Title: The Plan
By: Queen Beryl
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Over 50 reviews! I can't believe this! I mean, whoa! I'm blown away! I never thought I'd get so many! Thanks you guys!!! *hugs all reviewers*
Queen Beryl doesn't own Inu-sama. *cries*

Chapter Seven: Price of Emotion
Kagome lazily ran her hand along the base of the tree she was leaning against. Nothing was really happening. No youkais had appeared, no action at all. It was beginning to get annoying. Kagome smiled, I'm bored. I don't believe this. Back in modern Tokyo I wouldn't have worried about being attacked. I've become jaded. Who would have thought Feudal Japan could do this to me...
A thump was heard and Kagome looked up and noticed Inuyasha was fidgeting in the tree above her. When did he get there?
"Hey, stop moving up there. I'm trying to sit, here. Oops." Kagome realized her mistake just a bit too late. Inuyasha's amber eyes widened just before he plummeted off of the tree branch and into Kagome's lap. "Sorry. I forgot."
"You... how can you just forget?!" Inuyasha glared up at her, lying on his stomach, not moving from off her legs.
"Well, it's not something that's always on my mind, you know." Kagome idly drew words and symbols on his back. Inuyasha shivered slightly.
"Stop that." Inuyasha didn't look at her.
"Why?"
"Just stop."
"I don't have to." Kagome grinned, starting with her other hand as well. There was a short silence. Suddenly, Inuyasha reached around and grabbed Kagome's wrists. Kagome gasped as Inuyasha sat up and faced her.
"Now you have to stop." Inuyasha's eyes were filled with an unidentifiable emotion. Kagome sat there, unsure of what exactly was going on.
"Fine." She stated nonplussed. They sat there for a few moments more, just staring at each other, Inuyasha holding Kagome's wrists.
"Oi! Dog-crap!" Uh-oh. Inuyasha jumped up and turned around as fast as lightning.
"What do you want now, stupid wolf?" Inuyasha crossed his arms in front of his chest.
"Keep your hands off my woman. If I catch you touching her again, I'll be forced to take some action." Kouga advanced and assisted Kagome to her feet, checking her over for injuries.
"Ah, Kouga-kun..." Kagome started.
"Your woman, since when? I never heard Kagome agree to this 'arrangement.'" He's acting as if he hasn't heard Kouga call me this before... Kagome shook her head.
"Why would she tell you what happens between us? It doesn't concern you." Kouga countered maliciously.
"Ah-" Inuyasha closed his mouth, not knowing what to say. Finally, he stated the most intelligible thing he could think of: "Keh!" Kagome sighed and rolled her eyes.
"That's what I thought. Now, Kagome, come with me." Kouga held out his hand, a smile lighting up his dark eyes. Kagome thought for a moment. What if I leave with him? Would Inuyasha care? Would he mind for once if he was on the receiving end of the dirt?
"Sure, Kouga-kun!" Kagome took the hand. Kouga grinned smugly, and Inuyasha stared in shock and pain.
"W-what?!" Inuyasha demanded, watching the pair walking off.
"I'll be back soon. I'll tell you if I find any Shikon shards!" Kagome waved and exited.
Inuyasha stood there, his mouth agape, staring after them. How can that wench do this to me? After I told her I wanted her here? I'm not letting her get away like that. I'll bring her back! "Stupid wench..." Inuyasha started after Kagome and Kouga.
"Kagome, why did you agree to come with me?" Kouga asked after a few minutes.
"Well, I haven't seen any of the Wolf-tribe in a long time, I just thought I'd be nice to see everyone." Well, it was only a half-lie....
"I see."
"Is something wrong?" Kagome glanced at her companion.
"No."
"How are you and Ayame doing?" Kagome winked and nudged Kouga with her elbow.
"Uh, we're... fine." Kouga looked uneasy and as if he was about to blush.
"Just fine?" Kagome inquired, raising her eyebrows.
"Yeah... she's set a date."
Kagome gaped in shock. Finally... "Congratulations, Kouga-kun!"
"Yeah, I guess." Kouga rubbed the back of his neck and sighed.
"You guess? What's wrong?"
"We're due to get married in about a month. When we do, that means I'll have to give you up."
"That's okay, you know."
"What?"
"That's okay," Kagome repeated, "we can still be friends. No matter what happens, we'll still be friends."
"Friends, huh?" Kouga stopped walking, thinking on those words. "You won't be angry if you're not my woman anymore?"
Kagome smiled brightly. "It's okay, Kouga. Don't worry about anything like that. I won't mind at all."
"I'm glad. I can marry Ayame without any previous attachments hindering my progress."
Hindering... attachments? Is that all I am now? Sheesh, I've been degraded... wait.... When did Kouga expand his vocabulary? Ayame probably did it, way to go, girl! Kagome laughed to herself.
"Well, then- ah, Inuyasha! Put me down!" Kagome said from over Inuyasha's shoulder. He had come out of nowhere and picked up Kagome, throwing her over his shoulder.
"Let's go, Kagome." Inuyasha darted off, leaving a stunned Kouga behind. He shrugged and walked away, not wanting to bother with retrieving his woman. She wouldn't be his in a short time, anyway.
"Inuyasha, what are you doing? I'll say the word! I'll do it! I swear!" Kagome pounded on his back half-heartedly. Inuyasha smirked.
"Go ahead, I'll take you down with me, wench." Inuyasha countered, smirking hotly. Suddenly, he stopped walking and set her down. Kagome looked at him, puzzled, then turned to face away from him. She glimpsed Kikyo off in the distance with her soul-collectors dancing around her in the air.
"Inu-" Kagome started. In a flash he had dashed off to where the undead miko was slowly walking, entirely ignoring Kagome. After a moment, the view of Kikyo and Inuyasha was gone. Kagome stood there in shock, completely taken aback. She could feel her eyes moisten, and she blinked the feeling away. Why didn't I just sit him? she thought, clenching her hands into fists. Why couldn't I just tell him to sit so he wouldn't leave me again?
Tears streamed down her face, and Kagome lifted her hands to wipe them away. She looked at her hands to see the tears, hardly believing they were there at all. Why am I crying for Inuyasha? Why am I crying because he left me? I should be used to it by now.
"But I'm not..." she muttered aloud. "I'm not used to it. I can't get over that stupid dream... that kiss... it was everything. Then he runs off with Kikyo." Kagome spoke the other miko's name bitterly, as if it were poison. "I wish... she would just die!"
Kagome stopped for a moment, throwing her hand over her mouth. Have I become such a horrible person to wish that? Have I become so insanely jealous as that?
"But she's already dead." A voice spoke from behind Kagome. She whirled around to come face to face with Miroku.
"What? I mean.... You were listening?" Kagome accused, flushing in embarrassment. Eavesdropper...
"Of course I was. I have ears, you know. Kikyo is already dead, so you were right to wish that upon her." Miroku nodded wisely.
"But I was thinking as if she was alive. I'm such a horrible person for that." Kagome stated dejectedly.
"You're not a horrible person. You're a great person, Kagome-sama. Everyone gets jealous at times. I mean, you've see Inuyasha, haven't you? Any moment you're even looked at by another male, Inuyasha blows a gasket. He's so jealous and possessive... why can't you be like that for once? What gives him all the right and you none?"
"His thoughts and actions don't justify mine!" Kagome retorted. "No matter how angry he gets, it will never be okay for me to act the same!"
"So you'll hold it all in until you explode?"
"I won't explode."
"You just did when you said you wanted Kikyo to drop dead." Miroku raised an eyebrow.
Kagome opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. He was right; the daft pervert was right. Miroku noticed this and decided to proceed.
"That's the price of emotion, Kagome. No matter what emotion it is, you have to express it. It may be hard, it may take time, but it eventually must be expressed. If you don't let it out it will eat you up from the inside like bad heartburn. If you're incredibly happy, you've gotta let it show. You smile or laugh or hug someone. If you're sad or in pain, you cry. If you're excited or depressed or stressed or anything else... you have to let it show."
"But I don't want to show anything so ugly as this..." Kagome looked down at her hands as if they were the epitome of her jealousy of Kikyo.
"With beauty comes the beast. You have to have bad in order to have good. You can't just have one without the other, otherwise you wouldn't know what you had was good or not. You see?"
"I suppose." Kagome mused as Miroku took her hands in his.
"He always comes back to you, though, doesn't he, Kagome?" Miroku smiled down at her.
"Yes, but what if one day he doesn't? What if he decides that today is the day he will go down to Hell with Kikyo and leave me alone?" Tears fell from her eyes and dripped onto the hands being held in front of her.
"You'll never be alone, Kagome-sama. You still have Sango, Shippo, Kaede, myself and your family." Miroku reminded. Kagome's eyes widened.
"You're right, but... I won't have him." Kagome slowly pulled her hands out of the grasp and turned away, rubbing her eyes. "I'll have everything... but the one thing I can't have is him... and I want him. How ironic is that? How stupid can I be, Miroku? I want to be with Inuyasha, but I can't because his heart still belongs to Kikyo. The only reason he's here with me... the reason he wants me to stay beside him is because I remind him of Kikyo. It's completely unfair."
"Life is never fair, Kagome. Anyone that tells you that is a liar and a fraud, and they need to be burned at the stake." Miroku's voice then grew more solemn. "Also, I don't believe that Inuyasha just keeps you around because you look like Kikyo."
"You're right, I forgot. I'm also his shard-detector. He needs me because I can sense the shards whereas he cannot. That and because I look like Kikyo." Kagome thrust bitterly. Pained tears streamed down her face once more as she desperately tried to hold them back.
"I don't think that's true either. Why do you think he gets horribly jealous whenever a male comes within twenty feet of you?" Miroku questioned, getting Kagome's attention. The girl stood still, sniffing, but didn't turn around. "He does that because he's afraid you'll accept that person and not him. He's afraid you'll decide that the other boy is better than he is, and run off with him. Inuyasha doesn't want to lose you because you're a very special person to him, Kagome. I think he cares about you too much."
Kagome let the words sink into her. These words are comforting indeed, but are they true? Is that why Inuyasha was always jealous of the other boys? Kagome thought, rubbing her chin lightly. This was indeed a possibility... but was it as real as she hoped it would be? Could Inuyasha... even though he yells at me, calls me names, deserts me for Kikyo... even after all that... could it be he really does care about me?
"Just some things to think on, Kagome-sama. Come, let's travel back to camp. Inuyasha will eventually show up." Miroku walked over, wrapped his arm around her shoulders and guided her back to where they had set up for the time being.
The sun would be setting in maybe less than half an hour. It was a warm day, promising a warm spring night. Kagome almost smiled as she breathed in the fragrances of the forest. The pine and wildflowers mixed with... well, ancient Japan. It was as close to comforting as Kagome would allow herself to get right now. Her heart still hurt deep inside. She had a feeling that Miroku was right, though. Inuyasha would come back, just like he always did. Even though it hurt while he was gone off doing heaven-knows-what with Kikyo... he'd always come back to her.
Wouldn't he?

Bawhawhaw!! I'm sorry it took me so long to get this sucker out... but I had a LITTLE bit of writer's block. Teehee... *sigh* Oh, well. At least I did something right, ne? I hope you all like this chapter and it isn't disappointing. I put in a bit more angst-ishness then normal... don't ask why... hee... G'Day!