Author's Note: SORRYSORRYSORRY! I know that this has taken so long to update, but sickness, school, travel, botchy internet connections, and every other real life problem that could possibly exist have caused this delay. To make up for it, you, the reader, get not one, not two, not three, but FOUR chapters in this update! Hoorah.
Chapter: Invitation
"Shippou! You little brat! Get back here!" Inuyasha sprinted after the kitsune, seemingly furious that the child had taken the last cookie from Kagome's time.
"Can't catch me!" the fox shouted back, but as fate would have it, he tripped over a root and fell on his face. When Inuyasha grabbed him, the little youkai tucked the cookie safely away in his clothes and beat at the hanyou's hands.
It didn't take Kagome long to reach the scene of the crime. It wasn't the first time (and definitely not the last time) that Inuyasha and Shippou were at each other's throats. She sighed and put her hands on her hips. "Inuyasha! Put him down!"
Inuyasha shook the kit. "Not until he gives up! You little thief. Miroku's a bad influence!"
"You're one to talk!" Shippou snapped back. Inuyasha growled and whacked him on the head, eliciting the usual desperate cries. "Kagome!!! Inuyasha's being mean to me!" Then, without warning, Shippou bit Inuyasha's hand and sprinted away when the hanyou dropped him.
"Damn it!" Inuyasha shook his injured hand and darted off after the kitsune. "I'll pulverize you, little twerp!"
"Inuyasha!" Kagome scolded. "Don't make me say it!"
Predictably, he ignored her.
She warned him again. "Inuyasha! Leave Shippou alone! I'll say it!"
By now, he'd almost caught the kit and was screaming every threat he could think of.
"Inuyasha!!! SIT!"
"OW!!!"
Behind Kagome, old Kaede beheld the fallen hanyou and sighed. "Child, perhaps you are too harsh with Inuyasha. Shippou was in no real danger."
Kagome crossed her arms and tried to growl. "Well, I did warn him."
The elderly miko smiled. "That you did, but our hanyou friend was distracted at the time. Shippou provokes him, as is natural."
"What's this? Did I hear mention of Inuyasha being distracted?" Miroku walked up and smiled mischievously at Kagome. "I hardly thought you had it in you, Lady Kagome. Congratulations."
Kagome glared knives at Miroku, then at Inuyasha. "Miroku, get your mind out of the gutter." She crossed her arms and huffed.
The monk blinked, then turned to look in the same direction as Kagome. He sighed and leaned his head against his staff. "Oh. That kind of distraction. Really, you should give the poor hanyou a break."
Kagome narrowed her eyes at Miroku. He was backing up Kaede now. Yes, maybe she sometimes overdid it with the subduing spell. But to her, it seemed that Inuyasha got what he deserved. When he beat on Shippou, when he tried to stand between her and the well... occasionally for lesser offenses like name-calling or his general belligerance. She didn't enjoy sitting him. But, she felt that in a twisted sort of way, it was the only advantage that she held over him. If she couldn't show him that in some way she was stronger, she felt she might lose control of the situation entirely.
Seeing Kagome's look, the monk sighed. "What did he do this time?"
Feeling slightly deflated, Kagome uncrossed her arms and nodded towards Shippou. "He was trying to pound Shippou. Again." She paused for a moment. "I did warn him."
"Did you warn Shippou?"
"What do you mean? I've told Shippou not to egg Inuyasha on like that."
Miroku glanced at the crater where Inuyasha was still sulking. Kaede smiled and sat down under a tree. "Yet he continues to do so," she observed. "Perhaps the trouble is not so much Inuyasha as a certain kitsune's instinct for mischief."
Kagome felt bad. She knew they were right. But what could she do? It was a vicious cycle. Inuyasha acted like an ass, Inuyasha got sat. What could she say to that? She sighed in defeat. "You're right."
Taking sympathy on the girl, Miroku patted her on the shoulder and said, "Perhaps you could do something special with Inuyasha. Just the two of you."
The young miko batted away his hand in surprise. "Miroku-sama!"
"His suggestion has merit," Kaede remarked.
"Well, it just sounds odd coming from him, is all."
The old woman chuckled. "I agree, but sometimes Miroku-sama is capable of appropriate behavior and startling insight."
The monk in question did his best to look offended.
"Oh, you're not fooling anyone, you know." Kagome looked down at the large Inuyasha-shaped hole in the ground and sighed again. "I suppose..."
"The new moon is tomorrow..." Miroku said.
Kagome considered this for a moment. She knew that Inuyasha hated the nights of the new moon because he felt weak and useless. But just because it was the new moon in the Sengoku Jidai didn't mean that it would be on the same night in modern Tokyo... She nodded. "You're right, Miroku-sama. I don't suppose I could talk to him for a moment?"
"Of course!" Miroku didn't move an inch. Kaede sighed again and rose before looping her arm through the monk's.
"Come, houshi. I believe she meant alone."
"Thank you, Kaede-baa-chan." Kagome bowed slightly to the elder woman and made her way to Inuyasha's prone form.
Still lying in his own personal crater, Inuyasha was muttering every curse he'd ever heard. He wasn't going to hurt the kid. He never did! Shippou was youkai. He could take a lot of punishment.
Kagome stood next to him and gently proded the hanyou with her toe. "Inuyasha... I'm sorry. Get up, won't you?"
"Why should I?" he muttered into the dirt.
Kagome groaned and sat down on the ground, then lay down on her belly next to the indentation in the dirt. "I'm sorry, Inuyasha. I shouldn't have sat you for that."
He raised his head and glared at her.
Okay, no more beating around the bush. "Inuyasha, I want to go home tomorrow."
He couldn't help it. He growled. "What the hell? You were just there!"
"Come with me! Tomorrow is the new moon."
Inuyasha twitched and flattened his ears. His head still hurt from its meeting with the earth. "Why would I want to come with you on a new moon?"
"It's only going to be a new moon here."
"Huh?"
"In Tokyo, it's only a waning crescent, probably. The lunar cycle isn't on the same day here as it is there. Think about it." Kagome smiled, pleased with her logic. She was beginning to like this idea more and more.
Inuyasha frowned. "That doesn't make sense."
"It's not a new moon in my time, Inuyasha! That means if you go back with me, then you don't have to become human! See?"
His ears perked up, and he finally pushed himself out of the crater to sit on his haunches. "You're not making this up?"
Kagome sat up to meet his eyes and smiled brightly at him. "Of course not. Why would I make up something like that? Anyway, if you did come back, my mother could make up some more cookies for you, if you'd like."
That was tempting. Missing his human night and getting fresh-baked dessert. Inuyasha smirked and stood up. "All right, but only because I want to keep an eye on you."
"Oh come on, I can take care of myself in my own home, you know." Kagome stood up and punched his arm playfully. "Nothing in my time really feels inclined to eat me, you see."
"What about that possessed mask you had in your storage house?"
"It didn't want to eat me, just possess me." She winked at him. "Those are two entirely different things." Inuyasha sighed. "Keh. Whatever."
Kagome smiled victoriously. She knew she'd won the argument. "Since it's pretty late, we can stay tonight and go tomorrow morning."
"Okay." Inuyasha felt a little awkward. Kagome generally didn't invite him home with her. This invitation put a kink in his efforts to distance her as well, but the temptation was just too much--a month without turning human, and time in a place where, oddly enough, he seemed to be accepted.
"I'm going to head back to Kaede's hut and pack up my things." Kagome knew that Inuyasha would be ready to go in a moment's notice. He had nothing to bring along with him - no property save his father's fang and the clothes on his back. She sometimes wondered how freeing it would be to live that way.
Inuyasha nodded. "I want to have a look around the village before we go, make sure there aren't any youkai lurking in the area."
"Okay. I'll tell everyone that we're leaving tomorrow. Maybe they'll get some leads while we're away."
"Sure. Be back soon." With that, the hanyou disappeared into the trees.
He's always worried about something, Kagome thought sadly. I wonder what he would be like if he didn't have to worry about life so much...?
Sango sat outside under the fading sunlight, calm and concentrated, meticulously rubbing oil into the surface of Hiraikotsu with an old rag. Kirara sat next to her grooming. Everything was quiet and peaceful, but that probably wouldn't last.
Beside her, Miroku was keeping his wandering hands busy with some ofudas. He didn't really need to check them over, but it kept him from getting brained just a little bit longer. "How long do you think Inuyasha will stay?" he asked idly.
Sango shrugged noncommitally. "Who knows. Probably not very long, though. You know how he hates to stay idle when there might be Shikon shards to be found."
"Ah, but he will be staying with Kagome-sama," he observed. "Why would he want to leave her fine company?"
Sango raised an eyebrow at the monk and shrugged again. "Yes, Houshi-sama, this is true. However, we both know that Inuyasha is trying not to form any romantic bonds with Kagome. How long can he avoid that sort of thing when he's in her time with her family?"
Her companion frowned and tucked the ofudas away in his robes. "True. I hope that the time away will help dissolve those barriers, but Inuyasha is remarkably stubborn."
"Remarkably stubborn, Houshi-sama." She nodded her agreement. "Perhaps her family will help wear him down."
"From what I hear, they are most ... influential."
"Indeed. And Kagome's mother makes excellent 'cookies.' I wish that we were able to pass through the well and meet them all." Sango turned the giant boomerang and began to polish the other side. Kirara trotted to Miroku's side, chirping at him and leaping onto his shoulder.
Miroku tilted his head and glanced curiously at Sango. He too had the occasional urge to meet Kagome's family and see her era, but he wondered if there were something more behind Sango's wish. With one hand he reached up to pet Kirara. The other he commanded to stay firmly on the ground. "I'm certain Kagome-sama feels the same."
Sango set aside Hiraikotsu and stretched, looking up to the sky. "Do you wonder what it's like, Houshi-sama? Kagome-chan has told me about some of the fascinating things in her time. I can hardly imagine what I'd do if I went there."
"Sometimes, but this era is where I belong. I would not wish to gain knowledge I should not have, were I to travel there."
"But don't we already have that sort of knowledge, since Kagome-chan is here? We know about things that are in the future, before they come to pass. Does that mean that we could change the future?" Sango frowned and furrowed her eyebrows. "It's perplexing."
He laughed, and rubbed Kirara's ears. "Not that kind of knowledge, Sango. I mean knowledge that may directly affect our decisions now."
"I see." She considered that for a moment. Kagome had spoken of the "space/time continuum" before, but it had all been so confusing to Sango. Their actions in the Sengoku Jidai caused the future as Kagome knew it. Sango certainly didn't want to change that with knowledge of how their story was to end. Any number of things could go wrong.
A breeze stirred Miroku's hair, and he shook it out of his eyes. "How do you suggest we fill the time until our friends return?"
"We could keep our ears open for Shikon rumors. We always want to be prepared." She nodded resolutely. "I don't suppose there's much else for us to do."
"Oh really?" That mischievous light was back in his eyes.
Sango's hand strayed to Hiraikotsu's strap as she narrowed her eyes. "Houshi-sama..."
"What?" He was innocent, really. Why did she always threaten him so?
The exterminator growled at him and crossed her arms. "I could help Kaede-sama with her garden."
Predictably, he smiled and indulged in a lovely daydream. "What a pleasant sight that will be."
Kirara quickly evacuated her spot on Miroku's shoulder as a balled up (and rather oily) rag collided with his head. "Hentai! Can't you keep your thoughts away from my bottom for more than ten minutes at a time?!"
The monk took the punishment patiently. He certainly could, but he didn't think Sango would like a truthful answer about what other parts of her body he thought about. He also didn't want to tell her that maybe his infatuation was with more than her womanly parts.
And of course, Sango would never admit to him that she didn't entirely mind his attentions, and that most of her reactions were purely for show. She just wasn't ready... She knew he was a good man and she cared about him a great deal, but the loss of her family was still a fresh pain in her heart. She didn't know how long it would be until she was ready to love again.
Completely unaware of Sango's own thoughts on the matter, Miroku handed her rag back to her, and grinned. "Now I must bathe, my lovely taijiya. You are welcome to join me if you like."
With only a few token mutterings of "hentai," Sango snatched the rag back and decided to go occupy herself with something else. "Good evening, Houshi-sama." That said, she was gone.
Miroku laughed, winked at Kirara, then headed for the nearest spring. He would enjoy his bath, even if his only company was an imagined demon slayer woman.