Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha
Kagome slept until nearly dawn and then she sat up and yawned and stretched.
"Did you sleep well?" Kouga asked looking at her lovingly. She blushed and nodded.
"You were quite cute sleeping all curled up like that." He said. "Are your injuries feeling better?"
"A little." She didn't notice much difference. "Where are Hakkaku and Ginta?"
"I sent them to get Inuyasha for you." He said casually.
"Kouga-" Her eyes went wide. "You realize if you wanted to you could have just-"
"Use that mutt Inuyasha's absence to steal your heart?" He cut in. Her face turned bright red. He laughed softly at her bright red complexion. "The thought did occur to me, but I don't need underhanded tricks to have you as my woman. You will come to love me Kagome, and it will be of your own free will." He said smiling at her.
"Kouga-" Her eyes were wide as she looked at him like it was the first time she was seeing him. He looked up into the sky, lying back in the grass and sighing contentedly.
"We played a game sometimes when I was little." She lay back next to him with her head supported by his arm and her side warmed by his. She smiled and pointed up at the clouds dotting the sky. "You pick a cloud and you say what you think it looks like."
"It looks like a cloud." He said puzzled, his tail giving an irritated swish.
"That one looks like a fish. See the tail?" She asked. He was silent for a long moment.
"Oh wow you're right!" He said grinning from ear to ear as his tail began wagging eagerly. "What does that one look like?" He asked pointing at another.
"It looks like a puppy." She said. "See the ears? And the tail."
"A wolf cub." He said beaming at her like she was the world. Like she was his world. "And that one?"
"It looks kinda like a baby." She said thoughtfully.
"It looks like a cat to me." He said as his smile dimmed and his tail slowed.
"See? That's the fun thing about it. Everyone's right." She laughed and hugged him around the waist. They spent some time doing that and just talking about what things were like in her world. Eventually Inuyasha showed up with Shippo on his shoulder and in the company of Ginta and Hakkaku.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha sighed in relief gathering her into his arms. "What are you wearing?" He asked holding her out at arm's length and sniffing her experimentally. She faltered, having trouble balancing with an injured foot and being tugged around by Inuyasha.
"My clothes got burned." Kagome said smiling.
"That's why I gave you my robe." Inuyasha huffed seeing it balled up on the ground and growling softly at Kouga, knowing it was his fault.
"Thank you Hakkaku and Ginta." Kagome said to the two exhausted wolves, ignoring Inuyasha.
"Anything for you Kagome." They chorused sleepily before collapsing and falling into an exhausted sleep.
"You filthy mutt!" Kouga snarled scooping Kagome up as if she weighed nothing more than a blade of grass and putting her out of Inuyasha's arms reach before descending on the half-demon and shoving him hard. "You let Kagome get hurt!"
"Kagome-" Inuyasha's face filled with worry and he looked over to where she was cradling her bandaged hand and standing with all her weight on one foot.
"I let her stay with you because she's safer there than with me, but if you don't keep her safe I'll kill you and do it myself." Kouga snarled.
"Like you could have done anything different scrawny wolf." Inuyasha snapped shoving him away and going to Kagome. He took her wrist in his hand and gently touched the bandage on it before looking up at her like he had a million things to say. Most of those things were apologies.
"Get away from her you filthy useless mutt." Kouga said landing on top of Inuyasha who fell on his face. "Kagome, when are going to ditch this looser and come to live with me?" He asked leaning in to her and wrapping his arms around her waist.
"Get off me!" Inuyasha growled.
"Um-" She blushed, but didn't try to pull away.
"If I were the one doing all this you'd have told me to-" Inuyasha barked angrily from where he was being crushed by Kouga standing on top of him.
"Sit Boy!" Kagome snapped. "Kouga, thank you for all you did for me today, but I'm still on a quest with Inuyasha." She said.
"When it is complete, and Naraku is dead one way of the other, will you come be my wife?" He asked.
"I'll think about it." Kagome laughed awkwardly.
"Maybe is better than a no." Kouga said leaning in and kissing her on the cheek. "I'll kill Naraku then, so you can come live with me and be my woman." Kouga said hopping off Inuyasha and whirling off into the distance.
"Kouga wait!" Ginta and Hakkaku called half-heartedly as they scrambled up and began trotting after him.
"I think you two deserve a rest." Kagome smiled at them. They looked at her with so much love as she laughed and sat near the fire. They looked between her and Kouga before calling thank you to her one last time and moving lethargically after their leader.
"Hey!" Inuyasha whined. "How come you're nice to everyone but me?" He asked brushing the dirt off him.
"Inuyasha." She growled. He winced, knowing what was coming. "Sit boy!"
"You deserved that one." Shippo said sitting on her lap as Inuyasha twitched and moaned in pain. "Did Kouga take good care of you?"
"Well he delegated most of it, but yes I suppose so." She smiled softly at Shippo.
"So Kouga helps you one time and you're his woman now? I've been protecting you this while time, and what do I get? I get told to sit." Inuyasha huffed angrily.
"I'm no one's woman thank you very much!" Kagome snapped. "And if you were nice to me for once I'd be nice to you too." She looked up at the clouds as the fish turned into butterfly. "I love watching the clouds." She smiled softly.