My thanks to snowman80, KagirinaiSakusha730 and Sayuri-chan 16 for your kind reviews. My apologies for forgetting the most-important thanks in the last few chapters...this fan fiction's been obsessing me with wanting to put a new chapter up promptly each day! And much of that is thanks to everyone's words about this story!

Tessadragon

Chapter 4

"And ye think ye were not too hard on him?" Kaede asked absently as she spooned some stew into a bowl and handed it to Kagome.

"Maybe a bit," Kagome muttered as she took the bowl and took a spoon for herself. "But he was calling me stupid, Kaede! Should I have just let him get away with that?"

"I believe many girls, no matter what the age, reward the insult with a hurt look and walk away until the young man apologise," the wise old priestess said quietly, while the fire over which she was boiling the stew, cast its crackling light over her craggy features.

"But are their young men half demons?" Kagome sighed, too distracted to start eating the stew.

"So he is your young man?" Kaede queried, holding back a chuckle, and Kagome went bright red. "No! He's not mine!" He's Kikyo's, she thought with a sigh.

Kaede shook her head sadly. Always so confused, poor child…what's written on her face, she needs to look in a mirror to see.

Inuyasha, sleeping in a tree outside the hut, tipped his face up towards the night sky, seeing its dusting of silver stars though a tight knot of anger continued to consume his thoughts.

"Hey, Inuyasha?" Shippo scrabbled up the tree trunk and perched on a shorter and thicker branch above the half demon's head.

"What, squirt." Inuyasha didn't bother to look at him.

"Why'd we come back here? Can Miroku and Sango find us?"

"They'll know we came back here," Inuyasha yawned widely, reclining his lanky length along the tree branch, his vast red sleeves hanging from his wrists and ruffling in the evening breeze. "They know we always do."

"But why'd we come back instead of waiting for them?" the young fox-demon insisted, perching on the branch above Inuyasha.

"Wait until you're older and then ask," Inuyasha diverted lazily, turning his face away and shutting his golden-tawny eyes.

"It ain't anything to do with girls and boys getting together is it?" Shippo asked shrewdly, immediately thinking that it was more of that romantic mush between Miroku and Sango…Cos it sure ain't Inuyasha and Kagome acting romantic! He thought wickedly, nodding to himself.

"Of course not!" Inuyasha's dog ears flattened against his head.

Shippo dropped onto Inuyasha's branch, "Then what is it? Why'd you abandon Miroku and Sango and insist on coming back here? Wait…I know!" Shippo looked at Inuyasha excitedly. "It's someone's birthday, ain't it?"

"What?" Inuyasha fell from his branch and crashed into the ground. Whining swear words under his breath he jumped to his feet, "See what you made me do, you little brat!"

"Ka-go-me!" Shippo howled as Inuyasha leapt at him and slammed his fist into the demon kid's skull. Wriggling, Shippo fought with teeth and claws to get free, as a huge bruise rose on his small head.

"What are you doing, Inuyasha?" Kagome yelled, coming out of Kaede's hut. "SIT!"

"Stop it!" Inuyasha wailed, not even bothering to get up from the ground this time.

"Kagome," Shippo whispered, padding to Kagome's bedroll, in the empty hut where she was sleeping for the night.

The raven-haired teen mumbled something in her sleep and refused to wake up.

"Kagome," Shippo said more insistently, tugging at the sleeve of Kagome's nightdress. "Kagome, can we talk?"

"Sit," Kagome mumbled in her sleep.

"Wow, she's really addicted to that word," Shippo said admiringly, rocking back on his heels and feeling sorry for the half-demon. "I sure hope I never get one of those necklaces on me, especially if Kagome's around."

Kagome opened her eyes. "Shippo…what're you doing here?"

"Is it someone's birthday?" Shippo whispered. "Is that why Inuyasha's so moody?"

Kagome wrinkled her nose and sat up, blinking at Shippo in the warm darkness of the wooden hut. "He's never said anything about it…in fact, he's never said when his birthday is!"

"I wouldn't think he'd ever say when his birthday is," Shippo agreed. "And it must be kinda depressing to have slept through fifty birthdays."

"Like Rip Van Winkle," Kagome agreed with a chuckle.

"Who's that?"

"Never mind," Kagome said hastily, not feeling up to trying to talk literature with the little fox-demon. "Shippo, who'd know when Inuyasha's birthday is?"

"His mom," Shippo offered.

"Someone who isn't dead."

"Hmm…" Shippo thought about it. "Myouga!"

"Myouga? Oh yeah! Inuyasha's vassal!" Kagome sighed. "But we haven't seen him since he ran away from the last battle…Inuyasha was so mad at him!"

"He's always mad," Shippo said wisely.

Kagome could feel her heart melting as she thought about it all…if it was Inuyasha's birthday, no wonder he'd been bad-tempered! And no wonder he wouldn't tell them! She could never imagine Inuyasha saying 'yeah, my birthday's today'. It just wasn't his nature to do anything that could be interpreted as indulging his human nature. Always insisting on acting like a demon, she thought, suppressing a sigh.

"Kagome, can I tell you a secret?" Shippo asked awkwardly.

"Sure," Kagome said, surprised. "What is it?"

"Promise you won't tell Inuyasha?" the kid insisted.

"I promise," Kagome said with a sigh and a faint smile.

"Myouga's…um, not actually gone anywhere."

"What do you mean?"

"Um…" Shippo twiddled his thumbs in agitation. "He's been hanging around for a while. He's kinda hiding again."

"From one of his lady loves?" Kagome said with a small laugh. Shippo nodded, embarrassed. "He doesn't want Inuyasha to know he's around. He's been hitching a lift with us."

"Why shouldn't he tell us?" Kagome queried, her eyes narrowing.

Shippo's thumb-twiddling sped up. "He's been dared by Totosei."

"Dared?" Kagome echoed. "Dared to do what?"

"To drink from Inuyasha for a month," Shippo said in a subdued voice. "I knew it wasn't a good idea!" he added passionately. "I told Myouga that Inuyasha would kill him if he found out!"

Kagome nodded fervently in agreement. "How long has he been doing this?"

"Two weeks."

"How has he managed to do it without getting swatted?"

"He's been at Inuyasha's ankles when we've been travelling…so Inuyasha thinks it's just the grasses scratching at his ankles, while Myouga's been drinking."

"How stupid a dare," Kagome giggled.

"You're not gonna tell Inuyasha, are you?" Shippo pressed anxiously. "If you do, I bet he'll hit me."

"I'd back you on that bet," Kagome said, struggling to hold back a laugh. "And no, I'll keep quiet about it. But where is Myouga now?"

"On Inuyasha probably," Shippo said practically.

Kagome nodded and got up, heading to the door of the hut. "I guess we should try asking him."

"What do you want?" Inuyasha demanded from his tree branch. He still looked so moody from Kagome's Sit command earlier.

"Oh, nothing," Kagome said sweetly and sat down at the base of the tree. Inuyasha watched her warily. "You're not gonna make me sit, are you? I'm tired."

Kagome shook her head and smiled. "Of course not."

"I don't like the way you're talking," Inuyasha announced, and swung around to dangle his legs off the branch as he looked down more intently at Kagome as though trying to interpret the meaning of the smile on her face. "You're trying to trick me, or catch me off my guard!"

"You're so mistrusting," Kagome retorted.

"With good reason!" Inuyasha yelled at her.

"Shh," Kagome whispered, thinking of the sleeping village.

Inuyasha glowered at her but obeyed, still watching Kagome as she sat down on the grass again and raised her head to intently watch the stars, dazzled by their intensity, their beauty.

"They're really not this clear in your world?" Inuyasha said as blandly as he could.

Kagome shook her head. "No…they always look so far away." Behind her back, she made a motion with her hand to Shippo, who was hiding behind the tree, out of Inuyasha's sight, trembling.

"What'd you do?" the half demon asked suspiciously, noticing how her hand moved.

"Nothing," Kagome smiled. C'mon, Kagome, she told herself, You can do this…you lie to Sota all the time! "Can you come down? My neck's hurting, looking at you."

"Then don't look at me," Inuyasha retorted.

"Please," Kagome cajoled.

With a heavy sigh, Inuyasha jumped from the tree branch before Kagome could say 'sit', landing lightly beside her, then sullenly dropping into a cross-legged sit. Kagome blinked. Was that Myouga in Inuyasha's sleeve? Or was it her imagination?

"Oh, what is it?" Inuyasha demanded, and Kagome jumped. "Nothing!" Her voice was a shade higher than usual.

"It is something! Tell me!" He glared into her face, then sat closer.

Shippo was making frantic 'no' gestures with his little hands. Kagome gave him a sideways 'yes' look, silently urging him to quickly get Myouga.

Aha! Myouga was stealthily creeping out of Inuyasha's sleeve, seeing Kagome, giving her a nervous look…

"Fox magic," Shippo mumbled then transformed into a clumsy-looking fly, a bit bigger than Myouga the flea.

"Inuyasha…" Kagome said loudly. Inuyasha jumped at her tone. "What!"

Shippo the fly trembled then lunged forward to grab Myouga, who squeaked, absolutely mystified.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome threw her arms around Inuyasha to distract him. He went beet-red: mission accomplished!

Shippo buzzed away with Myouga as fast as he could, as the flea-demon wriggled and protested. Kagome fake-sobbed to hide the noise.

"W-what?" Inuyasha was stammering, absolutely flummoxed and not sure how to deal with the fake-sobbing Kagome or the fact that she had her arms around him. "W-what's wrong?"

Raising her red eyes, Kagome saw Shippo and Myouga buzz away towards the hut, and abruptly let go of Inuyasha, who was staring at her, his nose wrinkled in confusion. "What was that about?" he demanded.

"Nothing!" Kagome jumped to her feet and ran back to the hut.

"What the—" Inuyasha shook his head, mystified and tried to go back to sleep, but couldn't stop the feelings of absolute confusion at what had just happened…and the quiet feeling that he wished Kagome was still hugging him. "Pah!" he said at himself in disgust and ordered himself to go back to sleep, jumping back up to the tree branches and curling up against the wintered bark.

Please note: I've been told by someone that Inuyasha's thinking a little more than he usually does in the series…now I'm gonna make up an excuse for that: that Myouga's drinking the blood that usually rushes to Inuyasha's head ;-)

Your faithful fanfiction maker,

Tessa