A/N: Gonna keep going while I have the muse for this!

"Well, yea, who didja think it was?" The gruff sounding voice was something she never thought that she'd hear again in her lifetime. Turning in the arms covered in a rough, red haori, Kagome looked up into the amber eyes of the half demon staring down at her. She felt her own fill with water all over again, the tears leaving tracks down her cheeks.

He lifted a clawed finger, gently catching one of the sparkling teardrops on his knuckle. White ears fell against his skull in a move she knew betrayed his emotions. "How...did-" Her words were cut off when the warm lips of the hanyou pressed against her own and she found herself frozen in place. For a moment, she felt like her heart was going to explode from the shock before she threw herself into the man.

Arms wrapped around his neck and she found his wrapping around her waist. The kiss was everything she wanted; warm, inviting, and full of every drop of love the pair shared between them. She felt her cheeks wet from tears that were not her own and knew that he too had succumbed to the emotions of their reunion. When she pulled back, neither of them wished to release the other, but she let herself get a good look at the man standing before her.

Eyes of molten gold stared at her out of a face that was much more mature than he had been when she'd left. Instead of being more round, it was sharper, his chin and cheeks thinning. The silver hair that had covered her on many nights after they had shared their feelings was just as warm and silky as she remembered. He'd bulked out a little it seemed - broader in the shoulders and she could tell by the arms around her waist that his arms had toned. "How-"

"How did I get here?" His voice was a balm on her soul - a light in the darkest part that she had forgotten how badly it had hurt her to remember his loss. Instead, struck mute, the raven haired woman nodded, unable to break her eyes from his. It was his smirk, a slight upturn of a corner of his mouth that revealed a fang that had her heart fluttering. "I waited."

She stared, her eyes widening before she shook her head. "You….waited?"

"I waited five hundred years, Kagome." His voice was soft, his arms shifting to rest on both of her upper arms, his claws digging in only slightly. "And I would wait a thousand more if I had to." He looked down at the raven haired miko as fresh tears started to wash from her eyes. She could tell from the way his ears fell against his skull once more that it hurt him to see her cry, but the touch of his lips against her own only turned the waterworks on harder.

"Kagome!" The happy call had her pulling away from her half demon mate to look towards the very much grown up Shippo. Eyes widened when she realized that he was an adult now, his fluffy hair no longer tied in a ponytail to keep it from being unruly, instead having grown long enough to hang down his back, with two pieces near his face. The look made her smile, knowing exactly where the inspiration for that had come. Pointed ears split the strands of hair, looking slightly larger than the tiny fox ones he had before.

His clothes were similar to what he'd worn as a kit, the vest was rough fur, but a black instead of brown. The under kosode was pale cream, matching his complexion. Pants, like his vest, had changed colors and were now black, tied closed over his much larger fox feet. It wasn't the hair, the clothes or the stature of the young kitsune that caught her eye - it was the three tails that fanned out behind him. "Sh-Shippo!"

The grin that crossed his face showed off his fangs before she stared at him. He crossed his arms over his chest and gave her a quizzical look, not unlike a dog. "What's wrong Kagome?" His voice was light, but the false concern washed through the words. She knew he was pulling her chain, but played along anyway. "Do I have something on my shirt?" He dusted his hands across his shirt, looking down for the imagined spec.

"Shippo...Your TAILS!" At her squeal, he looked up again, and Kagome smiled at the smirk, it was one straight out of Inuyasha's book. The fox demon shifted around and waved the three tails around before he came closer to the pair. Kagome noticed that Inu Yasha hadn't released her, and she was perfectly fine with that, staying in his arms and pressing her head against his chest. It was his heartbeat that she listened to while the much grown fox came closer.

"Yea, Aren't they cool?" She laughed when he waved the three furry appendages again, her eyes watering with fresh tears. All Kagome wanted to do was reach out and see if the fur on the tails was as soft as it had been as a kit.

"Come on wench, don't abuse the kit.. You need to get inside." She felt his arms tighten around her and nodded, smiling up at the face of the dog demon before turning to look at Shippo.

"Yea… you both need to come in.. I- There's so much to tell you." Going to pull away from Inuyasha, the shrine maiden squeaked when he lifted her off her feet and carried her towards the house.

"Kit - Get the door." Shippo moved ahead of the pair, smiling back at them and pushing open the door. Naturally, once the door was open, the grown fox helped himself to the inside, wandering around while Inuyasha and Kagome brought up the rear. "You're slippin' Ka-go-me." His words teased her ears, and she laughed, looking up at the hanyou carrying her over the threshold like some sort of bride.

"And what does that mean?" She wanted to get upset, to get irritated, but she couldn't. The only feeling that the young woman felt was relief. Glad that she could see him one more time, and hopefully many more times afterwards. He set her down on the couch and knelt in front of her, his hands lifting to cup her cheeks.

Kagome lifted her own and then threaded their fingers together. She felt the faint pricking of his claws against her skin, but couldn't look away from his eyes. "It means, wench, that you should have felt the kid and I before now.." She blushed straight to the roots of her hair, pulling her eyes away from Inuyasha to the kitsune that stood behind her resting his hands on her shoulders.

"I'm sorry...I don't have my powers here.." Sure, she had a few things - but for the most part, Kagome's priestess powers had been left behind with Inuyasha in the feudal era. She turned her eyes back to the silver haired demon in front of her and took him in, as if she could drink up what she saw and never be thirsty again.

"Well, then I guess that means we'll have ta stay here so then. Since you're helpless an' all." His smile betrayed his words, not meaning that at all before he leaned in and she slid her arms around his neck with a strangled sound. Kagome wanted whatever dream this was to never end, so she could stay with her dog eared hanyou each time she closed her eyes.

"I'll uhh… just be goin'. Gonna go check out the forest, Inuyasha. Have fu~n!" The sing-songing voice of Shippo had the woman blinking towards him before he was gone, shutting the door behind him. Kagome turned back towards Inuyasha, whose face was in her neck, his nose sniffing along her skin.

"What did he mean by that?" She eep'd when she was lifted from the couch, strong hands holding under her thighs as he held her against his chest. Kagome held on with her legs wrapped around his waist, and arms around his neck. She felt the flush rise up her neck and chest with the heated look the demon was giving her.

"It means that I'm gonna take you upstairs and finish something I should have done years ago." Her heart was hammering in her chest as he climbed the stairs and found her room - she wasn't sure how he knew it wasn't her OLD room, but she figured it had something to do with his nose. The hanyou kicked the door shut behind him before taking Kagome to the bed, pinning her with his body weight and brushing his hands against her hair before kissing her again. "You aren't leavin' this bed for days, Wench."

A/N: No steamy scenes, sorry! I haven't been back to for long enough to know how they handle all the steamy bits.. so Time skip awaaaay!