A/N: There's quite the handful to thank for reviews: "Guest," . , LadyCash, Rukia's Reflection, hollownature, xxdarienchibaloverxx, Taraah36, Dragon and Sword Master, kokoronagomu, and Esha Napoleon. And thank you to everyone who put this or its author on their lists. I can't believe it's been almost a year and a half since I updated this. I bow in humble apology. You probably thought I'd given up on it. Nope. Here it is. Not quite sure it's up to my usual standards but it's a start. Please enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Inuyasha characters, manga, anime, movies, etc. They belong by copyright laws to Rumiko Takahashi et al.

A Little Vacation

Ch. 12

Inuyasha knew he was going to regret agreeing to this "exam." Sesshoumaru had already informed Kaede of what was wrong with him so there was really no reason for him to be here. However, he also knew that if he tried to turn around and return to the waiting room, he would be in for the sit of his life. He'd rather not find out what happened to his body when he was pushed forcefully through at least one floor of a stories tall building.

The nurse smiled at him nervously and he was tempted to snarl halfheartedly just to see what she would do. Somehow he couldn't see Mama being too pleased with him if he scared a healer out of her wits. "Let's get this over with."

"Yes, my lord." The half demon didn't bother to hide his impatience from her as she took his "vitals." Why she needed to know how fast his heart was pumping the blood through his veins was beyond him but he let her do it. He even settled for a mild glare when a cuff of some sort put pressure on his arm. Inuyasha thought he was doing pretty well until she tried to stick an instrument to measure his temperature in his ear.

That was the last straw and he growled a warning, pleased when she backed off immediately. "No one touches my ears." Okay, so that wasn't precisely true but she didn't need to know that. He only let the Higurashi women get away with it when he was unconscious or asleep.

"Forgive me, my lord, but I need to take your temperature."

"There must be some other way."

"Well, yes…"

"Then do it." The petrified woman excused herself and rushed to get a different kind of thermometer. When she returned, he stuck it under his tongue as directed, ignoring her complaints that it wasn't going to be as accurate a reading as the one from his ear would have been.

"The doctor will be with you shortly, Taisho-sama," the nurse said curtly and left without bowing. Obviously he had angered her to the point of being rude.

"Keh," he scoffed, not caring about her opinion.

The doctor kept him waiting for several minutes, leading to an intensely bored hanyou. Sharp claws tapped lightly on the exam table, the leather thankfully made of sturdy youkai hide for just such an occasion. Approaching steps had the impatient male narrowing his eyes at the slow shuffle. Someone was apparently a bit apprehensive about checking him over.

"About time," Inuyasha groused when the doctor came in.

"Forgive me, my lord, I needed to take a small break. It's a pleasure to see you so active. Your vitals are a bit higher than average but with some more rest I think that will change. Shall we have a look see?" Dr. Yamato had been warned that he wouldn't be a good patient but that wasn't really surprising. His future self wasn't either and his brother never had been.

"Whatever," the half demon scoffed. Taking off his shirt, he allowed the doctor to listen to his heart. A hum passed the other man's lips and not even his sharp ears could detect the meaning. An examination of his claws came next and a nod of satisfaction reassured the half demon that at least those were in top fighting condition. Obviously the raw meat he'd eaten before coming to the future had helped matters.

"Well, now, you're in better shape than I'd supposed. A bit of time here resting has really done you a lot of good."

"Yeah, well, don't tell Kagome that. I'll never hear the end of it."

"As you wish, my lord. I just want to finish a regular physical on you, if that's okay. It won't take but a few more minutes."

"Sure, fine, whatever…"

Fifteen minutes later a roar let loose throughout the doctor's office, making the remaining shard hunters flinch and one lecherous monk in particular cringe. "Houshi-sama, did you by any chance suggest that the doctor do a complete examine on our hanyou friend?" Sango asked, steeling herself for an enraged half demon to come out into the waiting room at any moment.

"Why, yes, my dear, now that you mention it…"

"Miroku…" Kagome sighed, shaking her head. "If you didn't like it, can you imagine Inuyasha's reaction?"

A moment later Inuyasha slammed open the door, his hair in wild disarray and his shirt in his hands. "Miroku, prepare yourself."

"Now, now, my good friend. You shouldn't do anything that will upset our dear ladies."

"I'm going to slaughter you when we get home."

"Inuyasha, please let it go. It really was part of the exam. If I'd known about it before you went in, I would have told you. Miroku only explained it to us after you went in. I'm sorry." Kagome went to him, reaching up to lightly tug on one of his forelocks. An ear twitched, indicating that he had heard her although he was still glaring at the monk over her head.

His irritation went out the window the moment he gazed down at her. A large sigh left his body and he slumped a bit. "Keh." Kagome gave him a brilliant smile and he made a mental note not to look at her the next time he wanted to kill an opponent she considered a friend. Moving away a bit, he tugged his shirt back over his head and collapsed into a chair next to Sango.

"All right, now that that's settled. Shall we go in, Sango? I'll be right there with you, if you want."

"I'm afraid that's going to have to wait a moment, Kagome-sama," the nurse said, leaning against the door frame. One hand waved a piece of paper in front of her face while the other smoothed down her hair. "His lordship made quite a mess of the examination room. We'll need to clean it up first."

"Why, don't you have others? Sango's human so you shouldn't need anything youkai resistant."

"True… However, I believe Doctor Yamato may need a few moments rest."

"Ah, say no more, good lady. We understand completely," Miroku soothed although he would have like to have left the office as soon as possible.

"I see," their miko murmured, her eyes narrowing on the half dog demon in their midst. "Inuyasha…"

"Yes…?" he squeaked, ears laying back in distress. He knew that look.

"If we were back home, you know what I'd do, don't you?"

"I have an idea…"

"You're so lucky we're not back in the village or at the shrine." The other two watched the deep breaths she took, amazed that she was able to keep her temper under wraps despite her anger. Her aura practically blazed with the emotion.

The nurse watched the entire thing with wonder, having heard the rumors but never having seen the famous miko's temper as it was now for herself. To have the famous Inuyasha Taisho cowed was something to see and she was half tempted to go call her friends about what she was seeing. However, the elder Taisho had warned everyone in the doctor's office that if his brother's younger self was discovered to have been in the present era because of their loose lips, a harsh punishment would be metered out. Punishment in Sesshoumaru's case was usually death and she rather liked living. She'd have to be satisfied with the memory.

A noise behind her drew her attention to the doctor and he weakly waved in the last patient. "All right, he'll see the last one now. Please be kind," she asked, stepping back when Sango came towards her.

"Sango is always kind," Kagome automatically defended her friend, following without being asked.

"Except when she's beating the idiot monk up," Inuyasha muttered and got a glare for his troubles just as the door closed.

"You just love digging yourself a hole, don't you?" Miroku commented with a sigh. "I'm just glad this day is almost over. The thing I would like most is to eat dinner and go home. Or go home and eat dinner, whichever is easier."

"Don't worry, we should be out of here soon. Sango won't have any trouble with Kagome with her."

"Yes, I'm sure you're correct." Something suddenly niggled at the back of the monk's mind but he couldn't place what it was. Surely it couldn't have been important if he'd forgotten it so easily.

"I'm mean it's not like she stowed Kirara in her purse thing, right?" Inuyasha instantly shrugged the thought off. Kirara preferred to stay at the shrine rather than travel around the strange city with them. The smells probably got to her just as much as they did to him.

"Stowed Kirara… Uh, that would be bad, wouldn't it?" Miroku laughed nervously. Maybe he shouldn't admit to what he'd just remembered.

"You think?" If Sango got upset about something and Kirara had been hiding in the purse, she would instantly spring into action, regardless of the danger in being discovered. The fire cat was extremely protective of the demon slayer.

"So I guess I shouldn't mention that she's been with us since we left the shrine?"

"She has?" Inuyasha asked, surprised that he hadn't sensed her.

"I believe she's buried herself among the 'female necessities' in Sango's little bag and has taken great pains to hide her presence from everyone with supernatural or spiritual senses."

"And Sango took the bag with her…"

"Yes…"

"Ah, hell."

"Uh-huh."

Kagome was surprised when Kirara stuck her head out of Sango's purse the moment the older girl sat on the exam table. The young priestess didn't say anything so as not to startle the nurse and the nekomata ducked back inside once she was satisfied that nothing was wrong. Thinking that was the end of the matter, she went back to the magazine she was reading while the nurse took Sango's blood pressure.

"Sango-sama, your blood pressure is a little elevated," the youkai said, a small trace of admonishment in her voice.

"I have quite a bit of stress so it shouldn't be a surprise." Kagome's mother had explained what blood pressure was and what could affect it, along with several other things that she didn't quite understand but might come across during her visit. Since learning that she would somehow survive to this time, Sango was trying to act as any young woman of this era would so as not to draw attention to the fact that she wasn't from the present.

"I suppose we both do," Kagome mused, flipping a page. "Of course, your betrothed might be adding a great deal to that."

"Indeed. I haven't hit him over the head in a while, maybe that would make me feel better."

"I rather doubt that, my lady. Perhaps you should try those breathing exercises the doctor prescribed Lady Kagome. I noticed they did a marvelous job earlier when she got mad at Inuyasha-sama."

"That was rather remarkable," Sango agreed looking at her friend. Pink tinged the other girl's ears and the demon slayer couldn't help but smile. "I really thought she'd sit him through the floor."

"I haven't sat him through something in quite a while, Sango. It hurts his back, you know. He might heal fast but it would be just our luck that something dangerous would happen while he was recovering." She still felt slightly guilty for sitting him when he held a boulder. At the time she'd been too angry to care but afterward it had gotten to her.

"Ah, but you did want to sit him."

"Straight to the ground floor. Although, I guess I can't blame him. That is a rather embarrassing necessity for a guy's physical, isn't it? He was probably mortified and you know how he acts when embarrassed."

"Mm-hmm," the other girl murmured in agreement.

"Other than your blood pressure, you seem to be doing rather well, Sango-sama. I will send the doctor in now." The nurse left, never having spotted the small two tailed cat that lurked in the depths of the purse on the floor.

Kagome smiled at her friend. "These days of rest were just the thing. Don't you feel better?"

"I could have told you that without coming here."

"Yes, well, I knew too but you try telling Mama that we didn't need to come."

Sango remembered the older woman's look when they'd protested going earlier that day. It was a look she'd often seen on the miko but far, far more affective for being from a mother. "We did. We just got a look and she made the appointments anyway."

"Mama's rather good at that. I'd hate to find out what she does when she's really angry."

"You've never seen her angry?" Sango questioned, just as the door opened again.

"Nope. She's been annoyed and scolded us but all in all, Mama's not one to get upset easily."

"Yes, I can see that," the slayer agreed, amused. It would clearly take a lot to make the woman lose her cool.

"How about we make this short, my ladies?" the doctor asked, cutting into their conversation.

"Yes, please," they chorused.

"Now then, I'm just going to lift your shirt to listen to your lungs…" A shout of protest left Sango's lips without thought. The doctor had his stethoscope raised and was just touching the hem of the shirt when a small growl filled the room. Shocked, the doctor drew back, thinking that the demon slayer had started to sound like a cat demon.

Kagome squeaked in surprise, forgetting Kirara and the fact that Sango might feel that the doctor's action would be inappropriate. "It's okay, Sango. He has to place the instrument against your skin in order to hear them clearly. Nothing improper will happen." She reached down, slipping her hand into the purse and petting a small head softly in reassurance.

"This will only take a few moments. Just take deep breaths until I tell you to stop."

Sango squeezed her eyes shut and did as the doctor ordered. Mortification colored her cheeks bright red and she prayed that it would be over quickly. Did girls in this era find it easy to bare their skin to men who were not related to them when there were no injuries to tend to?

"You can stop now, my lady. Now then, I'm going to press the metal part of this stethoscope to your chest and listen to your heart."

"My chest?" she screeched, Kirara jumping out and hissing at the old man.

"Sango, didn't Mama explain this before you came? I'm sure she would have told you what would happen…"

"Well, she said a lot that I didn't quite understand but…" Had she mentioned this?

"I assure you that it's quite necessary, Lady Sango," Dr. Yamato added, glancing warily at Kirara. He hadn't sensed her before she came out into the open.

"Here, why don't you pet Kirara for a few moments first? Cats are great comforters and I'm sure she'll make you feel better. Plus, she'll be right there to protect you if he does anything wrong. You know she'd never let anyone hurt you." Kagome picked the nekomata up, giving her a pet herself in hopes of calming down a bit before putting her in her friend's arms.

After glaring at the doctor briefly, Kirara curled herself up on Sango's lap and began purring to try to calm her kitten down. The others in the room waited with bated breath for several minutes before the doctor felt it safe to test the waters again. Ruby eyes watched the healer closely, not as sure as Kagome that he wouldn't do anything wrong.

"There now, that wasn't so bad, was it? Perhaps you should have brought her in for everyone," the doctor mused towards Kagome, hanging the stethoscope around his neck.

"Well, I didn't know she was with us. Plus, Shippou wasn't going to do anything and the only way she could have made the guys behave was to sit on them. I don't think you'd want her to do that in here."

"Sit on them?" the doctor questioned, looking at the tiny cat demon.

"She could have held them down," Sango put in, scratching her small friend under the chin.

"True," the young priestess added. "Either method would have worked. Inuyasha might not have made a mess if she had. Ah, well, hindsight's always twenty-twenty."

"Mm," Sango muttered, straightening her shirt.

"I'm afraid I don't understand, my ladies."

"What do you mean? I thought you knew Sesshoumaru, Doctor. Surely you know who Kirara is and that this is only one of her forms." Kagome wrinkled her brow, wondering if she was missing something. When she had confronted him about knowing the demon lord, he had readily admitted it. It wasn't really surprising that he was still alive in this time so she had figured Kirara was still alive somewhere too.

"Well, the Kirara I know isn't quite like this…" the older man said, quickly going through the rest of his exam while the two girls were distracted. Perhaps he should have let them talk the entire time from the start.

"What's she like?" Kagome asked, interested to know what the future version of her friend looked like. Since the nurse had let it slip that Sesshoumaru knew her doctor, she'd been wondering if the elder brother had been watching her since childhood.

"She's bigger," he hedged. He wasn't supposed to let the miko know too much about the future. In fact, if he never uttered another word about it things would be better.

"Oh, well, yes, I suppose she would grow out of this form eventually. She's a very powerful demon in her own right." Kagome gave the nekomata a pet between the ears, earning a slow blink in return.

"Indeed," the physician said, grabbing at the explanation like a lifeline. Sighing, he stood back, satisfied with his perusal of the demon slayer. "And we're all done. I would say some more wholesome food and a few more days rest should find you back in shape. Try to keep your physical activity to light exercise in the meantime, my lady."

"We're done?" Sango asked, surprised. As soon as she stopped paying attention, the embarrassment had faded. "I mean, yes, of course, Doctor. Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"I'm sorry for the difficulties I caused, sir."

"Oh, don't worry about it. I've found that there are patients of all kinds and each time is a new experience. Keeps me on my toes, so to speak."

"Thank you, Doctor. I thought for sure you'd never want to see Kagome as a patient again."

"Nonsense. Just take care, my ladies."

"Certainly. Come on, Sango, let's go get something to eat."

"Wholesome food!" he called after them, watching as they exited the inner portion of his office. "Thank the gods they're gone," he said quietly. He really needed to consider retirement. Maybe he needed to take on an apprentice and hand over the care of the Taisho clan to that person. Someone younger.

He was about to turn and collect his things when a rush of youki reached his senses and he spun around. Kirara had transformed and was now sitting on both Miroku and Inuyasha. The doctor's hearing wasn't as acute as Inuyasha's but it was good enough to hear the priestess' words.

"What do you know, it works. We'll have to remember that."

"Thank you, Kirara. You can let them up now."

Hearing the arguments that followed, the doctor shuffled down the hallway, resisting the urge to bang his head against the wall. Yes, he really needed to retire.

His sanity demanded it.