Hello everyone. It's Mystical Miyuki with a story for you.

My past stories haven't been the best, I will admit. I was not as literate as I have become, and they were poorly put together. But I must say, I'm very proud of the story that I have produced today.

I have one other story out there, and I am thinking about finally posting a new chapter, but not until after I revise the first one. So most likely, it will be deleted, revised, and reposted. That is, if I feel it isn't a lost cause at this point.

This story is a romance with a small hint of comedy in it, but that's not the major point. Very light and waffy, with loads of fluffy goodness.

I hope you all enjoy, because I had a great time writing this.

As she sat in her bedroom and stared up at the inky black sky, all she could think about was him. He meant everything to her. He was her one and only. He was the reason that she smiled anymore. He was her world. But it didn't seem as if he knew that. She was his jewel detector. His burden. One who he needed to protect more than anything. She got in his way numerous times.

And yet…

And yet it didn't seem as if that bothered him. Yes, he would complain every once in awhile. And yes, he would mention a few times that her stupid feminine ways would hold them up when it was time to get moving. But she knew that deep down, he didn't seem to really mind. There were times when she would see him, out of the corner of her eye, staring. There were times when she would glance at him and see those beautiful golden orbs just gazing at her, and what she saw in them always filled her heart with joy and love. Of course, he would always scowl and turn away, acting like he hadn't been doing anything. But she knew better.

She loved every part of him. He was someone that made her weak at the knees just thinking about. And whenever he carried her, she felt herself melt in his embrace. Just that slight contact made her whole body numb. Her face would be pushed into his back, nestling in his long, silver tresses that she viewed as one of the beautiful parts about him. Scratch that, she thought everything about him was beautiful.

She always wished that he would view her that same way. There was something deep, deep inside of her that yearned for more than just a glance from him. She longed to hear him say the words that she dreamed about each night. I love you. But she never got that. Never. It seemed as if those words were being saved for another. For Kikyo.

Yes, Kikyo. She being the reincarnation of said priestess, it was rather stressful. Whenever Inuyasha would disappear from the group, she knew where he was going. He was going to see her. It just didn't make sense to her. Kikyo was dead. Her soul was in a body made of clay. That's all she was. A walking clay pot. But it seemed as if he still cared about her. She couldn't give him what he needed. She was cold to the touch. There was no warmth or love inside of her. Only a burning hatred spanned over the years from the betrayal she had felt. That's all Kikyo could give him.

Kagome knew that, in her heart, Inuyasha felt differently about her than he did the former priestess. She just didn't know what it was exactly. Was she only a friend to him? Was she something more? She wished with all her might that it was the latter, but every time she saw him with Kikyo, those thoughts were shattered, and the pieces always seemed to slit her wrists in return, her soul bleeding out of those heart-breaking wounds. It was such a miserable thought. And she wished she didn't think like that. But the poor girl couldn't help it. When you're in love, you lose the ability to think with your mind. Instead, your heart speaks for you.

She let out a dismal sigh as she turned her eyes away from that glorious night sky. She sank into her bed and turned off the light, staring at the ceiling instead. Her eyelids began to grow heavy with each passing second, but she refused to fall asleep yet. She didn't want her last thought to be of the pain she felt from Inuyasha. She wanted to think of every moment in her life where he had made her happy. She thought about all the times when the hanyou protected her, when he showed that he really cared, and when he looked at her with those love-filled orbs…

At last, Kagome fell into a peaceful sleep, a smile shining brightly on the young girl's face. And unbeknownst to the lovesick maiden, someone was having similar thoughts, five hundred years in the past…

A low growl escaped the throat of the hanyou, his golden eyes piercing through the dense trees to lock onto the crescent moon that lay overhead. He was basked in the radiant light that it had to offer, and he seemed to enjoy the moment. It reminded him of a certain someone whose smile brought that same radiance in his life. Oh, how he loved that girl. Of course, he sure as hell didn't give her any idea that he did. He had way too much pride to do that.

But he knew that he was crushing her very spirit every time he spoke. He knew what she wanted to hear. But he could never let those words pass by his lips. He wanted to, oh god, he wanted to say it to her. He wanted to just wrap his arms around her, kiss away her fears, wipe away her tears. But he just couldn't.

And for once, it wasn't because of Kikyo. She was an old love of his, that was for certain. And there would always be a part of him that cared about her, no doubt about that. But he knew that there was nothing for him if he chose her. He wouldn't get that love that he needed. The love that he craved. Only one person could make him feel that way anymore, and that was Kagome. He cared about her so much, it was unbearable.

He couldn't show her how much he loved her. Because of Naraku. Damn that Naraku. If he were to give himself to her, to love her, then they would both be in danger. He had to wait until Naraku was good and dead before he could do that. But that's when another fear always came to mind.

What would happen if he died? What would happen if she was taken from him? They would be torn apart without ever having shared those moments that they both so desperately wanted. Neither of them would have gotten the closure that they both deserved. Neither of them would have gotten the compassion they ached for. It was a heart-wrenching thought. And he was completely torn.

Should he tell her now? Or should he wait until after their journey was complete? It was too hard to think about at the moment. He knew what he wanted to do, but was it the best choice? All he could think about was how difficult this was to think about. His hands clenched into fists at his sides, and he could feel those long claws of his dig into the palm of his hand, bringing forth a new crimson liquid that was quite familiar to him by now.

And as he stared at the wounds he had inflicted on himself, he let out a soft whine. Everytime he saw that look in her eyes, he felt as if he was ripping out her heart with the same claws that had ended countless demons' lives. He began to lap at the cuts, cleaning them up so he didn't have to worry about it later.

Letting his hands drop to his sides once more, he returned his gaze to the crescent moon that had been the cause of all these thoughts tonight. His eyes never wavered from the sight, and for the rest of the evening, he only thought about the raven-haired beauty that had entered his life, and what he was going to do to make her see how much he cared about her.

The incessant ringing of Kagome's alarm clock was the only thing that was able to stir her from her sleep. And she was quite upset about it too. As she slammed her palm down on the annoying device, she couldn't help but want to chuck it across the room. She had been having the most wonderful dream…

She could vividly recall sitting atop of a grassy hill, the wind blowing gently, causing her hair to get caught in the gust. The man that she had been longing for was next to her, lying in the grass, his own silky locks strewn haphazardly around him, with a few strands making its way onto his face. They had both been watching the rest of their group at the base of the hill, chatting away amiably and seemingly having a fun time. Miroku was seated next to Sango, and it looked as if there wasn't a moment where he wasn't trying to grope the poor girl. But in her dream, Sango never slapped him. Instead, she just smiled lovingly at the man next to her, and he returned it with the same amount of passion. In her dream, they had admitted their love for each other.

Shippo and Kirara were curled up together in front of them, their tails entangled and sleeping peacefully. Two kits, in the sense of the word, and not having a care at all. Life was good for all four of them at the bottom of that grassy hill. But it wasn't that bad at the top either.

While Kagome was busy watching her friends enjoy one another's company, she could feel an arm wrap around her waist. At first, she was shocked, but before she could say a word, she glanced over to see that Inuyasha was no longer lying next to her. Instead, now he was behind her, with her back against his chest, and his chin on her shoulder. It happened so fast, she didn't know what to make of it. And as her eyes locked onto his, she could feel her whole body heat up from the close contact that she shared with him. He was tilting his head towards her and his lips were moving closer…

And that's when her damn alarm clock had to ruin the moment. As she recalled her dream again and again, she couldn't help but get angrier by the second at the contraption. In a temper tantrum that would put any two year old to shame, she grabbed her clock and threw it to the floor. And against all sensible reason, she jumped onto it. But what our poor Kagome didn't realize was that she didn't have any shoes on. She didn't even have any socks on. So jumping on the alarm would do no good whatsoever.

Except for cause much pain into her feet. She let out an audible yelp and fell backwards, right back onto her bed. She clutched her feet with her hands, glaring at the device that was making her morning a living hell. Mumbling something that sound much like 'I'll get you later', she pushed herself off the bed and headed to her closet, where she began picking out her outfit for the day. It would have to be something comfortable, considering that she would be returning to the Feudal Era today. As well, she would be returning to him…

About two hours later, after she had been showered, fed, and dumped with tons of medical supplies, ramen, and snacks for Shippo, she was ready to go through the Bone Eater's Well. She picked up her backpack and slung it on her shoulders, nearly toppling back from the weight of it. Glancing at her mother who had a proud smile on her face, she let out a sigh and headed to the shrine. There was no way she could get rid of any of this stuff. She would just have to take it to Kaede's and unload all of it there. Otherwise, she would break her back trying to carry it everywhere they went.

Her mother's voice rang out as she climbed over the edge of the well. "Make sure you keep yourself safe, Kagome!" the older woman said, bringing a soft laugh to escape Kagome. As if she was planning on getting herself hurt any time soon. Mothers, she thought to herself with amusement.

And with one last glance back at her home, she jumped, going back through time to meet up with her friends… And him…

Inuyasha was sitting patiently near the entrance of the well, his arms crossed, brow furrowed. What was taking Kagome so long? She should have been there the moment the sun rose. At least, that's what Inuyasha liked to tell himself. Everyone knew that there was no chance in hell that Kagome would make herself get up that early in her own time. He was a little over his head on that thought.

Shippo was on top of Inuyasha's head, and it was a bit of a surprise that the hanyou hadn't kicked the kit off yet. There he say, his little tiny hands wrapped up in Inuyasha's hair, and he didn't seem to mind at all. Perhaps his thoughts were on something else to really give a damn at the moment. The small fox demon just sat there patiently, his eyes fixated on the well in front of him, waiting for his surrogate mother to pop through with goodies galore for him.

As the minutes seemed to tick by, Inuyasha could feel his own patience waning. Where was that girl? She should have been here by now. His clawed fingertips began to tap onto his arms, warning those around him that he was definitely on edge at this point.

But at last, that oh-so-alluring scent reached his nose, and his ears perked up at it. Shippo, seeing this last action, immediately knew what had caused Inuyasha to react this way. With a happy shout, Shippo leapt off his head and ran to the edge of the well, just as a rather large bookbag was getting thrown over.

It landed with a thud right on the poor kid, and his shouts were muffled by the offending weight that had collided with his small body. As Kagome hefted herself over the side, she looked down to see a pair of tiny hands on the bottom of one side of the bag, and a rather poofy tail emerging from the other side. With a squeak, she quickly jumped down and pulled it off of him, seeing the rather shocked and surprised look of Shippo staring at her. Well, at least she thought he was looking at her. She couldn't tell because he had become cross-eyed from the sudden impact.

"Sorry Shippo!" she cried out, gathering the ball of fluff into her arms and cradling him like a small child. As if nothing had even happened to him, he snapped out of it and cuddled right back, nuzzling her chest and smiling. "Kagome! What took you so long? What'd you bring me?" he asked with excitement showing in his eyes, and with a laugh, she nodded to the bag. He yelled out in pure delight, leaping out of her arms and practically diving into the bag where he began to find all sorts of goodies that were just for him.

It was at this moment that Kagome had turned around and seen him. He seemed to be staring at her, and after he realized that she had caught him looking, he turned his head away before standing up. "Well, it's about time you got back! We've been waiting for you! Now come on, let's get going!" he said in a rush, walking forward and lifting the bag, Shippo and all, with ease. The kit didn't seem to realize that he was now airborn as he continued to dig around the sack of snacks.

Kagome just let out a nervous laugh, scratching the back of her head as if in thought. "I'm sorry! I didn't know my mom would pack so much stuff for me! That took awhile, you know!" she said in a calm tone, knowing that they had similar conversations like this every time she came back. He replied with a 'keh' before turning back towards the village and walking with her bag in tow. She quickened her pace so that she was walking next to him, and couldn't help but smile to herself. Even if they were talking about absolutely nothing, just the sound of his voice made her happy.

Inuyasha seemed to notice that she had gone quiet after awhile, and looked over to see the dreamy smile that had lingered on her face. "What's wrong with you?" he asked suspiciously, watching as she snapped out of her dreamlike reverie and began to laugh nervously once again. "Nothing, nothing's wrong! Just thinking!" she said defensively, waving her hands in front of her so that they would move onto another topic. He just snorted and turned away, knowing that if he didn't, he might have stared for a long time. That smile of hers was beautiful. All he could hope was that whatever she was thinking of that made her smile, he was included in those thoughts…

"I'm back!" Kagome shouted as they reached the village, seeing the three other companions of theirs look up at the sound. The first to reach her was Kirara, who leapt onto her shoulder to greet her friend. Kagome laughed as her fur tickled the side of her neck, and scratched behind the neko's ears affectionately, causing a low purr to escape the small cat.

A grunt of annoyance was heard, and as she looked over, she saw Inuyasha glaring at the demon cat. His eyes.. It almost looked as if he was jealous of the treatment that Kirara was receiving, and not him. But she quickly pushed that thought away as the second of her companions came to her and hugged her.

"Kagome! We've missed you!" Sango said happily, letting the girl go so that she could just grin at her friend. It was no secret that even though she tolerated all the others, she missed having another female to talk to, with the exception of Kirara. Kagome just laughed at Sango's enthusiasm of her return. "Well, glad to hear it! I'd be crushed if you hadn't!" she said in mock worry, causing her friend to smile even wider.

And at last, the third and final member of the group came strolling up to Kagome. He grasped her hands gently, his eyes boring into hers as he spoke. "My dearest Kagome, how long I have waited to see you beautiful face again!" he said dramatically, as he scooted closer to her. One hand left hers and began to make its way suspiciously to the lower half of her body…

But before it could rest itself on her rear, a deafening slap ensued, as he quickly let go of Kagome's hands and placed both of his own on his cheek, where a red handprint could be seen. "Sango, what was that for?" the lecherous monk asked innocently, as if he had done nothing to deserve such a reaction. Sango glared mutinously at him, causing him to cease his talking and slink back a bit. "Miroku, one of these days…" she said threateningly, her right hand balled into a fist, a vein popping at her head.

Everyone but Miroku seemed to whistle innocently at this, and Shippo quickly changed the subject towards everything that Kagome had brought with her. He began to chat aimlessly about the chocolates, and began to jump for joy at the sight of the potato chips. He even let out a squeak of happiness when he saw the pocky that she had brought for him as well. As he began to eat his beloved foods, Kagome let out a small yawn and began to stretch her legs. "Well, I'll be back in a little bit, I just wanna go for a walk. I haven't been here for a week already, and I need to smell the fresh, clean, unpolluted, un-exhaust filled air," she chirruped happily, turning on her heel and heading down across the path to a small patch of forest nearby.

Shippo looked at Miroku and Sango, who also had a look of confusion on their face like he did. "How can you fill the air with tired in the first place?" he asked, and it was obvious that he had gotten his terms mixed up. But then again, he had never been around a car, and didn't know what exhaust was in the first place. Sango and Miroku didn't seem to have an answer for him, and as they both shrugged their shoulders, Sango turned around towards Inuyasha. "What do you think she me-" she started, before realizing that the hanyou was no where to be seen.

Sango pursed her lips in thought, glancing at the spot where Inuyasha had just been standing. "I wonder where he we-" she faltered, getting interrupted once more by something else. Her eyebrow began to twitch before…

"MIROOOOOKUUUUUUU!"

Kagome could hear the distinct voice of the demon slayer from that far away, and couldn't help but let out a small laugh. "He'll realize soon enough that that's not the way she wants to be approached by him," she said to herself, continuing to walk around the trees that filled up this certain forest area. But before she could take too many steps, she heard a familiar voice behind her, a voice that haunted her every dream.

"Oh yeah? Well, how does she want to be approached then?" said Inuyasha from behind her, walking up closer so that he was now standing with her. She glanced over at him and smiled, as she continued to walk forward, with him now walking with her. "Well, isn't it obvious Inuyasha? Sango likes Miroku, Miroku likes Sango! They don't have to say it, but they both know!" she said happily before her tone got a bit more depressed than before. "They're the lucky ones," she stated placidly, stopping in her tracks to look forward at the rather large tree in front of her.

This was the tree that Inuyasha had been pinned to with the sacred arrow of Kikyo's. This was the spot that Kagome had first met Inuyasha, and her life had been turned upside down because of it. And this was the place that gave Kagome her fondest memories of the dog demon next to her.

Inuyasha was also staring at the tree with a look of interest, seemingly recalling the same memories that she was at that moment. Glancing at her, he sat down at the base of it, his legs crossed and arms in front of him. "What do you mean by the lucky ones?" he asked, his ears twitching in curiosity at her words. She pondered this, not knowing how to tell him without revealing what really had been bothering her for the longest time. She seated herself in front of him, tapping her chin before she spoke again.

"What I mean is that they care about each other, but they don't need to use words for it. They just seem to know. And there are… Well, there are other people I know that just don't seem to get it, no matter how many signs they get it. It's as if they have to be told it before they understand," she said carefully, turning her head away from him to stare at another nearby tree.

Even though she thought she was being sneaky with her words, Inuyasha seemed to understand. But he didn't know how to react back to it. "Well, maybe your friend does know. Maybe they just feel as if it's the wrong time to say it," he said calmly, his eyes closed and his head tilted forward, as if there was nothing important about this conversation at all. But they both seemed to know that this was probably one of the most important and crucial moments in their lives.

"Well, if my friend thought it was the wrong time, don't you think that they would have at least given the other person an idea of how they felt, instead of making them feel as if there was nothing between them?" she asked, her eyes boring into his, although his were closed at the moment. He shrugged his shoulders gently, scratching at his nose delicately with one of his clawed hands.

"But I'm sure that's not how it is. I'm sure he didn't mean to make her feel like that. He probably loves her more than she realizes, but she hasn't gotten it yet," he said in response, causing Kagome to bite her lip to this. "Well, there's also another problem with this couple. You see, my friend who likes this guy, well, there's a chance that he likes this other girl too. And she keeps getting mixed signals from it and she doesn-" but her words were cut short by a single action.

Inuyasha's lips were now pressed against hers in a tender yet passionate kiss that she thought would make her faint right there and then.

She slowly wrapped her arms around his neck, as if she was afraid he would disappear right beneath her hands. His arms remained around her waist respectively, his eyes closed, holding her like she had always wanted to be held. After a minute or so, they pulled away, as their need for air became too great. Both their eyes opened as they looked at each other, and before Kagome could say anything, Inuyasha placed a finger over her lips.

"I cared about Kikyo once. And I will always care about her. But I'm not in love with her anymore. And you better get that out of your head right now, because it's one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard! I thought you might have realized now by how many times I've saved you, gone after you, that I care about you, damn it!" he said with a growl, as if warning her to stop thinking about that certain topic.

"Does that mean that you lo-" Kagome started, and in a surprising move, Inuyasha began to laugh, cutting her off instantly. Kagome glared at him, giving him a this-isn't-a-laughing-moment look. He just grinned at her sheepishly and, with a uncharacteristic nip at her nose, spoke softly.

"You know, we're a lot luckier than Sango and Miroku. They may know they love each other, but we can actually show it, now can't we?"

A smile appeared on Kagome's face that shadowed every other one that she had ever forced herself to bring forth. Without either of them saying another word, they both stood up and headed back to the village, hand in hand, silence being their companion. And that's all they ever needed.

I hope you all enjoyed the story. If you liked it, or if there's something you would like to comment on, please leave a review.

And also, if you think I should write more stories like this or try something else, please tell me. I would love to write more of these, but only if people actually enjoy them.

Thank you, and hopefully, I'll be able to write you all another story.

Miyuki