Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha.
Inuyasha will probably be a little out of character. Actually, they'll all probably be a little OOC.
A Bump in the Road
The group trudged along the road. It had been a couple days since Kagome and Inuyasha had come back from her latest round of tests, and things had been going smoothly. Shippou was the only one who seemed at all upset that Inuyasha no longer wore the rosary. Oh, Miroku had made a few sharp-witted comments, and Sango had wondered privately how Kagome was going to deal Inuyasha effectively, but that was it. The fact that the two had actually argued quite a bit less than usual helped to put the questions to rest.
As it was, Kagome rode lazily on the hanyou's back, half asleep after the quick lunch they'd recently eaten. True to his word, he'd carried Kagome most of the time, and, as much as he ever did, he looked happy doing it. Although he had yet to admit it publicly, it was obvious that the removal of the rosary had had a big impact on how he viewed his relationship with Kagome. Still, they hadn't had anything to really test how some of the dynamics would really work out. However, that was about to change.
Coming around a curve on the narrow road they were on, they encountered a small merchant train trying to clear a rockslide from the road. It didn't take long to realize they weren't going to get it cleared any time soon, if ever. The test began.
Kagome quickly perked up and jumped down from Inuyasha's back. "Let's help them clear the road, Inuyasha," she said cheerfully.
"Feh, why bother? It isn't affecting us," Inuyasha grouched in response. He understood that he would be doing most of the work. Besides, the rosary was gone, and he didn't have to get bossed around like that any more. He a man, after all: he didn't have to put up with it.
"Because, it's the nice thing to do."
"Like I said, why bother?"
"Quit being so difficult. Just do it," she said, barely avoiding shouting, unknowingly proving his point about who would be doing the work.
"No."
"Sit!" she shouted, forgetting that the rosary was gone. Inuyasha just laughed.
"Now, just climb back on, and we'll be on our way," Inuyasha said smugly.
"No thanks, I'll walk," Kagome huffed, grabbing her pack, furious. The jerk! She'd just wanted to help, and he'd made a big scene out of it. All this after she'd thought he'd changed.
"Feh, whatever, just don't fall behind," Inuyasha said jumping over the heap of rocks in the road.
It hadn't been one of their longer arguments, but the results were just as bad.
Sango and Miroku looked at each other and sighed. They knew things had been going too well. It looked as if they were going to have to baby sit the two again. Oh, well, it wasn't like they didn't know it was going to happen sometime. At least no one had gotten hurt.
The rest of the day went rather quietly. Inuyasha led, and, as much as he wanted to push the pace just to spite Kagome, Sango and Miroku kept it down to a manageable rate. Shippou, uncharacteristically, walked with Sango. Kagome just trailed along and glared.
That night, they had the good fortune to camp by the girls' favorite, a hot spring. After eating, Sango glanced at Miroku, who nodded. "Let's go have a bath, Kagome," she commanded, glaring at the guys.
Miroku got the hint. Besides, he needed to talk to Inuyasha. After all, this whole argument seemed silly. "So, Inuyasha," he began, "why such a big fight over a little pile of rocks?"
"Feh," Inuyasha huffed.
"Really? It would have only taken you 15 minutes to move the rocks they couldn't handle. Was it really worth Kagome's wrath just for that?"
"It wasn't about the stupid rocks, ok?"
"Then what was it about?"
"Stupid bitch. Do you have any idea how many dumb things like that she made me do because of that stupid rosary? And today, she just runs up and volunteers me to do the work. Feh."
"So you were just pissed because she told you to do it, not because of the work?"
"Are you hard of hearing monk? That's what I just said. The rocks were no big deal---it would have only taken a few minutes to get rid of them. Why does she have to always think she can order me around like that?"
"I don't know, friend, I don't know," Miroku said, guiding the conversation to something more neutral.
Later, Miroku and Sango slipped away for their regular evening 'talk.' No one knew what they actually did, and at least Kagome and Inuyasha made a point of not finding out. Shippou wasn't so inclined, but Kagome always saw fit to make sure he was otherwise occupied.
Miroku and Sango casually strolled away from the camp. As soon as they were safely out of sight, Sango reached for Miroku's hand. Not only did she enjoy it, it also kept it from wandering. "So, what did you find out," she asked when they were safely out of earshot of the others.
"I was somewhat surprised, actually," Miroku answered. "I thought he would have been unset with the thought of helping to clean the road off, but that really wasn't the case. In fact, he might have even done it on his own if he didn't think Kagome was needlessly volunteering him for it."
"Huh?" Sango grunted, confused. "That doesn't sound like the Inuyasha I know."
"It certainly doesn't sound like the Inuyasha we think we know," agreed Miroku. "However, I suspect he really may be a little different than we have been led to believe."
"Ok," Sango answered tentatively, "so what does that have to do with him getting so pissed at Kagome today?"
"He hates the fact that, from his perspective, she thinks she can boss him around. I know, I know," Miroku said, holding his hands up to deflect Sango's glare. "That isn't what she thinks she is doing. Or, even if she does, she thinks it is the only way to get him to do anything. Whatever the case, it doesn't work since he no longer wears the rosary."
"So what would work?" Sango demanded, still glaring.
"If she asked him to help. He really does like pleasing her, even if he doesn't want to admit it. Of course, she has to be truly asking, which means he has the chance decline occasionally."
"Hmmm," Sango responded neutrally. If what the monk said was true, it probably applied to him, too.
"So, what did Kagome have to say about it?"
"As you could tell, she was very upset with Inuyasha. I think talking to me and soaking in the water calmed her down quite a bit, but tomorrow will still be tense. She was hurt that he just brushed her off like that about something so little as cleaning a few rocks out of the road. She was also embarrassed that he made a scene there."
"Is that all?"
"Well, that sums up most of what she said. I also think part of the difficulty is she was disappointed with what happened. She was so happy that Inuyasha was finally acting nice after all this time that she got depressed when he started acting too much like his old self again."
"Well, at least we know what our task for tomorrow is," Sango sighed.
"That we do, my dear, that we do," Miroku said before giving Sango her daily good night kiss.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Breakfast the next day was quiet. Even Shippou seemed to get the message that it wasn't a good time for idle chatter. They were soon on their way.
Today, the travelling order changed a little. After a while, Miroku moved to catch up with Inuyasha. "So, are you going to go make up with Kagome?"
"Feh. Why should I make up with her? It's not like I did anything wrong."
"If you say so. Sango seemed to think she was particularly upset that you embarrassed her in front of all those strangers."
"Feh," Inuyasha said, but without much heat.
"It seems she was also upset that you brushed her off so easily."
"What does she think I am, her lap dog?"
Miroku rolled his eyes: did Inuyasha always have to be this thickheaded? "Of course not. She probably just accidentally said something that made you think she did."
"Feh."
"Get over it. Go talk to her when she's done talking to Sango. I'm not putting up with any more of this childish behavior."
"No."
Whack! Miroku whapped Inuyasha on the head with his staff. "I couldn't hear you. What was that?"
"Ouch! What'd you do that for monk?" Inuyasha whined.
Jab! Miroku poked Inu in the stomach this time. "I still couldn't hear you."
"Ok, ok, just quit hitting me," Inuyasha mumbled.
"That's what I thought you said. Have a nice afternoon," Miroku said a little too sweetly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, Sango was having a similar conversation with Kagome. "So, are you going to go and talk to Inuyashsa about this or not?"
"Why should I? It'd just be a waste of time. The jerk doesn't care, anyway. I mean, all I wanted him to do was to help move a few rocks. It wouldn't have taken long," Kagome grumbled, still obviously upset.
"Hmm. It sounds like Inuyasha thought about the same thing. He really wasn't particularly upset about that at all."
"He wasn't?" Kagome was now intrigued. "Then what did he get so ticked about?"
Sango suppressed a smile: this was working even better than she'd hoped. "It sounded like he was upset that he thought you were just ordering him around. It made him feel like he was your pet that had to obey your every wish."
"Where'd he get that idea? I just thought we could help clean the road off," Kagome answered defensively.
"I'm sure you didn't mean that, but that's what he thought you meant. For example, who would be doing most of the work?"
"Well, he would have."
"Did you ask him if he'd be willing to help?"
"Uh, duh, no---he wouldn't have wanted to."
"I think that was his point. You figured he wouldn't want to, so you thought you'd just volunteer his services."
"Uh, does it really look that bad?" Kagome said, surprised.
"It probably does to him. Now run up and talk to him. I believe Miroku has finished his talk with him," Sango said, smiling.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Not long afterward, Sango joined Miroku. "Think it'll work?" she asked.
"As long as he doesn't get to pig headed about it," Miroku answered.
"Good. This is just silly. Oh, Shippou, come help us," Sango said, keeping the overly curious youngster out of the young couple's way.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After what seemed like an eternity, Kagome finally drug herself to where Inuyasha was waiting. "Hi, Inuyasha," she started tentatively.
Inuyasha was tempted to answer a usual, but he wasn't fully confident the monk would find out and pound on him some more for doing so, so he responded in kind. "Hi."
"Uh, I didn't mean to upset you yesterday. I didn't realize what I was saying would bother you," she said cautiously.
"."
"I suppose I didn't think you'd be willing to help, so I acted like I always have when the necklace is on," she continued after he remained quiet.
"Just ask next time. I'm not making any promises, though," Inuyasha mumbled.
"I'll try," she said, smiling.
"Want a ride?"
"Sure," she said lightly, jumping on.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Authors Notes
Lady Wyrsa: I realize that the rosary had its benefits, but my personal opinion (this is a guy speaking here) is that it was doing a lot more harm than it was good. I gave Kagome an easy way to control him without actually working on the relationship. This chapter is the start of that work.
Chiki: In chapter 1, I suppose I wasn't very clear. Of course Inuyasha was in bad shape after a day like that. Of course, he wasn't about to admit it, though. Still, he let Kagome do his hair, he had everyone turn in early, and he was sleeping with Kagome and Shippou. He said it was because he wanted them to keep warm, but he didn't want to be cold, either.
As for chapter 2, thanks for the confirmation on the leaves. Also, I didn't realize men seemed so sensitive. I do realize that they don't think like women,though, and that often causes conflict. Additionally, see the notes below for this chapter.
As for this chapter, it is the start of the 'post rosary' relationship. We got our first taste of what some of the adjustments will be. As I'm sure you have already noticed, the majority of the dialogue comes from Miroku and Inuyasha. That is because I understand men relatively well. I do not understand women particularly well, and there are plenty of fics written by those who do.
While I'm at it, I suppose I'll just get myself into a little more trouble, but with the guys this time. Ladies, guys like doing things for their woman. The only thing is, you have to go about it properly. If you ask him nicely, make him feel important for helping you, and brag about how wonderful he is in front of his friends, he'll probably be eating out of you hand. If you incessantly nag him or try to force him to do it, he'll probably mysteriously always have something else more pressing to work on. Also, realize the answer will sometimes be 'no' for whatever reason. If you continue to hound him about it, he may eventually do it, but he won't be happy.
As always, thanks for reviewing.
Junyortrakr
Inuyasha will probably be a little out of character. Actually, they'll all probably be a little OOC.
A Bump in the Road
The group trudged along the road. It had been a couple days since Kagome and Inuyasha had come back from her latest round of tests, and things had been going smoothly. Shippou was the only one who seemed at all upset that Inuyasha no longer wore the rosary. Oh, Miroku had made a few sharp-witted comments, and Sango had wondered privately how Kagome was going to deal Inuyasha effectively, but that was it. The fact that the two had actually argued quite a bit less than usual helped to put the questions to rest.
As it was, Kagome rode lazily on the hanyou's back, half asleep after the quick lunch they'd recently eaten. True to his word, he'd carried Kagome most of the time, and, as much as he ever did, he looked happy doing it. Although he had yet to admit it publicly, it was obvious that the removal of the rosary had had a big impact on how he viewed his relationship with Kagome. Still, they hadn't had anything to really test how some of the dynamics would really work out. However, that was about to change.
Coming around a curve on the narrow road they were on, they encountered a small merchant train trying to clear a rockslide from the road. It didn't take long to realize they weren't going to get it cleared any time soon, if ever. The test began.
Kagome quickly perked up and jumped down from Inuyasha's back. "Let's help them clear the road, Inuyasha," she said cheerfully.
"Feh, why bother? It isn't affecting us," Inuyasha grouched in response. He understood that he would be doing most of the work. Besides, the rosary was gone, and he didn't have to get bossed around like that any more. He a man, after all: he didn't have to put up with it.
"Because, it's the nice thing to do."
"Like I said, why bother?"
"Quit being so difficult. Just do it," she said, barely avoiding shouting, unknowingly proving his point about who would be doing the work.
"No."
"Sit!" she shouted, forgetting that the rosary was gone. Inuyasha just laughed.
"Now, just climb back on, and we'll be on our way," Inuyasha said smugly.
"No thanks, I'll walk," Kagome huffed, grabbing her pack, furious. The jerk! She'd just wanted to help, and he'd made a big scene out of it. All this after she'd thought he'd changed.
"Feh, whatever, just don't fall behind," Inuyasha said jumping over the heap of rocks in the road.
It hadn't been one of their longer arguments, but the results were just as bad.
Sango and Miroku looked at each other and sighed. They knew things had been going too well. It looked as if they were going to have to baby sit the two again. Oh, well, it wasn't like they didn't know it was going to happen sometime. At least no one had gotten hurt.
The rest of the day went rather quietly. Inuyasha led, and, as much as he wanted to push the pace just to spite Kagome, Sango and Miroku kept it down to a manageable rate. Shippou, uncharacteristically, walked with Sango. Kagome just trailed along and glared.
That night, they had the good fortune to camp by the girls' favorite, a hot spring. After eating, Sango glanced at Miroku, who nodded. "Let's go have a bath, Kagome," she commanded, glaring at the guys.
Miroku got the hint. Besides, he needed to talk to Inuyasha. After all, this whole argument seemed silly. "So, Inuyasha," he began, "why such a big fight over a little pile of rocks?"
"Feh," Inuyasha huffed.
"Really? It would have only taken you 15 minutes to move the rocks they couldn't handle. Was it really worth Kagome's wrath just for that?"
"It wasn't about the stupid rocks, ok?"
"Then what was it about?"
"Stupid bitch. Do you have any idea how many dumb things like that she made me do because of that stupid rosary? And today, she just runs up and volunteers me to do the work. Feh."
"So you were just pissed because she told you to do it, not because of the work?"
"Are you hard of hearing monk? That's what I just said. The rocks were no big deal---it would have only taken a few minutes to get rid of them. Why does she have to always think she can order me around like that?"
"I don't know, friend, I don't know," Miroku said, guiding the conversation to something more neutral.
Later, Miroku and Sango slipped away for their regular evening 'talk.' No one knew what they actually did, and at least Kagome and Inuyasha made a point of not finding out. Shippou wasn't so inclined, but Kagome always saw fit to make sure he was otherwise occupied.
Miroku and Sango casually strolled away from the camp. As soon as they were safely out of sight, Sango reached for Miroku's hand. Not only did she enjoy it, it also kept it from wandering. "So, what did you find out," she asked when they were safely out of earshot of the others.
"I was somewhat surprised, actually," Miroku answered. "I thought he would have been unset with the thought of helping to clean the road off, but that really wasn't the case. In fact, he might have even done it on his own if he didn't think Kagome was needlessly volunteering him for it."
"Huh?" Sango grunted, confused. "That doesn't sound like the Inuyasha I know."
"It certainly doesn't sound like the Inuyasha we think we know," agreed Miroku. "However, I suspect he really may be a little different than we have been led to believe."
"Ok," Sango answered tentatively, "so what does that have to do with him getting so pissed at Kagome today?"
"He hates the fact that, from his perspective, she thinks she can boss him around. I know, I know," Miroku said, holding his hands up to deflect Sango's glare. "That isn't what she thinks she is doing. Or, even if she does, she thinks it is the only way to get him to do anything. Whatever the case, it doesn't work since he no longer wears the rosary."
"So what would work?" Sango demanded, still glaring.
"If she asked him to help. He really does like pleasing her, even if he doesn't want to admit it. Of course, she has to be truly asking, which means he has the chance decline occasionally."
"Hmmm," Sango responded neutrally. If what the monk said was true, it probably applied to him, too.
"So, what did Kagome have to say about it?"
"As you could tell, she was very upset with Inuyasha. I think talking to me and soaking in the water calmed her down quite a bit, but tomorrow will still be tense. She was hurt that he just brushed her off like that about something so little as cleaning a few rocks out of the road. She was also embarrassed that he made a scene there."
"Is that all?"
"Well, that sums up most of what she said. I also think part of the difficulty is she was disappointed with what happened. She was so happy that Inuyasha was finally acting nice after all this time that she got depressed when he started acting too much like his old self again."
"Well, at least we know what our task for tomorrow is," Sango sighed.
"That we do, my dear, that we do," Miroku said before giving Sango her daily good night kiss.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Breakfast the next day was quiet. Even Shippou seemed to get the message that it wasn't a good time for idle chatter. They were soon on their way.
Today, the travelling order changed a little. After a while, Miroku moved to catch up with Inuyasha. "So, are you going to go make up with Kagome?"
"Feh. Why should I make up with her? It's not like I did anything wrong."
"If you say so. Sango seemed to think she was particularly upset that you embarrassed her in front of all those strangers."
"Feh," Inuyasha said, but without much heat.
"It seems she was also upset that you brushed her off so easily."
"What does she think I am, her lap dog?"
Miroku rolled his eyes: did Inuyasha always have to be this thickheaded? "Of course not. She probably just accidentally said something that made you think she did."
"Feh."
"Get over it. Go talk to her when she's done talking to Sango. I'm not putting up with any more of this childish behavior."
"No."
Whack! Miroku whapped Inuyasha on the head with his staff. "I couldn't hear you. What was that?"
"Ouch! What'd you do that for monk?" Inuyasha whined.
Jab! Miroku poked Inu in the stomach this time. "I still couldn't hear you."
"Ok, ok, just quit hitting me," Inuyasha mumbled.
"That's what I thought you said. Have a nice afternoon," Miroku said a little too sweetly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, Sango was having a similar conversation with Kagome. "So, are you going to go and talk to Inuyashsa about this or not?"
"Why should I? It'd just be a waste of time. The jerk doesn't care, anyway. I mean, all I wanted him to do was to help move a few rocks. It wouldn't have taken long," Kagome grumbled, still obviously upset.
"Hmm. It sounds like Inuyasha thought about the same thing. He really wasn't particularly upset about that at all."
"He wasn't?" Kagome was now intrigued. "Then what did he get so ticked about?"
Sango suppressed a smile: this was working even better than she'd hoped. "It sounded like he was upset that he thought you were just ordering him around. It made him feel like he was your pet that had to obey your every wish."
"Where'd he get that idea? I just thought we could help clean the road off," Kagome answered defensively.
"I'm sure you didn't mean that, but that's what he thought you meant. For example, who would be doing most of the work?"
"Well, he would have."
"Did you ask him if he'd be willing to help?"
"Uh, duh, no---he wouldn't have wanted to."
"I think that was his point. You figured he wouldn't want to, so you thought you'd just volunteer his services."
"Uh, does it really look that bad?" Kagome said, surprised.
"It probably does to him. Now run up and talk to him. I believe Miroku has finished his talk with him," Sango said, smiling.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Not long afterward, Sango joined Miroku. "Think it'll work?" she asked.
"As long as he doesn't get to pig headed about it," Miroku answered.
"Good. This is just silly. Oh, Shippou, come help us," Sango said, keeping the overly curious youngster out of the young couple's way.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After what seemed like an eternity, Kagome finally drug herself to where Inuyasha was waiting. "Hi, Inuyasha," she started tentatively.
Inuyasha was tempted to answer a usual, but he wasn't fully confident the monk would find out and pound on him some more for doing so, so he responded in kind. "Hi."
"Uh, I didn't mean to upset you yesterday. I didn't realize what I was saying would bother you," she said cautiously.
"."
"I suppose I didn't think you'd be willing to help, so I acted like I always have when the necklace is on," she continued after he remained quiet.
"Just ask next time. I'm not making any promises, though," Inuyasha mumbled.
"I'll try," she said, smiling.
"Want a ride?"
"Sure," she said lightly, jumping on.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Authors Notes
Lady Wyrsa: I realize that the rosary had its benefits, but my personal opinion (this is a guy speaking here) is that it was doing a lot more harm than it was good. I gave Kagome an easy way to control him without actually working on the relationship. This chapter is the start of that work.
Chiki: In chapter 1, I suppose I wasn't very clear. Of course Inuyasha was in bad shape after a day like that. Of course, he wasn't about to admit it, though. Still, he let Kagome do his hair, he had everyone turn in early, and he was sleeping with Kagome and Shippou. He said it was because he wanted them to keep warm, but he didn't want to be cold, either.
As for chapter 2, thanks for the confirmation on the leaves. Also, I didn't realize men seemed so sensitive. I do realize that they don't think like women,though, and that often causes conflict. Additionally, see the notes below for this chapter.
As for this chapter, it is the start of the 'post rosary' relationship. We got our first taste of what some of the adjustments will be. As I'm sure you have already noticed, the majority of the dialogue comes from Miroku and Inuyasha. That is because I understand men relatively well. I do not understand women particularly well, and there are plenty of fics written by those who do.
While I'm at it, I suppose I'll just get myself into a little more trouble, but with the guys this time. Ladies, guys like doing things for their woman. The only thing is, you have to go about it properly. If you ask him nicely, make him feel important for helping you, and brag about how wonderful he is in front of his friends, he'll probably be eating out of you hand. If you incessantly nag him or try to force him to do it, he'll probably mysteriously always have something else more pressing to work on. Also, realize the answer will sometimes be 'no' for whatever reason. If you continue to hound him about it, he may eventually do it, but he won't be happy.
As always, thanks for reviewing.
Junyortrakr