Summary: Inuyasha and Kagome have finally become mates, and have a son. When Naraku attacks, Kagome is separated from her son and husband. Kagome's stuck in her own time and Inuyasha thinks she's dead. They both give up. What happens when Kagome returns, with a daughter, after more than 16 years apart.

Chapter title: A change in behavior

"Kagome! Kagome wake up!" Kagome was jilted out of her peaceful sleep by her little brothers' shouts.

"Souta, when I manage to open my eye's and move, you are SO dead!" Kagome mumbled, pulling her pillow on top of her head to block out his calls.

"But Kagome, it was you who told me to wake you up. You said Inuyasha would get mad at you if you were late again," Souta whined.

At that Kagome leapt from her comfortable bed, "Oh crap! I am so DEAD!" she ran towards the bathroom. "Thanks Souta!"

Kagome didn't wait to hear his reply. She, instead, raced into the bathroom where she tossed her clean school uniform to one side, stripped herself of her pajamas and jumped into the shower. Quickly she washed her hair and then as fast as she got in, she hopped out again. Drying off, she wrapped a towel around her dripping hair while she pulled on her uniform. After, she ran back into her room and began tossing things into her backpack. 5 minuets later she remembered she still had a towel on her head, so she ran back to her bathroom, combed out her hair, and blow dried it. Once she had finished getting ready she ran back into her room, tossed the rest of her things into her already overstuffed backpack, and dragged it downstairs. Tossing the massive bag near the door she raced into the kitchen to say her good-bye's to her mother and Grandfather.

"Alright, I have to go, I am beyond late, and Inuyasha is so not going to be happy, especially since he thinks we're really close to catching Naraku! Bye Jii-chan," Kagome kissed the top of the elderly mans' balding head, while he mumbled something about stupid demon taking to long and that he should just get it over with and do it, Kagome didn't pay much attention. "I'll be back in a few day's with Inuyasha for prom Mama," Kagome hugged her mother good-bye, grabbed an apple form the fruit bowl, and headed back towards the front door.

"Bye Kagome!" Mrs. Higurashi shouted, her daughter didn't respond. She suddenly felt abandoned and alone. She turned on the kettle, Souta would be coming down for breakfast soon; she set her mind on preparing the boy's meal. 'She will come home one day,' she thought, 'and it will be over.' The silence of the house pressed against her aging body. 'She will come home.'

Kagome raced across the yard of the old shrine. She was 18 now, it had been a few years since she first fell down the well and met all her friends. Kagome worked really hard to keep her grades up, and live in Feudal Japan, but she had gotten through it all. She just finished writing her final diploma exam, and was going to go back to the Feudal era until it was time for her Prom, which she was taking Inuyasha too, because it has luckily fallen on a full moon.

Over time Sango and her had become like sisters, they knew everything about each other. Miroku was still the pervert he had always been, but now his attention was directed solely at Sango. The two were in love, and everyone knew it. As for her and Inuyasha, well, they were a little on and off. Most of the time they were very close, they would always be holding hands, snuggling up in the Goshinboku (name of big tree, heehee, Cailiegh), or just walking off talking to each other, according to Miroku they were going off to make out, and he wasn't so far off this time. They even slept close to each other whenever they were camping out away from the village. But whenever there was mention of Kikyo, or she would show up, Inuyasha would close himself off form everyone, especially Kagome. It just confused her to think about it.

Running into the old well house, Kagome jumped over the side of the deteriorating well and she felt the familiar sensation of traveling back in time, and she opened her eyes to see the glowing blue around her that she always saw before her feet gracefully hit the bottom of the well in Feudal Japan. Managing to pull herself and her over-loaded back-pack up over the lip of the well she looked around, expecting Inuyasha to come flying out of one of the near-by tree's yelling at her for being late. But he didn't.

"That's odd. I wonder where he is…………………" Kagome thought to herself, "Oh, if he left without me, I'll-I'll………………….. I'll sit him into my time!"

Finally standing up, and brushing off the dirt form the well Kagome was greeted by an all too familiar tornado, "Kagome! You've returned!" Kouga exclaimed, taking her hands in his.

"Hello Kouga," Kagome rolled her eye's, removing her hands from Kouga's, "Yes, I'm back, I promised Inuyasha I would be."

"Are you still with mutt face? You're my woman Kagome, you belong with me!" Kouga stated, grabbing her bag form her hands and throwing it over his shoulder, as they began to walk towards the village.

Kagome sighed, "Kouga, seriously. We've gone over this before, I'm not your woman."

He was about to open his mouth in retaliation when Sango and Miroku ran up to them, "Kagome! Thank god you're here!" she exclaimed, out of breath.

Kagome turned to her friends with concern etched on her face, "Sango! Miroku! What's wrong? Where's Inuyasha? Is he alright?"

Sango took in a few big gulps of air before she could manage to speak again, "Yes, well, no, but yes………………………… ugh! He's fine physically, but something is seriously wrong with him Kagome! Ever since you left he's been acting really odd. It's as if he's in a whole other world, and he just looks sad all the time."

Perplexed, Kagome just stared before saying, "what do you mean? I don't understand."

"He's Just Really Depressed all the time and he keeps to himself more than usual. It looks like he's deep in thought about something. He doesn't even get mad anymore. We tried everything! Miroku even made up some story about him having a dream of you bearing his children," Kagome noticed Miroku wince at the memory, and his hand traveled to a large bump on the back of his head, most likely a gift from Sango, for his 'story'. "And that only seemed to make upset him even more. And not scary angry Inuyasha either. It was sad, depressed Inuyasha."

Miroku glanced at Kouga, "Kouga I think it would be in all our best interest if you left. I'm not sure how Inuyasha will react to you being here right now."

Kouga was about to retort when Shippo, who was standing behind Miroku piped up, "Ohhhhh, to late, here he comes." And sure enough Inuyasha was walking towards the group looking quiet disheveled. He was walking at a steady pace, with his head down and his hands folded inside of his Horari sleeves.

As he neared the group he glanced up at them. His eyes fell onto Kagome, then to Kouga, and finally back to Kagome once more, his eyes clouded over with sadness and heartbreak, his face was set in a look of despair. Casting his gaze back down onto the dirt ahead of him Inuyasha began to walk past them. Then Kouga had to open his mouth, "Hey mutt-face! You can't just walk away from me. Have you finally given up? Realizing a lousy half-breed like you isn't good enough for Kagome. Have you finally figured out that she's my woman!"

Slowly Inuyasha turned and regarded Kouga, "if Kagome wants to be with you that's her choice Kouga. I understand if she doesn't want a Hanyou," and with that, he turned once again and headed into his forest.

Kagome and the others just stood there with their mouths open, had Inuyasha really just said what they thought he said?

Kouga was the first to regain him self from the shock, "see! Even Mutt-face knows you're my woman Kagome!" he tried to put his arm around her, but she pushed him away.

"Kouga, I am NOT your woman! I'm with Inuyasha! Get over it," she shouted. Then, after taking a moment to compose herself she spoke again, much calmer this time, "listen Kouga, just go home. Why don't you give Ayame a chance? She's a nice girl. I'm just not interested in you as anymore then a friend, okay. But right now I have to go find Inuyasha." She explained calmly before she turned in the direction Inuyasha went and began jogging lightly into the forest, leaving the others behind.

Kagome searched the forest for Inuyasha, but she couldn't find him. She checked all his usual spots, but still, no sign of Inuyasha. Finally, after an hour of searching there was only one more place she could think of to look. The well. Slowly, Kagome walked towards the meadow where the well stood, and sure enough, there he was. He was perched on one of the wood sides with his back to herm but she could see that he was holding something small in his hand, looking down at it, studying it.

"Inuyasha?" she said his name quietly, as she approached him. He jumped, surprised to hear her voice, he quickly hopped off his spot and hid whatever he had been holding behind his back. She sighed and walked up to stand in front of him, "Inuyasha, what's going on? What are you hiding? And why did you let Kouga say those things? You're not acting like yourself, everyone is worried about you."

Inuyasha looked intently down at her, his eyes still filled with sadness. Then he became very serious and asked simply, "Kagome, do you love me?"

She was startled by his question, "WH-what?"

This time he looked away when he asked, "Do you love me?"

Kagome stepped a little closer to him, her eyes becoming softer, a smile passing over her lips, "Inu, I thought that went without saying. Of course I love you. I love you more than anyone could ever love another person."

"But I'm a half-breed Kagome, a lousy Hanyou. You might get discriminated against for being with me. And I don't know if I can give you everything that you deserve. Kouga can, he's a full demon," Inuyasha argued, his expression becoming sadder with every word.

Kagome stepped forward again, slipping one of her fingers under his chin and turned his head so he was looking at her, "I don't want Kouga. If I did I would be with him, not you. Inu, I love you as you are. I would love you no matter what you were. And I don't care about what other people think." She smiled up at him, and leaned close to his face, letting her hands rest on his chest, "You're all I want Inuyasha, just you." She closed the gap between them, softly kissing his parted lips. She was tempted to deepen the kiss, but resisted, she needed him to know that she truly loved him. After a moment she pulled away to breath in the air her lungs had been lacking. Inuyasha looked down at her, his eye's were no longer sad, but now they were filled with love and resolution.

He pulled her into a tight embrace, and whispered to her, "Kagome, I'm not very good at this kind of thing, but I want this to be perfect for you," he pulled back to stand an arms length away form her, still holding the mystery object in his hand. "Kagome I want you to know that I love you. Only you, no one else, not Kikyo, not anyone, just you."

Kagome was slightly startled by what he was saying, but it was also making her happy. He had just told her that he loved her, he had never said that before, and not only that, but he just said he loved her more than Kikyo. She smiled lovingly up at him and placed one of her hands on the smooth skin of his cheek, he leaned into her touch, "I know you do Inuyasha."

He smiled, brushing some stray hairs away form her face, "Kagome, you're the only woman I could ever want. Being with you these past few years has been the best thing that ever happened to me. I don't know when this thing with Naraku will be over, and I know you might want a life in your own time, but – but if you're willing to stay with me, if you'll have me, Kagome, I want you to be my mate…………"

ok, so i know this chapter isn't that good, but i just wanna see if people like it and if you do, i will work on more, better chapters. plaese if you like ti, review so i know to write more!

Aya-Chan