"A Heart's Immaculence"

Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own Inuyasha or any characters related to it.

Author's Note: This is my first fan fiction. I hope I did alright for my first try. Please review so I can see what you think of it. Thanks.

Summary: Kagome, after having an argument with Inuyasha , storms off on her own to prove she can be more than just a jewel detector who needs rescuing all the time. But during her time alone, she encounters Sesshomaru and soon her attention is focused on a desire to befriend him, and most importantly, to unlock his heart.

Chapter One

Kagome's face reddened and tightened, her temper flaring like sparks set off by fireworks, making everyone around her move some distance from where she stood, Sango, Miroku, and Shippo staring at their friend wide-eyed and slightly frightened. Her anger did not seem threatening at other times as it did now, and although she spoke in a slightly soft-toned voice, it was clear Kagome was ready to explode.

"Is that so?" Kagome said, molding her fists into neatly compressed folds.

"That's right!" Inuyasha retorted, his back facing Kagome with his arms tucked over his chest. "You are the lousiest fighter I have ever seen. Can't you rescue yourself for once? Huh, you are so stupid!"

Kagome took out her bow and arrow and positioned herself in a combative stance. She aimed the arrow at Inuyasha, her eyes reddening to the brim at the sockets, not because she wanted to cry but because her anger was swiftly turning into fury.

"Kagome!" Sango shouted. "What are you doing?"

"Calm yourself, Kagome," Miroku said. "Don't be rash. Inuyasha is just trying to irritate you. Don't listen to him."

"Please, Kagome," Shippo cried as he clutched Miroku's shoulder. "Inuyasha's being a bully like always. You know he can be a jerk."

"Shut up!" Inuyasha bellowed as he looked at Shippo then turned to face Kagome. "Oh, so you want to shoot me, huh? Well, go ahead, Kagome. I can't wait for you to miss."

"Go ahead, Inuyasha. Make fun of me." Kagome pulled back the arrow as far as she could and released it, its tip a gleaming light of silver as it flew into the open air toward its target. She inhaled abruptly when she saw that Inuyasha did not move from the direction of the arrow's approach. He stood there with his eyes closed, appearing as if he was taking a nap, the wind causing his hair to blow around his face, blocking his view of the arrow. Even if he were to open his eyes, he would be blinded by his own hair. Kagome began to worry. Is he crazy? she thought. He'll be killed if he doesn't move! Kagome did the only thing she could think of to prevent him from getting hit.

"Inuyasha, S—" Before she could complete the word, Inuyasha stepped aside effortlessly in one movement from the path of the coming arrow.

He opened his eyes and looked at the place the arrow had landed, on a tree trunk. Giving a soft laugh, Inuyasha shook his head, "Clumsy as usual. I bet even I can shoot better than you even if I've never used a bow and arrow before."

Kagome walked up to Inuyasha hastily and kicked him on the leg. Inuyasha replied with an "ouch" and began yelling in Kagome's face, his temper causing him to look rather comical as his facial expressions and bodily movements contorted to the ever rising pitch of his angry voice. Had Kagome known he was going to act so rudely towards her, she would have given Inuyasha a slap on the face rather than a harmless tap on the leg.

"All I have to do is say that one word, Inuyasha" said Kagome angrily. "Just push me over the edge, and I'll have you whimpering on the ground like a wounded puppy."

"Yeah, of course," Inuyasha replied. "That is your only defense against me. Unfortunately, it does not work on anybody else. Too bad though. It would be a better weapon for you to defend yourself with instead of—

"SIT BOY!"

Even if Kagome could not defend herself the way she would like, at least she had complete control over the one person who made her happy, and unluckily, wrathful. For now she was satisfied with that one power she possessed.

Sango, Miroku and Shippo looked at each other disapprovingly and walked over to both Inuyahsa and Kagome. The three of them were used to witnessing such arguments between the both of them countless times, but for some reason they had become more frequent. They were growing tired and frustrated with the girl's and hanyou's disagreements and spats, so much so that they would often ignore them on several occasions in order to get their point across that they were displeased with their behavior towards each other. It was a bore for them, one they did not want to endure any longer.

"He deserved it," said Shippo, following the deep-holed pattern of Inuyasha's body pressed into the ground. "He always deserves it."

"Are you okay now, Kagome?" Sango asked, hoping Kagome's anger had subsided once she used her "sit" command on Inuyasha. But Kagome was far from relieved. Sango saw it in her friend's eyes. Instead of the gentle, smooth glaze of sable she loved to see within Kagome's reflective spheres, she saw only a wrinkled and intertwined mass of rage and sadness.

"Perhaps now you'll reframe from insulting Kagome, Inuyasha," Miroku said harshly, gently tapping his gold staff on the back of the hanyou's head. "You know better than to make Kagome upset. I thought you'd have learned that by now."

"Shut up, Miroku!" Inuyasha mumbled, his voice hardly audible since his face was situated deep into the earth.

Bending her knees and falling to the ground, Kagome sat there quietly, scratching her head roughly, strands of her black hair tangling themselves on her fingers. She was tired of fighting with Inuyasha, tired of blaming herself for anything she did wrong, for ruining things without intending to. It was a mistake she committed which caused her and Inuyasha to argue in the first place. Why did she have to be so imperfect? It was because of her that the last three jewel shards they were supposed to retrieve did not go successfully. She had failed Inuyasha and her friends, but most importantly, she had failed herself. She was better at getting herself into trouble, of putting herself in harm's way rather than be of any help to the mission at hand. The only thing she did do right was place herself in danger and in a situation where the only way out was if Inuyasha rescued her. Was she beginning to frustrate Inuyasha and the others? Was Inuyasha truly tired of saving her in every battle they had in finding the jewel shards? Was she nothing now but a pain in the neck to him when it came to…? No, she could not think of it anymore. Inuyasha was right. She was clumsy and a lousy fighter.

"Then I'll do something about it!"

"What did you say, Kagome?" Sango said. "Where are you going?"

Kagome stood up and walked away from the group in a determined manner, her body stiff and rigid as her feet pressed the ground, leaving perfect footprints in the dirt.

"Kagome!" Shippo ran towards her and tried to catch up to her, but she was walking much too quickly for him and he lagged behind. "Kagome, where are you going? What's wrong? Please don't go!"

Miroku left Inuyasha's side and came to be Sango's. He stared at Kagome and frowned, tilting his head to one side, trying to figure out the reason for his friend's sudden behavior. "I hope she does not do anything foolish," he said worriedly.

"Why do you say that?" Sango replied.

"Well, you know how easily Kagome gets hurt when it concerns her relationship with Inuyasha. I'm afraid the argument she had with him today hurt her more than those in the past."

"Do you think she'll be alright? Should we follow her?"

"No. I think she needs to be alone for a while. What can we tell her now that we have not told her before? Inuyasha, however, is someone we should be with. He needs to be given a good talk about Kagome's feelings…by all of us."

Miroku and Sango bent their heads simultaneously to stare at Inuyasha's frozen figure on the ground. They looked at him silently and reproachfully, knowing he was often the cause for Kagome's constant leaving or absence from the group. They knew he could be insensitive and careless when it came to her feelings, but he was still not used to being cautious of his words or thinking before he spoke anything to prevent Kagome from getting hurt by him. But they also knew that he did not have the mind for such delicate, sensitive matters, and he was not entirely to blame for being born that way.

"He's getting up." Shippo jumped on top of Inuyasha and punched his head repeatedly as if playing a drum. "You always make Kagome mad, Inuyasha! You always make her go away! You are mean, mean, mean…."

Inuyasha was not in the mood to tolerate Shippo's beating his head, and he grabbed him by the neck and flung him over his shoulder. Shippo landed on his stomach with a hard smack and began shedding tears. Inuyasha seemed to be insensitive to everyone's feelings at the moment, not just Kagome's.

"Inuyasha, you need to settle yourself down," Miroku advised. "I understand you are still flustered by the argument you had with Kagome, but please don't be so hard on us. We want to help you."

"Heh, I don't need anybody's help," Inuyasha responded, shaking the dirt off his clothes and scratching his left ear with his foot.

"You really upset Kagome today," Sango said, concern evident in her voice. "Don't you think you should talk about what's bothering you? I have never seen you treat Kagome so harshly before. You really hurt her, Inuyasha."

"And what about Kagome hurting me!"

Sango, Miroku and Shippo looked at Inuyasha with puzzlement and confusion. They had never heard him utter something like that, and it made them question to themselves what it was that provoked him to do this.

"What do you mean, Inuyasha?" Miroku questioned. "Did Kagome do something to you?"

"Never mind," Inuyasha dismissed Miroku's words. He knew his friends would want to know his every thought and emotion he was feeling right then and there concerning Kagome, but he was not in the least interested in explaining his feelings to them or to anyone. Whatever he felt and thought about Kagome was his secret, and he would be damned if he shared them with anybody.

"By the way, where is Kagome?" Inuyasha noticed Kagome was no where in sight, and he could not smell her scent anywhere nearby.

"We do know where she went off to," Miroku said. "Maybe she went back to her home."

"I'll go get her," Inuyasha said.

"No, Inuyasha. Let her be by herself for a while." Sango, always protective of Kagome's emotions, felt he should keep his distance from her until she was ready to come back and make amends.

"Whatever." Inuyasha looked at the sky and saw that it was nearing nightfall. The crimson clouds hovered above the group in soft, billowy masses of cotton-like pillows, complimenting the setting sun as it smiled its gentle rays of light across the earth, bringing a sense of peace and relaxation, preparing the world for the coming of darkness before it announced the day's end with its final good-bye.

"I guess there's no point looking for jewel shards right now," Inuyasha said. "We'll have to wait for Kagome to return."

Everyone set out camp in the area inside the forest they had stopped in, and while the group was preparing the fire, the food, and the beds, Inuyasha's thoughts turned to Kagome.

I hope you are alright, Kagome, Inuyasha thought worriedly. I'm sorry I hurt you. Forgive me.

If only Kagome could hear Inuyasha's thoughts, for she too, in a faraway distance deep within the forest, was thinking about him.

Well, this is the first chapter, and I know Sesshomaru has not shown up yet, but he will very soon. I promise! Oh, and please review. Thanks.