A.N.

Here is one of the longer fics I've been working on; I'm not exactly sure how many chapters this will end up being, but I have the majority of the outline planned out.

With a growing sense of despair, Kagome gazed across the sea of various colored materials strewn across her room, looking like a small clothing shop had been violently ill. All of the fashion magazines had articles on what to wear to a formal event or a job interview or to drive a man wild with desire. What they really needed, she reflected, was an article on what to wear when you were trying to prove to yourself that you were over the person you were about to meet but hadn't seen in years.

Two years, to be exact. Two years to come to terms with the fact that she would never have more than a platonic relationship with Inuyasha. Two years to train her heart not to race at the sound of his name. Two years since her uncle had offered her a job with enough spare time to focus on her art, allowing her to flee the city and let their ties fade to the occasional like on Facebook and infrequent text.

And now, here she was, debating over her outfit like some lovesick teenager hoping her crush will ask her to the big dance.

"Kagome? Is Buyo sick, or was that you growling in frustration?" Souta asked, popping his head into her room.

"Souta, unless you're a fairy godmother, I need you to stop straining my blood pressure and get out of here."

Following the tradition of younger siblings everywhere, Souta took that as an invitation to come the rest of the way into the room.

"What's wrong? You've only been home for three days. Even I can't piss you off that much, that fast!"

Her expression teetered on the edge of rage for two seconds before she wailed, "I'm going to be late, and I don't have anything to wear!"

Kagome had to give Souta credit; his eye barely flickered to the brightly colored blob on her bed, not saying a word about it. Clearly, having a girlfriend was helping him to cut down on the stupid comments.

"Have you tried asking the universe?"

She blinked. Maybe she should walk back her last thought. "Excuse me?"

Souta gave a mocking shake of his head. "And to think, you were raised in a shrine! Look, if you ask the gods, they'll give you what they think you need. Just reach into your closet, and wear whatever you pull out."

"That's so stupid that-hell, I'm desperate enough to try!" She sighed, kicking away a denim skirt on her way to the closet.

She took a deep breath and reached into the left side, which held some of her older clothes that she hadn't taken when she'd stayed with her uncle. She closed her eyes, felt for a hangar, and pulled out...her old school uniform. With a hiss, she hurled it away.

"The gods hate me!"

Souta snickered. "I guess roleplay isn't the message you're wanting to send. Here, let me try."

Kagome crossed her arms as Souta rummaged through her closet, honestly not expecting him to do any better.

"Here. Will this work?" He asked, flicking out a hanger.

It was on the tip of her tongue to veto his choice before she registered what she was seeing. It was a mint green button-up sundress with delicate white flowers embroidered around the neck and hemline. If she recalled correctly, it skimmed her waist until it flared out from hip to mid-calf.

"It's perfect!" She squealed, yanking it from his hand. "How did you do that?"

"Simple," Souta smirked. "The gods, like mom, love me more."

She poked her tongue out at him, following the routine of their old joke. "Just keep telling yourself that. They say a rich fantasy life is a comfort. Now get out; I have to change!"

"I'm going; I'm going!" He waved his hands, starting for the door. Suddenly he stopped, looking back at her with a serious expression. "Hey. Are you sure you're going to be alright? Doing...this, I mean."

Kagome's excitement over the dress faded. "Yeah. Running only works so much. I think I just need closure, you know? Besides, it's not like I want to lose him as a friend."

"So you think you're going to be able to resist his 'twin golden orbs that burn with the molten light of distant suns?' Souta asked, doing a mental countdown in preparation for her shriek.

"You absolute twerp! I knew you were reading my diary!"

Souta dodged the small pillow she launched at him. "It's not my fault the lock was easy to pick! Besides, do you really have time to chew me out right now?"

No. No, she very much did not. "Now, seriously, I have to make a fast change. Make sure nothing is blocking the way to the door because I'm not braking for anything that stands between me and the exit."

Taking this as his cue to leave before he was scarred for life, Souta stepped out into the hallway. As much as he loved to tease his sister, he was worried for her today. He knew her well enough to know just by her facial expression that she hadn't gotten over Inuyasha, but he also understood that Kagome was stubborn, and she would have to figure that out for herself.

He didn't have much time to contemplate before her door was slammed open, and a green and black blur hurtled from the room, thumping down the stairs. He raced after her and barely had time to hear her yell goodbye to their mother before she was out the front door. He went to stand beside his mom, both of them watching as she hurried towards the steps of the shrine.

"Do you think she'll have any luck?" His mom asked, obviously sharing his concern.

Souta let out a deep sigh. "Mom, it's Kagome. If she can be counted on for one thing, it's to fall."

Kagome made surprisingly good time and hadn't even tripped once, even though she was wearing strappy wedge sandals that weren't designed for speed. She paused outside of the restaurant to catch her breath; she wanted to come across as cool and confident, not a panting mess. She adjusted the straw bag on her shoulder and smoothed down the section of bangs that always wanted to fluff up in the wrong direction, then stepped through the door, scanning the seating area for her friends.

From behind a fake plant on one of the dividers, Miroku caught her eye and waved her over. She stepped carefully around a few tables, and as her destination came into view, she got her first look at Inuyasha, who had just looked up to see what Sango and Miroku were smiling at. He looked startled as if he hadn't been expecting her, but that only lasted a moment before he broke into a wide grin, his eyes lighting up. Like two molten suns.

Damn you, Souta, for putting that in my head! Kagome cursed mentally, making sure her thoughts didn't show on her face as she walked up to the table.

"I'm so sorry I'm late—I'm not totally unpacked yet, and it takes forever to find anything," she apologized, slipping into the seat beside Sango, wondering if her friend had deliberately arranged for her to be placed across from Inuyasha.

"No worries, we were just seated," Miroku assured her.

"Wait, you knew she was coming? Why the hell didn't anyone tell me?" Inuyasha asked, realizing he had been left out of the loop.

"I thought you already knew," Kagome said, shooting a questioning look at Sango.

"We thought it would be a nice surprise," Sango answered him, subtly watching the reactions to her two closest friends meeting after so long. She had hopes, but she wasn't going to push things.

"Yeah, we had to lure him away from his home improvement projects with the promise of something he wouldn't want to miss," Miroku added.

Inuyasha snorted. "And I still almost turned you down. If you had just said Kagome was coming, I'd've been here, you idiot!"

Kagome refused to let that make her happy. Just because he would have made a special effort to be there for her didn't mean anything; they were close friends who hadn't seen each other in a while, so it was only natural.

It still made her happy, damn it.

The waiter came by with the menus, and Kagome took the opportunity to take in Inuyasha, looking to see if there were any changes. Not that there would be many given his demonic heritage, but that only affected aging, not general mood and personality.

There had only been a few photos of him on Facebook since he was never really one for having his picture taken. He still wore his hair long, she was thankful to see because she had always loved how thick and soft it was. He was wearing a dark green T-shirt advertising some diner she had never heard of, and the soft material showed off the muscles he had developed—well, he'd always had muscles, but they were leaner when he was younger. His face… His expression was surprisingly relaxed, as if he had shed some of the angst of his teenage years and had become more comfortable with himself. She was surprised. In a way, she had expected him to be depressed and withdrawn. Sango had told her that he and Kikyo had been broken up for more than a year, and he had always gone into a depressed slump during their separations.

But they always got back together. That was a lesson she had learned the hard way, and although it had been for much longer this time than ever before, she wasn't going to let it get her hopes up.

"Home improvement projects?" She asked in confusion after the waiter left with their drink orders. "What's that all about?" Didn't the landlord at his apartment complex take care of all that?

Inuyasha pulled out his phone and swiped the screen. "Oh yeah, I guess you wouldn't know-I bought a house a few weeks ago, and I moved in recently to start working on it. Here," he said, sliding the phone over to her.

"Wow! I didn't think you'd be moving out of an apartment so soon!" Kagome said, scrolling through photos of rooms in various stages of livability. Wasn't buying a house something you did when you were ready to start a family? Was Inuyasha about to take that step? She felt a little sick.

"I stuck with it as long as I could, but the noise from all the neighbors was driving me crazy. The landlord said it wasn't his fault I have exceptional hearing, and there wasn't anything he could do about it," Inuyasha rolled his eyes.

"You should've seen how rough it was, Kagome," Sango said with a teasing glance at Inuyasha. "He lost his usual chill personality and was almost perpetually grumpy from lack of sleep!"

Inuyasha gave her a cheerful flip of his middle finger. "Shaddup, Sango. Anyway, it's on the outskirts of the city, so I can finally get some peace. You'll have to come over and see it-if you're going to be here a while. Or do you have to go back to your uncle's?"

Kagome returned his phone. "It looks really nice, or at least, it definitely has potential. I'd love to see it! And no, I'm pretty much back for good."

"Is it a shock to be back in the city? All the photos you post are always so green!" Miroku said, referring to all of the nature shots that she had taken.

"It's a little weird, but I'll adjust-besides, the experience I got was worth it; my uncle really helped me make connections and get my feet wet," Kagome said enthusiastically. "He had me start learning the ropes with some of his clients."

They were distracted by the waiter coming to take their orders. Once he had left, Sango turned to Kagome.

"That must have helped a lot! Was it pretty boring when you started?" Sango asked.

Kagome had to laugh at the memory. "I wish! No, uncle Kenji believes in giving you something challenging to start off with. He says that way, the hardest part is over, and you can relax knowing you've already dealt with the worst of it."

Was it a little nepotistic that he had given her such a boost? Probably. But he had only done it because she was his niece, and he wasn't planning on hiring anyone anyway, so it wasn't like she was taking a job for someone. Besides, her uncle believed in making you earn your success. He challenged you to do your best, and she could tell she had grown from that.

"Aside from dealing with the people side of things, how difficult is advertising?" Inuyasha asked, raising an eyebrow.

Kagome shot him an amused smile. "I thought like that too, when I was young and innocent. Then Uncle Kenji threw me into the deep end and let me work on the Manscaping account."

Everyone at the table froze.

"Pardon me, but did you just say..." Miroku managed to get out while coughing.

"You heard me. And I haven't even gotten to the good part yet."

"Don't tell me you actually took the job!" Inuyasha said, eyes wide.

"Have I ever backed down from a challenge? No. So, Kenji introduced me, and I managed to keep a straight face. But it turns out that they wanted someone to be familiar with the products so the design would feel more 'authentic.' Since that wasn't going to work for obvious reasons, they told me I could give a model to my boyfriend, dad, or brother to try out and give me feedback."

"You're kidding me!" Sango gasped, looking torn between horror and bursting into laughter.

"Boyfriend?" Inuyasha asked, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"He just assumed I had one, I guess," Kagome explained. "But since I didn't, and Dad was slightly, you know, dead, that just left Souta. And what was I supposed to do, call up my sixteen-year-old brother and say, 'Hello, darling brother of mine. Would you mind buzzing your dangly bits for art?'"

By this point, Miroku and Sango were wheezing with laughter, and even Inuyasha was having to cover his grin with his hand.

"So, as you can see, I was completely out of options. But I'm a Higurashi. Dedicated. Reliable."

"Stubborn as hell," the others said in dry unison.

Kagome acknowledged that with a nod. "That, too. Well, I decided that I wasn't going to fail my first job, so I wracked my brain for ideas. I was starting to go nuts, and my aunt suggested I get out of the house and try to let the idea come to me naturally. I went out to do some errands, and in the produce section, inspiration struck!"

"This can't end well," Inuyasha said, shaking his head.

"That's only true if you don't prepare correctly first," Miroku added, shrugging at the looks that received.

"No, it was working! I had everything I needed and had the house to myself, so I figured I could get the hang of things. Aaaaand that is how my aunt and her book club walked in on me in just my underwear and a t-shirt, with a banana and two peaches between my legs."

"Kagome, how did you explain that?" Sango asked as tears leaked down her cheeks.

"Please tell me it at least helped you with the assignment," Miroku said, patting a choking Inuyasha on the back.

"Oh, It did! I managed to get one peach shaved before I was interrupted. So if either of you is looking for a smooth, gentle shave..." she waggled her eyebrows.

"I'll stick to waxing, thanks all the same," Miroku fired back, never one to mind oversharing, even if it caused Sango to kick him under the table.

"What the hell, Miroku! Why would you even-" Inuyasha spluttered.

"Ah, so you prefer an untamed jungle? Many ladies find that appealing, I've heard," Miroku said with an understanding nod.

Inuyasha's ears laid back, and his lip curled into a snarl. "How the hell did this turn into a discussion of the state of my balls?" He asked loudly, too late to notice that the waiter had just walked up with their order.

Everyone held in their laughter as Inuyasha blushed to the tips of his ears, and as they ate, the conversation turned to other topics as the four of them caught up. Kagome's early nervousness dissipated at the familiarity; it was just as if two years hadn't passed at all. They had almost finished their meal when Sango seemed to realize something.

"Kagome, I forgot to ask-are you going to be staying with your family or trying to find an apartment?"

At that reminder of her current living situation, Kagome slumped, poking her fork at her plate dejectedly. "I love my family, so it would be a shame to have to kill them. On the other hand, finding anywhere decent in my price range is nearly impossible."

"Hey, if you need a place, there's plenty of room at mine, if you don't mind being in the middle of a work zone," Inuyasha offered.

"What? No, I couldn't ask you to do that!" Kagome protested. Inuyasha had always been generous to his friends, but surely that was too much.

"No, seriously. I could use another hand with some of the stuff, and if you'll cook for me whenever you feel like making yourself something, we could call it even," Inuyasha said as he leaned forward, his expression showing he wasn't just being nice.

Kagome nibbled her lip in consideration. This would be amazing if it worked. She desperately needed a place, and dirt cheap was a seductive price point. But could she handle actually living with Inuyasha? Wasn't that a bit too domestic for what she was trying to accomplish? Wait a minute. This was perfect. Living with him would show her all of the irritating little things about him, and surely her age-old crush wouldn't be able to hold up to a steady flow of reality. Yes! She could do this! She would do this!

"You would have your own room, space for a studio, and your own bathroom," Inuyasha sang enticingly before going in for the kill. "And the bathtub is huuuuuge!"

"Alright, I accept!" She laughed, already mentally setting up for her favorite bathtime rituals.

"I'm a little offended you never offered to let me move in," Miroku nudged Inuyasha, giving him a fake pout.

Inuyasha shoved back at Miroku's arm. "No way in hell am I having you move in where I have to hear all the noises. Once was enough!" Inuyasha snorted, referring to the brief time they had shared a place during college.

"But I'm a changed man now that I'm committed!" Miroku protested, nervously observing Sango's raised eyebrow.

"Committed noises are still noises," Inuyasha said firmly.

"Hey!" Sango protested at being brought into the discussion, her cheeks flushing red at the implication.

"Hold up! When I say that, I'm not thinking about you-anything with Miroku involved automatically becomes the fault of Miroku, and the other party is completely blameless."

"I can live with that," Sango answered, nodding happily.

"Can you believe how cruel they are to me, Kagome?" Miroku turned big, beseeching puppy eyes at her, hoping for some support.

Kagome knew him too well for that look to work. "Sweet, sweet karma."

Reluctantly, the four of them finished up, not wanting to take up the table too long since business was starting to pick up. Inuyasha held the door open for her and asked as she passed, "Want to start bringing some stuff over tomorrow?"

"You'll need to give me the address, so I can figure out how to get out there," she replied, stepping out onto the sidewalk.

Inuyasha joined her, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "No need. I've gotta come back in tomorrow to pick up a few things, so I can take you out. Is about ten okay?"

Kagome was used to getting up early, so she nodded. "That sounds good. Are you sure this won't put you out?"

He shook his head. "Nah, it's fine. Besides, the quiet is great, but it'd be nice to have someone around who doesn't piss me off all the time."

"Hm, that sounds like a bit of selective memory," She teased, stepping away from the path of the foot traffic.

With a bark of a laugh, Inuyasha turned to go. "I said you didn't all of the time; some of the time, I probably deserve it. You headed home?"

"No, I have to pick up a few things while I'm out since I haven't really had a chance yet."

"Alright, then I'll text in the morning to make sure you're ready." he looked back over his shoulder with a wicked grin, his eyes sparkling. "Catch ya tomorrow, Peaches."

Wicked smirk.

Molten eyes of distant suns.

Kami, she was going to burn.