A/N: Here we go again! How about I just give you all a general apology that'll carry over to every chapter of this fic, so I can stop apologizing. I was so sure I'd get this up quickly, but school and the general dullness of ordinary life got in the way yet again. This is my personal favorite chapter so far (am I allowed to say that?) so I hope you enjoy it. And I hope I get some good ideas as I sleep through geometry this week, so maybe chapter eight will be up soon, after all. On with the chapter!
Japanese note: Aisuru is a term of endearment, meaning "sweetheart" or "beloved." I try to avoid using too many Japanese phrases in my fics, but there are some times when an English phrase just won't fit.
Disclaimer: Look, how about I just let you know if I ever own it?
Love and Joy
Chapter Seven
Almost Normal
"Mmph. Not again!" A white-faced Kagome clapped her hands over her mouth and ran out of the clearing.
With a worried look, Inuyasha rose from where he was sitting and went after her. Sango and Miroku looked off in the direction the two had taken, sympathetically. It had been two weeks since Inuyasha and Kagome had told Kagome's family, and Kagome was approximately in her sixth week. She had not begun to show yet at all, however, just recently she had started getting sick in the morning, and sometimes during the day, as well.
Kagome dropped to her knees, leaning over to retch into the dirt. No matter how often the sickness came, she could still not get used to it. Miserable, she leaned farther over, clutching her stomach.
She barely noticed the cool hand on the back of her neck, pulling back her hair and gently rubbing her shoulders. Her skin burned, and the nausea persisted. Slowly, it began to dissipate until all that was left was the slight feeling at the bottom of her stomach that never seemed to go away. At last, Kagome took a shaky breath and looked up.
Inuyasha was standing behind her, holding her hair. When she lifted her head, he let go of her hair, letting it cascade down around her shoulders.
"You okay now?" the hanyou asked, softly.
"Yeah," Kagome tried to sound fine, although her voice was still shaky. Wiping her mouth, she brought a hand to her stomach, trying to rub the last feelings of nausea away. The sickness is worth it, she reminded herself yet again. All mothers have to go through this; it's worth it. Really it is. Although at times like this it seemed difficult to believe it, she knew it was true. Inuyasha… The miko looked up at her lover, who was tenderly massaging her lower back.
"Thank you," Kagome murmured, moving to stand up. Before she could do so, however, Inuyasha reached out and placed his hands on her waist, helping her up.
"Inuyasha…" she began. Lately, he had been helping her with everything. It was sweet, but it left her feeling a bit useless. She could still do things for herself, after all.
"Keh. Just being careful. I'm not going to let you hurt yourself." Inuyasha placed her on her feet, letting his hands drop to his sides.
"I—yeah, I know that." Kagome sighed. It really was nice of him, she just…didn't like seeming pathetic.
"Keh. Now more than ever you've gotta be extra-cautious. Come on." Inuyasha grabbed her hand, turning in the direction of camp.
"I know. Thanks, Inuyasha. Even if you are a little over-protective." Kagome smiled at the hanyou, causing him to flush just slightly pink.
"Whatever it takes," he muttered, leading her back to camp.
oOo
"Are you okay, Kagome?" Sango asked, looking up as the couple emerged from the trees.
"Yeah. The child just likes to say 'good morning,' I suppose." Kagome grimaced, resting a hand over the stop where her baby lay. Inuyasha snickered, putting his arm around her.
"That's not a very nice way to say 'good morning!'" Shippou proclaimed, jumping into Kagome arms. "I think I do it a lot better!"
"And how is that, Shippou?" Kagome laughed. She certainly had all the childcare practice she needed with the little kitsune.
"Like this!" Shippou wrapped his tiny arms around Kagome neck, hugging her. "That's a lot nicer, don't you think?"
"It certainly is." Kagome chuckled. "I believe once the child is born its greeting skills will go up a few notches. At least, I hope so." Kagome sweatdropped, picturing a life of waking up to such extreme nausea every morning. Inuyasha smiled ruefully, sensing Kagome's thoughts.
"Well, I doubt it'll say much of anything for a while after it's born," Miroku put in, looking up from the fish he was grilling over the fire. "But in time, yes, I imagine it will do much better socially."
"If by 'socially' you mean you're going to teach my kid to flirt the way you do, don't even think about it," Inuyasha growled menacingly.
"Don't worry, Inuyasha, I'll make sure he doesn't." Sango grinned evilly at the monk, brandishing her Hiraikotsu.
"Nn-nn. Sango, you're scaring me!" Miroku pretended to cower in fear behind Shippou, who had jumped down to investigate the food.
"Honestly. You're all so immature!" Shippou sniffed wickedly, reaching for a fish.
"Yeah, let's eat, I'm starved." Kagome got down on the ground next to the fire, reaching for a fish as well.
"You're always starved." Inuyasha plunked himself down next to Kagome, grabbing two fish before she had a chance to and handing one to her.
"Thanks!" Kagome accepted the fish, hungrily biting into it. It was true, she'd been hungry lately almost as often as she'd been nauseous.
"Well, you are eating for two." Sango moved closer to the fire. "Also, you're losing everything you eat, lately."
"Yeah." Kagome grimaced, taking another large bite of grilled fish. She hadn't been able to keep anything down for the past week.
"It'll pass." Inuyasha rested a hand on her arm, reassuringly.
"Yes," Miroku added. "And for now, eat whatever and whenever you want. None of us mind."
"Thanks, you guys." Kagome smiled at her friends. She couldn't think of any other people she'd rather have going through this with her. Inuyasha, of course, was the love of her life, the person she cherished above all others, not to mention the father of her child-to-be. Sango was her best friend and her honorary sister, as well as her confidante and advice-giver. Miroku was like an older brother, who always cheered her up, along with knowing a good bit about the world. Shippou was her honorary son, her good friend, and was giving her experience in taking care of children. Kirara didn't speak, of course, but she was a reassuring and friendly presence. I have a family here, as well as back home, Kagome realized. A strange family, but a family nonetheless.
oOo
It was night. An almost full moon had risen partway into the sky. Kagome sat on her sleeping bag, reading.
"It's getting cold early this year," Sango commented. She was leaning against Kirara, trying to fix a torn place in the right sleeve of her armor. Miroku was reclining against a tree, his eyes closed, meditating. Inuyasha sat against a similar tree, although he was not meditating. He was just staring off into space.
"Yeah, definitely." Kagome pulled her fleece blanket tighter about her shoulders. "It's been very cold the past few nights."
"Dammit, I knew we have come." Inuyasha turned to look at Kagome, worry etched into his features. "You're in no condition to be traveling."
"Come on, Inuyasha, it's only a minor exorcism at a castle nearby. We'll be there in another few nights," Miroku replied, not opening his eyes.
"I don't care!" The hanyou leaned forward. "Kagome shouldn't be traveling as it is!"
"Inuyasha!" Exasperated, Kagome sat down her book. "I'm not a weakling! Just because I'm a month pregnant doesn't mean I can't travel. I'm doing fine!"
"A month and a half," the hanyou growled. "And you're not doing fine, look at you shivering like that!"
"It is very cold, Inuyasha. I'm shivering, too," offered Sango. "Kagome's all right for the time being."
"Keh." Inuyasha leaned back in defeat. Kagome sighed, carefully looking the hanyou over. She knew how worried he was, but this was a bit excessive, really. Kagome lay down on the sleeping bag, staring up at the sky. Night had become her favorite time of day, because it tended to be the time when she was the least nauseous. Just then, her stomach felt almost completely fine. She saw no reason for her hanyou's extreme worry.
In time, Kagome drifted off. She awoke to find, from the position of the moon, that it had been perhaps an hour. Sango had fallen asleep against Kirara, and Miroku appeared to be asleep as well, Shippou curled in his lap. Kagome's gaze went to Inuyasha. He crouched next to a tree, not even bothering to pretend he was asleep. His lids were shaded, and his eyes were alert, watching…watching her? As she moved her head to get a better look, Inuyasha's eyes opened the rest of the way. He had definitely been watching her, wistfully. Did he do this every night? He looked so alone, sitting apart from the group, huddled under a tree. Suddenly, Kagome felt the distance between them. She felt cold, as though she was lacking a necessary source of warmth. As though…there was something she needed. And she knew just what that something was.
"Inuyasha?" she asked, her voice soft so as not to wake the others.
"Hm?" he looked up sharply, and then relaxed under her gentle eye.
"Why don't you come over here? There's plenty of room." Kagome patted the sleeping bag, right next to where she lay. She needed him beside her.
His eyes widened hopefully, but then he shook his head. "I'm fine," he muttered, confirming the fact that he was, indeed, very lonely. But Kagome knew how to help him without actually helping him. She had been doing it for years.
"But it's so cold," she murmured. She knew that his worry for her would overcome his need to remain aloof. It worked.
"Here." The hanyou rose, undoing his haori. He came over to where she lay, and draped the haori over her. With a sigh, he sank down beside her. "Better?" he asked, not looking at her. Kagome knew he was embarrassed to be so close to her at night, to have her sleeping beside him. But she wanted it that way, so much. And…she thought he did, too.
"Almost," Kagome replied, feeling brave. When he looked down in surprise, she gestured for him to lie down.
"Ka-Kagome…" he seemed somewhat surprised, but Kagome's trained eye saw the smile forming in his eyes. He just needed a push in the right direction.
"Lie down," Kagome offered gently. "Even you must be tired after traveling in the cold for four days strait."
"Keh. We've traveled for much longer," he replied, although she could see he was wavering.
"Yeah, I know, and you never sleep." She really did worry about that, a lot. He never seemed to sleep. It couldn't be good for him. Just once, he should just lie down and rest, even if he didn't sleep.
"I do too sleep." But as he said it, he lowered himself down beside her. "But I'll lie down if it'll help keep you warm."
"Thank you, Inuyasha," Kagome murmured. He lay down on his back on the sleeping bag, and she draped her blanket over the two of them.
"Better now?" he muttered. She knew he was embarrassed, and frankly, she was surprised that she herself wasn't blushing like crazy. But she'd wanted this for so long…and it really was a lot warmer…
Kagome dropped her head onto his shoulder. She saw a smile spread across his lips, and he slid an arm around her waist.
"Even better," she whispered
Some time passed, maybe minutes, maybe hours.
"Kagome?" Inuyasha asked finally, breaking the silence.
"Hm?" she muttered sleepily, pushing up closer to his side.
"I've dreamt about this nearly every night. Sleeping beside you, I mean. It's really okay?"
"Of course it is!" Kagome nearly sat up, but he tightened his arm around her waist and she lay back down. "I've wanted it, too. I always hoped…" she trailed off, nervously.
"What?" His voice was soft.
"Well, that you'd want it, too. I…I like the idea of us being a proper couple." She spoke the last words into his warm shoulder.
"Me too," the hanyou whispered. "Thank you, Kagome." And, not loosening his protective grip on her waist, he closed his eyes. A warm smile on her lips, Kagome closed her eyes as well, leaning into Inuyasha's side. Hoping that this wouldn't be the last night they would sleep like this.
oOo
It wasn't. The next night, Kagome lied down on her sleeping bag with a book, as usual. The miko and hanyou had acted as though nothing was different that day, and perhaps it wasn't. Nonetheless, Kagome had spent the day avoiding Inuyasha's eyes, and hoping that the night wouldn't merely be forgotten. But that night, her hopes died as Inuyasha took his usual spot under a tree. Kagome, feeling ridiculous, hid her watering eyes behind her book. I am so stupid! Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean he's going to start sleeping next to me like we're married or something. Just because I want him to so much…and I thought he did…
Kagome sensed that her hanyou was near even before she looked up to see him standing over her, looking down awkwardly. Blinking, she stared at him. What was he doing?
"Okay?" he whispered, as he sat down next to her.
"Yeah." Kagome tried to keep her voice at a whisper, but she felt her heart trying to pound its way out of her chest. He was going to sleep beside her again, as though it was the natural thing to do! Maybe someday, it will be the natural thing to do… the miko thought wistfully. Inuyasha slid down so that he was lying beside her. Maybe it already is.
"You cold?" he asked, anxiously placing a hand on her shoulder.
"I'm alright." Kagome smiled up at him.
"Okay, there's no reason to get all mushy about it, I was just asking," Inuyasha crossed his arms over his chest, doing his "I'm not a nice guy, really!" pout. Kagome looked down, trying to hide her smile. "What?" he snapped, turning to face her. "What's making you so happy all of a sudden?"
"Hm," Kagome giggled. "Thank you, Inuyasha."
"For what? What'd I do this time?"
"Nothing." Kagome pointedly opened her book. What did he do? Not only be uncharacteristically bold and caring and come to sleep beside her, but then act exactly like his own exhausting, rude, obnoxious, loveable self. She loved both sides of him, and together, they made her Inuyasha—her precious hanyou, with all his quirks, flaws, and overall perfection, in her opinion. What could be better?
"Good night, Inuyasha," Kagome said, closing her book and setting it on the ground beside her. She couldn't concentrate anyway, not withhim so near. So very near…
"Good night, Kagome," Inuyasha muttered. And then, even more quietly, "Love you."
"Love you too." Kagome grinned, burying her face in his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his neck. No better way to sleep…
"Going to sleep?" a voice cut through the sweet silence.
"Hm?" Kagome looked up, already sleepy. "Miroku?" Then, suddenly, her heart missed a beat. Sango, Miroku, and Shippou…she'd basically forgotten they were there. How were they reacting to Inuyasha and Kagome's new sleeping arrangements?
"Good night, then," Miroku replied, leaning his head back against the tree Inuyasha had vacated.
"G'night," murmured Sango, who was leaning against Kirara as usual, with Shippou in her lap. He was already sound asleep.
"Huh?" Kagome glanced at Inuyasha. Did he find it strange? Could she ask him?
She didn't need to ask.
"Uh…you guys…" Inuyasha looked as confused as Kagome felt. She had been sure that her friends would show some reaction, but they were acting as if…it was perfectly normal. Maybe it is! Maybe this is normal, and about time, too.
"I guess they just take it for granted," Kagome laughed, combing her hand through Inuyasha's silvery hair.
"Huh? Yeah. Yeah, I guess so." Inuyasha was bemused, but then he smiled. "Well, that saves me some embarrassment."
"Yeah, I got really scared for a minute there." Kagome shuddered. Inuyasha laughed. And then Kagome realized something. They were having a normal conversation, just like a normal couple! They weren't arguing, or being overly sweet. They were just…acting normal. Being normal. How…
"Keh. Go to sleep, aisuru. You've gotta stop straining yourself so much," Inuyasha said, his voice low. Kagome smiled. That was her Inuyasha. They weren't a normal couple, and they never would be. That was how Kagome liked it. And he'd called her aisuru! His beloved…
"'Kay. "G'night, Inuyasha."
"Good night, again." Inuyasha rolled onto his side, facing Kagome. She rested her head on his chest, snuggling close. They weren't normal, but they were a couple. He wasn't resisting, and nothing made her happier. "I love you," she whispered.
"Love you too. Not get to sleep."
"Mm-hm." Kagome fell asleep smiling.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed! Review, feed the author! Thanks a lot. I'll get chapter eight up as soon as I can.
