I didn't really mean for this fic to turn out so long, but it kind of grew a mind of its own. Just some drama and a lil' fluff for your reading pleasure. Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: Hah, I wish.
Inuyasha remembered the morning Kagome was kidnapped as clearly as if it was yesterday. And for all intensive purposes, it could've been. He barely slept at all during the two weeks they searched for her. Her scream was constantly echoing in his head, the image of her terror-filled eyes permanently seared into his memory. It was what drove him tirelessly, even as his companions eventually begged him to take a break. It was his fault she'd been taken, and if she died, it would be his fault then, too. But he'd be damned if he didn't die too, trying to get her back.
The day started out normally enough. It had been storming for days, but they'd managed to catch a break the night before when they found a dry and empty cave to take shelter in. The group took their time getting up and ready; none of them were eager to go back out into the downpour.
Miroku woke Sango with what he referred to as a good-morning grope, and was appropriately punished by Sango, whose reflexes were not at all diminished by lack of complete consciousness. Inuyasha sat at the mouth of the cave, watching the two with an expression of boredom, then turned his attention to Kagome, who was just beginning to rouse from the warm nest of her sleeping bag. She sat up groggily to see what was causing the commotion a few feet away, then yawned and snuggled back down into the warmth of her cover. Inuyasha suppressed a little smirk at her appearance; her dark wavy hair was tangled from sleep and a few strands hung over her eyes, which were only half-open and puffy. She was so damn pretty…
Then that little runt had to ruin the picture by crawling out from behind her, where he'd been curled up in the crook of her bent knees under the sleeping bag. When Shippo was awake, there was no more peace; he brought new and horrible meaning to the phrase, 'bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.' The small kitsune immediately set to work on waking up Kagome and getting her to make him some breakfast. Kagome spoiled the child rotten, and Inuyasha swore he'd laugh his ass off when the kid grew up into a needy and incapable adult youkai.
The usual morning banter/arguments took place, with Inuyasha complaining about how slow they were going, how late they were going to be, how many shards they still needed to recover. Shippo was busy snapping back at him and baiting him, and Kagome played referee as usual, with a couple of 'sits' for Inuyasha, and a stern warning for Shippo. Sango and Miroku sat back and idly watched, eating their breakfast of fish and rice and occasionally tossing in a comment. Kirara was ignoring everyone entirely and grooming herself in Sango's lap. It was the beginning of another day, one of hundreds they'd spent together.
Once they finally (and reluctantly) emerged out into the rain, it didn't take five minutes for Inuyasha and Kagome to start in on each other. Inuyasha would later think back and try to remember why he'd been so pissed at all, so determined to get his way. They had spats all the time, and he always said the most stupid, hurtful things to her. Truthfully he sometimes looked for reasons to be angry, and he occasionally liked to get a rise out of Kagome as well, especially when she did annoying things like babying Shippo or making them stop at nearly ever hot springs they passed. It was his way of making her pay attention to him. But nothing she'd ever said or done was deserving of the things he'd yelled at her that morning. They haunted him.
She was talking about needing to go home for some reason, and he had just snapped. He didn't even know he was at the end of his rope, so his reaction surprised even him at first. He told her she went home way to often and it was getting in the way of their shard-hunting, and she retorted that shard-hunting wasn't her only responsibility in life. He then yelled that she should take some responsibility for the jewel that she broke, and she yelled back that she was, despite being stuck with a jerk like him. He hadn't taken well to that particular comment, and his stupid cursed mouth ran off, leaving what little better judgment he had far behind.
Inuyasha wished that he couldn't remember what he'd said, but he did, every single hateful word. First he told her how horrible it was to be stuck withher, with her inability to do anything but cry and misfire arrows. Then he blamed her for risking their lives all the time, since she insisted on making herself a target, and couldn't protect herself properly. Finally he very loudly and angrily informed her that she probably should just go home, and stay there, because she was practically worthless with them.
It was never a good sign when Kagome stopped arguing, but it was an even worse sign when she wasn't reacting at all. Somewhere during his tirade she'd just abandoned her own defense completely, and when he came back down from his rant, there she was, just standing there, looking at him. Sango's eyes were wide and her mouth was open in obvious shock. Miroku was sending him a murderous glare, staff poised to swing around and clock him over the head. Shippo scampered back behind Sango's ankles, anticipating whatever divine retribution was coming for Inuyasha in payment for saying all of those things.
Inuyasha knew he'd stepped over a line, but his pride wouldn't let him backpedal, so he squared his shoulders, mentally daring any of them to oppose him. At the same time, he waited nervously for Kagome's response, calling himself every kind of idiot for getting himself into this mess in the first place. He wished the screaming and the sitting would go ahead and start, so she could get it all out and not be angry with him any more. Sango and Miroku always followed Kagome's lead when it came to handling him; if she was happy, they left him alone, and if she was sad…
As if of its own accord, his mouth opened again. "What? Nothing to say to that,bitch?" Mentally he was slamming his head into a brick wall, flinging himself off of the world's highest cliff, cutting his traitorous tongue out with his own claws. Fucking hell, why he never learned was beyond him, and at this point, he didn't want any more chances with anyone he cared about. He didn't deserve any more chances.
It only got worse in reality, while he was busy committing suicide in his head. Kagome twitched a bit, and her eyes filled, but no tears fell. He could smell the salt, but she was looking every inch cold and composed. She gave no indication that she even noticed that the rain, which had temporarily slowed to a drizzle, was back in full force. Her hair and clothes were soaked, and rain ran down her cheeks in rivulets, but that was all it was—just rain.
"Okay." The single word was almost whispered, but everyone heard. Kagome licked her lips, the first move she'd made in minutes, and it broke the spell. She broke eye contact with Inuyasha, and stepped around him. Everyone kind of paused, not sure what she was doing, whether to follow her, to send just one of them after her, or leave her alone entirely. But the decision was taken from them when the youkai burst out from the woods in front of Kagome, taking even Inuyasha by surprise.
To a certain extent, size dictated power in the world of youkai. The bigger ones picked off the smaller ones, and were higher up on the food chain. And then there were sentient youkai, demons that had higher thought power. These demons didn't need size to win a battle; they had brains. That was this particular youkai's advantage.
Kagome stumbled back while Inuyasha rushed forward, sword brandished. But he wasn't fast enough. The youkai, who was a good seven feet tall, with short but pointed horns, fangs, claws and scaly black skin yanked Kagome clear off the ground, claws sinking into her side as his grip tightened. Inuyasha was temporarily caught off-guard, as he couldn't swing with her in the way. But she wasn't completely helpless. Wincing, she managed to reach one arm around and wrap her fingers around the end of an arrow, one of several that were strapped to her back along with her bow. Not thinking twice, she plunged the arrow as hard as she could into the youkai's neck. The arrow flashed with spiritual energy, and he dropped her.
Upon landing, Kagome scrambled away as fast as she could towards safety. "Miko…" The low hiss behind her made her stop and turn around slowly. The youkai's blood-red eyes bore into hers and he yanked out the arrow that was rapidly causing his flesh and muscle to dissolve. "You're the miko…" An eerie grin was spreading on his face, and suddenly Inuyasha was wishing that Kagome was behind him instead of still in front of him. The youkai switched his gaze to him and he laughed softly, and Inuyasha realized why Kagome hadn't been moving. This demon wasn't one of the usual miserable fuckers that regularly tried to steal the shards. There was something about him that demanded to be taken seriously.
So of course Inuyasha did the opposite. "I'm finishing this…" He snarled and raised Tetsusaiga in order to kaze no kizu the guy's brains out.It was the last move he made, because faster than he could even blink, the air around them was engulfed in flames, despite the rain. Steam immediately clouded around them, making the visibility even worse. "Kagome!" He called, but there was no answer. Frustrated and not a little scared, Inuyasha dove into the flames searching for any sign of the girl.
After a few moments the air cleared enough for them to see, and the sight that greeted them would stay with Inuyasha forever. Kagome was back in the youkai's clutches, this time her bow and arrows discarded and burnt. The demon's enormous black wings were spread, poised for flight, and one arm was locked tightly around Kagome's neck, where she hung, helplessly gasping and pulling at him. Her eyes locked with Inuyasha's, and he could feel the terror he saw in them like it was his own. And it was.
"The dragons have your pretty miko now, hanyou. Follow me if you desire the same fate." The youkai sneered, then let out an inhuman screech as he took flight, immediately soaring high above them.
Inuyasha was on Kirara in seconds, chasing them as fast as Kirara was able. But this demon had wings and a head start, and the scent of his blood didn't linger long in the open sky for either youkai to be able to track. In addition to their defeat, the youkai's screech had apparently been a call for backup, because within a minute hundreds of large, clawed, crow-liked creatures had swarmed around them, forcing them back to earth where Sango and Miroku and Shippo could help in killing them all off. It had taken a good ten minutes to defeat them all. It was ten minutes Inuyasha would spend the next two weeks trying to get back.
"Inuyasha, there's at least fifty full-grown dragon youkai in the caverns alone. Who knows how many there are patrolling around the outside!" Miroku never failed to be the voice of logic. Inuyasha only growled. "So what, we're going to just wish Kagome luck and leave?" Their options were rather limited.
After days and days of endless tracking, Inuyasha had finally gotten a lead on where a clan of dragon youkai hid. The dragons weren't a numerous breed, but they were powerful and aggressive. Mostly they kept to themselves up in the mountains though, which made them difficult to find. Of course there was no guarantee that this was the clan that had taken Kagome, but Inuyasha wasn't about to sit and ponder over the first and only trail they'd found. No, these dragons were going to have hell to pay.
Miroku exchanged a doubtful look with Sango. The two were beat; they were averaging less than three hours of sleep a day, having been reduced to taking turns napping while riding Kirara, then carrying Kirara when she could no longer fly. Shippo was lucky; it was easy to carry him, and he stayed mostly out of Inuyasha's way now that Kagome wasn't around to protect him.
Still, Inuyasha had worked even harder and slept much less. True, his hanyou body allowed him to push himself more, but he wasn't invincible. But they had to hand it to him, he was determined. Inuyasha refused to despair or give up, and if he was feeling anything else, he didn't show it.
Their group was perched behind an outcropping of rock high on a ledge overlooking the youkai's hideout. It was looking fairly calm below, indicating that they hadn't been discovered. "Inuyasha, as much as you love barging in with Tetsusaiga, I think this might be a time when sneaking would serve our purpose better." Miroku advised. He wasn't even sure Inuyasha was capable of sneaking, but it was their only hope.
"Dragon youkai aren't known for their spectacular sense of smell. As long as you aren't seen, they shouldn't be able to even detect you." Sango informed them. Inuyasha arched an eyebrow at her. "Seriously?"
Sango shrugged. "They breath smoke and fire out their noses all day. What would you expect?" She had a point. "Miroku, you should stay outside. Your wind tunnel will keep them from flying around and getting backup, if they discover us. I'll go in with Inuyasha."
Miroku was reluctant to agree, but sending Inuyasha in alone didn't seem like a good option either. What if he was found? Someone had to get Kagome out while the other was fighting youkai off. "Fine." He nodded shortly, and Sango gave him a half-smile. "Kirara, you stay with Miroku." The small cat youkai mewed in response.
It took no small amount of climbing around to get up to the entryway to the caverns, but getting past the two guards was fairly easy, thanks to the poisonous gas Sango carried with her. Once inside, Inuyasha immediately detected Kagome's scent in the stale air. "She's under us. We need to find a way down." Inuyasha said in a low voice. It seemed ridiculous to think that he was going to stage a rescue and get out successfully without striking a single blow, but nonetheless, that was the plan, until it failed and then he could resort to his usual violence.
They nearly walked right by the tiny opening in the wall that led to a narrow staircase; the stairs were more jagged rock than anything, and Inuyasha was almost too big to get through. Surely this passage wasn't used by the dragon youkai, who were significantly larger. Just when he was sure they'd gone down a rabbit hole with no exit, it opened out into the side of a dark and drippy passageway that smelled of sulfur and mold and earth. Inuyasha sniffed tentitavely; Kagome's scent was muffled, but still there, and strong enough to follow. He led Sango, who couldn't see in the darkness, and the two carefully stepped through the mud on the floor; dragons couldn't smell well, but there was nothing wrong with their sense of hearing, or ability to feel strange vibrations through the ground.
They followed the tunnel for what seemed like ages before Inuyasha suddenly stopped. He wasn't sure what made him halt, but something in him insisted that he'd arrived. Kagome's scent wasn't much stronger, but maybe to his left…He felt the stone wall, pressing his ear flat against it. Something was behind it, but he wasn't sure what, or whether it was a good idea to even find out. But the subconscious nagging in his mind wouldn't leave him alone. He pushed slightly, and the stone gave a few inches. The faintest breeze blew past him, but with it was all the incentive he needed.
First and foremost, he caught Kagome's scent again on the air, this time much stronger. With it came the smell of blood, hers and others'. "She'shere." He said urgently, pushing harder against the stone. It gave another few inches, enough for him to squeeze through, Sango close behind. She lit the small torch she carried, then gasped. "Oh God…"
Kagome was there, alright, and it was the best and worst thing Inuyasha had ever seen. The tiny cell was cold and wet, and curled up in the corner was Kagome, filthy and unconscious but alive. Inuyasha immediately dropped to his knees and gathered her up, making quick work of the chains that were binding her wrists and ankles to the wall. "Kagome? Kagome, answer me." He whispered, shaking her slightly. She gradually opened her eyes to squint at him, but otherwise didn't reply. He swore under his breath and pulled her closer.
"Inuyasha, we have to get out of here." Sango brought him back to reality. He nodded and lifted Kagome easily, noting that she was distinctly lighter than usual. He ached to find the nearest dragon and rip it to shreds, but for once his brains won out over his brawn, and he followed Sango back the way they came.
Miraculously, they were able to get all the way back to the first cavern they'd entered before encountering any trouble. Trouble came in the form of another sentry who'd seen the first two downed guards outside. Inuyasha wasted no time in cleaving the dragon in half with Tetsusaiga, but not before the sentry let out another one of the ghastly screeches that echoed for miles, calling for help.
"Sango, you take Kagome and run for the outside. I'm right behind you." Inuyasha shifted the semi-conscious Kagome over to Sango, who didn't ask questions, only ran forward towards the exit. The two burst out into the open and in no time, Miroku and Kirara were swooping down, just as dots were appearing on the horizon, signifying more dragons coming in.
"Get on!" Miroku yelled, and moved back so that Sango could have more room. Inuyasha appeared a second later, sword dripping with steaming black liquid. He leaped past his companions as they took off, making his own escape by jumping from cliff to cliff. An aerial attack would be hard to avoid now, but he'd been looking for an excuse to fight ever since they'd taken Kagome. It was long overdue.
Miroku angled himself backwards on Kirara and opened the wind tunnel on their pursuers. Immediately every airborne youkai was pulled off course and towards the void. Inuyasha, carefully braced behind a heavy boulder, aimed attack after attack at the helpless youkai, until there were none left in the air, and the remaining ones were retreating back into the caverns. Kirara was too far away for effective flame attacks, and while the rocky terrain made for a terrific maze of hideaways, it was nearly impossible to cross in decent time.
Miroku closed his kazaana and Inuyasha sprung from his position, following as closely as he could from the ground. None of them wanted to spend any more time there.
At the first chance they got, the group landed. The forest was dense and would provide good cover from anyone flying overhead. Inuyasha was nearly beside himself with worry as he ran over to take Kagome from Sango's arms. But Kagome didn't really need much help anyway. She was awake, and had been hanging tight to Sango's shoulders up until when they had landed. She stood somewhat unsteadily, but wouldn't let anyone help her sit or carry her. "I'm fine, Inuyasha." She sighed as he wordlessly examined her, running his hands carefully over her shoulders and arms and down her sides, checking for broken bones or open wounds. "You are not fine, wench. Did you hit your head or something?" He responded gruffly, then as if on second thought, checked her head as well.
"I promise, Inuyasha. It's nothing life-threatening. I'm just tired." Something in her voice wasn't right, and Inuyasha immediately picked up on it. But there was nothing he could really do for the time being. He'd interrogate her later; the stupid wench was always trying to hide her injuries and shit from him. She said he always overreacted. Overreact, my ass. He thought grumpily. "Alright, let's get out of here. We're still too close to the mountains."
"Here, Kagome. You can ride Kirara with me." Sango offered kindly, and Kagome accepted. Shippo, who'd been silently hanging back with Miroku, climbed up on Kagome's lap. "Hey Shippo, did you miss me?" She gave him a small smile, and he nodded, lip trembling piteously. "I missed you, too." Shippo buried his face into her shoulder.
Truthfully Inuyasha was surprised that Kagome didn't sleep once while they were traveling, even though she barely spoke a word the whole time, and she didn't move from her lethargic position leaning against Sango's back. He was scared shitless that the youkai had done something unspeakable to her, but it was impossible to tell whether she was sincerely traumatized, or just dead tired. She looked as if she hadn't eaten the whole two weeks, either.
They made camp hours after dark, and even then Inuyasha was clearly uncomfortable with their proximity to the rocky cliffs where the dragon youkai were probably plotting their revenge. It was as if a huge invisible burden had been lifted from everyone's shoulders, but they were so exhausted from carrying it that no one was really inclined to celebrate either. Sango and Miroku made small talk as they got the fire going and started roasting the fish Inuyasha had gone and caught a half hour earlier. Shippo was the only one who seemed just as energetic as usual; he chatted on and on to Kagome, who was obviously only half-listening.
"Hey runt, leave Kagome alone for a minute so she can eat." Inuyasha frowned at Shippo, who opened his mouth to most likely give a rude reply, but shut it when Kagome put her hand on his head. Instead he went over to play with Kirara on the other side of the fire.
Everyone pretended not to see how Kagome only picked at her food. It was downright irritating to Inuyasha, who was feeling this close to walking over to her and force-feeding her himself. The girl looked like she was ready to keel over from being malnourished.
Kagome set down her bowl of soup and stood. "Is there a spring near here? I really need a bath." It was the most she'd spoken all day, and the rest of the group tried to not act shocked, as if she'd just announced she was a man. Sango was the first to recover. "We passed one about five minutes back. Just follow the trail the way we came."
"Thanks, Sango. Ugh, I'm disgusting." Kagome flashed her friend a grin and picked up her worn yellow bag to take with her. She had barely left the clearing when both Miroku and Inuyasha said simultaneously, "Sango, go with her."
Neither girl spoke as they undressed and stepped into the warm water. It was too dark to see much, but Sango could only make out cuts and bruises on her friend's body, no protruding bones or life-threatening gashes to be seen. "Are you sure you're okay?" She asked quietly. "We were really worried about you."
Kagome looked up and the two locked gazes for almost a full minute before she opened her mouth to speak. "I'm fine. I'm just tired. And happy to be back." She managed a small smile. But Sango wasn't fooled. The two were like sisters, and by now Sango could read Kagome like a book. There was a haunted look in the younger girl's eyes, one that hadn't been there before. "What happened to you?" Sango asked softly. Had she been tortured? Had the youkai violated her in some way? Men had tried before, and Kagome was so pretty and innocent…
"It's not what you're thinking." Apparently Kagome could read Sango just as well. "They didn't do much with me, just locked me up. It was boring." She tried to joke, and Sango favored her with a humorless laugh. She couldn't manage anything more than that.
Kagome scrubbed furiously at her hair, working her shampoo into a pile of suds on her hair. Then she dunked to rinse the soap out and did it all again. Sango knew Kagome was fastidious about being clean, and now she knew what happened if her friend was deprived of a bath for more than three days. After she finished her third shampoo, she started in on her skin, scrubbing it raw with the soap and a rag, until it was bright pink and all of the old wounds were open again.
"Kagome, don't--" Sango knew better than any of them the overwhelming urge to get the stink and filth of evil out of one's very pores. Kagome slowed and eyed her, almost as if she was challenging her to tell her to stop. Sango's shoulders drooped. "Don't scrub so hard. You'll scar." She said a bit more meekly. Kagome didn't seem affronted, only held out the soapy rag. "Get my back for me? I can't reach." Sango complied.
Several sets of claw marks marred her back, but although the cuts had been deep once, they'd scabbed over and healed some. "You're lucky these didn't get infected." Sango commented darkly, even though she had no idea how Kagome could've prevented infection anyway. She rubbed the cloth lightly over the wounds, careful not to actually scrub at any of them. Kagome never winced once.
"It's no big deal. You've been through much worse." Kagome's voice sounded almost light. It was true, and Sango had the scars to prove it, but that didn't make Kagome's pain any less important. "Please don't tell Inuyasha," She continued. "You know how he gets when I'm hurt."
Sango allowed herself a small smile at that. Inuyasha flipped out at practically every ailment Kagome had, from anything as serious as being fatally poisoned, to something inconsequential like feeling dizzy from not eating properly. It was a little cute. "I won't say anything, but he'll still smell the blood on you."
"I'm using a lot of soap." They both knew Inuyasha wouldn't be fooled by soap, but it wasn't something they could exactly hide with anything besides clothes. After one last dunk, Kagome pulled herself out of the water, dried off and got dressed. Sango followed, thankful that the night air was warm, and that it wasn't rainy. She paused for a moment to listen for any telltale rustlings in the brush from certain nosy monks, but there was nothing.
Sure enough, Miroku was sitting at the fire with Inuyasha, neither of them looking as if they'd budged an inch. "I'm going to bed you guys. Good night." Kagome spoke up as she climbed into her sleeping bag. Shippo scampered over to curl up in his usual spot next to her.
"Me too. Good night Kagome." Sango replied as she rolled out her own bedding. Inuyasha and Miroku looked at her expectantly the second Kagome shut her eyes. She only shrugged and shook her head; Miroku sighed deeply and Inuyasha ground his teeth. Kagome wasn't normally the type to hide her emotions. Even if she didn't want Inuyasha to see how she really felt, she didn't try to hide anything from either the monk or the slayer. Maybe she was being honest with them the whole time, and nothing had happened while she'd been held captive.
Miroku was the first to brush aside the tension that was humming between the three. "I will join you, lovely Sango."
"No you won't, monk." Sango said from underneath her cover.
"But if I were to just touch--" He tried again, scooting closer.
"You lay a finger on me, and the finger comes off." Sango wasn't sure if Miroku ever actually expected to do any of what he proposed to her, but she wasn't taking any chances.
"Ah, my lovely Sango, you taunt me with your harsh words. If you would allow me but one caress--"
"Caress yourself." That didn't come out quite in the way she'd meant it to.
"…"
"…"
"…It's not the same." There was a rather loud thwack as Sango struck the monk over the head, muttering something about 'lechery' and 'castration.' Dazed, Miroku moved away to the other side of the fire, next to Inuyasha. Inuyasha looked none too pleased about this, and quickly took to the trees for the night. Although the whole group was worn out, he had no intentions of sleeping, not while they were still traveling. He didn't think he'd get a decent night's sleep until they returned to Kaede's village, which was still a good two or three days' journey away. But he wasn't resting until Kagome was safe in the familiar village, where he knew the surroundings for miles around, and nothing could sneak up on them and take her away again.
The following day Inuyasha decided to try his hand at finding out what had happened to Kagome. He had been sure that Sango would get the whole story, but when she later told them how little she'd learned, he refused to believe that that was the whole story.
There was no time in the morning to talk to her. He knew she hadn't slept well the night before. Her heart rate hadn't slowed much, indicating she had barely gotten past a light doze, at best. But she seemed more energetic when everyone was getting up. She helped Sango cook breakfast, listened to Shippo's drawn-out story of a little fox demon who chomped off the foot of a mean dog demon, 'sat' Inuyasha once for trying to smack Shippo during his story, and again when he swore rather vulgarly as he was prying himself out of the dirt. Then she made fairly pleasant conversation with Miroku, who was acting the most normal of all of them, and kept Kirara in her lap the entire time, stroking the kitten idly. Kirara didn't seem to mind one bit, naturally.
Kagome's school uniform had been ruined when they found her, so she was now sporting a spare set of pants and a shirt. She complained that her mother would be angry when she found out about the uniform. Still, she looked as if she was in good spirits, ready for a day of travel. Inuyasha could barely smell the remnants of the dirt and blood that had covered her yesterday, and only a few scratches and bruises on her face, neck and arms indicated that she'd been in any trouble at all.
He managed to get her alone when they stopped for lunch and she went to get water to boil. He dropped down in front of her from the branches above where he'd been following her, scaring the wits out of her in the process. He hadn't really meant to do that…
"Inuyasha!! Don't just jump out at me like that!" She protested weakly, gathering up the kettle she'd dropped in her surprise.
"Keh. You should be more prepared! I could've been a youkai waiting to kill you!" Inuyasha pointed out, arms folded over his chest. When would the girl learn that there were all sorts of monsters that would love to tear her to pieces?
"You could've killed me! I nearly had a heart attack!" Kagome started walking past him, and he turned around to follow her.
"Hey! I'm talking to you, wench!" He said loudly, trying to get her attention. When that didn't work, he ran ahead and stopped in front of her again, blocking her path. She looked up at him expectantly, and suddenly he wasn't sure how he was supposed to phrase his words, or what words he intended to say in the first place, for that matter. So as usual, his mouth just blurted out the first words that arrived there. "Tell me what they did to you."
"Who?" Kagome asked, and inwardly Inuyasha began to pull his hair out. She was the most frustrating bitch he'd ever met, especially when she played dumb. But she wasn't going to brush him off this time.
"You know who. I want to know everything that happened. Every last detail. So I can go rip out their insides and string them up by their own guts." He growled. The mere thought of anyone laying a finger on Kagome made him see red.
"Inuyasha…" She responded patiently. Great, now she was patronizing him. "As lovely as that sounds, nothing happened. They knocked me around a bit, chained me up, and left me. That's all."
"They'll die for taking you." He felt like sinking his claws into something, anything. So he settled for a nearby tree.
"Lots of them died yesterday. It's enough. Besides," She gave a soft laugh. "I've been kidnapped before, and everything always turns out alright. What's the problem this time?"
Had she gone insane? How could she think that this was no big deal? "It's not the same. You don't know what I--" He cut himself off before he revealed too much. But Kagome was an intuitive girl. She understood, even when he didn't speak. "Thank you for saving me." She offered a ghost of a smile.
"Please, like we would've just let you be taken away." He scoffed and rolled his eyes. But the situation was far from resolved. "Before…before you were kidnapped, I said--" Words abandoned him as his emotions and pride battled in his head. He owed Kagome more than a simple apology. He would never forget that those hateful words could've been the last he'd ever said to her. But a simple apology was all he had at the moment, if he could ever get it out past his damned pride…
Kagome saved him once again. "Don't worry about it. I'm not angry, I know what you meant. It's fine." It wasn't fine at all. How could she say it was? He had no idea what he'd done to deserve her constantly staying beside him, even when he was the biggest asshole on the planet. And he'd willingly spend the rest of his life trying to keep her happy.
But once again he'd gotten distracted. As much as he secretly felt for her, this wasn't the time for wallowing in his emotions. Her problems were more important at the moment. She was once again walking past him to head to the creek for water. "Kagome?" This time she stopped and turned to look at him. "I can't help you if you don't let me." Inwardly he was begging her to crack and let him in too, so he could be with her. He had no idea what he could do, but something wasn't right, and it was in his nature to try to fix it.
For a moment her big blue-gray eyes flashed with something different, and he knew she'd heard him. For a moment he saw her soul, but it disappeared before he could understand what he was witnessing. And she was back to her usual cheerful self. "Okay." She said simply, and went on her way. Inuyasha swore to himself. Why on earth did he think he could get anywhere? Theirs was a horribly impeded relationship, and it was stupid of him to think she'd tell him something she wouldn't even tell Sango, the sister she'd never had.
Maybe Miroku would have some luck. When he wasn't being a complete lecher, Miroku was a solid shoulder to lean on, always ready to calmly listen and reserve judgment. He usually had the most objective advice, too, and he was shockingly wise, for all of his joking and flirting. Inuyasha knew that Kagome had confided in the monk on several occasions, and if she did so now, surely Miroku could shed some light on the situation.
Miroku had the same thing in mind when he fell back to walk with Kagome as they were traveling late in the afternoon. He knew Inuyasha had tried to get her to open up earlier with no success, but that didn't really surprise him. Kagome was a complex person sometimes, and Inuyasha wasn't exactly a beacon of warmth and comfort in times of trouble.
He didn't feel quite right about prying. Since he was the third to try, he imagined if Kagome was becoming a little annoyed with them, he'd get the brunt of it. Ah well, there was no help for it. He knew what Sango and Inuyasha meant when they said they thought Kagome was hiding something; he saw it too. This wasn't the normal Kagome they knew and loved.
"How are you feeling today, Kagome?" He asked genially. Kagome grinned at him, looking pleasantly surprised. "I'm fine." The smile dropped into an irritable frown. "And if you're wanting to know 'what happened,' I'll tell you the same thing I told Inuyasha and Sango: nothing." She kept walking.
Miroku marveled for a moment at her acting skills, but quickly recovered. "I believe you, Kagome. But it must've been frightening, being locked up for so long. I want to know exactly what happened. And don't say 'nothing' again!" He cut her off before she could speak. "Even if all the youkai did was offer you tea and massage your feet, that's stillsomething."
Kagome shot him a bemused look. "They didn't massage my feet. And I never had any tea." She laughed humorlessly.
"Well…" He pretended to be thinking deeply. "That does narrow it down. Anything else?"
Kagome rounded on him, forcing him to stop in his tracks. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Inuyasha and Sango glance back at him curiously, but he ignored them and prayed that they'd take a hint and keep walking. "Miroku…I don't know what else to tell you guys. They beat me up a little, locked me away, and then you guys came. It was frightening…and I don't want to remember it." Her voice caught for a moment, but when she continued, she sounded as strong and firm as ever. "Besides, I've got all my limbs, no broken bones, no holes in my gut."
Miroku's eyes softened…it hadn't been an outright confession, but he had a little of what he needed. "Kagome…that doesn't mean you're okay." He saved her by ending the conversation there, and instead took her hand and hooked it through his arm. He felt her squeeze him slightly, but there was no other visible response. "I am okay." She whispered
Late the following day they arrived at Kaede's village. Shippo immediately ran off to play with some of the other children before dinner, while Miroku and Sango stayed outside the small hut, enjoying the warm evening breeze and the promise of no more traveling for at least a week. Sango helped Kaede prepare for dinner while Miroku explained a bit of what Kagome had told him the day before. He didn't reveal much- he hadn't heard much, after all- but Sango felt better when she knew that Kagome had opened up just a little more, even if it was to Miroku.
It was also on this day that Kagome and Inuyasha had their first argument since they'd gotten Kagome back. No one was surprised.
"Inuyasha, why do you make me go through this every single time I want to go home?" Kagome gritted her teeth as she stomped out of Kaede's hut, yellow bag slung over one shoulder.
"Because those tests of yours are a complete waste of time!" Inuyasha followed her out, teeth bared. Sango and Miroku rolled their eyes and sat back to watch, but Kaede gave no indication that she was witnessing anything at all, only kept stirring the soup that was boiling on the fire outside.
"And what about my family, huh? Are they a waste of time, too?" Kagome said bitterly, walking a bit faster now.
"They know you're fine. You're with me!" He sped up to walk ahead of her, then stopped in her path. She tried to walk around him, but he kept moving to block her.
"I haven't seen my family in almost a month! They worry about me all the time! And I'm going to say 'it' if you don't move right now." Inuyasha hastily let her pass, but easily caught up with her again.
"F-Fine! One day. That's it." He settled, thinking it was a fairly generous compromise.
"One week, Inuyasha." Kagome refused to bargain, and Inuyasha's ire grew. "Dammit wench, we can't wait around that long! Don't be selfish!" At this statement she came to a full stop and turned to face him, eyes narrowed. Unbidden, his ears twitched back a bit as if to brace for her wrath.
"SELFISH?!? I spend twice as much time here as I do at home! And you're already staying in the village for a week, Miroku and Sango said so! What's the point of sitting around here when I could be getting things done at home?!"
"THIS IS YOUR HOME!!" Inuyasha blurted, effectively silencing the young miko for about five seconds. She sighed and rubbed her temples, muttering, "When did going to school become my idea of a vacation?" With another sigh, she spoke to Inuyasha again. "Fine. In that case, I'm going away to that place that is not my home, where I used to live for sixteen years, to be with my family. While I'm not at home, I will be seeing all of my old friends, and I will be going to school, where I hope I'm still a student!! I'm going for a week. Deal with it. Don't speak to me." With that she turned and walked away.
Inuyasha glared at her retreating figure helplessly. He was scared to death that this would be the one time she left and didn't return. Why would she? She'd just been held captive for two weeks by fucking dragon youkai! It was by far probably one of the most horrible things that had happened to her here, and it was all his fault, too. He wouldn't really blame her if she didn't want to come back, but at the same time he couldn't stomach the thought of her being gone forever, either. Shehad to be here, with him.
"FINE! LEAVE!" He yelled at her. "AND DON'T COME BACK!" He swore to himself. He really had to do something about his mouth; it was getting completely out of control. Pissed off and dejected, he leapt off into the trees to brood.
After about an hour of beating himself up mentally, Inuyasha reluctantly came back down and skulked back to Kaede's for food and to possibly pick on Shippo as well. The kid had it coming, after all, and Kagome wasn't here now to defend him. He dared Miroku to say anything when he and Sango took one look at him and the rather obvious absence of Kagome. "Shut up, monk." He snarled.
"I didn't say anything." Miroku replied innocently. Inuyasha was about to backhand the insolent monk when Sango spoke up, surprising them all. Usually she kept quiet, except to boss Miroku around.
"Why don't you just go after her? The well lets you through too, right?" Inuyasha stared at her dumbly.
"Ah, what a novel idea, dear Sango!" Miroku joined in, mirth dancing in his eyes as he edged out of reach of the hanyou.
"Thank you, I thought of it myself."
Inuyasha glared at the two wiseasses, then turned and walked back out. Maybe Kagome had gone back to her time, but he'd be damned if he wasn't going to be there with her to make sure she came back.
When Inuyasha arrived at the Higurashi shrine, the house was dark except for Kagome's window. Maybe she was home alone? He jumped up to the branch outside her window and peered in. She was gone but it was obvious she'd been there recently; her schoolbooks were spread out over her desk and bed, and steam rose from a mug of tea sitting on the nightstand.
The window was unlocked, so he slid it open and climbed in, taking a moment to breathe. He always liked the scent of her room, because it smelled like her, faintly sweet. Sure, he could detect trace scents of Buyo, the kid, and her mother and grandfather, but this was Kagome's space, all for her. There was nowhere else quite like it.
A clanging noise from downstairs caught his attention, so he left to investigate. He wondered absently why none of the lights were on, but nobody seemed to be home besides Kagome, so he didn't think much of it. She was probably down in the kitchen getting food; she sometimes liked to nibble while she studied.
Sure enough, Kagome was at the counter, making a sandwich by the dim glow of the stove light. He watched for a moment, silently taking in the way she shifted from one sock-clad foot to the other, the way she nibbled on an extra piece of bread as she was working, the way her hair curled from its ponytail, damp probably from a shower she'd taken earlier before he'd arrived. It was so strange to watch her in this era. She'd learned quickly since traveling with him, but he often forgot that she had a lifetime of knowledge about a completely different way of living.
He cleared his throat and Kagome jumped a mile, whirling around, knife clutched in one hand. They stared at each other for a split-second, then her face transformed into a grimace. Belatedly he realized she'd cut her hand when he startled her. "Inuyasha!" She whined. "Make a noise or something when you do that!! Owwww…"
Inuyasha sighed in dismay. "Sorry…Let me see it." He took her hand and examined it. It was a little bloody but not too deep, stretching a couple of inches across the heel of her palm. He pulled her over to the sink and turned the knob he knew would make cold water come out, and stuck her hand under the flow. "Sorry I scared you." He apologized again, wanting her to say something. Was she angry? If so, it was strange for her to let him be standing this close; he was right behind her, his arm around her as he held her injured hand open.
He felt her shudder, and smelled her tears. Oh gods, she was crying. "K-Kagome?" He stuttered, now feeling panicked and at a complete loss. "Kagome, what's wrong?! Does it hurt that bad??" He pulled her hand out from under the slow stream of water and examined it again. There was nothing stuck in it, and the blood had slowed. He saw no other cuts on her palm or fingers either. Besides, she'd had much worse injuries before and never shed a tear. What the hell was going on??
"Kagome, whatever it is, I'm sorry!! Just please stop crying. Dammit, stop! Please?" He pleaded with her, turning her around to face him. Whatever it was, it was probably his fault, so hopefully if he apologized enough she'd calm down.
But now she was crying even harder. This was not what he'd had in mind. He couldn't recall a time when he'd successfully stopped her from crying. He'd made her cry plenty of times, but she usually got control over herself fairly quickly and yelled instead. Yelling, he could handle. Just not the tears.
"Kagome…" His voice was soft, almost a high-pitched whine. There were no monsters to kill, nobody to yell at, only the most important person in his life just standing there, arms hanging by her sides, crying. He almost felt like crying too. Instead he just watched miserably, waiting for her to recover on her own, since he would probably do more harm than good if he tried anything else.
As a last effort, he reached up and brushed the tears from one cheek, then the other, careful to avoid grazing or poking her with his claws. She didn't pull away, in fact, quite the opposite. To Inuyasha's complete shock, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, buried her face in his neck, and kept crying.
For a moment his mind was totally blank, but his instincts thankfully took over quickly. He pulled her closer, enveloping her small frame in his arms. She didn't cry very loudly, but he could feel the sobs now, and they tore at him. He ventured to guess that since she was now hugging him, she wasn't crying because of him, but that didn't make him feel any less urgent to stop her tears.
They stayed that way for at least five minutes, with no change. Inuyasha wondered if she wasn't going to make herself sick, as hard as she was crying. Just when he was about to ask if she was okay, she spoke. "I was…so…s-scared!" She sobbed, her voice muffled by his fire-rat fur. "I-I was…scared…you weren't…going to come!" Her words came in short bursts as she gasped for air.
"Come? Come here?" He was confused, but she was talking, and that was a good thing.
She shook her head in the crook between his neck and shoulder. "Come…come to save me." At this point she'd become a bit more composed, enough to speak more coherently. "They ha…they had a mage…The mage showed…showed me…th-that you died!" She dissolved into tears again, and Inuyasha's arms tightened around her. "I'm going to fucking kill those bastards." He muttered darkly.
Kagome took a deep breath and continued. "Every day…they told me you…and the others….w-were dead! And every night…every night I dreamed it happening."
He didn't think he could be holding her any tighter, but it felt as if he were incapable of doing more. At this point he was willing to do anything for her, if she only named it. He ventured to speak. "Did they hurt you at all?" What a stupid question, of course she was hurt! He smelled the blood when he'd found her, and Sango had said she'd been cut up and bruised a bit. Knowing Sango, that was glossing it over.
Kagome didn't answer at first, and he hoped his question hadn't brought on more unbearable memories. Why had he wanted her to tell him anything in the first place? If he'd known it was going to turn out like this, he would've left well enough alone!
"They did." Her voice was so small and muffled that he almost didn't catch it. He resisted the urge to pull away, go right back down the well and run all those miles back to the dragon youkai's lair and massacre them all. Instead he stilled, waiting for her to go on, wondering if the next thing she said would push his protective and vengeful nature over the edge. "I thought I was going to die." She whispered, fingers digging into his shoulders, clutching the fabric.
"You're not dead." He whispered back, reassuring himself at the same time that she was alive and well. He hadn't wanted to consider the worst while they were searching for her, but it was always in the back of his mind, making him think that perhaps this was the one time he would come too late.
"I killed them." Kagome trembled in his arms, and began to cry harder again. At first Inuyasha thought he'd heard wrong. "You…what?" She'd left her weapons behind, how on earth could she have killed any of them?
"One...one of them g-grabbed me…and it s-scared me and I…I…I purified him!" She wailed, and it sounded like her very soul was being ripped out of her. His ears flattened and he bit back another whine. Gods, he didn't know how much more of her misery he could handle. It felt like his heart was being knifed into pieces, and he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he would only be at peace again when she was, too.
"I-I killed th-three or four of them that…that way!" Kagome was sobbing way too hard now, and her crying had turned into desperate gasps for air. Inuyasha pushed her away and gently but forcefully took her face in his large hands. "Kagome, listen to me. You had to kill them. You had no choice!" He crouched down to her eye level and locked his gaze with hers. Part of him had never been prouder; he always feared for her life, but now she'd proven that in a pinch, she wasn't completely defenseless. It must've been some pinch though; she rarely displayed any miko powers outside of shooting arrows. "Kagome? Take a deep breath." He ordered, and he could tell she'd heard and was struggling to comply. When she seemed more in control, he pulled her back into an embrace, and she willingly fell into him again.
"You're safe now. I promise I won't let anything happen to you again. I'll try harder." He swore, feeling every word of it. He knew he sounded pathetic, making the same promises he did every time she was hurt.
Her sobs calmed over the next ten minutes or so, until it was just deep shuddering breaths. She didn't pull away though, and he wasn't feeling the need to be apart from her yet either. Carefully he lifted her into his arms and carried her into the living room, where he collapsed onto the sofa, Kagome secure in his arms, her face still hidden in his haori. While she continued to calm down, he took an idle glance around the dark room. Such a strange world she lived in. There were no youkai rampaging around, no one had to hunt for food, and money bought everything.
But there were different dangers here, metal contraptions speeding down the roads, weird lightning that gave everything power yet could kill a person who touched it, exploding weapons he'd never even heard of before… And she went about life here, perfectly adept at avoiding such dangers.
He supposed it wasn't fair, after all, to blame her for being so klutzy in the feudal era. When else in her life would she have learned how to battle youkai ten times her size? Nothing like that even existed here. She was learning rather fast, come to think of it.
"You were right." Kagome mumbled, sounding dead-tired. He switched his attention to her. "Eh?"
"About everything," Her voice had a resigned tone which unsettled him. "I am practically useless. What is this, the tenth time or something that I've been kidnapped? I am an easy target."
"Kagome, no…" He immediately knew what she was talking about. That conversation was bound to come back and bite him in the ass eventually.
"You and everyone risked your lives fighting that demon, and then you risked your lives again coming to save me. If one of you died protecting me, I would never forgive myself!"
"Keh!" He couldn't stop himself. "Now you know how I feel all the time." He muttered wryly. "Kagome, I'm an asshole. I didn't mean any of those things. I was just pissed off!"
"They were true…I don't do a single thing except find shards and get in the way when you're trying to steal them back! And all of that is my fault too!" She took a halting breath and continued. "I thought the least I could do was suck it up and not cry. And now I can't even do that." She was tearing up again, and he tensed, wracking his brain desperately for something to stop her from crying. So he kissed her.
It was an awkward kiss, really. She was at an angle, still being in his lap, and he'd sort of just leaned over and silenced her with his lips, his hand on the back of her head preventing her from pulling back. After the first stunned second or two, they both relaxed somewhat, and the kiss turned sweet and chaste, Inuyasha's quiet apology for hurting her, and her resigned acceptance of it.
When he pulled away, Kagome blinked slowly, still a bit surprised. He took advantage of her speechlessness to set her straight, moving her off of his lap so that he could face her directly. "You're not worthless. Nobody thinks that. If you weren't so important, we wouldn't work so hard to protect you! And it's not just because you can see the shards." He anticipated her protest, and she remained quiet. "Sango's been fighting since she was a kid, I'm half demon, and Miroku's got a fucking void in his hand!" He emphasized, and she cracked a weak smile. "Nobody expects you to be a great warrior or the perfect miko." He knew she was thinking of Kikyo, but that was a complex all on its own, and it would take more time to sort it out.
"If you'd died, I don't know what I would've done." He admitted softly. His pride wasn't going to get the best of him this time; she needed to hear the truth plain and simple, without having to sort through all of his ridiculous bluffs and insults to get to it. "You scared the shit out of me." She let out a breathy laugh at that. "I'm sorry." She mumbled with an embarrassed half-grin.
"You'd better be. Don't let it happen again." He pretended to be annoyed. "Kagome?" He became serious again.
"Yeah?" She sniffed, wiping away a stray tear.
The words weren't there, so he didn't push it. "Nothing. I…Nothing. You should get some sleep. You look like hell." Apparently his inherent tactlessness was back in full force.
"Gee, thanks." Kagome stood and stretched. "I'm exhausted. I haven't had a decent night's sleep in weeks." She walked back up the stairs and he followed her. It didn't take long for her to wash up, and when she came back into her bedroom, she only knocked her books onto the floor and crawled in under the covers. "You're staying, right?" She asked.
"Of course, wench. If I didn't, you'd never come back!" He said it as if it were the most logical reason.
"Silly Inuyasha." She yawned and reached out to grab his hand. "I'll always come back. I promised."
"Keh." He couldn't think of anything better to respond with, so he reached out to turn off her lamp. For a minute or two he held on to her hand, sitting on the floor next to her bed. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?" The question popped out before he could stop it.
"Tell you what?" Kagome murmered, clearly about to fall asleep.
"About…what happened when you were gone. You didn't even tell Sango, and you tell her everything."
There was a heavy silence, and Inuyasha thought for a moment that she might have fallen asleep. But then she answered. "I didn't want to remember it. I was scared out of my mind that whole time, and after you came, I just wanted to forget everything. And…" She trailed off.
"And?" Prodded Inuyasha.
"And…I wanted to be brave. I'm not made of glass. I won't crack or explode or something if I get into trouble."
"Don't be stupid, wench." He replied with a hint of irritation.
"My name's not 'wench.'" Her tired interruption didn't distract him in the slightest.
"You're not supposed to be brave. You wouldn't have to be if I was doing my job right. I'm your protector, not you." The girl was insane if she thought anything that had happened was her fault. She was his responsibility, and he was horrified by the things that happened whenever he screwed up.
"You're a great protector, Inuyasha. You don't believe it, but you are." She whispered. He didn't respond, and eventually her breath evened out as she went to sleep. Obviously she still believed in him, though he had no idea why. He thought about making her stay here where she was safer, but then that would mean being separated, and he knew he couldn't handle that either.
A week later, the two returned to the Feudal Era. Kagome had spent the week going to school and catching up on homework, but true to her word, she didn't protest when Inuyasha declared it had been long enough. He could see her eyeing her remaining homework regretfully, but pretended he hadn't noticed. There was no way he was letting her stay longer.
Miroku was peeling potatoes and Sango was polishing Hiraikotsu outside of Kaede's hut when the two returned. "Kagome! You're back!" Shippo exclaimed, popping up out of nowhere to launch himself at Kagome. She caught him easily and laughed when he hugged her neck and gave her a big sloppy kiss on the cheek. She didn't see him stick his tongue out at Inuyasha from over her shoulder, but she definitely noticed Inuyasha's infuriated growl as he swung at the offending kitsune. "Aaagghhh, Kagome! Inuyasha's going to kill meeee!!" Shippo wailed, scurrying over his guardian as if she were some strange tree to climb.
"Inuyasha…Don't bother Shippo." She warned him in a bored tone. Some things never changed.
"Wench, you didn't see what he did! I swear I'll skin you alive one of these days, you little runt!" The hanyou reluctantly abandoned the chase and stalked off to find something better to do for the time being. Kagome sighed and set Shippo down in order to unload new supplies from her heavy bag."Kaede, I brought some medicine for you." She called out, and proceeded to explain the uses of the various pills to the elder miko.
Sango and Miroku eyed each other. Everything was strangely…normal. "Something must've happened in her time." Miroku muttered under his breath. Sango nodded in return. "Ask Inuyasha. He'll tell you."
"Why don't you just ask Kagome?" Miroku asked.
"That would be weird. 'Hey, Kagome, why are you acting so normal?'" She mimicked.
"I see your point. But still, Inuyasha will probably bite my head off." He lamented.
"Just do it, monk." The slayer rolled her eyes and continued polishing. Miroku sighed and pushed himself up to his feet to follow their companion.
Inuyasha was perched up in his usual tree when Miroku found him. "Did you have a nice trip?" Miroku often liked to pretend that he made conversation just for the sake of it.
"It was fine." Inuyasha narrowed as he looked down at the monk. He smelled an ulterior motive. "What do you want?"
Miroku decided it would be in his best interest to just come out with it; after all, when Kagome had left, the three were in complete agreement that something was amiss. Now, everything was right, and all he wanted to know was how it became that way. "Kagome seems better." He offered.
"Yeah…" Inuyasha agreed, not volunteering any more.
"How?"
Inuyasha was silent for a while; he looked as if he were debating something in his mind. Miroku was half afraid that he'd pried too much and Inuyasha would just tell him to 'fuck off' and that would be the end of it. But when he opened his mouth again, there was no ire. "Monk, I don't know what makes her tick." He said with a resigned tone. "Those bastards scared the living shit out of her. I guess she just needed a break or something." As if he realized he was being uncharacteristically sincere, Inuyasha growled, "Wench probably did it just to go home." They both knew it was ridiculously untrue, but Miroku didn't argue. "I'm happy for her. She deserves a break." He said honestly. Inuyasha nodded shortly.
There didn't seem to be any more to say, so Miroku took his leave, hoping Sango would be satisfied with the little information he'd gotten. But whatever had gone wrong before was right now, and that was all that mattered.
Inuyasha jumped down from his branch and started to head back to the village a little while later. He knew Kagome was completely safe in the village, but part of him was a bit nervous at leaving her alone.
After the first night at home in her era, it was like a switch had flipped in her, changing her right back to the girl he was accustomed to being with every day. Neither of them talked about it again, or about the kiss…The memory alone should have embarrassed both of them to death afterwards, but it hadn't ever come up. They'd crossed a huge barrier that night, in more ways than one. His biggest fear was that she'd reject him, but she hadn't. She never did.
When he arrived back at Kaede's hut, his friends were inside, eating and talking like they always did. "When are we leaving, Inuyasha?" Sango asked as she passed him a bowl.
"Dawn. We've been wasting too much time around here because somebody had to go to school." He complained as he sat down next to said 'somebody.' Kagome reached over and tweaked his ear, which sent it twitching madly. "Why are you complaining, all you did was sit around and eat and do stuff with Souta, while I was working!"
"Your brother thinks I'm his plaything!" Inuyasha protested indignantly, making Kagome giggle. "You're totally his hero."
"Keh! He needs to find a new hero." He muttered and focused more on his dinner. The others shared amused looks.
Later that night, he found Kagome sitting out on the fence that surrounded one of the nearby fields, looking up at the stars. "Hey." He greeted her, causing her to jerk violently with a squeak. She would've toppled backwards off the fence if he hadn't caught her. "Heh, I think you're losing your hearing or something." He chuckled as he lifted her back up to her former perch.
"It's not funny." She moaned, putting a hand over her beating heart. Inuyasha frowned. "You're okay, right?"
"Yes, Inuyasha, I'm okay." Kagome moved over slightly so that he could climb up next to her. "Just startled me."
"No…I mean, are you okay, being back here? Not in your time?" He was afraid to hear the answer, but he had no choice.
"Of course, I love it here. Why wouldn't I be okay?" She looked puzzled. Inuyasha thought over what to say, then continued, "I thought maybe…after what happened with the dragon youkai…you'd think it was a better idea to stay in your time."
Kagome rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to leave you guys just because I got kidnapped…again. As long as there's something here for me, I'll never leave."
"Good." They were silent.
"Inuyasha?" She was the first to break the silence.
"Hmm?"
"You wouldn't send me home or anything, would you?" The doubt in her voice caught his attention.
"Only…if you're not happy." Inuyasha found that it was very difficult to actually say this. Kagome didn't respond at first, increasing his nerves. Then, finally, "I'm happy." In the quietest of voices.
He relaxed, then reached out, wrapping his hand around her small, soft one. If she was happy, then he was happy too.
Fin.
A/N: Wow, when I started this fic, I thought it was going to be like four thousand words or something. Three days later, and I've got this instead. If you're thinking that it's a little shy on the fluff and action, that's how it was meant to be. I didn't intend for action to be the point of it at all, and fluff...well, as much as I enjoy it, this wasn't the time and place. I was trying to keep them all in character, and I think part of Inuyasha's charm is how emotionally stunted and awkward he is. Hopefully it came out alright.
As always, I appreciate reviews!