Again, with the horrors of high school. Gomen, gomen… Well, here's the latest installment, though if any of you were hoping for another action packed chapter, I'm sorry to disappoint. You'll have to wait for the next, which will come in the next few days if I have any say in the matter. Unfortunately, my mother is the task master of the house, and manages all time.. Sigh… well, enjoy the fluff…

Inuyasha held his breath as Kagome opened her eyes. The closeness he just realized made his heart thump faster. Kagome was back, his Kagome.... He didn't know how she returned, but he was glad that she was back. He continued to stare deep into her eyes, finding his own eyes softening.
He went with his first instinct, hoping that her response wouldn't be 'sit boy'. Closing the distance between them as he closed his eyes, Inuyasha laid his lips gently over hers in a soft sweet kiss.

For the first few moments, Kagome remained very still, shocked, half wondering if she was still dreaming. Then she relaxed, taking in the sensation of her hand being held in his, and his other hand near her face, fingertips resting lightly on her cheek. She gave his hand a gentle squeeze, not able to manage any more than that, raising her head very slightly kiss to him back, then laid her head back down, the effort having cost much more than it usually would have.

He didn't want to advert their locked gazes, wanting to forget everything around him and wanted to focus his attention mainly to Kagome. Inuyasha whispered in a slightly husky voice, "I thought... That I lost you. Days passed and there weren't any signs of you waking up any time soon. Instead, your condition grew worse." as he tightened the grasp around her hand.

"Well, I'm back now." She gave a small smile as she spoke the next part. "It seems strange, after being out of it for so very many days, but... I feel, so... tired. But... I don't want to go to sleep again, and not see your face for more hours." She sat up slowly, eyes screwed up in effort, finally managing to sit up, supporting herself on her free hand.

"Kagome? You shouldn't be sitting up." He said in a quiet tone, moving closer to her as he allow herself to lean on him. "You should get some rest. Don't worry, I'll be right here." He soothed, wrapping his arms around her tightly.

Kagome tried to protest, but she felt her eyelids falling heavily and quickly over her eyes, and nodded sleepily. She wound her arms around his neck like in her dream though this time his skin was warm. Weaving her fingers through some of his silver hair, she soon drifted off in a dreamless, deep sleep, head tucked neatly under his chin, safe within his embrace, Inuyasha's red hoari still draped about her shoulders.

Lady Kaede stood outside the hut, covering Shippo's ears, trying to divert her attention towards the new flowers starting to peep through the earth. Once she sensed Kagome sleeping, she walked softly into the hut with Shippo tip-toeing after her.

Inuyasha let out a sigh of relief, noticing Kagome was doing as he asked and drifting off the sleep. He inhaled a deep breath, taking in her scent, of the strange future and something reminding him of flowers. He tightened his arms around her as he softly snuggled his cheek against the softness of her hair. He toyed with the edge of the hoari, as his delicate hearing picked up footsteps behind him. "Shh! Kagome's sleeping." He imformed them with a whisper, not caring what they thought of him with Kagome in his arms.

Shippo stared wide-eyed at the couple while Lady Kaede smiled with her back turned to them as she set about preparing some lunch for the three of them, and some weak broth for Kagome, as her stomach, after days of being force-fed, would not likely take to solid, heavy food right away.

He shifted his gaze over to Shippo and growled softly at his staring. "What the heck are you looking at?" He asked bitterly, narrowing his eyes at him as he gave the little fox demon a cold stare.

Inuyasha gave a mere snort at him before he allowed Shippo to respond. Actually, he didn't need to hear his reply. He inhaled a deep breath to control his slight annoyance, as he continued to hold Kagome close to him. He could feel his heart beating against hers, as if they one. Without her, he couldn't go on.

Shippo looked away quickly, coloring, then dug out the sketchpad and pencils Kagome had brought him a while ago, sketching a picture quickly. While he drew, he asked, "When are Sango and Miroku coming back?"

Inuyasha shrugged at Shippo's question. "Heh, I'm glad they are anywhere but here." He stated, knowing that Miroku would surely shower him with perverted comments if he saw him and Kagome embracing each other like this."What ya drawing there, Shippo?" He asked, trying to keep his voicecalm and him temper down.

"Oh, nothing much." He put the finishing touches on and showed Inuyasha a picture of him and Kagome. "I've been practicing," He said with a cheeky smile.

Lady Kaede served them their lunch, a fresh miso soup type deal, praising Shippo briefly on his work which made him smile harder.

Inuyasha took one quick look at the picture before inclining his face towards the ground, trying to hide the redness of his face with his bangs. "Er... I hope you're going to get rid of that picture before Miroku and Sango return." He said quietly.

As if right on cue, Miroku and Sango stepped inside the hut, Sango leaning heavily from fatigue on Miroku's shoulder as Kirara stood protectively on her other side. Lady Kaede bustled about, handing towels and dry blankets to the pair, setting out a plate of food for Kirara, which the cat demon took to eagerly once seeing Sango taken care of.

InuYasha looked away still having Kagome tight in his grasp. "You! Whattook you so long?" He said in an annoyed down, trying to steer this subject in a different direction.

Sango looked away from Kirara for a moment and said lightly, "Well, we got stuck by a river's side for a few days as it flooded. Kirara was ill from a bit of demon poison. We had no way to make our way across."

Miroku noted for the first time Kagome's whereabouts, and Shippo's drawing. He commented, "It seems we've missed an interesting past few days." Taking the drawing and holding it at arms length as if to properly admire it.

Inuyasha uttered a low growl in response to Miroku's remark about Shippo's drawing. "If I wasn't busy holding Kagome right now, I'd pound you right in the head!" He said bitterly, holding Kagome a bit tighter to him. His ears twitch, hearing Sango's statement. "Feh, flood. For all I know you two could have somewhere getting to know each other better!"

Lady Kaede broke in gently, "Now now, ye all need rest. Inuyasha, why don't you allow Kagome to lie down? T'would mean a faster recovery and better rest for her."

Inuyasha shook his head, refusing to let go of her. To be honest, he liked having her close to him like this. With Kagome in his arms, he felt warmth and comfort. Something he hadn't felt for a while. But it was true, she couldn't get that sleep with him holding onto her. He gently put her down, not minding one bit that his haori was still draped upon her shoulders. He twitched his ears in annoyance upon hearing Miroku's voice. The monk had muttered something quietly to Sango, who smiled and glanced over at Inuyasha. "I'll pretend like I didn't hear that and let you live for now." Inuyasha said with a snarl.

Sango turned serious again, looking over at Inuyasha and Kagome before saying quietly, "You know Inuyasha.. This would be a good time to choose between Kikyo and Kagome. It wouldn't be right, to lead Kagome to believe that you intend to remain with her… if in reality you will follow Kikyo to hell someday…."

Inuyasha glanced to Sango, before looking down at the sleeping Kagome, his eyes softening at the mere sight of her. Caressing her cheek tenderly with the back of one finger, he said in a soft tone, "You should already know my decision." looking back at Sango.

"We may know, but does she know? You've two timed her a lot in the past you know, Inuyasha." Miroku interjected calmly.

Inuyasha twitched his ears, listening to Miroku's words. The part that upset him most was the part about him two timing Kagome. He growled, slamming his fist upon the floor boards. "Oh yeah? You don't know what its like to have your heart torn in two different directions. It hurts to love two people at the same time." He paused, realizing he had just opened up to his companions, something he normally didn't do. As a result, he dropped his gaze to the floor, allowing his bangs to cover up his eyes.

Silence fell over the hut. After a while, Inuyasha raised his gaze again to find the occupants all away in the land of dreams. He could hear Lady Kaede's light breathing from the next room. Shippo lay curled beside Kagome, smiling slightly in his dreams, paw twitching cutely. Sango rested her head on Miroku's chest, whilst the monk had an arm about her waist, not being a lecher for once.

Seeing everyone asleep, Inuyasha inadvertently yawned, and decided he might do well to join them. Shifting slightly on the wall, he settled himself in a more comfortable sitting position on the floor, leaning into the wall as his eyelids grew too heavy to keep open, and joined the others in sleep.

Hehe, sorry, I know that was a bit of a bore to read, without much action. I just thought it might be nice to get a little fluff in there, and it's kind of a chapter to bring everyone back together. I promise, there's more action in the next chapter, and someone is probably going to get injured… I seem to like injuring my characters, don't I? Sigh…