A/N; Disclaimer(s): I in NO WAY own Inuyasha: the manga, anime, characters, story etc! It all completely is that of Rumiko Takahashi. I am only a fan and consumer. So please DO NOT sue me because I am POOR! Thank you for reading this and I appreciate any comments, or anything in general, etc. Now with no further or due, ENJOY! :-)
Author: Michelle Colleen Huitink
It's Just You
Kagome stared down at her algebra book, focusing hard and trying to memorize the equations. "If I hadn't been gone so long, I wouldn't have fallen so behind in class." She thought aloud. Her dark eyes squinted. Her lids became heavy and started to close. Her black hair flowed over her shoulders, half way down her back. It fell forward as she rested her head on the open book. "I'll shut my eyes...for just five minutes..." she considered.
She slowly opened her eyes and blinked a few times. She abruptly sat up and glanced around. 'Oh no! I fell asleep!' She realized. She glanced at the clock. It was nine in the evening. 'Darn! I fell asleep for two hours!' She scolded herself. She caught something move out of the corner of her eye. "I really need to sleep; I'm seeing things. But I didn't hear anyone come in. Of course not, you were asleep! Great! Now I'm talking to myself!" She uttered. "Nope. I heard you and you talk too damn much as usual." A familiar voice replied. Startled, Kagome whirled around in her chair. The midriff of a red kimono stared her in the face. She peered upward.
"Oh, Inuyasha, it's just you."
"What's THAT suppose to mean? That it's JUST me, huh?!" He roughly inquired. His golden eyes flashed her a fiery gaze. "I'm relieved," she said, "I was really starting to freak myself out." He gave her a weird look as if she were 'losing it.' He took a seat at the foot of her bed. He sat "Indian style" with his arms folded across his chest. "So, what are you doing here?" She asked. "Nothing. Shippo, Kirara, Miroku, and Sango are sleeping. We can't look for remaining shards of the Shikon jewel while they're tired and dozing off...or without you..." Inuyasha answered, his voice trailing off. He was more saying the last few words of that sentence to himself. Kagome smiled to herself as she shifted back toward her homework. "Okay, well the control is right there, " she told him, "if you want to watch television. You remember how to use it, right? 'Cause I showed you when you were here last time." Inuyasha grumbled in response.
A silver-white lock of hair blocked her view of the pages she was studying. "Inuyasha! Do you mind?! I'm trying to study here. C'mon now!" Kagome pleaded. She didn't mean to sound aggravated. She tried to move away from him, but Inuyasha just peeked over her shoulder to get a better look at what she was doing. "Feh. This isn't interesting. What do you want to read this for?" He questioned as he picked up the book and examined its contents. "Well, I don't WANT to read it, I HAVE to! It's my homework assignment." She snapped, snatching the item from him. "AHH fuck you then!" He retorted and stomped back over to the foot of her bed, scowling and resuming his previous sitting position. He just swiftly flicked around the channels on the TV.
Kagome was studying quietly, when she heard Inuyasha cursing, which was not unusual. But what made her turn was that he was beating on her television set. "What the hell?! Why are you doing that??!! Get away!" She yelled. "This shit is confusing! What do you need all these fucking buttons for? Now all this crap popped up on the thing there!!!" He complained, pointing at the TV. Kagome glimpsed at the screen. "Give me that! It's only the menu. All of these buttons control the channels and features. Look, just give me the remote!" She exclaimed. "Fine! I don't want to watch this stupid shit anyway!" Inuyasha said. "Here, you can play Sota's video game. You got so addicted to it last time you were here when he showed you how to play it." Kagome suggested. Inuyasha's face lit up, instead of his usual indifferent expression.
Kagome was cramming some more educational information when Inuyasha's shadow hovered over her studies. "All I want to do is at least get caught up on my work! SO CAN'T YOU KEEP YOURSELF BUSY?!" She shouted. His eyes widened, then his expression changed furiously to 'pissed off'. "It's not my fault you're not hospitable! You've just been ignoring me! How 'bout some food?!" He wailed. "Okay, Inu-Yasha! Be right back." She said, hastily leaving the room and slamming the door behind her. 'It's warm here.' He thought and removed his red, outer robe. He tossed it on the floor and got comfortable. He put his hands behind his head as he lay down, while his eyes wandered around the room.
She returned five minutes later with udon for Inuyasha to eat. "Here you--" she stopped herself. 'He's asleep.' She thought. She sighed and shut off the television. She set the dish on her desk, then picked up his cloak and flung it onto her chair. She turned off her lamp, then slipped into her nightwear. The only light came from the shining beams of the half moon.
Kagome looked down at Inuyasha. She frowned in observation. 'He hogged up the whole bed!' She deeply exhaled. 'I wish he'd move over or something.' She hoped. She decided to study until Inuyasha turned over or she fell asleep, right there on the desk. 'It's been forty-five minutes. It's almost one AM!' She jumped up. Inuyasha's back was toward her. She closed her book. 'Finally, he's resting on his side.' Wearily, she headed for bed. 'Oh man, he's lying on the covers...I'm cold...but if I leave, he might roll over again. Oh well, deal with it.' She told herself. She lay down beside him. 'Careful, don't wake him...he'll be moody! That's strange,' she thought, ' whenever I see him sleep, he's still alert and usually in an upright position. He's actually...relaxed.' She tucked a pillow under her head with her back facing his. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.
Kagome awakened with Inuyasha's left arm slumped over her waist. 'No wonder I wasn't cold...' she thought, blushing. She couldn't help but smile. A warmth seemed to radiate from him and she felt safe. She liked being close to him. She wanted to feel his embrace and pull him closer, so their arms could be wrapped around each other. 'Oh no! What are you thinking, Kagome....Stop it! It's all nonsense.' Her thoughts continued to wander. 'It's almost five AM. Oh, at least it's Sunday and I can sleep in.' She fell asleep again.
"Wake up!" His voice demanded. Inuyasha tugged at her arm. Kagome groggily opened her eyes. She groaned, "leave me alone!" Then, rolled over. He lifted her out of bed. "Hey!" She cried. He carried her over to her closet, opened the door and placed her inside. "Change into some other weird clothes of yours 'cause we need to get the rest of those Shikon shards!" He insisted; subsequently, he shut the door on her. "But, Inuyasha, I need to shower and stuff!" Her muffled voice protested. "Yeah and I'm hungry, too. We all need something! Now Let's get going!" He told her.
She came out, rolled her eyes and sighed. She wore a white blouse and navy blue skirt. In her arms, she bundled her pajamas. "Drop those and get on." He told her as he crouched down so she could get on his back. They were going out her window when Kagome's mother entered and said, "Kagome! what have I told you about having boys in your room?!" Kagome objected, "Mom! It's not like that!" Inuyasha replied, "we're leaving now!" "Wait! At least let me pack your lunch." Her mother offered.
Inuyasha stood by the refrigerator in the kitchen. He looked inside whenever it's door opened. He was fascinated with it. It was cold inside there. He decided to open and close it himself. Though he'd seen it before, everything in Kagome's time didn't seize to amaze him. He watched as Kagome put the containers of noodles, oden and tempura in her backpack.
"I was so hungry!" Sango proclaimed. Her legs were crossed. She sat back with one hand in the grass, holding her up and the other rested on her stomach. She had a satisfied expression on her face. Miroku relaxed with his feet tucked under him. Shippo sat between Inuyasha and Kagome. "Where do we go from here?" Shippo asked. "Wherever there's a Shikon jewel shard. " Inuyasha answered. "Kagome, are there any nearby?" He asked. No response. "Kagome?" He repeated. Still no reply. Sango decided to wave her hand in front of Kagome's face. "Huh?" Kagome muttered. "Hey! We've been talking to you! What is so damn important about your 'spell books' ?!" He remarked. "Sor-ry! I have a huge math exam coming up, okay! I'm studying!" She answered. "Didn't you do enough of that already?!" Inuyasha snarled. "I don't sense anything, okay? If I did, I'd say so!" She said.
The sun had set. They stayed with Kaede. 'Naraku will come to us...' Kagome thought as she kneeled by the fire. She stared into the dancing flames, deep in thought. 'Those who posses a Shikon shard, will find us 'cause we have more than one third of the jewel...' "I don't suggest just sitting and waiting." Miroku said. It was as if he had read her mind; well, he was at least thinking the same way she was.
"Are you alright, Kagome?" Asked Sango. She had noticed that she was deep in thought. Kagome tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and nodded. A sudden screech caught her attention. She jumped up and ran outside. The others followed. The talon of a huge bat lifted Kagome. "Stupid! Why did she run out here like that?!" Inuyasha thought aloud. "It's trying to rip the Shikon jewel from her!" cried Miroku "Thank you for stating the obvious!" Inuyasha snapped. He was frustrated and couldn't waste any time in rescuing her. 'I won't let you get hurt!' Inuyasha silently promised. He grabbed the Tetsusaiga and ran after the beast.
'I've never been this high up! I can see for miles, but where's Inuyasha?! Oh, Gods, I'm going to die!' She thought. She was terrified. It hadn't occurred to her to get her bow and arrows. "I'm such a fool! Inuyasha's going to scold me for it, too! Oh, I don't care, just save me NOW! " She prayed. At that moment, she felt something ooze on her. "EEWW I'm covered in demon drool!" She shrieked. Suddenly, she was falling in mid-air. "AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!" She screamed as she plummeted toward earth. She turned to see behind her. 'Why did it drop me?' She wondered. "Inuyasha!" She said aloud. He had destroyed the monster.
Still, all was not safe yet. Kagome was out of his reach and falling fast. He thought aloud, "damn it! I have to hurry!" He acted quickly and wrapped his red cloak around her to bring her closer to him. He grabbed her wrists and pulled her, taking her into his arms; then, landed safely in the middle of a clearing in the forest. "Real safe." She thought. They were somewhere deep in the woods. It was pitch black all around them. She held on tightly to his right arm. "Relax, we'll be back in less than five minutes." He told her. Kagome hitched a ride on his back and they were off.
"Here they come!" Shippo announced with excitement. "That bastard didn't even have a shard of the jewel!" Inuyasha complained. "At least both of you are okay." Sango commented. "Feh." Inuyasha snorted. "Sango, come with me to the hot spring, please? I need to get this guck off me." Kagome requested. "Sure." She agreed. "I'll come to!" Miroku joked. "Ha-ha, very funny." Sango sarcastically remarked. "Inuyasha---" Kagome began, but Miroku interrupted her, "No, I was kidding! You don't have to tell him! I won't budge!" "It's not about that. Don't worry." Kagome giggled.
"Here you go, thanks." Kagome obliged and handed Inuyasha his cloak. Then she walked away with Sango. 'He didn't get mad at me,' Kagome thought, 'he didn't say anything.'
A short while later, she and Sango returned to find everyone asleep. "Night." Sango told her as she lay down by the fire. Kagome lay by her feet, replying, "good night." Shippo was in front of her by her stomach. Inuyasha was opposite from her and Miroku was near him. They both sat up while sleeping. For some reason, Kagome expected Inuyasha to wake up at any second. He looked tense and alert again. 'He must be a light sleeper.' She thought. His eyes shot open, startling her. "What are you staring for?" He asked. She gasped. "I'm not." She denied. "Feh! Do you want to talk or something?" He grunted. She didn't realize how long she had been gawking for. Her bottom lip quivered. She didn't know what to say. He kept gazing at her with his piercing eyes, awaiting a response. "I...um..., " she stammered, "was just thinking that I have that math exam tomorrow." "I thought you were over that? Forget it until tomorrow." He sternly suggested. He closed his eyes and went to sleep.
Kagome had trouble sleeping. She decided to get up and take a walk. She sat up on a hill and gaped at the stars. 'At least the stars, I'm allowed to stare at.' She thought. "You shouldn't leave by yourself--especially after what happened today." Inuyasha told her firmly as he sat at her left side. "It's okay, I have my bow and arrows." She said, showing him. One swayed by his nose. "Hey, watch it! You almost poked me with that thing!" He snapped. She set them down beside her, on her right. She leaned on his shoulder and contemplated how she preferred how his white cloth shirt felt against her cheek. He moved away from her and covered her with his robe. "It's...uh...just in case a demon attacks. So you don't get injured." He said. 'Is he trying to protect me, just being a gentleman or both?' She speculated.
She had the cloak draped over her shoulders. She leaned on him, this time, snuggling her head gently on his shoulder. She inhaled deeply, then exhaled slowly. Inuyasha blushed a little. To keep his cool, he looked up at the stars. She looked up at him, admiring him, pretending to be focusing on the stars. The rest of the Inu gang watched from afar. Miroku covered Shippo's eyes, claiming, "this isn't something for children to see." Though nothing happened. The only movement was of the floating lights from the surrounding fireflies in the air.
THE END