Disclaimer: Inuyasha and Kagome are not mine *whimpers* they belong to Rumiko Takahashi. I wish they were mine though.

So while walking through the feudal era of Japan, I overheard this conversation. Okay, actually if I were in the feudal era of Japan I'd be screaming "Inuyasha, here I come!" so loud the conversation wouldn't have happened. Luckily though, I have a correspondent there for me because he doesn't get as excited as I do. This conversation was overheard by our favorite sneaky kitsune and I felt the need to share its wonderful almost fuzziness. No real purpose or plot to this story, but I'm sure you can deal. I just thought that maybe some one other than Miroku might want to try and talk Inuyasha out of using the Shikon no Tama. . .

Inuyasha and Kagome were actually alone. They were almost always surrounded by Sango, Miroku and Shippou. Today and Sango had left to take a bath and Miroku, knowing this, left to go "scout the area for demons". Although they had been left alone for several minutes now, neither had spoken.

Inuyasha leaned back against the tree. He was watching Kagome intently, who was lost in her own thoughts. She was laid back on the grass and was looking absent mindedly up at the passing clouds.

Kagome was well aware that Inuyasha was looking at her, but she didn't want to say anything. She wanted to enjoy a rare peaceful moment between them.

Inuyasha noted that her usual smile was absent, not that he cared. He was just curious. Kagome was seldom in such a quiet, pensive mood but Inuyasha wanted to know what was wrong, so he decided to disturb her.

"Kagome," he started. "What are you thinking about?"

Kagome rolled over to face him. The sunlight caught her hair and in many places her hair looked almost white rather than black. It was unusual for Inuyasha to ask Kagome anything, unless it was shard related, and it was especially odd that Inuyasha would even care what she was thinking about.

"Shikon no Tama." she stated simply. "When it is completed, what will happen?"

"I will become a full demon." Inuyasha said, this time in his gruff tone.

"But. . ."

"What?"

"Well, when I first got the jewel, I kept it from you so you wouldn't do that. Why should you be able to use it now?" She looked at him curiously and pulled the hair away from her face.

"Because if you don't give me the jewel, I will be forced to hurt you." Kagome smiled weakly. Both knew this was an empty threat.

"And if you did use it, then where would I go? There's no point in coming back if there are no shards to collect or jewel to protect." Inuyasha was silent for a moment. It was true; there was nothing to really keep her from staying in her time permanently.

"What do I care wench? Stay for all I care." He answered cruelly. Kagome felt a pang in her heart. Did he really not care? She turned her back to him and looked across the clearing. So that really is her value to him, she was just a shard collector.

"Feh." He responded to her turning. "Would you rather I become a bloody human?" he asked nastily.

"What's wrong with you now? Why not stay a hanyou?" Kagome asked with a slightly shaky voice. Inuyasha was taken aback. Stay a half demon? Never even considered it, and why should he? Inuyasha looked bewildered at Kagome's back.

"Stay like this? Why?"

"Well I see nothing wrong with you now." she explained. "You're strong like as a demon, you even have the Tetsusiaga. Your heart is a mixture of both though, no matter how hard you try and hide it with that cold exterior. We all know you care about something other the shard because you sometimes let it slip out." Kagome smiled meekly as she remembered how Inuyasha tried to keep her away by sealing the well just so he could be sure that she was safe from harm. His reaction when she climbed out of the well to him made her smile broaden. Maybe not just a shard collector after all?

Inuyasha was utterly bemused. No one but his mother had ever said anything like that to him. Even Kikyou, he suddenly remembered, wanted to change him. Did Kagome really mean that? She liked him the way he was? Inuyasha wasn't used to acceptance like that. So few people had even tried to look beyond his appearance. Most just wanted to kill him. Inuyasha remembered that Kagome was open to him right away, even after he tried to steal the Shikon no Tama. He thought back to when she invited him to eat with her a few days after they 'met'. He smirked a bit when he realized that Kagome had never really looked at him as different at all. She always thought f him as a person, not as some disgusting half demon creature.

He looked back at Kagome and realized that she had turned around to face him again. She was smiling. Inuyasha just looked back at her, and, judging by the fact that the tiniest shade of crimson was now creeping through her face, he was smiling as well. Inuyasha stood up left his spot of shade under the tree. He lay down next to Kagome on the grass. Neither said a word, they just looked up at the clouds passing through the sky.