Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha . . .

ROCK ON!!!

Kagome turned over in her bed for what seemed like the thousandth time that hour. Damn, I just can't sleep knowing he is on the other side . . .

She sighed, and stared out the window to her left, gazing up at the stars. It's not that she hated him; she found him annoying, overbearing, and cocky, but hate was too strong of a word. He made her feel . . . uneasy. Yes, that was the word. Kagome was so use to people groveling at her feet and letting her feel like she was on top of the world, just beause she was Seiji's granddaughter, and not to mention the heir to his domain.

But Inuyasha . . . he was different. He treated her like a regular person, and in a strange, twisted way, she was grateful. But was she attracted to him . . .

The young miko punched the pillow beneath her. I can't be attracted to that fool . . . or any other fool for that matter . . . not after that bastard . . . A tear slowly escaped her eye, trickling down her cheek. Damn it all . . .

Inuyasha stared up at the celing. He couldn't sleep either. The whole day was a a bit overwhelming, sending his head spinning. This morning I was a rookie police officer . . . tonight I'm a rookie body guard . . . He rolled his eyes. Body guard . . . more like babysitter . . . I'm suppose to watch a spoiled little rich kid (that I've known for only about a day) run around and try to run a campaign, and my job is to make sure she doesn't get hurt . . . add feeding and a bedtime story and that's the damn job description of a nanny . . .

He rolled over, his eyes falling on the bathroom door. More good news . . . it's going to be hell trying to use the bathroom while I'm sharing with her . . . speaking of bathroom . . . nature's calling . . .

The hanyou jumped out of bed and headed toward the mahogany door which led to the bathroom. He lifted up the toilet seat pulled down his pants, and began to relieve himself . "Ah, when nature calls, you gotta answer," he sighed. The mirror to his right caught his attention.

He was dressed in his favorite red silk pajama bottoms and a black wife beater. His silver hair was slightly disheveled, his eyes alert and awake. He tore his gaze from the mirror, and pulled his pants back up. He flushed the toilet, and after deciding to leave the seat up just to irritate the girl next door, made his way back to the door. His hand was a mere few centimeters from the door when he sniffed the air.

Salt?

He frowned. No one could be cooking at this time of night. He sniffed again.

Salt . . . and water . . . someone's crying!

His ears perked up, listening for any signs of sobbing. When he heard none, he sniffed the air tentivly once again. His nose led him to the opposite door from the one he was about to open. Kagome.

Kagome's tears flowed freely down her cheeks, her pillow soaked. She made no sound; for over a year every time she cried she never made a sound. She wanted it that way.

She sat up in bed, eyeing her dark figure in the dresser mirror across the room. Her face was passive, calm, and cool, save for the river of tears. Her eyes were tired, her complexion pale, and she seemed smaller than usual. She was concentrated so much on not making a sound that she didn't hear her bathroom door squeak open, and two golden eyes peer out at her.

"Kagome?"

The young miko snapped out of her trance, her eyes focusing on the owner of the voice. "Inuyasha?" she blinked.

"Yeah, can I come in?"

She quickly bit her lip to stop the tears. "What do you want," she asked coldly, wiping the tears off hurridly with her blanket. Her efforts were in vain, however, and Inuyasha spotted the damp sheets.

"You've been crying," he stated plainly, gesturing towards her covers and pillow.

"Yeah, so? It's a free country," she retorted, pulling her covers back and sliding out of bed. Inuyasha sighed, entered the room, and closed the door behind him.

"What's wrong?" he asked wearily. He had too much contact with this girl for one day.

"Nothing," she insisted, pulling out tissues from her dresser. The hanyou took a good look at the stubborn woman before him. She was clad in forest green pajamas, with a matching tank top. Her hair, suprisingly, was still neat, but her eyes were worn. As he examined her more, he realized that she wasn't at all the big, tough, business woman he thought her to be. Right now she seemed small and fragile, like a snowflake.

"Have I passed the test?"

"Huh?" Inuyasha raised his eyes to meet her coffee-brown ones.

Kagome rolled her eyes and shook her head. "You've been giving me a head to toe inspection. I want to know if I passed."

The dog demon responded with a low growl, and leaned against the door. "You still haven't told me what's wrong."

"Why should I tell you?" she grumbled, turning her back towards him.

"Cause, I'm your damn body guard, and I need to know these things."

"For what? So you can come to my rescue with a bunch of kleenex?" she asked mockingly.

"No, you stupid woman," he growled, "Something's bothering you, and you're crying. Unfortunately, I can smell tears a mile away, and I won't be able to get any sleep until you shut your leaking eyes. Now tell me what's wrong."

Kagome turned slowly at the hanyou's voice. No one had ever talked to her in that kind of tone, nevertheless that kind of speech. Her eyes slowly met his, his golden pools wide and alive. She sighed, and started to walk towards her bed.

"You can trust me, you know," the hanyou pushed, his patience thinning. I swear, this girl is slower than molasses . . .

"I know," she said softly, sitting on her bed.

Inuyasha's eyes widened. He didn't expect her to submit; he thought he would wear her out so she would fall asleep. "What?"

"I know, I can trust you," she repeated, glancing in his direction. "I can trust you, but I don't know if I will trust you."

He raised an eyebrow. "And why not?"

The young miko ran a hand through her murky black hair. "I haven't trusted anyone in years," she murmured. "Not Jii-san, not my mother, Souta, not--"

"Not Sango?" Inuyasha inquired.

She averted her eyes to the floor, ashamed. "No, not even Sango," she admitted. She smiled appreciativley when he remained quiet.

"Something happened a few years back that made it hard for me to trust anyone ever again," she started softly. "Before that particular event, I was so happy and carefree . . . I loved my life."

She looked out the window once more, eyeing the crescent moon. "But then . . . it happened. I was so scared, so afraid . . . I never thought I could live again . . ." she trailed off.

Inuyasha stared at the seated girl. Her face was illuminated by moonlight, highlighting her features. She looked sadly at him, her expression woeful. She reminds me of one of those sad princesses that Mama use to tell me about . . . he thought.

"I was betrayed," she continued. "Betrayed, and decieved. Everything that I had lived for at that point was gone. My life was empty without any meaning, and my heart was crushed. I was scarred, emotionally . . . and physically."

The dog demon's eyebrow twitched slightly. So this is what the old man was talking about earlier . . . but still, she's very careful about leaving out all the details . . .

"Why would anyone do that to you?" he asked quietly, his eyes gazing intently at hers.

Kagome gazed back a bit, then turned away. "I don't know . . . I never thought it would happen to me . . . but it did. And after it happened, I couldn't bring myself to trust again. I didn't want to come in contact with anyone, no matter who it was . . ."

She thought back for a moment. "Even Sango . . . ever since it happened I felt our friendship deteriorate . . . but she wouldn't allow it. She was determined to keep our bond intact, and never even asked about it . . . but I still feel ashamed for not telling her."

"And what makes me so different from all the others?" Inuyasha asked.

"I don't know . . . ever since I met you, I could tell you were different, and it wasn't because you were a hanyou . . ." she said, rubbing her temple. "You, you bring me to life, in a sense," she said, holding back a blush. "You irritate me, annoy, and pester me, and for the first time in a while I feel the urge to retaliate . . ."

Inuyasha smirked at the girl's comment. "Go on."

"Even though I've only known you for less than a day, I already feel that I can trust you . . . I've told you as much as I've told Sango . . . but I can't bring myself to let my barrier down, not yet . . . it still haunts me, Inuyasha, in more ways than one . . ."

Her eyes began to tear up once more, and she fought to hold the invading water back. "It ruined my life," she said bitterly. "He . . ." she stopped, her voice breaking out in sobs.

Inuyasha strode over to the bed, and sat down, rubbing the girl's back. "Sssh, it's alright," he comforted. He was startled to see her fling herself at him, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably.

"Kagome, it's alright, I'm here," he said tenderly. "I won't let anything happen to you, remember? That's what I'm here for, to protect you."

The young miko garbled some words, that even the hanyou couldn't decode, but decided not to ask what it was. Her sobs slowly began to subside, her incessant mumbling ceasing.

The hanyou embraced her, before setting her down in her bed. "You should get some sleep," he said quietly. She nodded, her eyelids puffy and swollen, her brown eyes muddied with tears. He tucked her in gently, and patted her arm.

Inuyasha made his way across the room when her weak voice stopped her. "Inuyasha?"

"Yeah?" he answered gruffly.

"Arigatou," she mumbled, before drifting off to sleep.

"Feh," he mumbled, returning to his room.

As he closed the bathroom door behind him, he realized something. Damnit, I put her to bed . . . all I need is feeding and I'm a certified nanny . . .

He shook his head, before realzing another thing. Something that made his eyes widen.

She accepted him as a friend.

AU: so what do you guys think so far? you guys really didn't think that I'd jump right into the romance, did you? lol, sorry if I disappointed anyone . . .but did anyone like this little interlude between the two of them? Yes yes, don't kill me yet, romance is soon to come!

thanks for all the reviews . . .

stay tuned!