Author's Note: So now that I finally know the plot of this story and the ending, I wrote three chapters yesterday. I'm not going to upload them all at once, but since I have the next few chapters already written the updates shouldn't be to far apart, one a day at minimum. After that though, who knows. I'm changing the summary of this story as well to better reflect what's going on. You know what to do! Read and Review! (It rhymes. Yay for me)

Bread Crumbs

Chapter 3: Cup of Coffee

She shivered. It was a cold fall day, her ragged, thin sweater couldn't block out the frostiness in the air. She wrapped her arms around herself, hoping to trap some of her body heat, but it was of little to no use. She wished that he would return soon, hopefully with food. His arms would always keep her warm. She was still smiling at the thought when Inuyasha came in.

"Kikyo! It's our lucky day." He whispered in her ear as he sat down next to her. She turned to face him, wondering what had made him so happy. His face held a sparkle in it that she hadn't seen in ages. "I went back to the Higurashi store today. Look what I managed to get for us." He pulled the bread and ramen out of the bag, putting it in her hands for her inspection.

She broke into a smile. Today they would eat! "That's great Inuyasha!" she exclaimed, pulling him into a hug. They had been homeless for months, ever since they left the city. The couple travelled around the countryside, never staying in one town to long, lest they were discovered. Together they had gone days without food, and nights when by sleeping in dirty abandoned buildings or on the rough ground in a ditch.

He smiled back. He loved more than anything to see her happy. "I got some matches off the market too. They cost four slices of bread, but tonight won't be so cold." Kikyo hadn't noticed that the bag had been opened and some slices taken out. She didn't care much either, as long as some was left over for Inuyasha and her to eat.

"That's not all. The Higurashi woman offered me a job! A real paying job! She said she was going to give me meals to. Kikyo, now I can provide for you like a real husband should!" He recalled the incident in the store and laughed. "She thought I was to skinny."

He was so proud of himself, Kikyo thought. She remembered a time when they weren't homeless and on the run. Neither of them had ever been this skinny. Inuyasha used to have the littlest bit of a pot belly even. When had things changed so much?

"That's great!" she said enthusiastically. She hurriedly opened the bag of bread and pulled out a couple of pieces of bread, some for her and some for Inuyasha. It was great that he had a job but how long would it last?

"Does this mean that we are going to stay here for a while?" she asked hopefully. "We've been travelling for so long." It was great that he had a job now; they might be able to stay in one place for awhile and have some food, and extra money.

"Ya. I hope so, but we'll have to see how it goes." He replied between bites of bread. Her shivering didn't go unnoticed and he wrapped his arms around her once the bread was finished. "Think Kikyo, now we can get you some warmer clothes for the winter coming."

She leaned back into his embrace and kissed him softly. "I love you."

"I love you too."

When they broke apart, Kikyo was reminded of the conditions of their new-found 'home'. It was one of those really old, wood built, one room houses that stood on the outskirts of every town. It was falling apart, the roof was half gone and the walls had huge gaping holes in them. The floor was littered with dirt and animal droppings. (Kikyo had laid out one of the blankets so that they could sit down.) There were even a few plants attempting to grow through the floor. The windows had long since lost their glass and the doorframe stood empty.

"I have some news to" she said suddenly, her voice full of pride as she remembered what she had spent most of the morning doing. Inuyasha's golden eyes looked at her expectantly.

"Ya? What is it?"

"I spent the morning looking around this place. Just to make sure that there wasn't anything we should be worried about around." He nodded knowingly. All too often they had stumbled into some cranky animal's territory or some other mishap. She continued. "I found a little stream out back that looks clean enough. Some parts are even wide enough and deep enough that we can wash our clothes and have something akin to a bath. Later I'll rip up a blanket and start scrubbing this place down, since we'll be here awhile." She closed her eyes and shivered again, not with cold but with anticipation. It had been so long since she had been clean, really truly clean.

She found approval in her husband's eyes. A glimmer of hope appeared on the horizon, maybe life wouldn't be so bad forever. Sure, they still live in a shack that creaked every time a strong enough wind passed through. Everything they owned fit into two backpacks and it had been eons since she had last slept in a real bed. However, she had Inuyasha and as long as she had him, life would be bearable.

Abruptly she found herself smothered in another embrace. She responded with enthusiasm. Together they fell back onto the blanket, just holding each other, nothing more. The food that had been so important now lay temporarily forgotten beside them.

They returned to reality after a while. Inuyasha stood up and took off his sweater, revealing at least three more layers of shirts. He handed the oversized piece of cloth to her, which she took gratefully. "It shouldn't get colder today, but just in case."

"Thanks. Are you leaving?" she asked, slightly disappointed.

He sighed. "Yep. Higurashi wanted me back to start work this afternoon. I better get going, can't be late on my first day."

Kikyo pouted. She didn't like it when he left her alone. He saw the look on her face and frowned. "You do want to eat tomorrow right?"

Her stomach growled reminding her of all the nights they had gone hungry. "Of course I want to eat. I'm just being selfish." She looked away and began to pack up the bread and the unopened ramen, to save it for later. After depositing the food into a backpack, she stood up, determination now in her eyes. "Wait until you get home though! I'll have this place so completely clean that you won't recognize it. Then we can eat dinner by the fire, just like old times."

"Sounds romantic." He laughed.

"It will be!" she replied in all seriousness.

He stared at her. "Gotcha. I shouldn't be too late, but I don't know how long she'll want to keep me there. Please don't be disappointed if I don't make it, but I will try my hardest to be home before dark. On my way home, I'll check around for something we can light a fire it."

She gave him a final kiss and hug goodbye before he left. She watched him from the door way, as he ran down to the road that led into town. She watched him until he disappeared into the distance. When he was gone, she turned around, fire in her eyes and glared daggers into the mess that lay before her. She cracked her fingers. "Let's get to work shall we?"