CHAPTER SIX
*
"Inuyasha," Kagome said slowly, sloshing suds over the frying pan. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Sure, just so long as you do it quietly," Inuyasha said. Ever since recovering from the paint thinner episode, he had been sprawled in the corner of the kitchen, with a wet washcloth on his head and Tetsusaiga hugged against his chest.
Kagome sighed. She knew that the slightest attention of any other male towards her provoked Inuyasha to jealous fury. That was one of the things that confused her -- if he was still clinging to Kikyo, why did he freak out if another guy made doe eyes at her? Hojo should be the sort of guy she was interested in, but...
"It's sort of hypothetical," she said. "See, pretend there is this guy."
"What kind of a guy?" Inuyasha came over and leaned his elbows on the countertop.
"Okay, I guess. Anyway, say I see this guy on a semi-regular basis -- nit every day, but a lot of the time. He's very attractive, and lots of girls swoon over him because he's very handsome, but I'm not really interested in him."
Inuyasha's golden eyes were getting narrower and narrower.
"But, even though I've never, you know, gone out with the guy, he's very interested in me, and even though I've never really given him a lot of notice he keeps pursuing me like there's no tomorrow. Um. What do you think of that sort of thing? I mean, what would you do?"
Inuyasha blinked at her. Then his face distorted with rage as he looked out the window at the mini-shrine. His claws cracked ominously. "I'm gonna kill Miroku," he growled.
"No no no!" Kagome said quickly, grabbing his hands. "It's not Miroku, don't worry. He hasn't been grabbing me for months. Not ever since you threatened to tear off his head and nail it to a tree."
Inuyasha frowned. "Then who are you talkin' about?"
"I told you, it's hypothetical."
"Feh."
"You don't believe me?"
"Well, in case you haven't noticed, I wasn't born yesterday," Inuyasha said acidly. "Nobody talks about those sorts of things unless they're just covering for someone."
"Oh well," Kagome said, scrubbing the bowls furiously. "It's not important. Besides, nobody would care."
"I care!" Inuyasha exploded.
Kagome froze, dropping her sponge with a loud, unromantic splat. But Inuyasha had already left the kitchen, grumbling under his breath. "I can't figure him out," she muttered.
*
Inuyasha was crouched on the sofa when Kagome came out of the kitchen. She wiped her hands on her skirt and put her hands on her hips. "You know, this is the sort of behavior I'd expect from Sota."
"Is not."
"Is so."
"Is not."
"Why does everything have to be a fight with you?"
"Hmph," Inuyasha grumbled, sinking further into the couch cushions.
Kagome sighed deeply. "Look, I'm not dating anyone. Does that make you happy?"
"No."
Kagome gritted her teeth and went over to the CD player. After rifling through her collection of imports, she finally selected one. "Hmm. This one hasn't been listened to in a while." She slipped in the disc and hit the play button. "There's not a lot of electricity in the feudal era, so I can't bring these along."
Inuyasha looked oddly disturbed. He held out a hand. "Uh, Kagome, you don't wanna do that..."
"Why not?" As if to answer Kagome's question, the stereo clicked and whirred several times, uttered a low buzzing sound, then spat the CD back out. She frowned, examining the CD player, then turned the disc over. The underside was scored with wavering white scratches.
She slowly looked up at the half-demon. His face was a comical mix of embarrassment and repentance. "Inuyasha?" she said slowly.
"I was just looking at it," he said.
"You did more than look at it." After testing it for a few moments, Kagome added ruefully, "Here's irony. The only song left intact is called 'Stay the Night."
Inuyasha flushed and slumped down further on the sofa.
*
"I don't know why you need the sheets changed," Kagome grumbled, tripping on the trailing bedsheets on her way out on Inuyasha's bedroom. "Mom changes them almost religiously. It's not like they smell or anything."
"Yes, they do," Inuyasha said, sitting on the mattress and bouncing a little.
"No more than my bedroom does," Kagome called from inside the linen closet.
"You don't put flower smells on your pillows," Inuyasha retorted. He wrinkled his nose. "It don't even smell like flowers. It smells like something else trying to smell like flowers."
Kagome stumbled back in, trying to keep the sheets and pillowcases in one overflowing bunch. "Well, if it makes you feel better, these don't have perfume on them. Off the bed."
Inuyasha watched as Kagome quickly put the sheets on his bed, then spread the coverlet back over it. "Thanks," he mumbled, pulling off his kimono.
Kagome flushed and quickly looked away, but Inuyasha didn't seem inclined to take anything more off. He leapt lightly onto the bed and curled up with his head on the pillows. Tetsusaiga was at his side. His golden eyes slowly closed, and his body shifted with a sigh.
Kagome watched him for a moment, remembering how she had first seen him. He had been pinned to an enormous tree by Kikyo's sacred arrow, which had "killed" him for fifty years, give or take. But he hadn't looked dead. He had looked like a young boy -- a boy with dog ears -- who had simply fallen asleep and never woken up, covered in vines. With an arrow piercing his chest. He usually slept in trees now, so Kagome rarely saw him resting like this. His face was relaxed and peaceful, making him look even younger than he was.
"Inuyasha?" Kagome said softly. "Aren't you going to use the blankets?"
Inuyasha mumbled something and snuggled into the mattress.
Kagome smiled. She reached over and flicked a lock of silver hair out of Inuyasha's face, then slipped out without a sound.
TO BE CONTINUED
*
"Inuyasha," Kagome said slowly, sloshing suds over the frying pan. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Sure, just so long as you do it quietly," Inuyasha said. Ever since recovering from the paint thinner episode, he had been sprawled in the corner of the kitchen, with a wet washcloth on his head and Tetsusaiga hugged against his chest.
Kagome sighed. She knew that the slightest attention of any other male towards her provoked Inuyasha to jealous fury. That was one of the things that confused her -- if he was still clinging to Kikyo, why did he freak out if another guy made doe eyes at her? Hojo should be the sort of guy she was interested in, but...
"It's sort of hypothetical," she said. "See, pretend there is this guy."
"What kind of a guy?" Inuyasha came over and leaned his elbows on the countertop.
"Okay, I guess. Anyway, say I see this guy on a semi-regular basis -- nit every day, but a lot of the time. He's very attractive, and lots of girls swoon over him because he's very handsome, but I'm not really interested in him."
Inuyasha's golden eyes were getting narrower and narrower.
"But, even though I've never, you know, gone out with the guy, he's very interested in me, and even though I've never really given him a lot of notice he keeps pursuing me like there's no tomorrow. Um. What do you think of that sort of thing? I mean, what would you do?"
Inuyasha blinked at her. Then his face distorted with rage as he looked out the window at the mini-shrine. His claws cracked ominously. "I'm gonna kill Miroku," he growled.
"No no no!" Kagome said quickly, grabbing his hands. "It's not Miroku, don't worry. He hasn't been grabbing me for months. Not ever since you threatened to tear off his head and nail it to a tree."
Inuyasha frowned. "Then who are you talkin' about?"
"I told you, it's hypothetical."
"Feh."
"You don't believe me?"
"Well, in case you haven't noticed, I wasn't born yesterday," Inuyasha said acidly. "Nobody talks about those sorts of things unless they're just covering for someone."
"Oh well," Kagome said, scrubbing the bowls furiously. "It's not important. Besides, nobody would care."
"I care!" Inuyasha exploded.
Kagome froze, dropping her sponge with a loud, unromantic splat. But Inuyasha had already left the kitchen, grumbling under his breath. "I can't figure him out," she muttered.
*
Inuyasha was crouched on the sofa when Kagome came out of the kitchen. She wiped her hands on her skirt and put her hands on her hips. "You know, this is the sort of behavior I'd expect from Sota."
"Is not."
"Is so."
"Is not."
"Why does everything have to be a fight with you?"
"Hmph," Inuyasha grumbled, sinking further into the couch cushions.
Kagome sighed deeply. "Look, I'm not dating anyone. Does that make you happy?"
"No."
Kagome gritted her teeth and went over to the CD player. After rifling through her collection of imports, she finally selected one. "Hmm. This one hasn't been listened to in a while." She slipped in the disc and hit the play button. "There's not a lot of electricity in the feudal era, so I can't bring these along."
Inuyasha looked oddly disturbed. He held out a hand. "Uh, Kagome, you don't wanna do that..."
"Why not?" As if to answer Kagome's question, the stereo clicked and whirred several times, uttered a low buzzing sound, then spat the CD back out. She frowned, examining the CD player, then turned the disc over. The underside was scored with wavering white scratches.
She slowly looked up at the half-demon. His face was a comical mix of embarrassment and repentance. "Inuyasha?" she said slowly.
"I was just looking at it," he said.
"You did more than look at it." After testing it for a few moments, Kagome added ruefully, "Here's irony. The only song left intact is called 'Stay the Night."
Inuyasha flushed and slumped down further on the sofa.
*
"I don't know why you need the sheets changed," Kagome grumbled, tripping on the trailing bedsheets on her way out on Inuyasha's bedroom. "Mom changes them almost religiously. It's not like they smell or anything."
"Yes, they do," Inuyasha said, sitting on the mattress and bouncing a little.
"No more than my bedroom does," Kagome called from inside the linen closet.
"You don't put flower smells on your pillows," Inuyasha retorted. He wrinkled his nose. "It don't even smell like flowers. It smells like something else trying to smell like flowers."
Kagome stumbled back in, trying to keep the sheets and pillowcases in one overflowing bunch. "Well, if it makes you feel better, these don't have perfume on them. Off the bed."
Inuyasha watched as Kagome quickly put the sheets on his bed, then spread the coverlet back over it. "Thanks," he mumbled, pulling off his kimono.
Kagome flushed and quickly looked away, but Inuyasha didn't seem inclined to take anything more off. He leapt lightly onto the bed and curled up with his head on the pillows. Tetsusaiga was at his side. His golden eyes slowly closed, and his body shifted with a sigh.
Kagome watched him for a moment, remembering how she had first seen him. He had been pinned to an enormous tree by Kikyo's sacred arrow, which had "killed" him for fifty years, give or take. But he hadn't looked dead. He had looked like a young boy -- a boy with dog ears -- who had simply fallen asleep and never woken up, covered in vines. With an arrow piercing his chest. He usually slept in trees now, so Kagome rarely saw him resting like this. His face was relaxed and peaceful, making him look even younger than he was.
"Inuyasha?" Kagome said softly. "Aren't you going to use the blankets?"
Inuyasha mumbled something and snuggled into the mattress.
Kagome smiled. She reached over and flicked a lock of silver hair out of Inuyasha's face, then slipped out without a sound.
TO BE CONTINUED