Angie or NG coughangelacough - Thanks for your 'ever so polite' way of asking me to update! I quote : "get your lazy ass up and UPDATE more." shakes head sadly - I get no respect from my friends... I KNEW i never should have told you my penname, angela! JK

To Rhapsody's Song - Thanks for your suggestions. I went back to chapter 2 and changed the eye color of Kagome to brown. And I saw your profile. I watched 'Xiao Shiyi Lang' before, too! It's a good movie!

Everyone - THANKS for your reviews! I appreciate it. Was last chapter too emotional? kinda sorta?

Going on Vacation

"KAGOME!"

"WHAT?" Kagome shouted groggily back at Whoever. Opening her eyes forcefully, she saw her waker-upper.

A little squirrel (or fox?) boy had entered her room, and was currently standing in the doorway, a gleeful look on his face.

"Yes, Shippo?" Kagome asked wearily. She had wanted to sleep in a bit, after what had happened... last evening... She didn't want to think about it.

"Start packing your things!" Shippo exclaimed excitedly. "We're going on vacation!"

"Oh," Kagome remembered. "The 'celebration' vacation thing for after Inuyasha's coronation. That's it, isn't it?"

"Yup," the squirrel boy replied energetically. "We're gonna go to Shikon Island. It's a tropical place a little ways west."

"Oh," Kagome answered, her spirits rising a little. "Good. 'Cause I sooo need a vacation!"

"Well, we're all leaving in half an hour for the boat," Shippo informed her. "So hurry up with the packing!"

"HALF AN HOUR?" Kagome cried. "Why didn't you tell me all this earlier?"

"I would've," Shippo explained, looking sorry. "But I was eating ice cream!" he looked as if that would justify everything.

Kagome groaned. "Whatever. You go run along, 'kay? I'll see you later."

"Okay!" Shippo left, "I'm gonna go see the boat."

Kagome sighed. 'What to pack?' Her eyes drifted to her bed. She lifted her pillow.

A glistening necklace was uncovered. A strange and beautiful purple jewel was strung alongside with a train of smooth rocks.

"Mother's necklace..."

"Damn it!" Inuyasha said, not bothering to say it quietly, as Kagome boarded the boat. Kagome shot him a glare.

She silently dared him to continue what he was going to say.

"I had hoped that you would get yourself stuck in the toilet or something," Inuyasha confessed. "Then we could leave without you."

Kagome said nastily, "Better luck next time, honey." Inuyasha imitated a flinch at the word 'honey.'

Kagome looked in awe at the large craft she was in. It was so... impossible. Everything about it looked new, perfect, and... rich.

"It's a ship used only for luxury," Inuyasha remarked, smirking at Kagome's widened eyes.

"Kagome!"

Kagome turned around. It was Sango. Miroku was just behind her, a red hand mark across his face.

Kagome shook her head. 'What did he do to deserve that this time?' she thought.

"Hey Sango!" Kagome replied cheerily. "Hey Miroku!"

Miroku acknowledged her with a painful nod. Obviously Sango's slap still stung.

"Have you been below deck yet?" Sango exclaimed. "It's like a house!"

"I just got here," Kagome said, seeing Inuyasha from the corner of her eye. "Luckily, too. That strange asshole over there was about to tell the captain to start the boat and leave. I'm gonna make his vacation a living nightmare!" she exclaimed joyfully.

Inuyasha grunted to show that he had heard, which of course, was exactly what Kagome had wanted anyway.

Miroku cocked an eyebrow. "Not exactly getting along, eh?"

Kagome sighed in answer. "He is so frustrating, sometimes! And by the way, what happened to you?"

Miroku automatically touched a hand to his face.

Sango's face took on an annoyed expression. "I had to discipline him for his perverted thinking," Sango explained. "Not good for a priest."

"Sango!" Miroku protested. "I only asked you if you would be my roommate for this trip!"

Kagome made a very unladylike snort. "I'm sure that was all you had in mind, Miroku," she said sarcastically.

"Lunch is being served below deck," a servant had come to inform them.

"And I just now realized how hungry I was," Miroku said, avoiding responding to Kagome's earlier remark.

"Dress appropriately," the servant tipped them. "It's a formal dinner."

"Don't bother, Hojo," Inuyasha's voice was cool and smooth. "Especially for that wench," he pointed rudely at Kagome. "She's got nothing appropriate to wear." The servant, Hojo, looked at them all strangely, before leaving.

"Well, in that case, I can go without appropriate clothing!" Kagome retorted angrily. Then, stopping, she muttered, "I didn't mean it to come out that way."

"Oh sure," Inuyasha replied arrogantly. Kagome's face flushed. She stomped off.

Sango looked wearily at Inuyasha. "Don't tempt her too much, your majesty," she warned. "She can get pretty scary."

"Whatever," Inuyasha muttered. "It's just too fun getting her pissed off. There's no way in hell I'm gonna give this up."

"Just watch your back, sir," Sango warned.

"Don't talk to me with all that formal shit," Inuyasha grumbled. "It sounds so..."

"It doesn't fit you," Miroku smirked.

Kagome had retreated to below deck. Just like Sango had said, it was like a house. There was a hall where all the guest rooms where, and each door held a plate of gold, just like at the palace. Kagome randomly selected a room for herself.

Flinging the door open, she surveyed the room. It was pretty big, and similar to the rooms at the palace. 'Kinda plain,' Kagome thought. She sat on the comfortable-looking bed. It sank slightly beneath her.

Suddenly, her stomach grumbled.

"Shit! I forgot I was supposed to get ready for dinner," Kagome remembered. No matter how much she hated it, she also realized that Inuyasha was right. She did have nothing elegant enough to wear to the formal dinner.

Seeing a closet across from the bed, Kagome wondered, 'Maybe some girl left a dress behind from before?' she thought hopefully. Usually she wouldn't ever wear the clothes of someone she had never even known, but she was desperate this time.

She slid open the closet door to reveal that there were actually a lot of clothing displayed there. Rummaging through the clothes, Kagome finally found a formal dress. And it was the most beautiful gown she had ever seen. Really, not even the dress she had worn to Inuyasha's coronation could compare.

It was of a silvery hue, and had some sort of shimmering quality to it.

She didn't even bother to think about why an entire wardroble of clothes had been left behind when she slipped into the gown.

"Where's Kagome?" Miroku mentioned as he and Sango approached the table where Inuyasha was scowling.

"Well, seeing as she never gets anywhere on time," Inuyasha explained in a bored voice. "She's probably working on being 'fashionably late' again." He said the last statement somewhat sarcastically.

"She's coming now," Sango commented. Inuyasha looked in the gestured direction.

Indeed, Kagome was entering the room, looking around at the big room, slightly out of breath. What caught Inuyasha's attention was her dress. It shimmered beautifully around her figure, and made her every step seem elegant.

"Hey," she greeted them.

"Hey, Kagome," Sango returned the greeting politely. "Come on then, guys, let's start eating. I'm starving."

"Me, too," Miroku muttered.

Inuyasha was silent.

Which was very strange for him.

Kagome pretended not to notice.

Finally he snapped out of it. "What made you wear that ugly dress?" he near snarled.

Kagome rolled her eyes at him, then said slyly, "You didn't seem to think it so ugly just a second ago when you were staring so intently at me."

"Feh, whatever flips your boat, bitch."

AN: Do you like the story so far? Should I continue it? 'Cause for I while I was thinking about discontinuing this story.