I'm back, everyone! Moving right along with chappie four! Oh, and next time anyone reviews on this story, tell me how much longer you guys want the story, so I can kinda get the idea of where to stop it at how many chapters. Keep it in mind, okay? Here's the next chapter!

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"Hey, Kagome...are you awake…?" Inuyasha turned over carefully and nudged the girl's shoulder gently, mainly to see if she reacted at all. When she didn't respond at first, he turned his head and stole a sideways glance back over to the clock on the dresser. Had he been able to read the digital numbers on the clock properly, he would have known that it was three thirty in the morning. However, he remained oblivious to the time system of her era, too used to his feudal methods of ways of telling time. His focus readjusted to Kagome as she finally registered that she wasn't the only one awake. In truth, neither had slept very well that night, both of them pondering on how the effects of new moon could be concealed.

"Inuyasha…I've been thinking…"

"So have I…about the new moon and all…what about you?"

"Same goes for me, I think if we're back here by four in the evening, which is almost two hours before sunset, we should manage to keep your secret hidden." Inuyasha found her reasoning made sense enough that it would work, so he agreed. Not much else was said between the two, though they just couldn't bring themselves to sleep; Inuyasha because he was dreading the new moon and how much difference there would be between he and his girlfriend, Kagome because she knew he was dreading it.

It was only about five hours later, at eight thirty three, that Inuyasha felt Kagome leave the bed to get dressed. He sighed inwardly as he followed suit, grabbing a pair of faded blue jeans, a pair of boxers, and a thin grey sweater with the same eagle on the chest as the shirt he was wearing now (yes, Kagome's mom bought him clothes from American Eagle) before retreating to the bathroom of the space. Thankfully, Ms. Higurashi had Sota teach Inuyasha the right way to put on the boxers, so he swapped those with the pair he had on and quickly changed out of yesterday's outfit (he hadn't brought any pajamas). When he emerged from the bathroom, Kagome sported a pair of tight light blue jeans and an emerald green cup sleeved shirt with a white cami top underneath to cover her cleavage. Upon his reappearance, she smiled welcomingly at him as she grabbed a compact brush from her duffle bag and walked to the full length mirror. Opening the compact blue brush and popping the bristles out for use, she began to run the brush through her thick locks of hair, making each tress she combed shimmer even more than it originally had. As she looked into the mirror, she smiled as Inuyasha's reflection walked up behind hers. Soon she saw two grey clad arms wrap around her reflection's waist, which was followed by her own back being pressed up against Inuyasha's chest. She finished the task of brushing her hair, and tossed the brush on the bed beside them, but did nothing to pull away from her boyfriend's embrace. Inuyasha leaned his head down and began to nuzzle her newly brushed and fluffy hair with his nose, letting the feel and scent of her tresses take over all of his senses as he closed his eyes. He faintly heard her giggle before he felt her hair sort of twist around against his face, and before he knew it, she was turned to face him before he found her arms were wrapped securely around his waist and shoulders. Opening his eyes, she greeted his amber orbs with her own hazel ones. Their moment was broken as she glanced at the clock, which was now informing her it was nine forty seven, and they needed to meet her friends back at Uncommon Grounds in an hour and thirteen minutes.

"Inuyasha, we gotta go meet up with the others." The only answer she got in return was a barely audible whimper, but he let her go and followed her out the door nonetheless. He mentally promised himself ahead of time that he would try his best not to mope too much at least until they came back to the room; he didn't want Kagome's friends thinking he was some schizophrenic nutcase or something. So he did nothing to object as she retraced their steps from yesterday down the street to Uncommon Grounds. She paused outside the door, turning to face Inuyasha with a sympathetic look on her face.

"I know what tonight is and all, so if you want to leave earlier than we planned, I'm fine with that. Just let me know, okay?" Inuyasha grinned half-heartedly, but nodded nonetheless. Upon entering the little shop again, Mona waved them over to a table, but the couple couldn't help but notice that Mona was alone, and Clara and Tara were not present. As they approached Kagome's friend, however, it became evident that she was going to explain the lack of a group.

"Good morning, guys. I just got a call from Tara's cell phone; she says her boyfriend came by and picked her up for a surprise date at the local café. Clara needs new clothes for school, and you know how bad she is a shopping for herself, so I agreed to come with. We figured you guys could spend some time by yourselves to get a good feel for the place before we give you a good shopping trip you'll never forget. They said they'd meet up with us tomorrow here at noon, alright?" Kagome nodded in agreement to the plan. Mona smiled her response.

"Looks like you two will get to do whatever you want 'till then." Mona glanced quickly at her watch before saying she was late, and rushing off with a hasty goodbye. Inuyasha and Kagome could only blink in surprise at the sudden change of events as they watched Mona rev her silver punch buggy's engine and speed off.

"Well…I wasn't expecting that…" Kagome mumbled somewhat still confused by the news. Inuyasha agreed in the same manner, then asked her what they should do now.

"Hmm…it isn't even eleven thirty yet…what do you say we get the same coffee we got yesterday?" Kagome offered. Inuyasha's ears perked up as he nodded his head eagerly at the idea of more white raspberry…err…something-something! He couldn't pronounce the last two words correctly, no matter how hard he tried, so he didn't object when Kagome told him to have a seat (she was careful not to say 'sit') and wait while she got the drinks. He plopped down none too gracefully on the powder blue love seat and let his eyes follow her every move toward the counter. When Kagome had reached the counter, he let his gaze switch from gazing at her to looking outside to check the position of the sun, and he found it must be getting close to midday, considering the sun was almost parallel to the ground in the center of the sky (but had he known how to read a clock, he would have found that it was about eleven thirty by now). The young hanyou couldn't help but gulp at the fact he could no longer even sense any trace of his own demonic aura, and it was nowhere near close to sunset yet! It might not be noticeable to anyone else but he and his girlfriend, but its absence certainly made him feel uncomfortable about it.

"I'm back!" Kagome's sudden cheerful voice pulled him out of his dreary thoughts as she handed him one of the little plastic cups of iced coffee. Taking the cold cup in his hand and giving his girlfriend a gruff 'thank you', he practically downed the whole drink in a matter of three gulps. He barely tasted a drop of it. He must have looked as depressed as he felt, because he faintly heard Kagome sigh sadly before snuggling up to his shoulder.

"It's alright, let's go do something fun, ne?" She whispered, nearly laughing when Inuyasha blushed furiously at her remark.

"Not what I meant, buster; don't get too hopeful."

"Whew…wait- WHAT?" He all but shouted, throwing Kagome into a giggling fit. She stood up and skipped out of the store, Inuyasha chasing her closely behind.

"Hopeful…HOPEFUL, you actually think I'd get HOPEFUL at some remark like that?" 'I'm not that transparent…am I…?' He half demanded, half joked as he caught her around the waist. At this point poor Kagome was laughing so hard Inuyasha was wondering if she could even breathe.

"I was just joking you big puppy!"

"Rrrrr…I hate those stupid 'puppy' jokes…" Deep down, they both knew he didn't mind her saying it, so Kagome was unfazed by his little growl of protest. She simply rolled her eyes at the hanyou before a growl emerged from her stomach. Inuyasha's brows knit together in a frown as he set his gaze on her stomach.

"You haven't eaten anything." What was supposed to be a question ended up coming out as a knowing statement. She blushed and shook her head in response.

"Not since I was back home, now that I think about it. The thought of food had just never occurred to me…" She mumbled before laying her hand on top of Inuyasha's on her stomach. She giggled when his stomach growled in the same manner as hers had, the giggle fit ending up as a hysterical laugh as Inuyasha blinked down at his own lean gut.

"I think they're trying to communicate!" Kagome mumbled between fits of laughter as Inuyasha continued to stare down at his rumbling, grey clad stomach.

"What do you say we get something to eat, Inuyasha?" The said hanyou's eyes were pulled away from his stomach at his girlfriend's suggestion to nod his head in agreement, but paused in thought.

"Wait…do you know where exactly there's a place we can get any food?"

Well, that certainly put a damper on things.

"Err…not exactly, but we can look along this street. There's bound to be some little café or shop where we can get something to eat. Come on!" She eagerly grabbed his hand and led him down the street in search of any sign of a place to eat. Flower shops, pet stores, salons, bars, antique shops, clothing stores, all passed by the couple until Kagome spotted…a concession stand!

"Hey Inuyasha, let's get something there!" He followed her gaze to a little enclosed stand with a lone man standing behind the counter. There was no line, but judging from the people eating around the stand, it was a pretty popular place. That and the food smelled pretty decent to Inuyasha's delicate sense of smell.

"Uhh…sure, I guess…but I have no idea what kind of food your era has, so…ah…"

"Don't worry about it Inuyasha, how about we both agree on something and just get enough for the two of us? To be honest, I don't really know what they'll have, either…this is a whole new country to me." With that said, they walked up to the counter and surveyed the menu, which had everything from hot dogs to ramen (A/n: not the kind you buy at the store. It's similar, but there's no broth and there are real veggies and meat in it) in all sorts of flavors, to ice cream. Ramen being the only thing they were both familiar with, they each got an order of ramen with chicken pieces and the assorted vegetables found in all of the flavors. After Kagome paid for the food, the man behind the counter placed the two small Styrofoam boxes in a little bag, the couple began to walk around to their next destination. For reasons unknown to Kagome, Inuyasha insisted on carrying the bag back.

"Kagome…it's a little after midday, isn't it?" Kagome turned her head to him to see his thoughtful expression focused on the position of the sun, using his era's method of telling time. Kagome glanced at her watch to see that it was indeed nearing two twenty in the afternoon. She confirmed the hanyou's hypothesis, which calmed him only enough to pry his thoughtful eyes from the sun and continue to walk down the street beside Kagome.

"What do you say we go back to the hotel room and eat? It's about an hour and a half back from here, with the traffic being this bad and all, so it'll be getting close to sunset by then." Kagome suggested as she stopped at the corner along side him.

"Sounds like I don't have much of an option, do I?" He mumbled trying his best not to sound bitter. Her gentle smile was all he got at a response, so he sighed both inwardly and outwardly before following her back to the room.

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"Phew! We made it back to the room just as the clock strikes four!" Kagome's voice nearly blended with the soft chimes of Big Ben outside as the giant minute hand rose to the twelve on the faces of the clock tower as they walked into the room. Her cheerful tone sounded forced even to her own ears, so she didn't get all that offended when Inuyasha's mood hadn't so much as twitched out of its gloomy setting. She told him she'd be right back and left the hanyou that wouldn't be a hanyou for much longer to stare at the setting sun in dismay. Well, he mused while closing his eyes and resting his head against the cool surface of the window before him. At least he could clear things up with-

He nearly gasped as her scent faded from his powerful nose. This wasn't supposed to happen…not so soon! He sniffed frantically, but her scent was barely even there anymore…like she left, or…

"Kagome?" Thankfully, his frantic call didn't go unheard by the raven haired beauty. She popped her head over the corner of the miniature hallway between the room and the bathroom. He breathed a sigh of relief and assured her that it was nothing. She tilted her head to the side as she walked over to him, as if regarding him for a moment.

"Your hair…" She reached up and tenderly stroked a lock of his soft hair, normally a beautiful shade of silver, but now black strands began making themselves noticeable on his head. He noticed what she was looking at once his gazed at the lock resting on his shoulder. (A/n: in the fall and winter down in London, the sun usually sets between four thirty and five thirty, just to let you know)

A sudden pulse in his body caused him to cringe. In response to what she knew was happening, Kagome pulled her hand away from his peppered hair, which was quickly fading into a thick ebony color, and cupped his left cheek within her hand. The young, now human, male leaned into her touch a little more before pulling away and setting his gaze on her. He could only hope that she could see the agony in his eyes, notice the emotional pain he was in because of her instantaneous change in behavior. For a hopeful second, she seemed to regard it, but then said that she was going to go to the vending machine for a few bottles of pop for them to drink with their ramen. The tear in his heart only ripped open even wider as she leaned up and gave him a gentle, almost lingering kiss before a tender hug, with that same lingering sensation. Slowly, she slid her arms from his frame and walked away like there was nothing wrong, completely ignoring the pain so clearly obvious reflecting off of his eyes. Faintly hearing her call that she would be back in a few minutes, he could only turn his head to stare out the window painfully and let the faint beams of light given off by the stars try and wash away some of his pain.

Orange soda…cherry coke…Coca-Cola…Inuyasha's pained violet eyes staring hurtfully at her…Mountain Dew…Dr. Pepper…those violet, pain filled eyes…

She sighed in frustration, running a hand through her bangs. Why couldn't she shake that one particular image of Inuyasha's eyes staring after her as she left the room? Why did he look at her like that? All she had said was that she was going to get some bottles of soda! She hadn't said anything!

Then again…maybe it was what she hadn't said…but rather…what she had done…

She shook her head at the thought. All she had done was given him a quick kiss and a hug. Nothing out of the usual, seeing as how they were a couple, so why did he act all sad when she tried displaying some of her affections to him?

Then again…maybe it was because it was the night of the new moon. That more than likely had something to do with it, seeing as how she always tried comforting him on those nights with a bit more cuddling and tenderness…maybe that was it…? Oh well, she sighed mentally as she picked up the two Coca-Colas she had paid for and retraced her steps down the hall to the room. Upon entering the said space, she spotted Inuyasha standing before the window at a sort of angle, his body facing the desk, but his head tilted to the window. She walked over and set the two plastic bottles of soda on the dresser next to the bag of food before joining her boyfriend at the window, placing a hand on his shoulder. His eyes watched her with a sideways glance but refused to face her.

"Inuyasha what's bothering you? Do you want to talk about it?" At first he seemed to not hear what she said, so she started to open her mouth to repeat the above questions, but froze as he slowly turned his head to fully face her. It was then that she understood and couldn't help but gasp at the sight before her.

What she saw in his now violet eyes nearly made her heart sink to the pit of her stomach. Pain. The sort of pain he used to feel when he feared her rejection, was now back in his eyes with an intensity she had not seen present in those irises of his for a while, now.

"Kagome…" He started, lowering his head to cover his shimmering violet eyes with his thick black bangs.

"…I know this is going to sound kinda stupid, but…but when I'm a human…why do you act like…like you…you…almost want me to stay like this…you're more gentle, you act like you're afraid to speak too loudly…all I want to know is…is that because…because you prefer me like this…?" With every word he said, it became increasingly difficult to bite back the tears that were forming on the corners of his eyes. Damn the new moon for making him so damn emotional!

Kagome could only watch in horror as Inuyasha's shoulders began to tremble from fighting back the tears she knew he felt he did not deserve to shed, that he couldn't afford to shed. She had to admit that she was noticeably more…gentle with him on his human nights, but for reasons differing from what he thought. A dim anger began to start in the pit of her stomach for him even thinking of something like that, but the small flame was doused at the thought that if he had thought those things, it was only her fault. Thinking back to how much more attention she gave him, how much more closely she cuddled to him, how much more softly she kissed him…though she only did it to comfort him, he was never informed of her intentions. And now, watching Inuyasha force his tears to remain dormant, she felt her heart nearly shatter at what she had unknowingly done to him.

"Inuyasha…" Stepping up to the trembling teenage boy, she rested her head on his chest, slipping her arms around his now entirely trembling frame to hold him close. This action only caused Inuyasha to tremble even more, unsure of whether to push her away gently or hold her close.

"I only act like that when you're human because I try to comfort you. I know how you always get depressed on the nights of the new moon, and I just try to console you. If you ever interpreted it as me liking your human form better, it's my fault; I should have explained it to you. But understand this, Inuyasha: I couldn't love you any more in your human form than your half demon or demon forms. To me, the only difference is your appearance. To me, you're always Inuyasha, and no night of the new moon, or loss of Tetsusaiga is ever going to chance the way I feel." The tears Inuyasha had been fighting to keep back were now suspending themselves on his eyelids, blurring his vision. He squeezed his eyes shut as he clutched her closer to him in a possessive embrace, burying his face into her hair as only a few tears escaped his shut eyelids.

"Thank you, Kagome…" He mumbled as a few more tears trekked down his face. Kagome could feel the tiny droplets of water being absorbed into her hair, but said nothing. Rather, she reached up and began rubbing his back up and down slowly and in a soothing manner.

"…thank you so much." They only held each other closer for the longest while, not saying anything, and not needing to. Inuyasha had managed to swallow the rest of his tears of relief, and the tremor in his body long gone. After a few more moments in the tender embrace, Kagome broke the silence.

"Hey, Inuyasha?"

"Hmm?"

"The ramen we got is starting to get cold."

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Phew…there it is folks! Push the button below and tell me what you think so far.