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Chapter Four – Assuage

Assuage – To soften

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AN: I'd like to do a little review answering right here. 

Impulse960 – I understand. I hate people like that too but she needs to be this way in order for the story to be where it is. Plus, I tried really hard to make her like someone who might live the way she did. So in a way, I did my job. ^.^ Also, I think you'll like Kagome in this chapter. ;)

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Translations:

Fils d'une chienne – Son of a bitch!

Mignon! – Cute!

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Ever since she was little, Kagome Higurashi has always been a flirt.

Due to her appealing features, she could easily persuade men and women alike to do as she pleased. If she didn't want to be lonely on a Friday night, there was always a boy waiting. If she needed a girl to talk to, there was one always willing to listen. A part of her believed that women liked her for her personality, but after one incident, she realized that every "girlfriend" she had up till then was either lesbian or they wanted her for her father's money. Kagome wasn't put off by the lesbians, she just found herself attracted to men. With that attraction, she found many men at her disposal that would be willing to take a bullet for her just because of her looks.

Inuyasha on the other hand… he was different.

When she had first met him, she expected him to be like any other man she had met but she had been sadly disappointed after he treated her like some normal girl. At first she had been angry, but now, after having spent a couple hours with him, she found it refreshing. Sometimes.

Currently, she was staring at a half eaten plate of deer with rice, her belly full and slightly distended from all the food. If Kagome didn't have a huge appetite for any type of food, she was certain she would've thrown up from all of it. Kagome may be skinny, but if you put a whole cheesecake in front of her, it would be gone in under five minutes. The reason why she was so thin was because she was always seen working out, sometimes an éclair was even seen hanging out of her mouth while doing so. She was a fat woman at heart, but she was lucky in her ability to shed the pounds in one work out session.

Glancing shyly at the still blushing hanyou, Kagome set the plate down in front of her, her eyes not leaving him.

Okay, so maybe she had embarrassed the guy, but she had simply told him what she felt. The man was beautiful! Long silver locks that seemed clean and thoroughly brushed, eyes the color of the sun, skin that was tan and had seen sun for many years… by god, did Kagome want him. Just remembering the sight of his chest when he had shed his haori for her made her shiver. She hadn't seen much but what she had seen pleased her. How the hell was he only fifth teen?

Sighing through her nose, Kagome looked at the fire. It was too quiet, she decided. After she had told Inuyasha of his beauty, he had shied away from her, not speaking. A couple tries and a worried expression later, she was right where she sat, wondering what she could do to get a conversation going. She noticed with a small pleased expression that the sun was out and a couple of birds were brave enough to face the snow that was slowly beginning to melt.

"So…" she started. She received a nervous glance and a blush in return. "If your half demon… which one of your parents was human?" Okay, so during her childhood she had been interested in the supernatural, demons actually topping her list. What she did know about demons was what she had read in books and during her childhood, she read a lot. That didn't mean she knew much, but she thought she better let that be asked another time. He was half human and half demon. Half dog demon and by god did she love dogs. Damn it, that adds another thing onto my 'why am I attracted to Inuyasha' list!

She watched him contemplate telling her for a few moments before he grunted out, "My mother."

"She must've been beautiful to give birth to someone like you."

He blushed and stared into the fire, poking it with a stick before looking at her through the corner of his eye, his blush intensifying.

Fils d'une chienne! She cursed. She made the situation worse, well, not worse but it didn't get better! Think, Kagome, think! "I'm sorry," Kagome said in an attempt to lighten the mood. "I don't mean to embarrass you I just-"

"It's fine." He said gruffly. "I'm just… not used to the attention."

"From what you said before, I take it that people don't treat you right."

Laughing, Inuyasha threw the stick he had been using into the fire. He enjoyed the crackle it made as it turned into fire wood. After a few moments, he muttered, "That's the understatement of the century."

"Why do people treat you wrong?"

"Because I'm a hanyou… why else?"

"Just because your half demon and half human, it doesn't make it right. If it makes you feel any better, my big brother is half Japanese and half French. He was teased when he was little, but now he tells everyone off because he has the intellect of a college Professor and he's only eighteen!" She noticed the quirked eyebrow and she grinned, it soon turned into a frown when she realized he didn't really understand. "Okay so that's not the same thing, but, you can count one person on your side."

"Who?"

She smiled, "Me."

With wide eyes and his mouth agape, Inuyasha stared at her openly. Without meaning to, he took a deep sniff. When he smelled no change in her scent, he felt more stunned when he figured out she was telling the truth. She can't be real. Taking in a shaky breath, he continued to watch her, his eyes not blinking. "I-If…" If she's lying, I'm kicking her out. "I-If that's a joke, it's not funny."

The look she gave him almost made him believe that he almost had a shot in finding a friend. Almost.

"You always think I'm joking," she whispered. When she moved closer to him, he almost skittered away, not wanting to get to close to her in fear of rejection. The act of taking his rough hand in her own small, delicate one made his heart skip a beat and a blush form on his cheeks as she said, "I'm not joking. You are beautiful. You are not disgusting. And I am on your side. I won't ever, ever, treat you wrong."

He felt a warm tingling sensation take over his body as he muttered, "But w-why? You barely know me."

"That doesn't matter," she replied confidently. Her smile only boosted his nervous butterflies as she said, "I've known you in only a short time but what I've seen shows me that you're a great person and shouldn't have dealt with all the prejudice acts you've received. I'm willing to show you in any way you want that I'm serious when I say that I want to be your friend."

Remember when he said he almost believed in finding a friend? Well, the thudding in his chest told him otherwise as he smelled nothing but sweet strawberries and saw nothing but an endearing smile come from her. She can't be real, she can't be real, she can't be real.

Is he okay? Without removing his hand from her own, she lifted her free hand to his forehead after he made no movement what so ever after a few moments had passed. He hadn't blinked, hell; he didn't look like he was breathing! "Inuyasha?" When she moved her hand down to his cheek, he blinked and took in a shaky breath. "Inuyasha are you okay?"

Before she knew what was happening, Kagome found herself deposited in what was now her bed and the hanyou she had just befriended across the cave, by the entrance. His rigid stance had her sitting up in the bedding but before she could say anything he said, "J-Just get some sleep, wench!"

With a smile, she laid her head down on her makeshift pillow, her thoughts and sight occupied by none other than the hanyou she now wanted to please. By the time she finally went to sleep, she dreamed of him.

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Growling at the tightness of the jeans that surrounded him, the red eyed demon tugged at his groin. The pants were way too tight! They were practically suffocating his balls!

"Quite growling, pup. You agreed to do this."

"I didn't expect you to find pants that fucking squashed my cock and balls, ass hole!"

The looks a couple people sent him made him knock on the door of the dressing room loudly as he replied, "You don't need to cuss." With a sigh, the demon that looked human gave his brother a tired look through the clothing stall, his patience waning. "We can find less constricting pants," he said after he got another rough growl in retort.

"I want my hakama back!"

"Well you're not getting them back." When he received a loud growl, the older brother sighed and leaned against the wall of the clothing shop. "I thought you said you wanted to look presentable when your mate returned to you."

"Fuck! I do but…"

A few silent moments passed and the human looking demon quirked his eyebrow. He was about to speak but was silenced when his younger brother emerged from the dressing room, dressed in a pair of ripped jeans and a black tee shirt. His human appearance hid his brother's red eyes but it didn't hide the sadness in them. "Well?"

"I just don't want her to think I've changed for the worse."

"It's been over four hundred years, pup. If anything, you've matured."

Even with the cloaking spell in place, he saw his younger brother's eyes flash gold for a second before returning to its red. It had been way to long since he saw his brother as himself. With a sigh, he pushed his brother into the clothing stall as he said, "Just get back into your normal clothes and I'll take you to get something to eat."

"Ramen?"

"Sure."

…

A loud snap filled the forest as a tree fell to the ground in splinters, someone having destroyed it rather powerfully. The sun had set an hour ago, and with it, Inuyasha's rationality.

With an anguished cry, Inuyasha fell to his knees.

For once in his life, he was torn. The small kid in him that begged to be loved rejoiced at the older woman's words while the teen he had become yelled in outrage. No one in their right mind would befriend a lowly hanyou. She can't be real! It said; nothing but anger in its voice. The other part of him, however, held onto hope as it said, Finally, someone can is willing to befriend me. After so long… I thought it'd never happen. Growling, Inuyasha punched the ground repeatedly.

I won't be alone anymore! She's an-

-She's not fucking real! She's a sick-

-amazing-

-twisted-

-loving-

-bitch who enjoys nothing other than playing with you!

-woman who's willing to be with me!

"Shut up!" Inuyasha roared out as he clawed at the ground.

Releasing a growl that soon turned into a sob, he rested his forehead against the earth, not knowing which voice to listen to. The only thing he listened to at this point in his anguish was the small footsteps that were coming towards him. Rubbing his face with the sleeves of his haori, Inuyasha turned away from the oncoming woman who smelled of strawberries. Sitting Indian style with his hands in his sleeves, he portrayed that of a calm man well considering his current state of mind.

"Inuyasha, are you okay?" The delicate voice said, sounding like she had been worried for a while now. While he made no movement, it seemed to only make her become braver as she walked up to him.

Fucking bitch. Inuyasha ignored her as she knelt beside him. He noticed through the corner of his eye, that she had brought a blanket with her and had wrapped it around her form. The cotton yukata seemed to give no comfort in the cold winter night and he huffed. Why the hell was he caring about her well being anyway? Why had he brought her to his cave in the first place; was it because she was pretty? Was it because she smelled of strawberries? Was it because her sweet voice called to him even when he had angered her?

Lost in thought, Inuyasha didn't notice Kagome had moved until he felt his shoulders become a little bit heavier. He quickly looked at himself, then to her. She had given up the only source of heat she had to him?

"Inuyasha," she said softly; the small sound music to his ears as he stared at her, his hands clenching his arms. "We should go back to the cave. It's warmer there. I kept the fire going while you were gone."

He gave a huff as he turned his face away from her, attempting to hide his blush.

With a sigh, Kagome kept her blue eyes on him. She had been awake for what she guessed was two hours now and he had yet to be seen. Once she saw flakes begin to lightly rain down on the snowy ground, she grew worried and ventured out into the night with a blanket being her only line of defense against the cold. It wasn't hard to find him, though. He had practically left her a trail of destroyed trees in his wake. What's he so angry about? Did I say something wrong? Taking in a breath, Kagome gathered in courage. She really didn't need him to bite her head off. "If something's wrong, you can tell me."

"Why the hell should I tell you?"

"I don't know… maybe because I'm your friend."

A few moments passed before he said, "Who said I wanted a friend?"

She moved to sit at his front, smiling as she did so. Taking his cheek in her hand, gently, she made him look at her. "I want to be your friend, Inuyasha. Will you let me?"

It was quiet between them for a few moments as Inuyasha stared at her with wary eyes before he finally gave in with a sigh. "Fine, wench; if you want to be my friend, fine." With that, he stood and took the blanket from around him and wrapped it around her.

The two walked to the cave in silence. After several mental battles and courage gathering, Kagome took Inuyasha's larger hand in her own and smiled when she saw Inuyasha blush in the corner of her eyes. Mignon!

What the two didn't know was that not far away, someone with golden eyes watched them closely. When looking at Inuyasha, it was a look of disappointment while when looking at Kagome it was with disgust.

Throwing his hair behind him as he turned quickly, the long haired demon set off into the forest, looking for his retainer. One thing was on his mind. Just how, exactly, would he show his younger brother and his younger brother's new bitch that he got what he wanted? With a malicious smile on his usually indifferent face, he gave the walking duo a last glance as he muttered, "Stupid hanyou…!"

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Hope you liked it. Review, please. Oh and if you are one of the French readers… please assure me that I'm saying things right. Thank you.

-Trembling Rose