She twisted her hair timidly and wrung the water from it, proceeding to do the same with her wet pleated skirt. A long dark shadow moved behind her and a familiar voice spoke in her ear, making her jump.

"Feh. You really are stupid aren't you?! Screaming at the top of your lungs like that when you aren't in any danger!!"

She spun around, Inu-Yasha's face mere inches away from her own. His breath was erratic, amber eyes narrowed in worry and annoyance.

"Oh….Inu-Yasha…." She blushed with embarrassment. "You…thought that…" her voice trailed off.

"It doesn't matter what I thought!!! You have some nerve…calling ME an idiot! I'm tired of rescuing you all the time!!"

Kagome stopped wringing the water from her skirt and gritted her teeth, a vain popping out of her forehead as her blood began to boil. The air became thick with tension.

"WHAT, did you just say, Inu-Yasha?!"

He backed away, traces of fear forming on his face.

"Wha….Why are you looking at me like that?!!", he stuttered nervously.

Kagome shook her soggy bangs from her eyes and clenched her fists in anger.

"Inu-Yasha!!!!"

"N..NO!!!"

"SIT BOY!!"

* * * * *

The enchanted rosary around his neck glowed violet and his body slammed forcefully into the sand, dust rising in clouds from the force of his fall. He winced and picked his face up from the dirt, baring his fangs.

"Damn it!! Was that….really necessary…?!"

Kagome turned away and sighed. She sat on the sand and hugged her knees, shivering with cold. Crickets chirped around the river and the stars overhead glowed brightly, reflecting on the water's surface.

"Listen Kagome…", Inu-Yasha grunted as her lifted himself up off the ground and brushed the sand from his red kimono. He walked over to her and roughly picked her up by the shoulders, forcing her to look at him. She tried to avoid eye contact, the moonlight catching the tears forming in her eyes, making them sparkle. "Gah! She…she's crying?!"

"Kagome?" Inu-Yasha whispered, looking guilty, "Stop crying...I didn't mean what I said!…"

She pulled away from him with surprising strength and walked to the water's edge. "I'm NOT Crying!…why do you always say that?!" Glimmering tears trailed down her face as she spoke, and she still shivered from the cold.

"Kagome…"

Inu-Yasha approached her slowly and removed his red kimono top. He draped it gently over Kagome's shoulders and wrapped it around her.

"Please…stop crying, Kagome…"

"She's soaking wet…did she fall in the river?" He looked up at the high cliff. "No wonder…"

Kagome began to shake as her breath became labored. She could no longer control her emotions any longer, let alone hide them from Inu-Yasha.

"You…you…!", she sobbed, "You act like I didn't have any reason to cry out when I fell all the way from that cliff into the river….you're…you're such an insensitive jerk!!"

She looked up at Inu-Yasha, his expression looked hurt and confused. She turned away again.

"Although it was really sweet of you to give me those lilies, I was really surprised."

"I..." Inu-Yasha whispered almost inaudibly as he turned her around to face him. "Kagome…Where are those flowers you had earlier?", the blush returning to his face.

Kagome sighed and lifted her head to look at him. "I…must have dropped them back there…I Don't know anymore…"

Inu-Yasha nodded and leapt up over the rocky cliff in one swift leap. "Stay put!" He ran swiftly through the woods, determination in his eyes. "If flowers make her happy then I'll just have to find her some, damn it!"

Meanwhile Kagome found a smooth rock to sit on and wrapped herself in the kimono tightly. She looked up at the towering cliffs above her. "Stay put, he says…Yeah…Like I have much of a choice…"