This chapter is named "Beloved" after the song by Mumford and Sons.
Chapter 14: Beloved
The next day, Inuyasha was still battered and bruised, so they decided to just have a rest day during which he could recover a bit more.
They lay on the grass together, Inuyasha pillowed on Kagome's body, as they looked up at the clouds.
"This is such a cliche," he murmured. "A couple cloud-watching. Feels like we're on a date."
Kagome laughed. "So...this isn't a date then?"
Inuyasha chuckled. "What am I gonna do with you, woman?"
Kagome gently rubbed his back. "Take me on a cloud-watching date, apparently. It's nice, though."
Inuyasha nodded against her. "Yeah, it is. Also...sorry for, uh, the tear the other day. I know you hate crying."
Kagome shook her head. "It's okay. You're the exception to that."
The hanyo chuckled. "Good to know."
"I think we should talk about what comes next, though," Kagome murmured. "Are we going straight back to see Miroku?"
Inuyasha sighed. "I told Sesshomaru that's what we were gonna do so we have to."
"Okay," Kagome agreed. "We can head that way when you feel strong enough to travel again."
They fell into silence as Kagome alternated between rubbing his back and combing her fingers through his hair.
She heard him sigh contentedly before his breathing evened out and he fell asleep.
o.O.o
When Inuyasha woke up later on, Kagome coaxed him to the river to see if that would help with his injuries like it had the day before.
Just as she had the first time, she helped Inuyasha lay on his back in the water.
Her poultice had helped a bit. The cuts on his face weren't as bad, but the bruising hadn't subsided at all.
"Are you feeling any better?" Kagome asked gently.
Inuyasha nodded. "Yeah. The medicine you used helped."
"Good," Kagome replied. "I can put more on when we're done."
Inuyasha gently tugged on her arm, pulling her down to float on her back next to him.
"Enjoy the water, too," he said. Kagome smiled and moved to lay on her back beside him, allowing her body to bob a bit on the surface of the water.
Inuyasha took her hand, lacing his fingers with hers as they allowed the sunshine to wash over them.
Kagome sighed, enjoying the way the sun warmed her skin. Inuyasha squeezed her hand gently; she opened her eyes and turned to him to find his eyes were already on her, a smile playing on his lips.
"The sun feels nice," she said, smiling back at him. "I could stay here all day."
"Me, too," Inuyasha agreed before turning his head back to the sky and allowing his eyes to close.
Kagome looked at him for another moment before her eyes drifted shut again.
After a few quiet moments of peace, Inuyasha sighed.
"I need to figure out how to use my sword," he admitted. "I'm gonna need it. It hasn't transformed since that day with the oni."
Kagome nodded. "Do you know how to make it transform again?"
Inuyasha sighed. "No idea. It's some intrinsic crap that I need to figure out, but I don't even know where to start."
"What triggered it last time?" Kagome asked. "I don't think we ever talked about it."
Inuyasha turned his head to look at her.
"You," he replied unabashedly. "You triggered it. My instincts to protect you...that's what did it."
Kagome felt a blush come onto her cheeks. "Really?"
A similar blush adorned Inuyasha. "Yeah. But I haven't had to protect you from anything after that, so…"
Kagome hummed. "Well, we could practice later if you're feeling up to it."
Inuyasha nodded. "Okay. But for now...let's just lay here."
O.o.O.o.O
Inuyasha growled when the Tessaiga once again didn't transform.
"What the hell?" he growled as he glared at the rusty katana. "I should just throw this piece of crap away."
A gentle hand on his shoulder stopped his rampage.
"Let's take a break," Kagome suggested lightly. "You've been going at this for awhile...maybe you should rest a bit."
"I don't want to rest," Inuyasha replied, trying to keep the anger from his voice. "I can't face Naraku with a sword that doesn't work."
Kagome frowned. "Well, what was the exact feeling you had when the sword transformed? I know you're trying to focus on what was going through your mind." She blushed, and he could tell she was still pleased she'd been able to help him. "I guess I mean more...about your instincts. How did your instincts feel?"
Inuyasha remembered the rush of adrenaline he'd felt when Tessaiga transformed. The only thing that was on his mind was Kagome. He'd just wanted to protect her and keep her safe.
His love for her swirled around him, so he closed his eyes and tried to focus on it.
Kagome gasped. "Inuyasha, look."
The hanyo opened his eyes and saw the Tessaiga had transformed into its fang-like state.
"Whoa," he breathed.
"You did it!" Kagome exclaimed. "This is great!"
Inuyasha was pleased, but he was also hesitant.
His instincts were telling him this was only the beginning; protecting Kagome was the start, but he couldn't rely just on her.
Totosai's words were bouncing throughout his mind. The secret of the sword was in him, for others. If he focused just on Kagome and Kagome alone, he knew he wouldn't find true success with the sword.
So now what?
"For now," Inuyasha replied as he inspected the sword. "But I think I still have a long way to go before I actually master it." Which is annoying...why can't this just be simple?
"You'll get it," Kagome encouraged. "I believe in you."
Inuyasha sighed and allowed the sword to transform back into its original state.
He sheathed the sword and turned to Kagome. Her bright smile was encouraging, infecting him with a smile of his own.
"Thanks," he replied. He took a deep breath, the soreness of his body taking over again.
"Are you tired?" Kagome asked, picking up on his fatigue.
Inuyasha nodded and reached for her hand. Kagome squeezed his fingers gently before leading him over to where their bags were.
"Let's sit," she said. "I'll put more medicine on your face."
She sat down and began to rummage through her bag. She lightly tugged Inuyasha down to lay his head on her lap before she began applying the poultice to his face.
"I can't believe your brother would do this to you," Kagome murmured. "It's obvious that he didn't hold back."
"I wasn't surprised," Inuyasha replied flatly. "He had fifteen years worth of anger to take out on me. I'm shocked it wasn't worse."
Kagome sighed and smoothed the bangs off his forehead.
"That's horrible," she murmured. "If I ever see him…"
Inuyasha grinned. "What? You'll give him a piece of your mind?"
Kagome scoffed. "I just might."
Inuyasha laughed. "I would pay to see that. My little miko, taking on the most powerful youkai." Kagome smiled.
"Your little miko?" she teased. "Aw, that's cute." Inuyasha rolled his eyes.
"Pesky woman," he replied lightheartedly. He eyed her. "Don't really do it, though. You'd be able to fight him off for a while, but he could demolish both of us at the same time without breaking a sweat."
Kagome's eyes widened. "Really?
Inuyasha shrugged. "Probably. If I can get full control of my damn sword, maybe not. I don't know."
Kagome finished applying the poultice before wiping the residual off on the grass next to them.
"Well, no sense worrying now," she said. "We probably won't see him for a while. We have to go back and see Miroku first." She frowned. "I'll give him a piece of my mind for lying."
"Try not to be too hard on him," Inuyasha said. "He was just...trusting me."
"Which was still wrong," Kagome reminded him. "He went along with you lying to me."
Inuyasha frowned, guilt washing over him all over again.
"I know. I'm sorry."
"It's okay," Kagome soothed. "You explained everything. I'm not upset anymore."
"Are you still hurt?" Inuyasha asked nervously. Kagome shook her head.
"No," she promised. "I know you'd never do anything like that again, so everything is fine. I promise."
Inuyasha nodded, relieved. "Thank you. I mean it."
Kagome leaned down and kissed the tip of each of his ears, laughing when Inuyasha flicked them under her lips.
"I love you," she said, her hand gently running through his hair.
"Love you, too," Inuyasha replied. He was starting to get a little drowsy from practicing with the Tessaiga, and Kagome's soothing fingers in his hair only served to increase his fatigue.
He fell asleep surrounded by her scent.
O.o.O.o.O
Kagome continued to finger-comb Inuyasha's hair as he dozed in her lap. He was obviously exhausted, and she worried that he was pushing himself too much.
And he's probably gonna get all worked up when we see Miroku again. I wonder how that's gonna go…
She would just try to help him keep calm. Hopefully his bruising would go down before they got there. She had a feeling he probably wouldn't want to talk about it with Miroku.
When Inuyasha woke up about an hour later, Kagome smiled down at him, admiring the sleepy look in his eyes and the doggish, tongue-curling yawn he breathed.
"You're so cute," she said as she smoothed his hair down. Inuyasha blushed and turned his head toward her, wrapping an arm around her waist and hugging her tightly.
"You make me sound docile, woman," he grumbled. "Gonna ruin my image."
Kagome laughed. "Aw, the big strong youkai doesn't wanna seem soft."
Inuyasha sat up and ruffled Kagome's bangs.
"Exactly," he teased. He stood up and stretched his limbs for a few moments.
"You hungry?" he asked. "I'm gonna go catch something."
"I can do it," Kagome replied as she followed suit and stood up. She grabbed her bow and arrows and smiled at Inuyasha.
He didn't return the smile; instead, he just looked at her suspiciously.
He saw right through me. I'm just worried about him...
Kagome huffed. "What?"
"Kagome-"
"I want to," she interrupted. "Now...let's go."
Inuyasha rolled his eyes but didn't argue. "You don't need to worry about me. I'm fine."
"You can't blame me," Kagome said gently as they began walking. "You pushed yourself too hard earlier. I know it's true. Since when do you take naps just for kicks?"
Inuyasha sighed and put his arm around her as they walked. "I'm fine. Really. Even if I weren't, I would still be able to do something as simple as hunt."
Kagome nodded. "Okay. But if you start feeling bad, tell me so we can take a break and let you rest."
After seeing him so battered, it's gonna be hard to let him go off and do anything on his own.
A short while later, their hunting excursion was successful, so they went back to where their bags were.
Kagome got a fire started with one of Inuyasha's matches while the hanyo prepared the meat. All the while, they stayed silent. Kagome was too distracted by subtly glancing at him, trying to make sure he hadn't pushed himself too much like when he'd been practicing with his sword.
If he noticed her staring at him, he didn't say anything. His ears twitched on his head, a kind of movement she'd learn to associate with him being worried about something.
He's probably worried about seeing Miroku, she mused. And I know Miroku and Sango are gonna be pretty surprised to see us back so soon. It's only been a few weeks.
Which reminded her…
"You have a human night coming up soon," she commented. "Do you want to get an inn for it?"
Inuyasha shook his head. "No, it should be okay. We can practice handstands again since we, uh, didn't get to do any last time."
Oh, right...I almost forgot how things were between us during his last human night. I can't believe how different everything is now.
"I can't believe it's already been a month since that," Kagome said. "It feels like it's been longer, but also...not that long."
Inuyasha chuckled. "I know what you mean."
They fell back into silence once the meat was prepared. Inuyasha got it settled over the fire before sitting next to Kagome and putting his arm around her.
She immediately leaned into his side, staring into the flames as their meal cooked.
o.O.o
As they set off on their journey, Kagome found herself excited for his human night.
"You're gorgeous as a human," Kagome said as she wrapped her arms around his waist the night the new moon arrived. "I didn't tell you that the first time or the last time."
Inuyasha hummed and pulled her closer against his side by the fire. "It's annoying to not be able to smell you as well." He buried his face in her hair and inhaled deeply. "Just gotta keep you as close to me as possible."
Kagome laughed. "No complaints here."
"Let's do handstands," he said as he pulled away, keeping his arms loose around her. "I think it'll be fun, or at least entertaining to watch you try again."
"Okay," Kagome agreed. "Let's see if I can remember how to do them."
She stepped out of his embrace and stretched her limbs a bit before attempting a handstand.
She could barely get her feet off the ground, nearly falling on her butt in her feeble attempt. She wasn't surprised to hear Inuyasha laughing at her.
"Shut up," Kagome teased lightly. "It's hard."
Inuyasha chuckled and walked over to her.
"Try again," he instructed. "I'll hold your legs up."
Kagome was grateful she was wearing her hanami yukata; it wouldn't fall down in her attempts.
True to his word, Inuyasha gripped her legs when she kicked them, and she was surprised to feel herself remain upright.
"I'm doing it!" she exclaimed. Inuyasha laughed.
"Look at you," he encouraged. "I'm gonna let go now. Try to stay like this."
Kagome nodded and tried to keep her balance when Inuyasha let go.
It lasted about five seconds before she was nearly crashing to the ground.
"I guess I'm still just not a handstand kind of gal," she said as she flopped down on her back. "Unless I've got you holding me up."
Inuyasha grinned and pounced onto the ground, hands on either side of her head, hovering over her before pressing kisses all over her face.
"Good thing I'll always be here to hold you up," he murmured against her skin.
Kagome laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You say the cutest things sometimes."
Inuyasha kissed her quickly. "Key word: sometimes."
Kagome laughed again and tugged him down for another kiss.
They stayed that way the majority of the night, practicing handstands or other things that Inuyasha excelled in, trying to see what Kagome could do, too.
Cartwheels, at least, were a strong suit of hers.
Much later on into the night, they lay on their backs under the stars, the brightness of them slowly fading with the promise of the rising sun.
There was something he wanted to tell her, and he knew he wanted to use the last few moments of his human night to say it.
"You..." Inuyasha trailed off, his voice going soft.
Kagome turned her head and smiled at him, silently encouraging him to continue speaking.
"What is it?" she asked gently.
Inuyasha took a deep breath and felt a blush come onto his cheeks.
"I don't know," he murmured as he turned to look at her, locking their gazes. "It's just...you're my best friend. That probably sounds stupid since obviously we're a lot more than friends, but...I don't know."
Kagome's eyes softened.
"You're my best friend, too," she replied. "The best friend I've ever had."
Inuyasha kept his eyes on her as his youkai power returned. When his transformation was completed and he was back to his hanyo form, Kagome smiled and reached up to gently rub one of his ears.
"Best friend," Kagome murmured. "Love of my life. Same thing."
Inuyasha smiled and leaned up to kiss her gently before laying his head back down against her.
He sighed happily and closed his eyes, feeling like some rest was in order after their all-nighter.
Inuyasha kissed the top of her head. "Nap?" Kagome laughed lightly.
"Nap," she agreed.
They were asleep within minutes.
O.o.O.o.O
The journey back to Miroku's home was much more pleasant than the first time.
Inuyasha attributed it to the fact that he spent every night with Kagome wrapped in his arms.
The day they finally reached Miroku's house, Inuyasha felt his nerves immediately spark.
He was anxious to see Miroku again so soon, having only just somewhat mellowed out from being there over a month prior.
When they reached his house, Miroku seemed just as surprised to see them as he had when they arrived at his house the first time.
Well, maybe not quite.
"Hey," Inuyasha greeted gruffly.
"Um, hi," Miroku replied. "What are you two doing here? Not that I'm not glad to see you again, but...I'm certainly surprised it's so soon."
"Stuff happened," Inuyasha replied.
Miroku nodded and opened the door wider. "Come in."
"Kagome!" Sango exclaimed when they entered. "What a nice surprise!"
Kagome smiled brightly and hugged Sango. "It's so good to see you!"
"What are you doing here?" Sango asked. "I didn't think we'd get to see you again so soon."
"Some stuff happened," Kagome replied, echoing Inuyasha's words. "We need to fill Miroku in on it."
Inuyasha watched Kagome, wondering when she was going to scold Miroku for lying. She didn't, though, and Inuyasha hoped she hadn't decided to let Miroku off the hook. If Inuyasha got in trouble, Miroku should, too.
It only made sense.
"Let's sit down," Sango offered. "We can talk then."
Once they'd all gotten settled, Miroku set his attention on him.
"So what happened?" the monk asked.
Inuyasha launched into his explanation, telling Miroku about his conversation with Sesshomaru.
"You went and saw your brother?" Miroku asked incredulously. "And he didn't kill you?"
Inuyasha shrugged. "The bastard knows this is the priority. He wants my help to find Naraku." He glanced at Kagome. "We, uh, didn't go to the spot you mentioned. I told her."
Miroku grimaced, understanding what he meant. "Kagome, I apologize for lying."
Kagome shook her head. "I know you were just trying to help Inuyasha. He told me everything, though, so...I know now. It's okay."
"Thank you," Miroku replied. "I wish I could help more, but that was the last place I'd heard of Naraku being. There's no doubt he's moved on since then."
Inuyasha huffed. "Then we've hit a dead-end." Kagome patted his hand comfortingly.
"So now what?" Miroku asked. "What will you do?"
"I was hoping you might actually know how to get rid of the jewel," Kagome explained. "Do you have any ideas?"
The monk was quiet for a moment. "Hm...have you tried purifying it out of existence?"
Kagome nodded. "Yeah, it won't disappear that way. I've tried before. I can only keep it pure enough to keep it from being too detectable by youkai."
Miroku frowned. "I see. Can I see it? I'd like to have a look at it."
Shaking her head, Kagome winced. "The jewel is, um, inside of me."
Miroku's eyes widened. "Oh. Wow...Inuyasha didn't mention that last time." He frowned at the Sanyo. "You were planning to use her as bait when the jewel is inside her? Why would you do that, Inuyasha?"
Inuyasha grimaced, his ears flattening on his head in shame. He hadn't know, but he still couldn't defend himself. He didn't deserve it.
Kagome held her hands up. "Stop, Miroku." Her voice was polite but firm. "Inuyasha didn't even know then. Naraku wants the jewel, and if he gets it from me, I'll die. He'll have to basically rip it out of me. If Inuyasha had known that, he never would have attempted his original plan."
Inuyasha's eyes widened at her defense of him, and he appreciated it, although it was hard to feel like he even deserved it.
What the hell are we gonna do?
"Okay, my apologies," Miroku replied. "So how do you purify the jewel?"
"I find a water source and do the purification ritual on my body," Kagome explained, swiftly moving past the tense moment. "I do it once a week, sometimes more. It just depends."
Miroku hummed. "Well, you're a miko. Perhaps since you're already filled with spiritual power, you can't purify it on your own. Have you ever tried to purify something else by channeling the jewel's power?"
Kagome was quiet for a moment. "No. I don't even know how I would go about doing something like that."
"We could hunt down an oni," Inuyasha suggested. "You could practice on that."
Kagome frowned but nodded her agreement. "What if that doesn't work?"
They went silent. No one had an answer.
"You'll figure it out, Kagome," Sango encouraged.
Kagome half-smiled, but Inuyasha could see how forced it was. He took her hand under the table and squeezed gently, offering a silent encouragement.
Sango was right; they would figure it out.
They had to.
The mood in the room soon turned rather somber, so Sango rose from the table.
"Kagome," she began, "I was actually about to head into town to get some things. Would you like to come with me? The twins will be waking up from their nap soon, so I'll take one and you take the other?"
Kagome nodded and smiled quickly at Inuyasha before standing up. "Any excuse to have some time with the babies."
Inuyasha smiled back at her, admiring the way she followed Sango in such a giddy manner.
She gave him a quick wave before she left with Sango, both of them with a baby strapped on their backs and carrying baskets for the items they would buy.
When Miroku and Inuyasha were alone, they fell into an awkward silence.
"So," Miroku began. "Did things go okay when you told Kagome the truth?"
Inuyasha winced. "Eh. She stayed, so that's all that matters."
Miroku hummed. "I'm glad you remained together. I think it's best for you both."
The silence between the two men soon grew awkward again.
"Well," Miroku said, "Sango had quite a few things to get, so...do you want to have some sake while we wait?"
Inuyasha shrugged, so Miroku brought a small jug over as well as two cups.
He poured one for each of them and handed one to Inuyasha, which the hanyo took and sipped for a moment.
"Good sake," he commented awkwardly.
"Yeah," Miroku agreed just as awkwardly.
They sat in silence for a few minutes, drinking from their cups of sake.
When in doubt, drink with your ex-friend.
Well, maybe he wasn't such an ex-friend anymore.
o.O.o
Every time Inuyasha felt especially awkward with Miroku, he took a sip of his drink.
Which meant he took a lot of sips.
A lot.
Which turned into finishing the entirety of one of Miroku's jugs of sake.
Inuyasha was pretty sure that would have annoyed Miroku on a normal day, but they were both insanely intoxicated so it just had the monk laughing harder than Inuyasha had ever heard.
Luckily, that meant he wasn't feeling awkward anymore. Just inebriated.
Inuyasha grinned as he felt the alcohol fully overtake his senses.
"Miroku," he whispered. "I'm drunk."
Miroku burst into childish giggles. "Me, too." Inuyasha followed suit, collapsing on the floor and holding his stomach as he laughed loudly.
"How did that even happen, though?" Miroku asked. "I thought it took a lot more than this to get you drunk."
"I drank that whole jug," Inuyasha replied proudly. "Didn't you see me chug it?" He'd only done it a mere ten minutes ago, but time was starting to become too complex a thing for him to consider.
"Oh, yeah!" Miroku replied. "That was awesome!"
"I'm all out, though," Inuyasha groaned.
Miroku poured him another cup from the bottle he'd been drinking.
"Here you go."
Inuyasha put a hand over his heart before taking the cup. "You're a true friend, Miroku." he looked around the room. "But I miss my Kagome. Where did she go?"
The sound of the front door opening and closing made Inuyasha's ears perk up.
"Um, what's going on?" Sango asked. She appeared in the room with Kagome by her side, carrying several baskets of food with babies strapped on both their backs.
"My dearest wife!" Miroku shouted. "Come into my arms!"
Sango rolled her eyes. "It looks like they broke out the sake."
Kagome's eyes widened as she took in the sight of Inuyasha sprawled out on the floor. "Inuyasha, are you drunk?"
The hanyo blew her a kiss. "There's my beautiful wife, too. Well, she's not my wife yet, but she will be." Inuyasha took another sip of sake. "You hear that, my little miko? I'm gonna marry the hell out of you!"
Kagome's cheeks burst into flames.
"Inuyasha!" Miroku slurred. "You have to ask her first."
"Oh, right!" Inuyasha shouted. "Kagome, will you-"
He looked up to see that Kagome and Sango had disappeared into the kitchen.
"C'mere, Kagome!" Inuyasha hollered. "I have to propose so we can get married!"
Miroku laughed. "I think that's a no."
Inuyasha went somber and took another sip of sake.
"You don't think Kagome wants to marry me?" he asked sadly.
Miroku sprawled out on the floor next to him and sighed loudly.
"I don't know, my friend."
Inuyasha huffed, but quickly gathered himself when Kagome reappeared from the kitchen with a cup of water.
"Drink this," she ordered. "You're done with sake."
Inuyasha took the cup and set it on the floor before reaching his arms out toward Kagome.
"You're the only thing I'm thirsty for, my love," he announced.
"Inuyasha!" Kagome hissed.
Miroku reached out his hand and high-fived Inuyasha. "Smooth."
"Hear that, Kagome?" Inuyasha asked, giggling like an idiot. "I'm smooth. Now will you marry me?"
"Drink your water," Kagome scolded. "And stop talking."
Inuyasha took the water and drank a long swig, hoping that would show Kagome he meant business about marrying her.
He looked up at Kagome hopefully, his ears twitching like mad on his head.
Kagome's eyes softened as she reached out and smoothed his hair.
"Finish your water," she said lightly as she sat down on the floor next to him. "You're gonna have a killer hangover tomorrow because you made bad choices today."
Inuyasha groaned and rolled over to bury his face against her stomach while wrapping his arms around her and squeezing her tightly.
O.o.O.o.O
Kagome and Sango burst into laughter as soon as they entered the kitchen.
She wasn't expecting to come back to a very drunk Miroku and Inuyasha, so it was quite the surprise to see her hanyo sprawled out on the floor with the man he'd sworn to hate.
She supposed alcohol was the key to them burying the hatchet.
To each his own.
She was amused but also a little embarrassed.
He's just drunk...he didn't mean anything by the marriage comments.
But then he kept saying it...and he kept embarrassing her...and kept making a fool of himself.
Oh, yes. She was going to use this against him for the rest of their lives.
The boisterous laughter coming from the sitting room made Kagome smile in amusement, exchanging twin glances of mirth with Sango.
They both pulled the babies from their backs and set them on the large floor cushion Sango kept in the kitchen for that purpose.
"We should probably head out soon," Kagome said as she helped Sango put the items away. "I've never seen Inuyasha drunk and there's no telling what other kind of unfiltered mess is going to come out of his mouth."
Sango laughed and nodded. "I've seen Miroku drunk a few times but never like this."
"At least we have something to tease them about," Kagome joked.
After they got the food put away, they went back into the living room to find Miroku and Inuyasha sitting with one of each of their arms tossed around the other.
"I missed you so much," Miroku slurred, sounding like he was on the verge of tears.
"I missed you, too," Inuyasha hiccupped, sounding just as emotional.
Kagome put a hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter.
"Inuyasha?" she said. "Are you ready to go?"
Inuyasha looked up at her before turning back to Miroku with a sad expression on his face.
"I think my wife wants us to leave," he said sadly. Kagome blushed at the term again.
"She's not your wife, my friend," Miroku reminded him.
Inuyasha sighed. "Oh, that's right. Eventually." He pulled Miroku into a tight hug and the two men embraced each other for a few moments.
Kagome and Sango exchanged a glance, both of them having to try their absolute hardest to keep from dying of laughter.
Finally, she managed to get Inuyasha away from Miroku.
Kagome eased one of Inuyasha's arms around her shoulders to help keep him upright.
"We'll see you soon," Kagome said in parting.
Sango nodded. "I'm sure Miroku would say to come back if things don't work out with whatever oni you might come across."
Kagome smiled. "Okay. We'll come back whenever we can accomplish that."
"Kagome, I'm tired," Inuyasha slurred, leaning down to bury his face in her hair.
Kagome laughed and rolled her eyes good-naturedly.
"See you soon, Sango. Good luck with Miroku."
Sango laughed. "Same goes to you."
As Kagome and Inuyasha left the house, Kagome wrapped her arms around his torso, more in an affectionate gesture than a way to keep him up.
"I love you," Inuyasha said, his words still slurred.
Kagome laughed. "I love you, too."
Once they found a good place to stop for the night, Kagome helped Inuyasha lay down and get settled. Instead of curling up next to him like usual, she lay a few feet away, the churning sound of his stomach even in his sleep alerting her of the sickness he'd probably be feeling in the morning.
She almost laughed at the sound, but knowing he would feel like shit in the morning had her growing more serious.
Finally, she moved back over to curl up next to him, ignoring the somewhat gross sounds of his stomach.
Hell, he wanted to marry her and she wanted to marry him, so he might as well get a head start on the whole in sickness and in health.
The thought made her smile.
O.o.O.o.O
When Inuyasha woke up, he groaned loudly and tossed a hand over his eyes.
"What the hell happened?" he moaned.
Kagome laughed. "You got drunk with Miroku yesterday. It was probably the funniest thing I've ever seen."
Inuyasha groaned again before feeling an uncomfortable churn in his stomach.
He jumped up and barely managed to make it behind a tree before he was puking his guts up onto the grass.
"Are you okay?" Kagome asked as she walked over.
"Don't come over here," Inuyasha choked. "I don't want you to see me like this."
He felt Kagome's hand smooth over his back before she pulled his hair into a plait to keep it out of his face.
"I will never judge anything you do as hard as I did yesterday," she assured him. "So don't worry."
Inuyasha froze. What did I do last night? I remember getting drunk...but did I say something stupid?
The thought had him retching again.
Kagome continued her smooth strokes on his back, making sure his hair and forelocks weren't in range of his mouth.
When Inuyasha had finally emptied his stomach, he set his hands on his knees and took slow, deep breaths.
"You feel better now?" Kagome asked. Inuyasha nodded and spit a final time before standing up.
"I need some water," he said. "And...I need to freshen up."
Kagome laughed and led him back to their bags. She pulled out their water carton and handed it to him.
Inuyasha took a long swig of the water before digging around in his bag for his hygiene items.
Once he'd found what he needed to clean his teeth, he did a thorough scrub of every crevice of his mouth.
After that was done, he felt much better aside from a raging headache and some looming nausea.
"Better?" Kagome asked gently. Inuyasha nodded but couldn't stifle his quiet groan of discomfort.
Kagome laughed and pulled him down to lay his head on her lap. She reached out and rubbed his stomach, much like he had done for her the night they'd first gone to Miroku and Sango's house.
"Thank you," he replied. He paused.
"Um...did I do anything stupid last night?" he asked.
Kagome glanced at him as she continued to rub his stomach. "You don't remember?"
Inuyasha shook his head. Kagome seemed...disappointed?
"You were just goofy," she replied. "I've never seen you giggle before."
Inuyasha groaned. "Ugh…what kind of goofy stuff was I giggling about?"
Kagome smiled. "Um...well, you proposed...marriage."
Inuyasha froze and looked up at her. "I did?"
Kagome shrugged. "Yeah. But...you were drunk. I know you were kidding."
She didn't meet his gaze, instead focusing on the small circles she was rubbing on Inuyasha's stomach.
"Kagome…"
His voice had gone soft, softer than he'd meant to be, but...she had to know.
"One day...I want us to think about that," he admitted. "Not in such a stupid way, but…"
Kagome's hand stopped its motions as her gaze crashed with his.
"Really?" she asked. Inuyasha blushed and shrugged.
"Do you?"
Kagome smiled brightly. "Yeah. I do."
Inuyasha turned his head to nestle his face against her stomach.
"I love you," he said. "This isn't a proposal because, well, I don't want to do it when I'm obscenely hungover, but…"
"And this isn't me accepting your not-proposal," Kagome replied warmly. "But...we feel the same way."
"Yeah," Inuyasha agreed as he smiled up at her. "Man, we should've stayed at an inn last night."
Kagome shook her head. "You were way too drunk. I don't think you could've managed any stairs."
Inuyasha sighed. "Let's start looking for an oni tomorrow. My head hurts too much today. We can stay at an inn tonight. You deserve a real bed after having to put up with me."
Kagome laughed. "If you say so."
To be continued…