouth, plundering and looting violently, evoking the almost irresistible urge to retch; the dirty hands roaming her body groped, prodded, pinched, pulled...she knew if she didn't throw up, she would scream, or faint, or all of the above under the nauseating assault. Closing her eyes didn't help in the least; it was her sense of touch that needed to be turned off.

Her eyes had just started to roll into the back of her head, her body going limp in defeat, when Inuyasha found them.

Cursing a streak blue enough to put most sailors to shame, Inuyasha exploded into the clearing, searching for the one who had dared to-

He stopped, stunned, at the sight that met his unsuspecting eyes.

Kagome, eyes closed, naked; a young, handsome, if somewhat dirty man pressed intimately against her, almost as bare as her, kissing her fiercely, touching her everywhere the hanyou could see, and some places he couldn't.

One fact, one part of the damning, scarring scene stood out above all the others.

Kagome wasn't resisting.

So...he thought, in a dazed, strange, yet lucid way. This is the man...the other man...her man. Her goddamn bastard, fucking son of a bitch.

Then the moment of shock was over, and he moved.

In a flash of red and silver, he tackled the bandit to the ground, pummeling him mercilessly, roaring his fury. His eyes misted red as the bandit fought back; he didn't care, he welcomed the loss of feeling his demon side would bring-perhaps then, he could properly rip this whelp to shreds-perhaps then, he could forget this pain, this sensation of his heart being pierced, yet again by that bitter arrow of betrayal...

Kagome came to a moment after she'd passed out; dazed, not remembering what had happened before Sango leaving the onsen, she focused on the familiar form of her hanyou...but wait...he's...attacking someone?

"Inuyasha?"

The voice brought him back to himself forcibly, slamming awareness down on the red that had overwhelmed his gaze. In the moment it took him to register the voice as hers, and understand it was his name, the bandit had twisted away, and escaped into the dark of the forest. Growling, torn between following and properly gutting the coward, or protecting her from another one, he was stayed by her light touch on his shoulder. It felt like a firebrand to his skin; the interrogation was coming, and it was coming now.

Twisting violently, he caught her wrist with his hand as he slowly rose, eyes intent on hers, burning her away; he mistook the confusion in her gaze for guilt.

"Was that him?"

"W-what do you mea-?" Kagome started, a little frightened by the anger rolling off of him, close to hysterics already.

"Was that the fucker you've 'done a lot of kissing' with?" His tone was soft, deadly, a rumble shaking her from her head to her toes. She still didn't understand.

"What are you talking about Inuyasha?" She asked, not a little repulsed at the idea of kissing the bandit on purpose.

He swore, luridly, then grabbed her chin, forcing her to look straight into his eyes as he ground out: "Stop lying bitch. I heard you talking to Sango earlier. Now answer me. Was that him?"

Bristling at the bitch comment, the very idea of being with the bandit, Inuyasha's forcible treatment of her, not to mention the idea that he'd been eavesdropping, Kagome let her anger speak for her. It didn't go over well.

"You were listening to us while we bathed-" She was cut off by his explosion.

"Fuck that! Bitch, I want to know what assholes you've been kissing and I want to know if that bastard was one of them!"

Kagome gaped at him for a moment; then, eyes flashing, she reared back at him, poking a finger into his chest.

"Since when do you care? Since when have you ever cared? You don't own me Inuyasha, and you have no claim over me!"

"Wench! Just answer the fucking question! At least let me know who I'm losing you to!" Inuyasha roared back.

It was meant to hide how completely flabbergasted and frustrated the phrase 'since when do you care' had him; it had that effect, but another as well.

Kagome stared at him, shock writ large over her features; it was like all the wind had gone out of her in one long whooshing breath the instant she heard his last line.

"W-what do you mean, 'losing me to'?" she caught the sleeve of his haori, determination emerging, solid, palpable, set in stone upon her face, stilling his angry response. "Really Inuyasha? How long have you cared?" she asked softly, eyes wide with confusion and-was that a little hope?

Inuyasha glared at her; Hell, is answering one question that hard? But decided to answer hers, ridiculous as it was, in hopes of being able to make her answer in turn.

"Wench...Dammit, I don't know ok? It's not like I kept track! And it's not like it matters now, does it? You've found someone-someone else-haven't you?"

Her eyes got wider; is he actually telling the truth? Could he really-did he really-

Inuyasha could only take so much waiting. He'd started the conversation with a simple question, and do I have my answer yet? Finally? No.

It was time to take evasive action.

"Kagome, if you don't tell me who they are this fucking second, I'm going to be forced to find out the hard way."

That got her attention. But not fast enough for Inuyasha's razor-thin control to hold. She had just managed to let out a startled "W-whaa?" before he moved.

Gripping her firmly by the shoulder with one hand, and her chin with the other, he tilted her face up, and cut off her words with a kiss that left her reeling. He determinedly swept the inside of her mouth with his tongue, searching out every nook and cranny, and stroking her own quite a bit in the process. Her shock had just melted away and she was beginning to enjoy the intrusion when he abruptly pulled out, gently, but implacably placed his hand on her other shoulder, and buried his face in the crook of her neck. Her surprise only increased when she realized that he was sniffing her; intent, eyes shut tight, ears laid back, focusing entirely on her scent.

He pulled away, even more confused than before. When he'd tasted her, all he could find was the grimy, sweaty tang of the bandit and her own sweet one, and when he'd smelled her, he couldn't even find the bandit's trace; what was going on?

"Kagome, who is he? I can't smell anyone but you, and I can't taste anything other than that other fucker; is he the only one?"

Kagome gasped, finally realizing his intentions; they cut like a knife.

"So you weren't kissing me after all! You don't even care, do you! You only want to know this stuff because you think this will distract me from hunting jewel shards!"

He furrowed his brows. "The hell?" he let out, disjointedly. "What are you talking about? The jewel shards have nothing to do with this! Just tell me if that sonovabitch was the only one!"

Kagome was confused; it didn't have to do with the jewel shards after all? But he didn't kiss her to kiss her, that was obvious...Stalling for time, she fumbled with a response.

"W-what do you mean, 'the only one'? What are you talking about?"

He stood, open-mouthed, eyes wide in disbelief. It only took a moment for him to recover however, and when he did..."The only one you've been kissing wench! You told Sango in the hotsprings that you had done a lot of kissing! Well, I want to know who the hell has been kissing you!"

Her eyes became slits as she again misinterpreted his vehemence. "Don't make it sound like they'd have to be crazy to do it..."

"They would have to be crazy to do it! I stick to you like we're physically attached, and scare off every wuss that looks you the wrong way; more than that, my scent is all over you! The fuckers know I want you, even if you don't, and I'll be damned if I let them get away with making you think otherwise!"

"You, you- you want me, Inuyasha?" her voice had turned tremulous, her eyes wide.

His eyes held hers for a long time while he considered his options; he'd never said it outright, true, but it never occurred to him that she would be completely clueless to his feelings for her. Well, surprise surprise...this day's only getting better, isn't it? First the damn onsen is too far away, then I hear she's been kissing someone else, maybe chosen someone else, get to walk into the middle of one of them jumping her, can't get a straight answer out of her, and now she doesn't even realize that I cared in the first place? Well, there's no way I'm letting it stay this bad. First things first; get her to answer the stupid fucking question I've been asking all night.

"Tell me first wench, then I'll tell you; was that the only one?" His voice was low, soft, but very, very firm. It was not a voice to be deflected or distracted, ignored or denied. Compliance was the only option.

Shaking herself out of the hopeful daze that had fallen over her, she remembered what he was so incensed about.

Sporting an annoyed frown, she answered "Mou, I guess he was...Can't believe I lost my first kiss to someone like that!"

"Your...first kiss?"

She nodded, again too absorbed to notice him; his confusion emanated from every pore of his being, his hope from the twin dog ears cocked towards her, perked for a response.

"Yeah. I'm really glad you showed up...I thought he was going to, going to-" she cut herself off with a terrified look as her memories rushed back to her.

He couldn't believe his ears; what the hell is going on? "Didn't you want him to-"

"No! Don't be disgusting! That jerk came out of nowhere, grabbed me out of the onsen and started- started-"

She felt the sobs coming back, held at bay while Inuyasha had questioned her; now she could suppress them no longer, and it was a rather panicked hanyou that now shuffled before her.

He knew he should comfort her..or something...but his own head was still reeling, trying to make sense of it all...And some things just didn't fit.

"Wait…But if you didn't want him to, to do that, why were you just letting him-"

"I w-wasn't!" Angry sob. "I d-did fight, I swear, I just…I just…P-promise not to hate me for being so weak?" she raised fearful, if sincere eyes up to his; he nodded, despite his confusion.

"I, well, h-he was just so disgusting-I couldn't help it-I fainted…r-right before you came." Her voice cracked more than once, and when she finished-it was like she'd just died away, so pitiful was the sound.

He winced at her whimper, already berating himself for making her remember more of it all. Problem was, he couldn't let her off the hook yet; there were still things that needed clearing up.

"Oi," he tried to make his voice as gentle as he could. "You said that was your first kiss, but earlier you told Sango you'd done a lot of kissing-which one is it wench?"

Bleary-eyed, she squeaked a response. "T-the first. I l-lied to S-sango-chan."

"Why?"

"B-because I wished it was true..." Inuyasha noticed that talking it out actually seemed to be calming her; he kept at it.

"Why?"

A tad frustrated with his persistence, but too tired to keep up her usual indifferent facade, she settled for the truth, tempered by an annoyed glare. She didn't realize that, in doing so, she began to forget about the violent incident, frustrated with him rather than frightened by her memories.

"Because like most people, Inuyasha, I want to be happy, and kissing someone you're in love with is pretty much the surest way to make that happen."

"So why don't you?" He kept it up; with every line the sadness receded more. Besides that, he was curious.

"Why don't I what?"

"Why don't you kiss the guy you're in love with?"

She gave him a long, appraising look. "What are you getting at? It's not like you kiss Kikyou that often."

He frowned. "Where the hell did that come from?"

She rolled her eyes, (no tears in sight, he was glad to see). "You asked why I don't kiss the guy I'm in love with; so I pointed out that you don't kiss the girl you're in love with that often either."

"Oi, that's not what you said!" Damn, she can't actually think I'm still in love with Kikyou, not after everything else, can she?

"Yes it is! You're in love with Kikyou, but you don't kiss her that often!"

"What the fuck?! Who said I was in love with Kikyou?" She does think that! Baka!

"When weren't you!?" she retorted angrily.

"Right fucking now, for starters!" he couldn't help the growl that escaped him; she was the most infuriating girl he had ever met.

"Oh really? Then why don't you go kiss whatever girl you are in love with!"

That set him off like nothing else. Perhaps it was because of how long this entire encounter had taken; maybe it was the emotional roller coaster of the past hour; it could even have just been misplaced sexual frustration given the fact that she was nude, glorious, and someone else had been kissing her and he couldn't get rid of the taste of them in her mouth at all. For whatever reason, he exploded, and let it all out.

"Shit, I would, but the first time I tried she ran off, 'cause she wasn't ready, and lately all I can expect from her is to slam my face in the dirt because she's so fucking convinced that I'm still in love with a dead lump of clay that acts nothing like the real Kikyou! Add on top of that the last hour or so of me thinking she's been kissing other guys behind my back, I barge in on some fucker doing just that, and right now she's so busy being pissed at me she isn't even thinking straight!" he seethed, eyes narrowed.

"Is that enough of a fucking answer for you?!" he added after a pregnant pause while she stared, wide-eyed at him.

They stood like that for some time, his tense body and expression completely at odds with her slouching, shrunken ones. Inuyasha boiled, the turmoil of his mind roiling and spitting with frustration, fury, desire, bitterness, hope, fear, relief, concern, love... Kagome, body hunched over in an instinctive position to deflect attention while she flubbed for a response, floundered desperately to collect her thoughts, emotions, and then that tiny spark of courage left in the face of so many possible, so very feared outcomes. She was stunned by his confession, surprised at his vehemence, shocked at his meaning. Hope sprang upon her in its wake, survived the waves of insecurities, dragged her bravery out of its hidey-hole, set her on her feet, and let her be honest in turn. The experience exhilarated as much as it terrified.

"Y-you know...I don't think she'd mind it if you tried to kiss her right now." She licked her lips, nervous beyond all belief, not daring to hope-and yet...She missed the way his eyes strayed to her lips and quickly darting tongue.

"M-maybe...maybe she was just really scared the first time.

"Maybe she stuck up with you going after Kikyou and defending her so long and so much and she got hurt so many times over it, she was scared to let herself think you'd changed, scared of getting hurt again if you hadn't.

"Maybe she wished so much that you did kiss her, did love her, she lied to her best friend because of it.

"Maybe she was so scared earlier when she was attacked, she verbally attacked you just because you were another guy and she didn't want to be in that position ever again, and she knows you could have her like that easily, even though she knows you'd never, ever hurt her."

She licked her lips again, and looked at him with as much sincerity as she could muster; he was already stuck dumb by her confession, though the look of her, so vulnerable, so innocent, so fragilely facing him, baring herself to him in so many ways...He didn't know what to say.

"Maybe...maybe she really, really, wants you to kiss her, she's just a scared little girl right now because of everything else-"

Fortunately for him, there was no need to say anything. As she spoke, she tilted her chin upwards, inched even closer to him, and more or less invited him to finally have his long-awaited wonder-filled first kiss with her.

Gently, he brought his head down to caress her soft lips with his own. Tenderly, and very aware of how naked she was, he brought his hands about her, one sifting through her damp hair, the other resting lightly against her trim waist. He guided her slowly closer to him, taking his time as he moved his lips against hers, until finally she pressed up firmly against him, her own arms wrapped around his neck. She graciously submitted as he tilted her head further down, and, finding his balancing point, they stayed like that for a long time. The kiss was sweet, long, and dizzying; Kagome felt like she'd been given a drawn out taste of ambrosia; Inuyasha felt like they were drifting in free fall, and when it broke it was the softest of landings, cradled by her glowing eyes and soft, quietly blissful smile.

"Is the girl I love still scared?" He asked softly, eyes never leaving hers.

Blushing she began to shake her head-but then a glint came into her eye he didn't know what to make of-at first. "Not really. However…She's already gotten a lot of rather terrible, traumatizing kissing tonight, and that just went to neutralizing the bad ones, so-"

Only to happy to comply, he bent his head to hers again. This time the kiss was less chaste and sweet, and more daring, exploratory, exhilarating. Sparks flew and it wasn't long before his tongue had entered her mouth again; but this dance, while lively, was still graceful and measured, rather than the full-on rush of his desperate search from minutes before. His hands caressed and offered tactile admiration to her form-nowhere too sensitive, but the intimacy involved in the long, smooth strokes along her back had her shuddering with pleasure all the same. She was quite firmly molded to him at this point, one of her own small, slender hands tangled in the mass of silver at the nape of his neck, the other arm wrapped around his back and hand clinging with surprising strength to his haori. The press of her soft flesh against his, even through the thick cloth, had him stifling moans; it was with great regret that he broke the embrace, pulling her even tighter into his arms, her head tucked resolutely under his chin as he tried to rein in his (currently rampaging-in-sheer-delight) hormones.

"Inuyasha?" Her breathy, husky voice sent shivers through him; he didn't trust his voice to respond.

He gave a non-committal sort of grunt; she understood that it meant he was listening.

"The bad kisses have finally balanced out now. She'd like permission to have the balance tipped in favor of good ones though..."

"Oi, wench, what are you up to?" he chuckled lightly at her forwardness, his voice lower than usual, (for whatever innocent reason).

"If you'd just help me out a little, I wouldn't have to admit to Sango that I was lying earlier."

He shook his head. "I never heard that. What you said was: 'because I want to be happy, and kisses from the man I love make me happy.' Right?"

She giggled, winking up at him. "Maybe..." He growled lightly at her, baring his teeth in mock-anger; laughing even more, she finally relented. "Fine, that's exactly what I said. Now will you make an honest woman of me?"

His eyebrows and ears shot straight up in surprise (and not a little dirty hope), but after a second of her confused gaze (she doesn't really not realize what she said, does she? he thought in a daze) he managed a knowing, lascivious leer. "I'd be delighted..."

Kagome never did find out what had her hanyou smirking the rest of the night, but she didn't really mind. He'd made her an honest woman, hadn't he?

And that was more than enough for her.

A/N: Thanks to phlawere, who deserves credit for sparking my own ideas with one very evocative line: I humbly thank thee for the use, extensive twisting, even more thorough elaboration upon, and assistance in improving it once my own poor fingers got tired and brain shut down under the horror known as a hanyou-level inferiority complex. As a show of my gratitude (which had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that it tied in the entire pretense of the fic along with the title, not to mention my own tendencies) I submitted to your desire to keep the innuendo at the end.

Oh, and the dear phlawere has expressed interest in a sequel (hentai warning); if enough other people agree, I'll write one.

Hope you liked it.