Disclaimer: I don't own it, I swear.

...

A Sunrise

Kagome growled uselessly.

What an asshole. Okay, maybe punching the stuck-up bitch was a bit too much no matter how much she deserved it. Still, why was she being punished so cruelly? 5 AM. What sadistic schmuck thought up 5 AM anyway?

"Will you stop yawning?"

Kagome glared at Inuyasha and he glared right back.

She had shown up, very unwillingly, at his house at 5:06 AM and he nearly killed her for being that late. Then he threw some clothes at her and told her to change. She hadn't even looked at it because she had been halfway asleep. Then he had taken her, still halfway asleep, to the beach before the sun had even risen. Then he had spent the better part of an hour positioning her on an outcropping of rocks.

She was facing the rising sun, her knees drawn up to her chest as the fresh sea air tossed her hair around, blew the thin white dress up slightly, and woke her just as efficiently as a cup of coffee. But she couldn't stop her yawns and they were making Inuyasha, who had his sketch pad open and was staring at her about ten feet away, get angrier and angrier as the sun kept rising.

"I'm tired." she glared.

"You should have thought of that before punching Kikyo in the face." he grumbled as he bent back over his sketch pad.

The Wench was being difficult.

He was trying to get the shape of her face right. As similar as she was to Kikyo she was still different enough to drive him crazy. He didn't bring his easel today, he wanted to just draw her first. Get used to her shape, her expressions, her-THOSE DAMN YAWNS!

"Will you stop!"

Kagome glared at him again.

Difficult was too tame a word for her. She wouldn't relax, making him doubly glad he hadn't brought his easel today. He was making a pair of paintings for the exhibition and was going to call them Sunrise and Sunset. His model was supposed to look calm and relaxed at the beginning of the day and excited and happy at the end. But Kagome's jaw was too stiff to be calm and her form to rigid to be relaxed.

"You're messing me up." Inuyasha snarled. Her face, he was having such trouble with her face.

"Yeah well, you're cutting into my sleeping time." she said back. "I have to be at work at 10, you know."

"Whatever." he said turning his eyes back to his sketch pad. He wanted Kikyo back but with her eyes and nose messed up she was useless to him. He had to make due with her replacement.

Kagome grimaced as he went back to drawing. Stupid, temperamental artist. Why couldn't he just paint something else for the exhibition? Why was Kikyo so important?

She hadn't told her friends yet, she was sure they would laugh. Not just because Kagome had punched someone, again, but because she was being forced to model for this idiot.

She shivered slightly and could practically hear Inuyasha's frustration with her. She couldn't help it, she was cold. The white dress he had given her, while pretty, was designed more for summer than the chill of late fall. It wasn't warm enough for the thin fabric with a touch of feminine lace at the neckline. It looked almost like a night gown that only went to her mid-thigh, which she supposed was the point. After all, what reasonable human being wouldn't be sleeping at this kami forsaken hour?

She supposed she should be thankful he wasn't making her pose nude. Though if that were the case she would probably take the assault charge.

Kagome closed her eyes, he couldn't object to that too strongly she thought. While her mind completely ignored Inuyasha's existence, she focused on herself instead. The breeze was nice. The sound of it blowing past her ears was just enough to block out any city noise and the sound of Inuyasha's pencil. It made her feel alone and strangely secure. The ocean spray, while cold, smelled of salt and brought back memories of her being on the beach with her friends and family. Memories that brought her joy and happiness. The rock under her, though hard, was surprisingly comfortable. It was steady and firm and as she took in a deep breath she felt all the tension leave her body.

There!

The Wench had finally relaxed.

Whether she noticed it or not, her head had tilted back slightly to get better access to the breeze and spray and her chest expanded more as she took in deep, steady breaths. Inuyasha's hand flew across the page, correcting and changing things. Her shoulders were down now, rounded and relaxed, and she looked natural. It was as if she had always been there and the rock had molded to her form instead of the other way around. Her eye's were closed, which wasn't what he had planned, but it was working. It wasn't until he was tracing her jaw line that he noticed the slight upturn of her lips, as if she were enjoying a pleasant dream.

He paused to look at her, really look, and wondered what she was thinking that was so nice. Then, as the rising sun did what it did best, the light his her just the way he had always wanted and made the ocean burst into many different, soft, colors. The colors bounced off the water and hit her dress, hit her skin, and brought out a glow he hadn't noticed before.

Then, again, his hand was darting across the paper like a dragonfly over the water as he struggled to capture the beauty of the moment. The sun had never been as cooperative with Kikyo. Clouds or some other thing would always interfere. The ocean would come alive, yes, but the beauty had never reached Kikyo like this, like he wanted.

As he was struggling to get down the details, Kagome's eyes opened and looked into the rising sun. Just like that, her drab brown eyes were transformed into glowing jewels the color of amber. The black of her hair was shinier, more colorful than a rainbow yet still as dark as a raven's wing. There was no way he could get this all down.

Kagome heard his pencil breaking land speed records and had been unable to resist opening her eyes. But instead of looking at him like she planned, she saw instead a startlingly pretty sunrise made of delicate pinks and lovely oranges and it stole her attention completely.

For a few minutes, they sat like that. Both were silent, both were absorbed in their own thoughts.

"Okay. We're done."

Kagome looked, surprised, at Inuyasha. He was closing his book and standing up.

"Be here again at 6." was all he said before walking away.

"Huh?" she blinked confused. A second ago his pencil had been scribbling furiously and now he was walking away.

Stupid, temperamental artist.