A/N: Well, I've been looking forward to this chapter longer than you know…Let's just say, It's fun…and yay for innuendo:P (I have a Miroku Complex… ) AND YAY! I GOT INUYASHA MOVIE THREE! I watched in English and it was...painful. shudders... Between Takemaru's english accent, the dragon stuff, and the egl-ish whatever from Inu...it was sad. I hearby swear never to watch movie 3 with the English dub AGAIN.

Chapter 24: Precious Gift of Love

"Well, Kuro's finally asleep." Inuyasha said. Kagome and him were finally back in their hut, and were kneeling over Kuro's basket, thanking whatever higher power was up there that he was finally asleep.

"Yeah…" Kagome nodded. They had gotten back late the night before, and this day had been about resituating themselves back into village life. They hadn't the chance to speak to each other alone after what happened in the cave.

There was an uncomfortable silence. Undoubtedly, Inuyasha was also thinking of what to say after what happened in the battle. "How was your day?" He said, offhandedly. He and Miroku went off hunting, in which Miroku teased him about how the only time he and Sango knew they were mates was whenever they were forced to confess their love during a battle.

Miroku was duly punished.

Kagome sighed, her eyes glancing the darkness that came through the fabric covering the window. "Normal. I went to talk Sango, then we both visited Kaede…"

"How is the old hag?" Inuyasha asked.

Kagome glared, giving him a warning. "Okay. But she's not going out to slay youkai anytime soon. Sango and I gathered some herbs for her since a woman in this town is going to have a baby…"

"Keh. Not enough strength to gather herbs, but enough to threaten me to stay in line, eh?"

"Inuyasha! Kaede-sama is old!"

"You got that right!"

Kagome looked mad, making Inuyasha cringe. He was so sure she was going to say 'sit!'. But instead, she laughed.

He stared. "Just WHAT—is so funny?"

She giggled. "Your face. You look so afraid whenever I'm about to say 'that word'!"

"You'd be afraid of it too if you got slammed to the ground whenever you pissed someone off." He muttered, folding his arms.

She stopped giggling. And another uncomfortable silence descended upon them. "Kagome?" Inuyasha asked. "What's wrong?"

She turned away. "It's just…"

"Are you still weak from when you gave me some of your powers?" He asked.

She stared. "Y-yeah…a bit…"

"Something else, is wrong, isn't it?"

Maybe I should tell him about…No! Kagome's mind said. Not yet… "Inuyasha…"

"Kagome," he asked sweetly, coming closer.

"Inuyasha…I'm…" She paused. "I'm sorry…I just never got to really apologize for…everything that happened…"

"No." he said. "I'm the one who should apologize. Because I felt bad about being a hanyou…you ended up getting kidnapped. And then, back in the cave…I lost control. If you hadn't gotten through to me then…"

"It wasn't your fault." She said. "You couldn't help it. And besides…You don't have to worry. I told you, I can't…I'm not afraid, or disgusted by you. I could never be. And your youkai side…it's just part of who you are. And nothing can change it."

"I wish I could change it." He muttered.

"There's no reason to." Kagome said. "You can't turn human anymore. And even if you could…it doesn't matter. You'll always be my little hanyou." She kissed him on the cheek.

He smiled, and wrapped his arm around her and pulled her into his lap. Kagome looked down at Kuro. "I swear, when he's going to grow up, he's going to be just like you." She said.

"I thought that was a bad thing!" He said.

She shook her head, still smiling. "No. Well…it will be a bit hard, if he gets all of your traits, but…If he turns out to be just like you, loving, affectionate, you, then he'll be perfect for any girl that comes along."

"Keh. Like any girl would want a kid that's a clone of me." Inuyasha said, not meaning to, but it came out nonetheless.

Kagome gave a small laugh. "Suki seems to like him. Who knows? I'm sure Sango would be thrilled if they got together down the road."

Inuyasha snorted. "The monk would kill me. What a hypocrite. I heard him saying something about how he's going to make sure she is 'guarded from the eyes of men' until she's at least 18."

"Being a parent changes things." Kagome said.

"It certainly does." Inuyasha replied.

Kagome turned to look at him, and in an instant, she was captured in the spell his golden eyes set upon her. He slowly leaned inwards, and their foreheads touched. Kagome closed her eyes just as his lips captured hers in a sweet kiss.

His arms wrapped around her, holding her in a tight embrace, while one of her hands clasped on to his neck. The other lay on his chest. When they broke the intense kiss, Kagome reached up and tweaked his ears.

He rolled his eyes. "You have a very strange fetish for my ears."

She grinned. "You got that right, dog boy."

"I'm not a dog." He muttered, as he recaptured her in another kiss. With the intensity of their passion, they fell backwards on to the bed, with Kagome on top.

"You know, Kagome," Inuyasha said, after a few minutes of kissing. "The whole thing with the bastard youkai…it was actually not that bad. I mean, I haven't used Tessaiga in a while." He grinned, with a lecherous glint in his eye he surely picked up from Miroku.

Kagome gave a sidelong glance at the sleeping Kuro. "Yeah, well 'Tessaiga' got me in enough trouble, remember?"

"Stop it." He said. "You know you want it too."

She glared at him, and sighed. "Inuyasha, no matter how long you've lived, you still haven't grown up."

"Nope." He replied, smiling.

She grinned, "Well, then I guess I'll have to do all the growing up for you."

Inuyasha suddenly thought of that. He was once again thrust into reality. Kagome would die, old, while he would remain young. "Kagome…about tha—" He was cut off when Kagome seized his lips within hers. She didn't want to talk now.

He decided to put aside his worries until later. He rolled over and pinned her underneath him. After he had completely devoured her face with kisses, he said, "Kagome, you are the greatest thing that ever happened to me."

"I know." She said, as he started taking off his haori, while kissing her neck. "Feelings mutual."

The next day, Kagome went to go visit Kaede and Sango again, so Inuyasha was left to babysit. He took Kuro out, and sat on a hill overlooking the village. It was the afternoon, so they could see all the villagers tending to their fields.

As Kuro crawled over to him, the baby sunk his fangs into his finger.

"OW!" He growled at the six month old. "Stupid kid…" He muttered, looking at his bleeding finger. "WHY do they need to get the sharp stuff so early?"

Kuro smiled at him innocently. "Oh no, you ain't getting out of this one, runt!" he said. "C'mere you." He set Kuro down on the grass. "Now, what's the attack position, I showed you?" He held his hand in the air, claws raised to attack. Kuro imitated him.

Inuyasha couldn't help but grin. "Kagome will kill me, but…I can't help but teach ya now."

Kuro raised his index and middle finger, like Inuyasha had shown him, and slashed at a passing butterfly. He cut it to pieces.

"That's my boy!" Inuyasha said with glee. "Heh, forget Kagome, I can't wait to show Miroku this!"

"Inuyasha!" Kagome called, coming up the hill.

"Umm…" he looked back at Kuro. He put the infant's hand down to hide what he was teaching him. "Hi, Kagome."

She raised an eyebrow. "What do you look so guilty about?"

"Nothing." He muttered. You liar…his brain thought.

Kagome sat down beside him. They both smiled at Kuro, who now decided to kill a grasshopper he spotted nearby. "Kagome," Inuyasha said. "I guess…even through all we went through. I guess we turned out to be good parents after all."

"Yeah…" she said. "That's good too, because…"

"What?" he asked, unsuspecting.

She took a deep breath. "Inuyasha…I don't know how to say this but, I'm pregnant. A-again."

He stared at her for a second. His brain shut off. He didn't even remember how to breathe. A-another kid? And he did a thing any sensible guy in that situation would do.

He fainted.

A/N: MUA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! I AM SOEVIL TO INU! The first part was purposely vague, go read it with this new knowledge and things will fall into place.

And next chapter is the EPILOGUE! Where you will see the new baby, and TWO YEAR OLD KURO! (Well, it might be four, but you will definitely see a two year old Kuro in flashback!)