Inuyasha's look was one of shock. Kagome's dad smiled in approval. Sesshomaru stood and put on a stoic face. "Can I help you?" Higurashi smiled. "I just wanted to say goodbye, because I know you are leaving soon. I also wanted to ask why he-" He motioned to Inuyasha-"Is here. I am assuming that he is of some relation to you, because you look so similar, so I haven't kicked him out yet." Sesshomaru allowd a smirk to flicker across his face. "Yes, he is my half brother. He was in desperate need of a place to sleep. As you can see, tonight is his night as a full human." Higurashi rubbed his chin. "I don't see why he shouldn't be able to spend a while here." Inuyasha grinned. "Thanks man. I needed somewhere safe."

Kagome awoke feeling cold. It took her a moment to realize that her favorite heater wasn't in bed with her. She jumped up and flew out of the room without bothering to get dressed. Maybe he was packing! She shot into his room and found it empty. She turned around and ran down the halls and down the stairs, hoping to catch him before he left. The entrance hall was empty. 'No! He couldn't have just left without saying goodbye! He wouldn't!" But he had, because she couldn't find him anywhere. She literally ran into her father outside of his study. "Daddy!" She cried, rushing into his arms. "Where's Sesshomaru?" He rubbed her back. "He left darling. Early this morning." Kagome looked up at him with tearful eyes. "But he couldn't! He didn't say goodbye!" Her dad smiled. "Yes he did honey, you were half asleep though. You even answered him. It was very cute."

She cocked her head to the side, trying to remember. She couldn't. All she remembered about yesterday was the feeling of utter lonesomeness and despair, made even more acute by his deliberate avoidance of her. She'd noticed. He made it a point to keep from touching her. And he left before she'd woken up. She was starting to think he had an alterior motive for this. Did he have a family back at his castle? She wasn't stupid enough to believe that he'd never... done anything like that... But would he have really just... used her as a plaything while he was away from home? The love he showed her looked real enough... But he had been growing distant from her in the past few days. He had avoided touching her and even looking at her. She felt betrayed somehow. As if he truely did have someone else. She turned from her dad and slowly made her way back to her room. She needed to be alone.

Lying on her bed, she couldn't help but notice how big and empty it seemed. Empty of him. Empty of love. A tiny voice in the back of her head was telling her that she was being ridiculous, and that her Sesshomaru would never do that to her. She tried to listen to it, and hold on to what it was saying. That tiny little voice of doubt was the only thing keeping her sane, and she knew she couldn't lose it. She heard a knock at the door and she turned to see Inuyasha. "What are you doing here?" She didn't mean to be rude, but that's how it vame across. She could tell because of the look on his face. "Sesshomaru wanted me to keep you company." Kagome didn't know that he wasn't exactly being truthful. "Really?" She couldn't stop the excited feeling that arose within her. 'He does care!' Kagome smiled at him. "Well thank you."

Kagome and Inuyasha became friends pretty quickly, even though he was an ass. At times she felt as if he was hitting on her, but he hotly denied it. She was sitting on her bed drawing one night when Inuyasha came in. "Hey." Kagome glanced up at him. "Hi." He smileld at her. "I'm going for a walk. Want to come along?" She glanced down at her drawing, and then glanced outside to see the silver moonlight coloring the spring air. She bit her lip and then smiled. "Alright." Putting her drawing stuff away, she stood and streached, adn folowed him outside. The walked side by side down a little path into the garden, with its flowering sakura. He stopped her under one of the larger trees and took her hand. She looked at him in surprise. He leaned down so his nose was almost touching hers, and she knew what he was about to do. With a speed so fast that the half demon couldn't see it, Kagome jumped away from him and landed in the tree. It took him a moment to realize that she wasn't there any longer. He looked around in confusion, trying to find her, but she hid her aura. The branches and leaves were too thick for him to see her above his head, and the lack of an aura made him believe that she had dissapeared.

Once he had gone in search of her, Kagome jumped down from the tree. She landed without a sound and made her way to the apple orchard. She sat down next to the tree that she and Sesshomaru had so long ago made out against. "Oh Sesshomaru." She said aloud to the night air. "Won't you ever come back? You have been gone for months already. Perhaps I misjudged you. Perhaps you viewed me as nothing but a mistress."

"Do you really believe that?"

Kagome jumped up and swiveled around, eyes flying wide at the sound of his voice. "Sesshomaru!" She lept into his arms. "Where have you been? I thought you'd run off and found another lover! Or worse, that you already had one and were just staying with her and leaving me alone." She clung to him, holding on for dear life. "I would never do such a thing. I don't need a mistress. I have my Kagome." Kagome buried her face into his kimono. "Inuyasha tried to kiss me. I don't like him like that." Sesshomaru's arms tightened around her. "I will not let him get that close to you again, Kagome. I swear."