***Author's note: thanks for the great reviews! So in this chapter, it's getting really close to graduation. I heard from some of you that you don't really like lemons, and others don't really care, and I thank you. I also heard that someone didn't like their eighth grade English teacher! Well, not all English teachers are great.

FYI: I don't know Inuyasha, but any character in this story that came from the dark crazy holes of my mind are mine.

Chapter 26

The next morning, Kagome woke up and he head was resting on Inuyasha's bare chest. The top of her collarbone was sore, right where Inuyasha marked her. She lifted her hand and gently touched it. Then Inuyasha's hand was on hers, and she looked up, realizing he'd been awake and watching her.

She blushed. "It just hurts a little."

"It'll heal soon, and leave a scar," he told her. "Forever marking you as mine."

She didn't really like being talked about like she was an object. But he was a dog demon, and dogs were possessive about certain things.

She started to get up. "We need to get ready for school," she stated.

Kagome started to pull on her clothes. After she was done she turned back to the bed, but Inuyasha wasn't there anymore. She turned and he was on the other side of the room, and he had on a pair of jeans already.

She went over to him and kissed him. "I'll see you later," she said.

He nodded. She turned and left the room.

As she went down the stairs, she found Sesshomaru in the kitchen. When she looked at him, he was trying to hide his smirk.

"Good morning," he said, not looking at her, his lips twitching. "You had a nice night, I assume."

Kagome blushed. "Uh, yeah." She hurried through the kitchen. She was a little surprised that he knew, but then she realized that he could smell it and possibly see the mark.

When she got inside her house, her mother was sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee. When Kagome looked at her mother, she was looking at her knowingly.

Kagome blushed. She didn't think she'd be telling Sango and Amaterasu today. But then she remembered that Amaterasu would smell that they mated, and then Jurou would know and have possibly smelt it, and Amaterasu probably tell Sango, and Sango would tell Miroku, if Jurou didn't tell him first. So not telling their friends was impossible. And Amaterasu was bound to rant to her about not giving herself enough time to think about it.

She hurried upstairs to her room, grabbed clothes to change into, and hurried to the bathroom.

After her shower she went downstairs to eat breakfast. Before she came downstairs, she looked at herself in the mirror. She didn't look different, but she felt different. She remembered faintly the year before when she asked Inuyasha what was up with Rin and Sesshomaru.

Inuyasha told her that they mated, and Rin and Sesshomaru could feel if the other was in any pain. He told her the steps for mating, but he didn't tell her that Sesshomaru had to bite Rin, maybe because he thought she'd think of him as less of a human.

As Kagome thought back to that time, before she had fallen for him and started dating him, it felt foreign. It was so different as to what they were now.

When Kagome was done eating breakfast, and her mother was upstairs getting ready for work, she hurried up to the bathroom to brush her teeth, then she heard the doorbell ring.

So she quickly finished brushing and hurried downstairs to let in Inuyasha.

She kissed him when she opened the door.

Shippo and Sota ran into the kitchen, and out the open door, just as Kagome and Inuyasha broke apart.

Shippo stopped in his tracks and turned to Kagome and Inuyasha with a big grin on his face. He was already out the door, and he saw Inuyasha look at him. Sota turned around and looked at Shippo confusedly.

"Shippo?" he asked. "What's wrong?"

Shippo looked at him and smiled. "Nothing, but I have to tell you something later."

Sota looked back at Kagome and Inuyasha and then him and Shippo ran to the bus stop.

Kagome smiled at Inuyasha. "It's the last day of high school, can you believe it?" she asked. "After this we're on our own."

Inuyasha nodded. "College, jobs, marriage, parenthood. All the fun stuff," he said sarcastically.

She pushed his shoulder, smiling a little. "That's life."

He chuckled.

When they got to the school, every Senior was there. Some of the girls were crying, and hugging their other friends. Sango, Miroku, Jurou, and Amaterasu were in a group, watching the emotions being displayed around them. When Kagome and Inuyasha got within the demons' smelling distance, and out of the car, Amaterasu was instantly in front of Kagome, grabbing her arm, and making them appear in a forest.

She looked really worried, and pissed off. "You told me you'd wait!" she yelled at Kagome. "You broke your promise! Are you regretting what you did with him? Did you decide? Were you sure? Please tell me you were sure."

"I was sure. I mean it. I don't regret anything, and I'm sorry I made you upset. Calm down please," Kagome told her calmly.

Amaterasu took a deep breath. "Did you tell anyone?"

Kagome shook her head. "Not officially, but I think everyone mostly knows, who was at his house in the morning, and at mine."

"Sango doesn't know, and I bet before lunch Miroku will know," Amaterasu told her. "You should tell her before Miroku does."

Kagome nodded. "I know." She looked around, and saw oak trees, and all of the plants she could think of, in this quiet, dimly lighted forest. "May I ask where we are exactly?"

Amaterasu shrugged. "It's somewhere I come when I'm mad. It calms me. It's nowhere near the city, that's why I come here."

"Oh. It's nice," Kagome told her. She herself found it calming. She sighed. "We're gonna have to go now."

Amaterasu sighed too. She didn't want to leave, she needed to come here for a while now, but she didn't have the time. "I know." She grabbed Kagome's wrist.

They appeared back next to the others. Inuyasha smiled at Kagome, and tried, but failed, to wrap his arm around her waist in an un-obvious way. The bell rang, and they walked to homeroom. During homeroom, everyone heard squealing in the halls, and when they looked out into the hall way, there was a pig, being chased by two police officers, and it was labeled number two. It was the senior prank, and they labeled three pigs one, two, and four. The class laughed as the police officers stumbled after the squealing pig.

During the first two periods, the teachers let the students do whatever they wanted. The principle, three vice principles, and two police officers finally caught pig number two, and were looking for the others, and they found number one at the end of first, and were trying to catch it. Kagome had second with Sango, and she told Sango that her and Inuyasha were mated.

"Oh my god!" she exclaimed quietly. "I'm so happy for you guys! You mated yesterday?"

Kagome nodded and blushed. "Yeah."

"Let me see the mark! Please?" she whispered.

The shirt Kagome was wearing covered her mark, and she was proud of the shirt choice today. She didn't want to let the whole school know.

Kagome blushed, and slightly pulled down the collar of her shirt, just enough to show Sango the healing mark there.

Sango smiled hugely. "It looks like a dog bite."

Kagome gave her an 'obviously' look. Then she smiled too. "Then I love dogs."

In third period, they had all the seniors take their last final, and they caught pig number one at the end of third. They heard squealing throughout the day, and laughed when they heard the voices of the police, vice principles, and principle follow the squealing. Then they let them go to lunch. But after lunch they had to meet in the football field.

During lunch, Amaterasu started saying about how they wouldn't be close together, because of the varying letters of their last names. Kagome and Sango would be fairly close, but no one else would be close to them.

"Oh, and we have to hang out together after the graduation," Amaterasu said. "I'm sure all of our families will get along just great." She didn't mention that they'd like Mayonaka, but Mayonaka wasn't coming. She didn't want to go, and Amaterasu strictly told her to stay away, because Mayonaka had a deep dislike for humans, and half demons. There was no way in hell Amaterasu was letting Mayonaka near Inuyasha, Kagome and her family, Sango and her brother, and Miroku and his uncle. Especially Rin, who was carrying her and Sesshomaru's half demon pup. It wouldn't have a very good outcome.

"I'm sure they will," Kagome agreed. "We haven't met Jurou's parents yet, so that'll be nice." Kagome didn't bring up the touchy subject of Amaterasu's mother.

"Oh, they're absolutely wonderful!" Amaterasu squealed. "The nicest wind demons I know, besides Jurou."

"They're okay," Jurou said. Kagome barely saw the faint blush that was there on his cheeks. She wouldn't have seen it if she was any farther away.

Amaterasu saw and smiled lovingly at him. "Have I ever told you how cute you were?" she asked him.

Jurou laughed, quickly recovering himself. "Plenty of times."

Amaterasu smiled at him again.

Kagome smiled at them, and Amaterasu and Jurou were sharing a look that Kagome felt was too personal to intrude on, so she looked away. And met Inuyasha's eyes.

He was staring at her in a warm way, and she could feel the warmth travel through her body. She was smiling, and she couldn't remember starting to. She reached over and grabbed his hand under the table. He took it, and he was smiling back.

"Guys, is anyone else nervous and sad about graduating?" Sango asked. Her voice was shaky. "I mean, we won't hang out here like this anymore, and who knows if this is the last time we're all together?"

Amaterasu looked at her sadly. She was thinking the same thing. "We have to all hang out together," Amaterasu said quietly, almost none of the human could here her. "You guys are my only family."

Jurou grabbed her hand and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "Don't worry, we will," he told her. "We all have to swear to make some time for plans together."

They all nodded.

Suddenly, the squealing got louder, and pig number four ran into the lunchroom, followed by a vice principle, and a police officer. The lunchroom roared with laughter. They all looked over smiling, and returned to talking.

"It's gonna be so different," Kagome said. "Not coming here, and being on our own."

"I know," Miroku said. "But that means we can do what we want, and get married and have a life."

Kagome instantly looked at Inuyasha.

The bell rang and they all headed to the football field for the practice of the graduation. The teachers lined them up in order by last name. Then they called them out, and announced them. They walked out from under the bleachers, and walked in order to their seats.

Kagome was a couple of seats down from Sango. She looked at Sango and rolled her eyes. Sango smiled. Amaterasu was two rows behind them, and she made the wind blow on them a little harder so they'd turn around. They turned around and she sighed. She faked falling asleep. Sango and Kagome giggled, and the people who were in that row gave them weird looks.

After they got into the 't's they had to stop for an announcement from the school.

"Pardon the interruption, but if anyone sees pig Number Three, please reported it to the office, so we can have it captured. If any teachers hear anything about who's idea it was, report it," the principle said.

A few guys snickered around them. Kagome rolled her eyes.

"We understand that it is a tradition to have a senior prank," one of the teachers said in a bored voice. "But if any of you know about this speak up now."

It went quiet. The teachers proceeded with the practice.

At the end of the day, the principle finally realized there was no other pig. The seniors left, but had to come back tomorrow, an hour before the ceremony.

After school, they all went out to the amusement park that just came into town two days ago. Today was the last day it was in town, and it wasn't that busy. Kagome, Sango, and Amaterasu saw the bumper cars that were empty, and pulled the guys over. Inuyasha didn't want to go on.

"Come on, Inuyasha!" Kagome said. She pulled on his arm. "Please, it'll be fun!" She stopped pulling, and just held his hand. She jutted out her bottom lip.

Inuyasha looked at her looked at him that way, and he couldn't say no. "Fine." She smiled at him, and hugged him, and his heart skipped a beat.

They went on, and when it started, Kagome bumped into Inuyasha, and when he looked at her, she smiled. He bumped back into her, and she sped off and bumped into Sango and then Jurou, who bumped into Sango too. Amaterasu bumped into Miroku and Inuyasha, and drove over and bumped into Kagome. They were all laughing and giggling.

When they got off, they were still laughing, and Kagome leaned on Inuyasha. It was still early, and they went on the Tilt-a-Whirl. A couple of other kids went on, and Sango and Miroku went on their own seat together, along with Kagome and Inuyasha, and Amaterasu and Jurou.

When it started spinning, Inuyasha put his arm around Kagome, so she wouldn't end up getting hurt if they spun a way he would lean that way. He let her lean against him to turn it, and he leaned too, but not her way. He wouldn't at all.

Then when they got off, the guys wanted to go for a contest, and the girls wanted to go on the Tilt-a-Whirl again. They decided to split up and meet up later.

All three of them went in a cart together, and they spun really fast. After they were done on that ride, they went on another, one that picked up the carts up and spun around. When it started getting dark, Amaterasu suggested they find the guys. She knew right where to find them, because the whole mated-mind-talking thing. They were at the food stand, and they were waiting for them.

Kagome went right over and grabbed Inuyasha's hand, just as Amaterasu and Sango did the same. They got something to eat, funnel cake and sodas, and ate. Then they walked around, and played games, because the rides were starting to close down.

When it was late, and the last ride open was the Farris Wheel, they all went on it, and were all in one cart.

As they went up, and saw the city lights, Kagome put her head on Inuyasha's shoulder. Sango did the same with Miroku, as did Amaterasu, but Amaterasu put her arm around Jurou and pressed her face into the crook of his neck. She sighed.

Kagome started falling sleep on Inuyasha, as they went down. When they were down, she was fully asleep, and Inuyasha smiled at her, picked her up bridal style, and carried her off the ride, getting many 'aw's from the people waiting in line.

She woke up when Inuyasha was setting her in the car, and she smiled at him. "How long was I asleep?"

"Only about five minutes," Inuyasha told her. "I carried you off the ride, and Sango, Miroku, Amaterasu, and Jurou think we should go home, because of Graduation tomorrow." He closed the passenger door, and walked over to the driver's seat.

That was finally settling together. "It's tomorrow," she stated, when he was sitting next to her. "Tomorrow this life is over, and we go into the unknown."

Inuyasha started up the car, and pulled out of the parking lot. "I'd like to hope not all of it is unknown," he mumbled. He looked at her from the corner of his eye.

She smiled at him, and weaved her fingers through his. "You're not unknown."

He smiled, still looking at the road.

"But college and being on my own is going to be unknown," Kagome told him.

"You're not gonna be on your own," Inuyasha said." I'll be there, and Sango and Amaterasu and Jurou and Miroku."

She smiled at him. "I know, but college is going to be so different."

"Don't worry about it," Inuyasha told her.

Kagome sighed, but didn't say anything.

"Today was fun," Inuyasha said. "Especially the pigs today. That was genius."

Kagome giggled. "Yeah. I'm surprised they didn't figure out there wasn't a fourth pig sooner."

Inuyasha nodded. "Yeah."

Kagome rested her head on his shoulder and sighed. "I can't wait until tomorrow. We have to all eat together afterward." She felt Inuyasha nodded.

"I'm sure Amaterasu will drag us someplace," he told her.

She smiled and closed her eyes. "Probably." She was tired now, after everything they had done today.

Inuyasha felt Kagome start to relax even more against him, and her breathing started to change. He was almost to their houses, and when he got to their houses, he picked Kagome up and carried her out of the car through the driver's side. She didn't wake up, and he carried her into her house.

Kagome's grandfather looked up at him when he walked in. Inuyasha nodded at him as he passed, and Kagome's grandfather nodded back. Inuyasha walked up the stairs and passed Shippo and Sota's room, and they were up still, playing video games. They looked at Inuyasha carrying Kagome, and Sota watched him carry Kagome down the hall.

Inuyasha opened the door to her room and set her on her bed. He pulled the blanket over her, and turned the light off as he walked out of the room.

****Author's note: hey guys, sorry this is so late. I've had so many things to do, a reading competition, state bowling competition, lots of tests, studying, etc… so yeah, busy, busy. Anyway, this is not the last chapter, the next chapter is probably going to be the last, BUT (uber large emphasis on the but), I might make a sequel to this story. I might, which means I most likely will, but I need to think of a good reason to write it, like maybe they get into trouble again, and Kikyo gets out. So yeah. Thanks for reading and please review!