Disclaimer: This story is based on "Inuyasha," copyrighted by Rumiko Takahashi. No infringement of copyright intended or implied.

The Test

Kagome woke. Something was wrong. Sitting up, she listened with ears and mind. She could hear Rin's and Kaede's breathing, but no snoring—so it was not the elder woman's inadvertent fault for her wakefulness, as it had been before. (Not that she would ever tell!) It must be late: even the night birds and crickets seemed to have settled for the night. She could hear none of the many sounds that had caused her to awaken prematurely, these past few weeks since she had returned to the past.

The moonlight poured through the barred but open window. Getting up, Kagome padded bare-footed to the entrance, retying her yukata. Slipping outside, she looked up. The round, full moon was starting its descent—it was indeed late.

She realized, abruptly. Inuyasha was missing. He should have reacted to her movement by now, even if he were dozing on the roof. Reminding herself not to panic, Kagome took a deep breath, and then closed her eyes, trying to concentrate on her miko senses, as Kaede had been teaching her. She should be able to find Inuyasha if he was anywhere within the village, and even some ways out. If he—there!

Her eyes flew open, as she sensed not one familiar youkai aura, but two. What was Sesshomaru and Inuyasha doing in the same location, and at this time of night?

She slipped back inside. Dressing as quietly as she could, she reached for her bow and quiver, then hesitated a long moment, before finally grabbing them. She probably didn't need her weapons: Miroku and Sango had confirmed that—as far as they knew—the two brothers had not fought in the three years of her absence. Arguably, she should ignore the apparent meeting between the brothers—if Inuyasha had wanted her to know, he could have woken her up before he slipped out. If they had business between themselves, did she need to know?

Maybe not. But, there was that pair of very annoyed expressions the two inu-youkai had given her, when she had greeted Sesshomaru by calling out "brother-in-law," several weeks ago. Inuyasha had refused to talk about it, and Sesshomaru hadn't been present, period. This might be a chance to ask them just what their reactions had meant.

As for her weapons? Well, there still could be other youkai around, and even with the Shikon no Tama gone forever, she still might need to protect herself...

... ... ... ...

Kagome heard the clash of battling swords well before she found them. That sound gave speed to her feet, and she was puffing as she broke out of the trees and finally spotted them, still some distance away, on the peak of the hill. She froze, eyes going wide. They were moving so fast that her eyes could not track them. They were blurs of white and black, silver and gold, their swords slender flashes of lightning. She didn't dare to move—didn't dare interrupt that impossibly-fast, deadly dance—

She sensed, more than saw, a hesitation. A faltering. But on one side only. The other half of the dance drove in, unhesitating—

"Inuyasha!" Kagome screamed, as the dance came to a halt, as a suikan—black in the moonlight—was pierced through. She bolted forward, trying to run and grab an arrow at the same moment. Time and space stretched, as the space between her and the youkai seemed to grow from a hill to a mountain. She'd never get there in time! Not against him! He was too fast, too quick, he could kill his brother long before she reached them, but why? Why!

She saw the brighter, taller figure step back, pulling back the blade, half its silver length dripping black. The smaller figure staggered, remaining upright, free hand clapped to his side. His head drooped, and then rose, as the points of his ears, previously silhouetted against the moon, disappeared. The figures were still for a moment, and then the taller one moved. The blade flicked to pure silver, disappearing into its sheath. And then, the taller had the shorter in a one-handed grip about his neck.

"No!" Kagome screamed, scatter-shot memories of her first encounter with Sesshomaru bouncing through her brain. She remembered that other time when Inuyasha had dangled from a half-brother's hand, the clawed fingers reaching for a vulnerable eye. "Let him go!" She half-staggered to a halt, snapping the bow up, the arrow she had somehow managed to snag slapping across the wood. "Let him go! I hit what I aim at, now!"

A face turned towards her, but its features were hidden in the moon's shadow. "So, little miko. You have spent the last three years in practice?"

"Y-yes!" she shouted; but even she heard the uncertainty cracking in her voice. She had practiced, but only with ordinary, modern bows and modern, non-living targets, and not with the bow she now held, which had returned to Inuyasha's side of the well. Concentrating, she tried to feel her power, which she had not truly touched, even since her return. What had it felt like? Three years, and memory had dimmed. Help me! she begged the bow, remembering how she was to have been able to bond with the bow; how using it had helped her to aim to the heart of the target, and not the surface—

"You say 'yes', but where is your power, little miko?" came the cool, silken tones of the taiyoukai. "I could rend this hanyo limb from limb, and you would only be able to watch. Should I demonstrate?"

"Don't you dare!" Anger spurted, and with it, a surge of power. The bow vibrated, and abruptly, she remembered how holding the bow had felt, when she had saved Hitomi, when she had willed the arrow to strike the Shikon no Tama. Power flared, lighting up the arrow, the bow, and herself. Her hair lifted, tossing in an unseen wind, and she glared at the taiyoukai. "Let Inuyasha go, Sesshomaru," she growled, "or I'll take out your heart."

He remained silent and unmoving. Kagome drew back the bow a little more, concentrating, feeling the power, feeling where the arrow would go.

His hand opened. Inuyasha came down one his heels, swayed a little, and then slowly sat down. Kagome tried to split her attention, her power flare fading a little, both relieved and confused. She didn't understand why Sesshomaru had backed down: but she didn't understand why he had injured and threatened his brother to begin with. What was he playing at? Why—

"Never lower your guard against a foe, little miko," whispered a voice above her head. Kagome started, then went rigid, as she felt the razor edge of a blade against her neck. "With a different foe, you are already dead."

Kagome tried not to panic. Inuyasha! she wanted to scream. She could see him sitting, hunched over his injury, but paying no apparent attention. Which made no sense! Why wasn't he shouting? Why wasn't he yelling at his brother, to let her go? What was going on?

"Tell me, little miko, why did you leave my brother?"

Kagome bristled. "I didn't have a choice! The well closed!"

"And yet, here you are now—three years later. Why, little miko? Three years may be nothing to such as this Sesshomaru, but how long was it for the hanyo? Why stay away? Why come back?"

"I came back, because the well reopened!"

"Why did it reopen? Why did it close?" The blade moved, the dulled edge of the sword digging into her chin, forcing her to lift it. "The truth, little miko."

She looked up to meet his eyes, refusing to quail under their coldness. "Why do you care?" she demanded. "I'm back now!"

"The hanyo's life is my responsibility, little miko," he replied coldly. "For three years, this Sesshomaru watched the hanyo struggle to contain his grief, to make a life without you. This Sesshomaru provided a foe to rage against, a silence to shout at. Now you are back, and the hanyo runs with joy, and builds a hut. But, why should I believe that you will not disappear again, little miko? Why should I believe that you will not again vanish, and leave him to suffer?"

Kagome opened her mouth, then closed it, as the meaning of his cool, impersonal words sank in. Responsibility? She had heard him claim the right to end Inuyasha's life, in those early months of the quest for the Shikon shards. But, responsibility? And taking note of Inuyasha's feelings?

She stared up at the taiyoukai's shadowed, impassive face. Why, she wondered, had he glared at her so, when she had impulsively greeted him as an in-law? Was that what this was about? If he had come to feel a—need—to watch over his brother, then, was he truly concerned about what would happen between Inuyasha and herself?

He cared for Rin, she reminded herself; thinking of the small chest in Kaede's hut filled with fine kimonos and other items. He must have come to care for his brother as well. In which case…

If he were to be part of her new family, in even a distant, formal fashion, then she must answer his questions. It was fair, because she had been away for three years, and even if he hadn't said anything, she knew Inuyasha had suffered during that separation, even as she had.

"I'm not sure why the well closed, Sesshomaru-sama." Kagome looked squarely into the taiyoukai's eyes. "Unless the well was somehow responding to me. I was so relieved to be back with my family—until Inuyasha found me, the Shikon no Tama was taunting me, telling me that I would be in the dark—alone—forever, unless I made a wish. Inuyasha found me, and gave me the courage to make the right wish.

"The Shikon no Tama vanished, and we—Inuyasha and I—found ourselves on my side of the well. Back with my family. I was so relieved to be back … and then, without even a word, Inuyasha vanished."

Kagome closed her eyes against remembered pain, then forced them open. "I—I sensed the well was closed, and I—I didn't know what to think. I'd been so scared—I had nightmares for weeks: I couldn't sleep at night, without a light on. All I could think to do, was concentrate on my studies: I'd come so close to not getting into high-school at all, because of all the time I missed, while searching for the jewel. Education is so important in my time: I didn't want to disappoint my family, my friends."

She swallowed. "I—I thought the well was closed, forever. I tried—for three years, I tried to go on with my life, the life I'd known before Inuyasha. I—I tried to forget. But, when I finished my schooling, I realized, that I didn't want to live in a world without Inuyasha. When I realized that … that's when the well reopened. My mother also felt it opening. She came, and … she—she gave me her blessing."

An eyebrow twitched. "Your mother?" he echoed. "Your father had nothing to say?"

"My father died when I was ten, Sesshomaru-sama."

The cold eyes still declined to reveal the taiyoukai's feelings. "And your intent, little miko?"

"I will live here with Inuyasha," she stated firmly. "We will make our lives together, and no one," she gave him a fierce glower, "is going to stop us."

Silence. Kagome felt the taiyoukai's assessing regard, and refused to cavil or look away.

The blade vanished with a whisper of steel on wood. "Do as you wish."

… … … …

Kagome dropped down beside Inuyasha, carefully setting her bow down, before leaning over to inspect the blood-soaked clothing. "Just what was that about?" she demanded, starting to unfasten his clothes. "First, I thought he was going to kill you, and then, he puts that sword against my throat, and you don't way a word! Would you mind explaining?"

Inuyasha sighed, not resisting her hands. He had shifted from sitting to lying prone, once Sesshomaru had vanished, and Kagome had resumed her trek up the hill. "I let myself get distracted when I caught your scent; you don't do that against Sesshomaru, even if it is just sparring."

"Just sparring—Inuyasha, he could have killed you!"

He opened his eyes to peer at her outraged face. "He wouldn't, Kagome—we've been sparring for three years—we keep the swords powered down. Just a scratch now and then."

He saw her roll her eyes. "A scratch, he says. Inuyasha, he ran you through! I saw it!"

"It's already stopped bleeding, and it'll be healed by morning. You worry too much, wench."

She glared at him. "Then, what was he trying to do, when he was throttling you?" she demanded. "Being nice?"

"He told me that if you came, I was to keep silent while he confronted you. I forgot a moment, when he struck me: he was just reminding me. Well that, and provoking you."

Her expression was still thunderous. "Why? What was he after? Surely, he wasn't still angry because I called him 'brother-in-law.'"

Inuyasha grimaced. He didn't care for the term anymore than he suspected Sesshomaru did, but he also knew he wouldn't be able to explain their reactions to the woman. Reaching up with his unbloodied hand, he caressed her cheek with the back of his fingers. "Kagome, you know Sesshomaru doesn't explain himself. He called me out here, told me that if you followed, I was not to interfere. He…" Inuyasha hesitated, hunting for words. "You know he doesn't use words, Kagome, but you know he cares about Rin, don't you?"

She nodded. "And he—I think—cares, in his own way, for me. He's let me be with him, as I want. I think he just wanted to be sure what you are to me."

"And?"

"He accepts you."

She blinked, confusion crossing her face. Inuyasha smirked a little. "He did say we could do as we wished." He watched her eyes go blank for a moment, then widen in realization.

"Oh!"

He turned his hand and threaded his fingers through her hair, tugging gently. "And right now, what I want…"

"Is a bandage?" she asked, a grin trying to escape.

He snorted and tugged again. "Who needs a bandage? Come here." This time, she didn't resist, and their lips met in a satisfying contact. Inuyasha thought of his half-built hut and felt a tingle of anticipation. One hut to finish, and then, pure bliss…

Author's Note: This piece was originally written for the 'First Tweak' community on LiveJournal, in response to the prompt 'Mountain.' It was published on May 30th, 2010.