4.

A couple of hours passed. Kagome covered Inuyasha with a blanket, checking often on his state, despite the fact that the hanyou wasn't showing any signs of waking up. But luckily it seemed his wounds were on a good path to heal.

Miroku and Kikyou resigned themselves to meditating. Kirara finished cleaning her wounds, which were healing even faster than Inuyasha's. Shippou's bruises were almost gone and the boy was quietly drawing in a corner of the cave, desperate to find some distraction from his constant worry about the unconscious hanyou. His scent was getting more and more weird, but the boy couldn't put a finger on how weird exactly, so he kept it to himself, not wanting to worry others.

Sango was cleaning and fixing her gear, trying to find something for herself to do in the small cave. Every time she looked up she saw Kagome keeping her silent vigil over her beloved hanyou. She was also wondering why Kikyou was still there, in her opinion the undead miko should just leave them alone. Her presence was only making Kagome annoyed. Sango was sure of it even if Kagome was doing her best to look calm.

Outside the sky was darkening and the forest around the cave was growing silent when the birds and other animals were going to sleep. Kagome redid a few bandages which soaked through.

"Had he been human that wouldn't happen to him," whispered Kikyou, more to her thoughts than to other humans in the cave. Kagome's head snapped up.

"Don't even start it!" she scolded. "He's just fine as he is. I love him for being himself, the strength of his youkai helps him to protect what he holds dear because of his human heart. Would you like to strip him of this ability to defend his friends?"

To Sango's surprise Kikyou didn't answer immediately. She turned her thoughtful gaze at the prone hanyou.

"There wouldn't be need to fight. The jewel would be purified by the wish to make him human," she said, but it didn't feel like she believed in her words like she had once believed.

"Feh," Kagome snorted, making a good impression of Inuyasha. "Do you want to tell me that ripping a person in half and destroying the half you don't like is a pure wish? The jewel would twist it on you and he would suffer because of it."

"He suffers now. He suffered years of loneliness, ridicule and hate. Do you really want for his life to be like this?" Kikyou asked. Kagome shook her head and gestured around.

"Does that look like he has no friends, who can look past his hanyou status? No one here cares if he's half or not, we care for who, not what he is."

"Lady Kagome is right," stated Miroku calmly and opened his eyes. "We and the people of Lady Kaede's village accept Inuyasha with all his multiple flaws and virtues."

"And there are others, people he helped during the quest," Sango added, just glad to make sure Kikyou got their point. She thought the only way for Inuyasha to be accepted was for him to deny a half of himself, to erase it, with all good and bad it could offer.

"And not only humans," Shippou piped in, causing everyone to look at him. "Do you remember the water kami of the lake? Or Shiori and Jinenji? And I'm sure Soten from the Thunder Youkai Tribe likes him too. There are all kind of people. Kagome just had to show us that there's something more to this mean bully."

Kagome offered Shippou a warm, soft smile.

"All Inuyasha needed to show his softer side was some love... And trust," she said, a bit embarrassed by the warm smiles of her friends and Shippou's praise. But the kit was right, there were not only grateful humans on their path. Oh, there were some who were hostile, or whispering behind his back, but there also those who didn't treat him much different, especially when they saw him in company of humans and not acting like a monster.

Kikyou sighed.

"I was supposed to give him that love and trust," she said, looking in the fire. "But I couldn't trust a person who was half youkai. I was taught never to trust a youkai. Too many times they tried to trick me and steal the jewel."

Everyone looked with sympathy at the undead miko. Sango thought that she could not like her and still feel sad for the tragic woman. Kikyou was one of the victims of the jewel and now she was forced to wander the world and see the one she had loved forming a relationship with another - her reincarnation on top of that.

As they were talking no one noticed that two blue stripes appeared on Inuyasha's cheeks, faint and thin, but visible against his pale skin.

When some more time passed the gang decided it was time to eat. They dropped the somber topic of the delicate matters of Inuyasha's relationships and whether or not should he stay the same with Kagome or go be a human (or go to hell) with Kikyou. There was no point in arguing about it, the choice was Inuyasha's and thinking about it only made Kagome sad and angry. Kikyou seemed deep in thought, as if their words had found purchase in her mind. Kagome just hoped that the undead miko could see the truth and let Inuyasha be happy and be himself.

They busied themselves making dinner and it was quickly revealed that the best course of action was to make ramen. Their head provider was still unconscious, so there would be no meat for them tonight.

Kikyou looked in wonder at the ramen packages and Kagome generously invited her to share a meal with them. The undead miko looked in surprise at her, but smiled and accepted. Sango was amazed, she doubted she could invite her rival to a meal with such grace.

Soon they all sat with a cup of ramen each. The smell of instant noodles filled the air in the cave.

And a miracle occurred.