Kagome jolted as Sesshomaru moved to stand protectively in front of her.

InuYasha was the last person she wanted to see her like this.

"Hello, InuYasha," Sesshomaru said, with far more civility than she would have expected of him, all considered.

"Bastard," InuYasha ground out with about as much hostility as Kagome had expected. InuYasha and Sesshomaru were still adapting to what their relationship might hold in the future, but neither had really worked out what that would be yet.

The tension was a bit too much for her, especially after she'd been so vulnerable and open. It hurt to see him now, just as it had when InuYasha had abandoned her right after finding her, and it hurt that she was still so raw and that Sesshomaru of all people had been the only witness.

He had been gentle, perhaps too much for the precarious relationship between them, but he was the only comfort she'd had since her attack and so she instinctively pressed closer to him, her hands moving to grip his clothing as he stood between her and InuYasha.

"Let me see her," InuYasha finally growled.

Kagome's fingers dug in tighter in Sesshomaru's clothing.

"You may," Sesshomaru replied slowly as Kagome dug in her fingers a little tighter, "if that is what she wishes, InuYasha."

"Keh." InuYasha snorted. "Come here, Kagome."

It took her a moment to find her voice. "No," she said, wincing at how hoarse she sounded. Would InuYasha be able to tell that she'd been crying? He'd never been able to handle her tears before and she couldn't handle it if he went and ran off on her a second time in a matter of weeks.

Everything was hard enough as it was without him abandoning her—again.

"No?" InuYasha repeated, sounding incredulous. "Why the fuck not, K'gome? I've been fucking worried ever since Miroku told me the bastard went and kidnapped you from your home!"

Your. She felt the word lance through her. Though it had been the home they'd shared until recently, it was clear that InuYasha had never really considered it his.

Sesshomaru spoke then, as if he'd known she couldn't find her own voice just then. "Lower your voice, InuYasha. Kagome is here to heal and you are agitating her."

It felt more than a little odd to have Sesshomaru defending her to InuYasha, but she was relieved that he was.

"Can we talk later, InuYasha?" she said before the hanyo had the chance to respond. She wanted some time to herself, to compose herself, before she had to deal with him, and she wasn't ready for anyone else to see her so vulnerable.

Least of all InuYasha.

If he saw her face, swollen and red from her tears, he would know she'd been crying. InuYasha had simply never really dealt well with her tears. He would be upset that she was crying and more upset that she couldn't seem to stop crying and she had the feeling he'd like it even less that there wasn't anything he could do about the tears.

She heard InuYasha grumble something but couldn't quite catch what it was.

Evidently Sesshomaru heard it because he said, "You may stay here in our home so long as you do not upset Kagome further."

Our?

Kagome pulled back just enough to try and see Sesshomaru's face, but he hadn't taken his eyes off of InuYasha and so there was little she could see to read his expression.

"Fine." InuYasha didn't sound thrilled at the prospect. "Whatever. But I ain't stayin' long. The village needs us. Kaede is fuckin' old."

Kagome winced at the reminder. Kaede was getting on in her years and wasn't able to complete most of her duties any longer without Kagome's and Rin's help—both of whom were now at Sesshomaru's home.

She felt the tension in Sesshomaru's body at that.

"Perhaps you should take a moment to find assistance for the elderly miko, InuYasha," Sesshomaru said mildly.

Kagome herself was grateful for his comment, though it did little to assuage her guilt.

InuYasha himself snorted as he immediately rejected the suggestion. "Keh. Miroku ain't entirely useless; he and Sango can handle things for now."

I wish that he'd gone, Kagome lamented to herself, if only because it would have given her more time and space to think about what to do with InuYasha now that he'd arrived.

She didn't want to go back and face her friends. She wasn't sure if she could, but she definitely wasn't ready to return to the village where someone always needed something from her.

It was nice to be needed, but it had begun to drain her dry, emotionally speaking, especially considering she often shouldered it all herself without any help. Miroku tried to help when he could, but between his slaying and purifying responsibilities with InuYasha and his growing brood with Sango, both he and Sango rarely had the time to do much.

It wasn't a lack of caring on their part. They were just busy.

And they would be even more so if they were expected to take up Kagome's and InuYasha's duties while they were gone. Her heart went out to her friends.

"Please, InuYasha," Kagome managed, though her voice still sounded hoarser than she'd have liked. "They need help."

"Fine," InuYasha capitulated with a grumble. "If we're here longer than a couple of days, I'll find 'em some help. Gotta be someone who'll help the old hag," he added, though his grumble was laced with affection. "That cranky old bitch is too stubborn to die, anyway."

Kagome felt a strong sense of relief at that. InuYasha might not have always kept his promises to the letter to her in the past, but she heard his conviction and trusted that.

But she wasn't surprised that InuYasha had ignored the mortality of his companions because it wasn't the first time he'd either made levity of it or ignored it altogether. Kaede's inevitable death would be hard on all of them, but probably hardest on InuYasha.

Kaede was, after all, his last surviving tie to Kikyo.

Kikyo. Kagome's own thoughts turned bitter as Sesshomaru began to shepherd them both indoors. Kikyo would never have let herself—never would have let anyone—

"Kagome," Sesshomaru's voice broke into her thoughts with a suddenness that startled her. "You expressed a desire to bathe, did you not?"

She blinked, realizing that she'd absently followed him right to the door of her own room and was grateful at the sudden out he was giving her to escape the conversation. InuYasha must have already been shown to his own room because she didn't see him anywhere, but she wasn't entirely ready to be on her own, either.

Morose as she felt then, she would only sink further if she was left alone.

"Will you join me?" she blurted, catching onto his long sleeve with one hand in her urgency.

For the first time, she saw him look absolutely flabbergasted as he gaped at her.

It took her a moment to realize why and then she flushed, both at the thought and the horror he must have felt at the very notion. Why would he—or anyone else—want her now after all she'd been through?

"Not in the bath," she explained quickly before she offended him any further. "I just—well, I—that is—" She hesitated before summoning her courage to force out, "I don't want to be alone, so would you sit nearby?"

She still felt too vulnerable and exposed being out on her own and since the bath was an open air hot spring, she had a sudden desire to keep him near. He was the only thing that made her feel safe since the attack.

No one, after all, would dare challenge the daiyokai and live.

He looked conflicted. "I will summon your attendants—"

"No," she blurted. She liked them well enough, she supposed, but she didn't know them. "Please, Sesshomaru." She couldn't bring herself to say that she only felt safe with him. Such a statement would leave her feeling too exposed.

He stared at her for another moment and then glanced away. "Very well," he conceded.

He's probably not happy about it, she thought to herself with a sigh, but at least he agreed.

Perhaps it was wrong of her to depend too much on him, but he was the only stability she had and right now, she desperately needed that stability and comfort.