Hello! I had an itching to write a friend fic about Kagome and Sango, and what better way to do that than a little story about bath bonding time.

Also, I have an extra announcement at the end, so...check it out if you want ;)

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or its characters. All rights to Rumiko Takahashi

Shampoo & Conditioner

Kagome let out a squeal of delight.

The group had come across a hot spring, so of course she suggested, well, more like insisted, that they stop for a bath. She practically dragged Sango from the others and toward the spring.

Simultaneous sighs of pleasure rang from the young women as they dipped down into the water. The warmth of the small spring was like a balm on all of their many aching muscles, so Kagome was grateful they'd come across this one.

As they indulged in their bath, Kagome took her sweet time washing her hair. She squirted shampoo into her hand and meticulously applied it to her hair. She carefully washed away all the dirt and sweat from her long locks. When she came back up from under the water after rinsing the shampoo from her hair, she saw Sango peering at her from the corner of her eye.

Kagome paused. "What?" she asked. "Are you alright?"

Sango nodded. "I was just curious about what you're doing. What did you put in your hair? I've never seen you use it before."

This certainly wasn't the first bath they'd ever taken together, but it was the first time Kagome had remembered to grab shampoo and conditioner the last time she'd come back from her house.

She handed the travel-sized bottle of shampoo to Sango so she could look.

"It's called shampoo," Kagome explained with a smile. "You put it in your hair to clean it. It's like a washing formula."

Sango took the bottle from her and opened the lid of the shampoo. "It smells good. Is it like soap?"

Kagome nodded. "It's soap that's special for hair. It's from my time and pretty much everyone uses it."

After clicking open the shampoo bottle as she'd seen Kagome do, Sango squirted the liquid into her hand. She reached up and started patting her head rather awkwardly.

"Am I doing it right?"

That elicited a kind smile from Kagome.

"You have to rub it through your hair," the miko explained. "We call that lather."

Sango seemed amazed as she began to correctly wash the shampoo into her hair.

She winced as some of it trickled down into her eye. "Ouch." She began rubbing her eye fiercely, which spread it to the other eye, which in turn made it worse.

"Are you sure this isn't a weapon?" she asked as she blindly tried to get the shampoo out of her eyes.

"Rinse your eyes in the water," Kagome quickly explained. "Put your head under and blink your eyes a few times. That'll get the shampoo out."

A loud splash erupted as Sango dunked her head under the water. A moment later, she came back up with slightly irritated-looking eyes.

"That hurt," she said.

Kagome couldn't help it; she burst out laughing.

Sango seemed a bit embarrassed at first, but she soon began laughing, too.

After a moment, Kagome's laughs subsided into a simple smile. "Do you want to try the other one? It's called conditioner. It's okay if you don't after that fiasco."

Sango's expression portrayed her determination. "Something like soapy hair liquid isn't going to deter me."

Kagome laughed again as Sango squeezed the conditioner into her hand.

"You have to start at the bottom," Kagome instructed. "Then you work your way up. That's how it'll be the most effective."

Sango did as she was advised and began working the conditioner into her hair.

"This feels different than the shampoo," Sango noted. "And it has a stronger smell. It's nice."

Kagome smiled brightly. "It will make your hair really smooth and soft. You can use it whenever you want. I'll bring extra bottles next time I come."

Sango returned Kagome's smile. "Thank you," she said sincerely. "I appreciate it. I feel so lucky to have a friend like you. I didn't really think that would happen after I lost my family and friends from my village."

Kagome set her hand on Sango's shoulder. "I'm really lucky to have you, too, Sango. I'll always be here for you. So will Inuyasha and Miroku in their own...special ways." That got a chuckle from Sango.

"And I think Shippo likes everyone," Sango added. "He's always been very friendly and welcoming. You all have really opened up and accepted me in the time we've been traveling together. I'm so grateful for it."

The two girls finished up their bath after falling into easy conversation. Sango raved at how soft her hair was and how good it smelled as she combed through it after their bath.

As they walked back to meet the others, Kagome smiled to herself.

Once they'd rejoined the group, Inuyasha's head whipped up. He looked from Sango to Kagome and then back to Sango.

"Why do you smell like Kagome?" he asked suspiciously. Sango smiled.

"I used her shumpoo and conditionad," Sango explained. She paused and then turned to Kagome. "Did I say that right?"

Kagome laughed. "Almost."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "I can't believe Kagome managed to goad you into using that crap. She's always telling me I should, but the smell is too strong when it's on my head."

Shippo jumped up onto Sango's shoulder and took a whiff of her hair. "It smells good, Sango! It's so nice with your usual scent."

Sango smiled. "Thank you, Shippo. I'd never really thought of it that way, but I guess it would kind of mesh with my normal scent."

Miroku, in the blink of an eye, was next to Sango and rubbing his cheek on her hair.

"Oh, my dear Sango," he said, his voice slightly muffled by her hair. "How lovely you are."

Slap!

Kagome burst out laughing. Sango joined a moment later.

Inuyasha just rolled his eyes. "Baka."

Kagome relished in the happiness she felt in the comfortable way they all interacted. Despite all of the chaos in their lives, moments like these were ones Kagome cherished and would treasure forever.

Even though it was just a little bit of shampoo and conditioner, Kagome felt like she and Sango had gotten closer that night.

She was grateful for the friendship she had with Sango, and she would do whatever she could to always help bring a smile to her face.

FIN.

I love their friendship...gal pals gotta stick together.

ALSO, my little announcement. I found out the other night that my story, No One Else, was nominated for the Best Canon category for Feudal Connection's 2020 2nd Quarterly IY Fandom Awards! If the one who nominated me is reading this, thank you from the absolute bottom of my heart. I've been on this site for a little over two years, and this is the first time I've been nominated for something like this. Again, thank you to the fan that nominated little ol' goshinote. :')

Go follow me on tumblr if you want! Username is goshinote and my blog title is Toward Tomorrow. And for those that don't know, my name is Jane. :)

Extra love.