Karma

IceRi

Summary: One-Shot Fluff. Inuyasha makes Kagome a gift, with Kaede's help. Enjoy (R&R)

"Oi! Kaede-baabaa!"

Inuyasha sprinted into view of the old Shrine Maiden's hut. Kaede looked up from sweeping the tall stone steps approaching the Shrine itself. He stopped, panting, and holding out a crudely made necklace of clear, green and clear beads. The elderly Miko took it gently, looking at the beads. It seemed to be an attempted copy of the charmed necklace that Inuyasha wore, only the stones were not of the time.

"Can you... Please... Fix it? And maybe put a charm on it?"

He turned his head to the side when he said please, but didn't 'Keh' as she had expected him to. Smiling slightly, she nodded.

"Inuyasha... Who other than you needs a charmed necklace?"

His eyes widened, and he Keh-ed nervously.

"Err... It's for Miroku, when he's being a Hentai. Sango would really appreciate it, but I want it to be a surprise so can you... please not tell anyone about it?"

She smiled again, and nodded, although the keen glint in her sharp eyes told anyone looking – not Inuyasha – that she knew it wasn't for Miroku. She curled her hand around the beads and disappeared inside as the rest of the group came up the hill all looking like they were about to kill Inuyasha.

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He fingered the little beads nervously. What would the word be? He would have to pick a good one; one he didn't use too often. Wench.. No. Baka? Maybe. Oi... Definitely not. Wait... He had found the perfect one. Walking over to where Kagome sat hunched up by the fire, watching Miroku and Sango have a heated discussion about whatever they were yelling at each other. Tapping Kagome's shoulder, he silently indicated that he wished to talk to her. Nodding, she let him walk away, and then a few minutes later, broke through their discussion to let them know she was taking a walk.

Following a beaten trail (which she assumed Inuyasha had taken), she came upon a darkened clearing. Her eyes adjusted quickly, and she saw Inuyasha's red haori, though it looked deeper red in the twilight. His silvery hair glinted in the light of the sickle moon. Her heart fluttered in her chest. Taking a few calming breaths, she walked up to him.

"So... What was it you needed to talk to me for?"

She asked nervously, facing him, but looking over his shoulders at the stars. She hoped to Kami that he didn't notice her blush.

"Keh... I made this for you..."

He gently held out his upturned palm, showing her the necklace. Each bead glimmered with moonlight. She smiled faintly, knowing that was where her beading kit had gone. He raised it up and placed it around her neck, inwardly smiling triumphantly.

"Is that all you dragged me out here for?"

She asked, a slight tone of humor in her voice, but Inuyasha missed it. He turned away, deflated. Muttering something under his breath, he was surprised to see Kagome lurch forward, dragged down by the shining beads. Catching her just in the nick of time he saw her glare up at him.

"What did you do to this thing, Inuyasha? What did you say?"

He blushed, but smiled coyly. She was pretty much asking to fall. He helped her up again. He began talking jokingly, but by the time he finished, his voice had all but faded away.

"I gave it to Kaede to fix up my work. I didn't know she had charmed it. But I said 'Suki'. I said I like you, ok?"

On cue, at the word Suki, she fell forward, Inuyasha catching her again. This time, though, she wasn't about to explode on him for charming the gift.

"Inuyasha... I like you too... You're a great friend to have. What brought this on all of a sudden?"

"No, you baka, not like in that sense!"

Sighing with frustration, he tipped her chin up and softly brushed his lips against hers, savoring the velvety softness of her lips, and way her sharp gasp tickled his face. Breaking away, he gazed into her eyes.

"I like you... like that."

She was speechless, but nodded in assent, and then attempted to use her voice. It came out as a series of 'uhh's before she could actually get her point across.

"I like you that way too..."

He smiled, and then took off the charmed necklace, which he knew she wouldn't be able to remove on her own.

"Hey!"

He looked up, surprised. He was about to protest, when she pulled the charm back over her head, and then wrapped her arms around him in a peaceful hug.

"I don't care if it's charmed. I want it. It was a nice gift..."

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"Karma."

"What's that, Houshi-sama?"

"To put it simply, Sango, it means what goes around comes around. Inuyasha has been charmed for a very long time by Kagome-sama, and he merely wanted to show her what it meant to be him. Although... I don't think he did it right. No matter. I do believe he got what he wanted."

They sat a few minutes in silence, watching the couple from behind the bushes, when Sango felt an all-too-familiar hand on her backside.

"HENTAI!"

A resounding smack filled the area, as Miroku lay dazed on the ground, and Sango fumed from his perverseness. Inuyasha and Kagome turned to the scene in shock and embarrassment, but didn't have a long time to feel said shock and embarrassment, as Sango was already chasing Miroku back to the campsite.

"What goes around comes around, eh Kagome?"

She smiled in agreement as they slowly walked back to the campsite to calm down their raging friend.

-Owari