Author's Note: This is a mini-sequel for 'The Look' while I write the sequel I actually had in mind. Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha.
A special thank you to GuardianGirl24, MissKitty35, SapphiRubyCrys, kat5552 chapter, and bucktooth22 who left wonderful reviews for 'The Look'.
The Glow
Kagome had been acting strange. It had taken InuYasha a few days to notice it, but she had definitely been acting strange.
At first it was the little things: her wanting to eat strange foods, 'sitting' him for no apparent reason. Then he noticed one morning that she got sick after breakfast. That was when he started to get worried.
He and Miroku were on the way home from a demon exterminating trip when he mentioned his concerns. Miroku had noticed that InuYasha was in a hurry to get home.
"I'm worried about Kagome," InuYasha replied when the monk questioned his haste to return home.
"What for?" While Miroku didn't watch Kagome anywhere near as close as InuYasha did (he wasn't sure who would kill him first if he did, his friend or his wife), he hadn't noticed anything wrong with the priestess before they left.
"She got sick yesterday, she said she was fine, but something doesn't feel right," InuYasha's concern grew as he discussed it with Miroku and he began to pick up the pace.
"What do you mean?" Miroku asked.
"She's been acting strange lately," was InuYasha's short reply.
At Miroku's pondering look, InuYasha elaborated.
"Besides her getting sick yesterday, she's been eating really weird stuff lately like peaches and fish on rice, she's also been 'sitting' me a lot lately," InuYasha cringed at the last part. His wife had used the spell more in the last week than she had in the entire time she had been back from the modern world.
"Ah, yes. Now that you mention it, I have noticed that Kagome has had a certain glow about her," Miroku chuckled.
"What are ya goin' on about?" InuYasha asked gruffly.
"The glow?" Miroku tried to contain the mischievous look in his eyes. "Ah yes, it is the side effect of an ailment most women have to suffer at least once in their lifetime."
Miroku wondered just how far he could push his friend until he snapped.
"Ailment? Kagome's sick?" The half demon sounded terrified.
"Well, I guess you could say that, the women typically call it morning sickness."
Apparently the monk didn't have to push the half demon that far.
InuYasha was nearly in hysterics at the idea of his beloved wife being sick and him not knowing about it.
"But Kagome said she was fine!"
"Well, you said it yourself, she's been acting strangely and she was sick the other morning," Miroku was trying to hold in a laugh.
"Don't feel too bad my friend," Miroku said while patting InuYasha's back. "Women typically hide it from their husbands for at least the first few weeks."
"Weeks?! How long does this illness last?" InuYasha was in full panic mode.
"Oh, about nine months," Miroku said nonchalantly.
"MONTHS!"
"Yes it is quite a long lasting ailment."
InuYasha switched into protector mode. "What can I do for her? What can I do to help this pass easier for her?"
"Well, you mustn't stress her out too much, stress will make her condition worse. She is very delicate right now. You must be gentle with her," Miroku said sagely.
"I've gotta get home!" InuYasha shouted back to Miroku as he ran ahead.
Miroku just stood in the road and laughed.
"You are a lucky man, my friend."
X X X
InuYasha had been driving her crazy.
He had been following her around everywhere. He was getting in the way of her work. She couldn't seem to get two minutes privacy!
He insisted on 'helping' her with everything. If he saw that she was the least bit tired he would scoop her up and carry her. While all the attention was nice at first, it was starting to get on her nerves. Especially since she couldn't figure out why he was acting that way.
X X X
"I don't get it Sango! He's been acting so strange!" Kagome yelled out I frustration.
The men had left for demon extermination so there was no worry about keeping quiet.
"What has he been doing?" the demon slayer asked her friend calmly.
"He's just been suffocating! He won't give me a minute's peace!" The young priestess was at her wit's end.
"Do you think that he knows?"
"No." Kagome shook her head. "How could he?"
"You haven't told him yet?!"
"I haven't figured out how," Kagome answered sheepishly.
'Kagome!" Sango laughed.
"I just don't know how he'll take it!"
"What do you mean?"
"What if he decided he doesn't want this? I mean, we discussed this once before we got married, but we haven't since. What if he changed his mind about wanting children?" Kagome cried.
"Kagome, InuYasha loves you. He has come such a long way, and even more so since you've returned. I know he wants children with you, and now I think he's grown enough to have them. You need to tell him, Kagome." Sango reassured her friend.
"I will, right after I find out why he's acting so weird."
X X X
The men had returned from the extermination and InuYasha went in search of his wife. He found her at the bank of the river cleaning and sorting herbs.
"Looks like you're hard at work, anything I can help with?" he asked her.
She jumped up in fright.
"InuYasha! Don't sneak up on me like that!" She put her hand to her hear in an attempt to slow its beating.
InuYasha's ears flattened to his head. "Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you."
She turned back to her work. After a moment she spoke over her shoulder, "How did the trip go?"
"Feh. Puny weasel demon, didn't even break a sweat. Looks like you've been busy, hope you haven't worked yourself too hard."
She could hear the concern for her in his voice.
"It's not like it's tough work, I've been gathering and sorting herbs all day. You make it sound like I'm lifting boulders!" she chuckled.
"I just don't want you overworking yourself. In your condition, it's not healthy!" he protested as he sat down next to her.
Her head whipped to face him. "My condition? What do you mean 'my condition'?"
"Uh-uh… Miroku said you weren't telling me because most women don't tell their husbands at first." InuYasha admitted.
"Miroku told you?! Miroku knows?!" She knew Sango hadn't told him, so how did he know? "How did he find out?"
"Yeah, that was my fault. You got sick before out last trip out and I was explaining to the monk why I was in such a hurry to get home. I told him how you had gotten sick in the morning and how you had been acting strange the last few weeks. He told me all about it," InuYasha admitted.
"I can't believe he told you! How could he?!" Kagome was angry and ready to pummel the monk.
"It's nothing to be ashamed of; Miroku said a lot of the village women get this illness. I just wanted to know you'd be okay. I'll take care of you anyway I can," InuYasha tenderly touched her cheek to calm her down, not wanting her to be stressed.
"Illness? What exactly did he tell you I had?" Kagome asked, having a bad feeling the monk had duped her husband.
"He said that you had something called morning sickness and that the glow was a side effect. He said most women get it at least once in their life," the hanyou repeated what he had been told.
Kagome started laughing uncontrollably.
"What's so funny?! THIS ISN'T FUNNY KAGOME!"
"You do realize morning sickness isn't an actual disease, right?" she responded, finally able to contain her giggles. "It's a symptom."
"Symptom? Symptom of what?" InuYasha said worriedly.
Kagome chuckled and scooted closer to him. She grabbed his hand and held it in hers. She looked down at their hands, smiled and looked up into his eyes.
"Oh, it's nothing to worry about, just a simple case of pregnancy," she said with a grin.
InuYasha said nothing. His face was completely blank, his eyes unfocused.
Pregnancy? Kagome was pregnant?
Pregnant.
Kagome was going to have a baby.
Kagome was going to have his baby.
KAGOME PREGNANT WITH HIS BABY!
"Y-you're pregnant?" he finally asked, not daring to hope it was true.
Kagome looked down bashfully and took the hand she had been holding and pressed it to her stomach, and then she looked up at him.
"InuYasha, you're going to be a father," she said quietly, but steadily.
A brightness came into his eyes she had never seen before, a smile more beautiful than any she had ever seen him wear lit up his face. He pulled her into an embrace.
She heard him whisper, "Thank you, Kagome," and knew that he was pleased.
He would kill the monk for his joke later, right now he was going to hold the most beautiful, wonderful, amazing woman he had ever known and let her know just how much he loved her.
Author's note: Sorry if you're name isn't at the top, I put the names of all the people who reviewed and favorited when I started writing the story. As I mentioned before, this was not the sequel I originally intended, and there will be one more part to this series. Please review!
P.S. If you had no idea what was going on by the end of Miroku and InuYasha's conversation, you are probably too young to be on this site!