A/N: Hello darling readers. I decided to deviate from my schedule in order to update this and WF before I skip town at the end of the month. When I am away, I will work more diligently on my new story. Just be a little more patient with meeee! I wanted to update a lot than I have been doing this summer, but I've been caught up in my original works (Sorry!) but I promise not to let myself fall too far from my mark. All distractions are over and I can concentrate on feeding you guys for a while. Enjoy the angst and drama!

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or anything related to it. All pop culture references are meant for effect -- I and those around me commonly say them. I don't own the cameo characters either -- they are pop-ups only.

Dedication: Quick dedication to a certain loveable Miss, one of my more faithful readers (and chat-friend) whose birthday was Thursday, July 13. Happy Belated Birthday!


Unknown

Chapter 6


They met by chance this demon and girl,

With meddling pixies happily plotting to break their spells,

But what brought them together might tear them apart,

Since curses are such hurtful things...


Sango sat on the workbench in the auto shop, swinging her legs forward and back so that her heels collided with the wooden cabinet doors beneath her. That continual thump was the only sound in the room, apart from the occasional jangle of tools being dug through. Miroku and Inuyasha crouched nearby, working on their bikes, as per usual. The rebuilding was finished, but now that they were decorating, they were adding new caps and tightening plates here or there. Both were still in their jump suits and intent on their work.

The female in the room watched them with some interest. Her hair was, for once, a solid brown. Her mother had made her dye it for her recital that coming weekend, not that it really bothered Sango to begin with. She had stayed behind in the auto shop to weasel a ride out of one of the boys, since her step-sister was staying late for the newspaper, and Kagome had gone home right after the final bell. Sango was waiting for the musical's cast list to be posted, as it would be, promptly at four.

"Sango!" Inuyasha finally exploded. Her legs went still at his outburst. He forced a smile as he got to his feet and faced her. "Could you please be so kind as to stop that?"

She kicked the cabinet again. "Stop what?" she asked, eyes wide and innocent.

Inuyasha shook his head, sucking on his teeth. "If you weren't a woman..."

Sango repeated her action. "Why are you here?" she asked him. "Don't you have tutoring on Wednesdays?"

His face went deadpan as he looked at her. "Do you see my tutor anywhere?"

"Did the two of you have another fight?"

"That's none of your business."

"She won't talk to you, huh?" Sango crossed her arms and nodded as if she understood the entire situation without knowing anything at all. "You pushed her and she cracked, right?" Everyone has a tick when they get mad and rein it in. For Inuyasha, his left eyebrow would twitch slightly. If a person didn't know, and didn't look for the sign, they probably wouldn't notice, but Sango knew the sign, looked for it, and found it. He was about to crack on her, but she pushed a little more. "Well, what did you do?"

Inuyasha's hand slammed down on the bench beside her, stilling the movement of her legs and making her jump a little. Although Inuyasha was famous for his quick temper, it was a very rare thing to find him genuinely enraged, and he fixed the full fury of his gaze on her. He said only two words, but they dripped with such anger it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. "Drop it." Then he turned away from Sango and stomped out of the room, presumably to go calm himself down in the men's room.

"Wow," Sango sighed when he was gone. "That was bad."

Miroku looked toward the door, as if expecting Inuyasha to come swooping back in, then moved to the bench to talk to Sango in his conspiring tone. "He told me yesterday," he explained. "At their last session, he kissed Kagome."

Sango's eyes widened, leaning back to judge Miroku's sincerity. "How did I not know about this?"

"You know Kagome, she freaked out and bolted a second after it was over, and Grimm kinda crumbled inward." He shook his head. "Such drama."

For a moment, Sango only shook her head numbly and puffed out her cheeks. "I knew he was starting to have feelings for her, but I didn't think he'd do something like this. I'm all for pushing, and lord knows Kagome needs a good nudge or two, but there is only so far for her to go before the fall."

Miroku sighed, pulling himself up on to the work bench beside Sango, leaning over to nudge her with his shoulder. "Too many falling analogies," he stated. "We should just say it plain and simple."

"And what's that?"

"Grimm's in love and Kagome's loyal to an unhappy relationship."

"That's a happy thought," the female teen sighed. "You know...that's all I really want."

"Hm?" Sango turned to him as Miroku gave her a wan smile, coaxing a similar one from her in turn.

"I just want them to be happy."

"Maybe their happiness just isn't with each other," he offered.

"But they aren't any better off as they are now," she argued. "Grimm's always fighting with everyone and everything, and Kagome is putting all of her energy into putting up this façade that she has the perfect life. What happens when they don't have the energy for it anymore? Kagome's fraying at the edges as it is, and Grimm's no better off."

Tentatively, Miroku put his arm around Sango's shoulders. "They aren't the only ones running out of steam," he said lightly. "You're running around all the time, trying to fix everyone's lives, but what about yours?"

"Mine?" she asked, surprised. Sango didn't flinch out of his hold, which gave him some confidence, but she did draw back a little at his statement. "I just had a killer birthday and I have a recital this weekend--"

"But when everything is said and done," he interrupted. "Kagura has Sesshomaru and Kagome has Hojo."

"What's wrong with being single?" she asked, staring up at him with guarded magenta eyes. Miroku stared back, uncharacteristically speechless. "I don't need someone else to validate me."

"That's not what I mean..."

"I know what boyfriends do," Sango said, moving out of his hold and hopping down from the bench. "They tell you where to go and how to dress. They get jealous when you're around boys you've know all your life, and if you're committed to something other than them, they say you don't care enough."

"Not all men are Hojo Montgomery."

"No," she agreed. "Some are worse. And sometimes, it's the women who control. Like my mother." She let out a breath and ran her hands through her hair. "I don't want the center of my universe to be one person. It hurts too much when they leave."

Miroku followed her from the bench and went beside her, not touching, just there. "I didn't want to offend you," he said. "I just want what you want: the people I care about to be happy."

"I will be when they are," she replied. The degree of certainty in her voice was a little forced, but he could understand. His father was the same way, ignoring his own happiness in favor of his son's. Stubbornness with a side of selflessness; Miroku was a sucker for it.

"Sango." This time he did touch her, a light brush of his fingers against the side of her neck, pushing hair over her shoulder. "Do you know what would make me happy?"

She turned to face him, leaning into the touch when his hand came to the side of her face. "What, Demon?"

For a moment, he thought about ruining the moment with an awkward joke or a cheap feel, but then he realized that this was one of those moments that were too important for that. This was a moment that counted, if he ever wanted to get anywhere with Sango. If he ever wanted her to understand his feelings. So he smiled a little and said, "I want you to say my name."

For a moment, she wrinkled her brow in puzzlement, her eyes clouded. "Demon?"

"No," he said, shaking his head. "My real name."

Then the clouds lifted and a slow smile spread across her face. It was that expression that he loved so very much, that look of wonderment and carelessness. Sango, without sadness or worry, simply being Sango. "Miroku," she breathed.

Swiftly, yet softly, Miroku ducked his head and pressed his lips to hers. It was over in a moment, the barest touch, but he felt the curve of her smile against his mouth and felt the rush of her breath against his face. He had kept his eyes open, and so had she, so that when he lifted his head again, she was looking at him with the same dazed and happy expression that he had.

"Do you know what would make me happy?" Sango asked, moving so that she was facing him. She raised her arms and lightly placed them on his shoulders, her fingers threading through the hair at the nape of his neck.

"What's that?" he asked.

"I'd like you to do that again, Miroku."

His smile grew before he leaned close again. "My pleasure." And so he did.

Inuyasha, who had been just outside the door for their entire conversation, only rested his head against he unforgiving concrete and sighed. Part of him wanted to storm in there just for the hell of it, to break them up before things got serious or weird. Another part wanted to go hide from them, from everyone who was happy and finding happiness. And that smallest part of all was happy for them. Emotion warred inside him: jealousy, anger, despair, hopelessness, and that unrelenting happiness that came from his good side, from his love for the both of them.

Of course, that still didn't make the situation he was in any more fair. Even if his two best friends finally got themselves in gear and together, it didn't help him at all. He was still the "other man" in a drama with a girl who refused to let herself want him, even when he knew she did. Their relationship couldn't fix that irrational fear that came from the very core of his being: that he was some kind of a monster, worthy of being feared and rejected.

Staring up at the ceiling, he saw overturned furniture, and broken windows, and an utterly destroyed household. He saw the look on his mother's face, and how Rin was crying in their father's arms, how they were both so frightened that he could barely recognize them. It was because they had not recognized him.

"Demon!"

The sound of Sango's shriek brought Inuyasha back to the present, blinking amber eyes as he turned toward the door and went inside. "What happened?" he asked.

Miroku was on the ground, holding the side of his face with one hand. Sango towered over him, her body shaking with barely-restrained rage. Her expression said she wanted to tear him limb from limb; his said it had been worth it.

"You're such a pervert," she swore at him, kicking his leg. "We were having a moment here!"

"Did he cop a feel again?" the third teen asked.

"Does that need to be answered?" she shot back, apparently mad at him too, just for being a guy.

Inuyasha grabbed Miroku's arm, hauling him to his feet as he should his head in disgust. "You really are pathetic." The other only smiled.

"I'm going to check the list," Sango said, shaking her head again. "Then, Grimm, can you give me a ride?"

"Sure thing," he said with a nod. She stormed off, muttering under her breath. "You're lucky she didn't draw blood," Inuyasha commented to his best friend.

"I know," Miroku frowned. "I can't control myself around her."

"You better," the other threatened, pointing a menacing finger at Miroku. "If you ever want her to trust you enough to be your girlfriend."

"You are giving me relationship advice?" Inuyasha darkened and Miroku threw him an apologetic look. "Sorry, that was low."

Inuyasha sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "No, I am low. I deserve it."

"How do you figure that?"

"I was too impatient. I pushed my feelings on to Kagome and I'm sure I did more harm than good."

Miroku suddenly patted him on the shoulder. "Don't worry, Grimm. These things have a way of working out. Just don't give up hope."


"The lead role," Sango squealed again for what had to be the hundredth time. "Can you believe it?"

"You've said it enough," Kagome said good-naturedly, trying her hardest to get Sango to stay still.

"I knew you'd get it," Kagura commented, twirling a piece of hair around her finger as she sprawled across Sango's bed.

The next afternoon, Sango was still launching into a jovial announcement that she had been given the lead role in the school musical. The two other girls were supremely happy for her, and forgave her for the unintential bragging. Kagome had also taken the opportunity to have Sango do a fitting for the dress she was making for the recital, and Kagura simply had nothing better to do than lay around and chat with them.

"San, please, if you keep squirming, I'm going to stick you," Kagome lectured with a weary sigh.

"Sorry, sorry."

"It's coming along very well," Kagura commented, admiring the green dress with favor.

"I couldn't make anything too showy, or stiff," Kagome explained. "Her arms need to be free for her playing."

"It's killer," Sango sang, smoothing out the long skirt with her hands. "You think it looks good on me?"

"Uh-oh, she's preening," her step-sister teased. "I take it that means your favorite fool is coming?"

Sango sent her a death-glare. "Demon will be attending the recital, if that's what you're asking," was the chilly reply.

"Yes, that's what I was asking." Kagura grinned in her lazy way.

"I think it's a step in the right direction," Kagome said, hemming a little so that the skirt ended just above Sango's ankles. "Maybe next time he'll invite you somewhere, and then you can actually go on a date."

"I don't need a date," Sango said haughtily. "I've already been kissed."

Kagome's hands stilled and Kagura sat up straight, both silent before shrieking "Details!" at the same time.

Sango quickly went to her bed, sitting on the edge and grinning as both her sister and friend gathered around to listen intently. "Yesterday, when I stayed after for the play list, I was hanging out in the auto shop with Grimm and Demon." Sango watched Kagome carefully for her reaction, but the youngest girl kept her face neutral. "Grimm stormed out after a while, and Demon and I were having a talk, and then he kissed me."

"What happened after?" Kagura asked, resting her head on her hands.

"He groped me," Sango sighed. "So I smacked him and Grimm gave me a ride home."

"Such a shame," Kagome said mournfully.

"You'd think after all this time you'd be used to that by now," the ruby-eyed journalist said. "It's a sign that he adores you."

"I'd like it better if he would ask my permission before launching an attack. It's an invasion of my personal space."

"It's a compliment."

Sango opened her mouth to argue more when the front door opened downstairs, and Aya was calling her name. "Coming!" she called back, getting up. "I'll be right back," she said to the others, winking and smoothing her skirt. She had to show it off to her mother, since that was Sango's way.

"Take your time," Kagura said, watching her step-sister bounce out and toward her mother. It was actually a good thing, Kagura thought, since now she could do what she had been plotting to do since her neighbor girl strolled into the house, without Sango's bluntness. "So, Kagome."

"Hm?"

"Speaking on the subject of kisses." She gauged Kagome's reaction and found herself spot on when the seamstress flinched. "I heard you got one of your own."

"Who told you that?" Kagome hissed, glaring.

"Sango," Kagura replied, not fazed by the anger. "Who heard it from Miroku, who got it from Inuyasha. It makes sense though, he's been brooding in his room all week and you've been jumpy as hell."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Nice try, but I already know that you know." Kagura reached out and plucked a lock of Kagome's hair from her shoulder, braiding it absently. "He kissed you, didn't he?"

The sigh she exhaled was bone-tired, and her shoulders slumped against the futile efforts of denial. "Yes."

"You must have been scared," the older girl sympathized. "Your entire life that fits neatly into this little box is being threatened by a boy acting on his own wishes."

"He knows that I'm in a relationship," Kagome said. "He knows I'm not interested in him, but he...he..."

"He wants you anyway," Kagura finished. She was quiet for a minute, thoughtful, then shuffled to her feet and patted Kagome on the head. "I'm not going to tell you what to do or anything, but you and Sango helped me once by seeing what I needed when I couldn't."

"Kagura--"

"All I'm going to say is this. I admire Inuyasha for what he did." Kagome gazed up at her friend quizzically, confused. She only smiled back. "It takes a very brave person to admit out loud what they really want. In all fairness, it doesn't matter who you're with or where you work or how much money you have, because he's brave enough to admit to himself, and to you, that you're what he wants. What happens next is up to you."

Kagome opened and closed her mouth several times, fishing for words. Kagura only grinned and cracked her back. "Talk to Sango. She's aching to help you in anyway she can."

"I'm back!" said girl announced, flouncing back inside with a grin. "What are we talking about?"

Kagura smiled at her step-sister. "I'm going to go get a snack. You guys chat for a while." She patted Sango on the shoulder as she walked to the door, and closed it behind her.

Sango raised an eyebrow at the door, then turned back to Kagome, who sat on the floor with a blank expression. "Kags? Is something wrong?"

Blue eyes wet, Kagome turned her gaze up to meet the concern of her best friend. "Why didn't you tell me that you knew Inuyasha kissed me?"

Sango blinked, turning to look at the closed door and then back to Kagome. Apparently she'd missed a heavy conversation. After the first of the shock and confusion was quickly abated, Sango settled herself on the floor in front of Kagome. "I don't know," she admitted, not meeting the other's eyes. "I kind of hoped that you'd come to me."

"I didn't know what to say," Kagome said, shaking her head.

"Hey," Sango sighed, touching her hand to Kagome's. "Sweetness, we're best friends, right? You can tell me anything. I'll always listen to you." Kagome nodded, sniffling once. "Do you want to tell me about what happened?"

"It was during tutoring," she answered in a small voice. "We were having a fight, as usual. I said some things, and then he said some things. True things. And I was yelling at him and the next thing I knew, he was kissing me. And then, I just panicked...and I ran off."

"Oh, Kagome."

"I know," she sighed. "I just couldn't...it was too much. The things he said..."

"I'm a horrible person!" Sango exploded, magenta eyes welling with tears. "Here I am, pushing you and him so hard because I wanted you together, and you're so miserable! I just wanted you to break up with Hojo because he treats you so badly, and I knew that Grimm would love you and things just go so out of hand--"

"I don't love him!" Kagome wailed. She cracked them, tears pouring down her face. "I don't love him!"

Sango put her arms around her best friend even as she started crying herself. "Kagome, it's okay if you don't love Grimm."

"No," she sobbed. "Not Inuyasha. Hojo. I don't love Hojo."

For a few long moments, Sango had no reply to that. All she could do was hold Kagome until she had composed herself, somewhat. It was only when she was sure Kagome was ready for further conversation that she spoke again. "Could you...clarify that a bit?"

The smaller girl wiped her face and kept her eyes on the floor. "I'm not in love with Hojo," she replied in a small voice.

"How long have you known that?"

"A while."

"Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"I didn't want to get your 'I told you so' dance." Kagome still refused to look at Sango, and only felt that frightening bone-chilling tiredness that made her want to close her eyes for a thousand years. "You've always hated Hojo, and I just couldn't deal with everything if you had that ammo in your arsenal against our relationship."

Sango should have felt hurt or offended by that statement, but it was true. She would have only harped on Kagome more if she had known this fact, so she only sighed. "I swear, I won't interfere anymore. No song and dance. I'm just going to hug you and say that everything will get better."

Kagome rested her head against Sango's shoulder and fought through her jumbled feelings. "Hojo used to be so different," she said at last. "When we were fifteen, oh God, he was the sweetest boy in the world to me. Back then, he was the kind of boy who would bring me chicken soup when I had a cold or turn red when I held his hand. I don't know what happened, Sango. One day I woke up, and we weren't fifteen anymore, and my sweet boyfriend turned into a jerk. And I knew that I didn't love him, but I couldn't end it because I was that desperate to be loved."

"You don't need Hojo to be loved, Kagome," Sango told her. "You have us, and your brothers..."

"It's never enough," she replied, voice deadpan. "The people who love me are my family and you and Kagura, who are like my family since I've known you so long. Hojo...he loved me even after...he left. As long as Hojo loved me, I knew that there wasn't anything unlovable in me. I knew I wasn't some kind of monster."

"I wish there was something I could do or say," Sango sighed. "I'm no good at this."

"Having you listen is enough," Kagome assured her. "Getting this out, finally, is enough."

There were quiet another few minutes before Sango pushed on. "If you don't mind me asking...how...do you feel about Grimm?"

Kagome was silent another long moment before saying, in all honesty, "I don't know. It's complicated."

"How so?"

"He frustrates me. One minute, he's arrogant and stupid, but then he's genuinely nice and earnest. He's confusing, and sometimes it's like he can see right through everything I'm do and saying." She sighed, pulling away from Sango's hold. "I don't know how I feel about him because it changes constantly."

"I know what that's like," Sango said, tilting her head with a smile. "That's what I feel for Demon. A shifting spectrum of emotion."

"It's strange."

"You should try getting to know him better, Grimm I mean. Tutoring is probably not the best place to make a friend, but I know if the two of you would just hang out a little, you'd figure out your feelings."

Kagome nodded consent, thinking it to be a rather logical idea. What happened between them had to be addressed, and no matter how much she wished it away, it couldn't disappear until she talked properly with Inuyasha Reaper. "Don't tell him, or Miroku, what I said, okay?"

"I won't," Sango promised. "What has been said will remain in this room."


"Here," Sango said, slamming a piece of grubby paper down on the work bench the next day in auto shop. Inuyasha and Miroku, who had been sitting at the bench putting a part together, jumped at her sudden arrival. "I've thought about this long and hard," she informed them, staring daggers at Inuyasha. "This is Kagome's phone number and I giving this to you because I genuinely believe the two of you should make up for all of our sakes."

Inuyasha simple blinked up at his friend, then down at the phone number being presented to him. Half of him wanted to grab up the paper and cackle while the other was wary. "She'd hang up on me," he said.

"Trust me, she won't," Sango replied. "She's going through a lot of shit, but she likes you. That I know."

Inuyasha perked a little, afraid of getting his hopes up. Still, he was a little scared himself. If he got closer to this girl, got to know her better, and she ran from him again, he didn't know how he'd take it. "I don't know about that."

"Believe me or not, just take the number and think about it." His hand reached out slowly, taking the corner of the paper between his fingers. "Oh, and if this gets back to me, I will personally castrate you." Her eyes said she meant it, and Inuyasha gulped.

"Got it."

"Be good to her, Grimm."

"I'm not going to do anything bad."

"Good," Sango nodded. She was confident that this was the right decision to be made. Sango had given them the means to contact one another, and the rest was up to them. "Remember, I have nothing to do with this."

"Nothing to do with what?" he asked, sliding the paper into his pocket.

"Exactly," she said as she went back to her work.

Inuyasha looked at Miroku and said, "She's scary sometimes."

"I know," his best friend replied. "That's one of the reasons why I'm so in love with her."


Friday night: everyone's favorite day of the week. School was out for two full days, there was no work until tomorrow, and Kagome got to spend much coveted time with her brothers. It was a night to relax and forget about the horrible week she'd just had.

"Kagome, are we going to the video store soon?"

"Yes, munchkins," she said with a smile. "Get your coats and we'll head out."

"Score!"

Kagome giggled a little as she watched the three boys scramble about the cluttered living room in search of coats, mittens, and hats. She'd have to do a clean up tonight, after the movie, but it was livable for right now. As the boys got ready, loudly, Kagome walked into the kitchen to find her mother preparing dinner and humming a tune to herself. Kagome leaned over to grab a bowl from the cabinet and kissed her mother's cheek as she handed it to her.

"What was that for?" Kaori asked, smiling.

"For cooking dinner," Kagome smiled back. "You really don't have to. I could do it."

"Ah, but you cook almost every night. I will happily prepare a humble meal tonight since I'm working a later shift."

Kagome was grateful and hugged her mother around the shoulders. "You work too hard, Mom."

"So do you," was the motherly response.

Just as Kagome was about to sassily reply, the phone rang. "I'll get it," she grinned, as she headed for the phone mounted on the kitchen wall. "Hello?"

There was a crunching sound, like someone eating chips. "Kagome?"

Her heart missed a beat. "Inuyasha?" Her eyes flew to her mother, who was watching her from the kitchen sink with a curious smile. Kagome edged into the hallway, the cord stretching around the doorway with her. There were no cordless phone in her house, and this was about all the privacy she could afford. "How did you get this number?" she hissed into the receiver, more shocked than mad.

"I have my ways," he said, crunching some more.

"Sango is so dead," she said flatly.

"No, I swear it wasn't her!" he was quick to say. It had to have been Sango, Kagome thought with a chuckle. Only she could inspire such fear.

"What do you want?" She was surprised to find she wasn't nearly as cross as she had been a moment ago. Now she was...happy, happy he had called. Ever since their kiss and abrupt parting, Inuyasha had not left her mind, and she had begun to think that she might never have the courage to speak with him again. Just hearing his voice lifted a heavy weight from her heart.

"I dunno," he said awkwardly. "What are you doing tonight? Any plans?"

"Why?" Kagome asked, feeling her pulse quicken.

"Hell, I just wanted to know," was his huffy reply. "I, uh, wanted to...apologize. I overstepped and, fuck, I just wanted to treat you or something. This tutoring thing has really been making my mother happy, and I don't want to tell her we can't do it anymore because I was an asshole." He was nervous and that made him cute. Kagome wanted to accept.

"I can't," she said a little sadly.

"Ah, plans with the boyfriend."

"No!" She was quick to correct him. "It's Friday," she explained. "Friday is my night to spend with my brothers. We go rent a movie and spend the night sacked out on the couch, eating junk food and rotting our brains."

"Sounds fun," Inuyasha said, biting into a new chip. He did that with Rin now and then, between getting his butt kicked at video games, the bedtime stories, and doing puppet theatre. Come to think of it, they hadn't done puppet theatre in a while...she'd probably be after him soon.

She heard a little disappointment in his voice and suddenly felt the urge to see him. Unsure exactly why, Kagome wanted to see Inuyasha, very much. "If you want," she began hesitantly, "you can come over. If you don't mind three rowdy boys and a bunch of old action and Disney movies."

"Really?" he sounded surprised. "I wouldn't mind at all."

"Just give me a second while I ask my mother." Kagome put her hand over the receiver and turned back to the kitchen. Kaori, who had been listening intently to Kagome's end of the conversation, quickly went back to chopping as soon as her daughter returned to the kitchen. "Mom?"

"Yes, dear?" she responded. The picture of motherly innocence.

"Would it be all right if I invited a friend over for movie night?"

"Sango?" her mother asked, knowing full well it wasn't.

"No," Kagome said, blushing dully. "The boy I've been tutoring after school. Inuyasha."

"I guess it's alright," her mother nodded. "As long as I meet him before I leave for work."

Kagome nodded, a fair exchange. "You're the best, Mom."

Kaori sighed, fanning herself a little. "I know. I know."

Her daughter grinned, then went back to her phone call. "Inuyasha?"

"Hm," he responded, crunching loudly. It made her smile.

"You can come if you want. But my mother wants to meet you before she leaves, so you have to come before eight."

These were words that had, many a time, discouraged a young man from pursuing a lovely female. The dreaded element of any relationship, good or bad, platonic or romantic: meeting the parents. "Uh," Inuyasha muttered. "Sure. I'll be there at, seven thirty?"

"Perfect," Kagome replied. "The boys are usually out by ten, so we can talk after that."

"Great."

"Kagome!" Souta called, waiting at the door. "Come on, before all the good movies are gone!"

"Coming!" she called back. "I have to go," she then said into the phone. "So I'll see you tonight."

"I'll be there."

"Inuyasha?"

"Hm?"

"I'm really glad that you called me." And then the line went quiet.


Now, Kagome would probably never in her wildest dreams, ever understand the degree of courage it took for Inuyasha to call her. It was something he was sure she'd never believe either. He had tried and failed to dial her number for nearly a half hour before actually going through with it. He had been so petrified that she'd hang up or curse him off that he had steeled himself for complete and utter venom, but then she turned around and said she was glad he called.

He would never understand women.

But now he had a date that wasn't a real date with the girl he had fallen for: no boyfriends, no tutoring. Now he just had to charm her mother, and win over a handful of pre-teen boys.

He didn't anticipate trouble with her brothers; Inuyasha had always been good with kids, for some reason. No, it was winning over her mother that he thought would be the challenge, especially since he hadn't yet won over the daughter. But he would take that one step at a time. Right now, he had a chance to mend things with Kagome, to get back into her good graces, and he didn't want to blow it.

Only that degree of determination and desperation would bring him to the last place on earth he ever wanted to be of his own free will: Sesshomaru's study.

"Could you repeat that?" his older brother asked, for the third time.

Inuyasha stood in front of the wooden desk, hands clenched at his side as he repeated his request, yet again. "Are you busy for the next few minutes? I was hoping we could talk."

Sesshomaru removed his glasses carefully, folded the newspaper he had been reading, and motioned for Inuyasha to take the chair in front of the desk. "By all means, little brother."

This was going to be painful, but Sesshomaru was the only person he could think to go to for these kinds of things...considering Sesshomaru was the only guy he knew who was in a steady relationship that he could think to ask for advice without spreading it around school. Sesshomaru might comment on it at home, but he would never publicly admit to having a conversation with Inuyasha willing.

"What I'm about to tell you will probably shock you," Inuyasha began. "But I have no where else to turn for girl advice."

Sesshomaru merely blinked at his brother, processing, then reached into one of the drawers of his desk and pulled out a tape recorder. He gently set it on the desk top and hit record. Inuyasha, properly disgusted, watched with surprisingly little annoyance. He had come to expect this before he came through the door.

"Go on," Sesshomaru said when he was finished.

Inuyasha began again, squashing his urge to strangle his brother. "Normally, I'd go to Miroku, but he's so much of a dick to females, I thought it best to come to you. I've been having a lot of trouble with a certain girl--"

"This girl being Kagome Higurashi," his brother filled in.

"How did you..." He simply shook his head. "Kagura." Sesshomaru nodded and motioned for him to continue. "Well, I was invited over her house tonight at seven thirty, and I want to seriously talk to her about...stuff, but there's a problem."

"And that is?"

"I have to meet her mother."

Sesshomaru was quiet for a long minute, waiting, and then said, "What's the problem?"

"What's the problem! I have to meet her mother! I've never 'met the parents' before. What do I do?" He leapt to his feet, grabbing the side of the desk for dramatics.

The older brother sighed a little, turning his eyes heavenward as if to ask the Gods how they could be from the same gene pool. "Inuyasha, you are truly a disaster."

"What's that supposed to mean!" He fell back into his chair, pouting. Sesshomaru massaged the bridge of his nose for a moment, then got up.

"What you mean to tell me is that you want me help to impress Kagome's mother, so that you can then try and work out a way to date Kagome?"

There was a beat of silence before, "Yeah, pretty much."

"Honestly..."

"Sesshomaru, I really like this girl."

He sighed, scratching the back of his head. "I'm going to regret it, but I'll help you."

"You will?" Inuyasha perked, hopping up.

"I think this would be...interesting, to say the least." Sesshomaru cracked a minute smile and moved to the door. "I look forward to seeing the chaos that will fall out from behind you."

"Thanks...I think."

"Come on, then. We have a lot of work to do before you're presentable." The look that was given would make even the snobbiest of snobs crawl under a rock.

Inuyasha looked down at his grease-stained jeans and faded blue shirt before looking back at his brother. "What?"


Kagome looked at herself in the mirror, turning front to back, assessing her clothes. After a minute, she sighed in disgust and took off the sweater she had just been wearing before attacking her drawer again in search of something else. She was just pulling a blue turtle neck over her head when there was a knock at her door and Kaori slipped in.

"Changing again?" her mother asked, seating herself on the hammock bed.

"Why don't I own anything nice?" Kagome asked, noticing three stitch jobs around the hem of the shirt where none of the thread colors matched the material.

"Hand-me-downs, sorry."

Kagome pulled off that shirt too and tossed it on to the growing pile on the shag carpet. "I don't think I have one piece of clothing that hasn't been doctored."

"Such is the life of a shirt in the same house as three young boys."

They aren't my boys, Kagome wanted to say, but didn't. Instead, she turned to her mother with a smile. "What's up, Momma?"

"Nothing," Kaori said, professing innocence. "I was just curious as to why you're getting so flustered over this boy."

"I am not flustered!" Her mother gave her "that" look, then turned toward the pile of discarded clothing. Kagome deflated. "Okay, I'm flustered."

"He must be quite a boy to ruffle your feathers like this."

"Oh, he's quite a boy all right," Kagome sighed, crossing her legs and easing to the floor in one fluid motion. "Annoying and presumptuous and arrogant as all hell."

"Then why do you want him to come over here?" Kaori asked, understanding already dawned and passed.

Her daughter's face grew dark with guilt. "I think I like him. Things happened between him and me, and we need to talk about it."

Kaori was tactful enough not to smile, and opted for a nod instead. "You think you like him?"

"In case you have forgotten, Mom, I'm still Hojo's girlfriend."

"Ah! Now I see." Kaori picked up a stuffed animal from the bed and toyed with the ears. "You like this other boy, who likes you back I take it, but you're still dating Hojo." Kagome nodded her consent. "Are you going to break up with Hojo?"

"I don't know!" The younger Higurashi flopped on to her back, feeling torn. "I don't know if Inuyasha is worth ruining my relationship with Hojo over. I've only known him a couple of weeks, and just because I like him...it doesn't guarantee anything."

"There are no guarantees, kiddo," Kaori said, getting up and tossing the orange cat to her daughter. "All you can do is follow your heart. No matter how good your relationship with Hojo is, what you have with this boy might be better."

"Yeah...

"Oh, and I'd go with the green sweater. I always did love you in green."

"Thanks, Mom."

"Kagome!" Kohaku screamed from the living room. "A car just pulled up outside."

She paled. "Oh God, he's here!"

"Hurry up," Kaori laughed.

Kagome scrambled to her feet, pulling the sweater over her head as she raced down the two flights of stairs. She tried to smooth it out the best she could, and combed her hair with her fingers as she crossed the living room. Kaori gave her the "okay" sign from the kitchen just as the doorbell rang. With a deep, calming breath, she grasped the doorknob and opened the door.

Inuyasha stood on the front step, looking cool in both attitude and temperature. "Hey," he said, tossing her his usual grin.

"Who are you?" Kagome squeaked, eyes huge as she surveyed him up and down. Gone was the usual trench coat and perpetual coat of grease. He was clean, pressed, and looking more gorgeous than ever.

"What?" he asked, frowning as he looked down at himself. In place of leather pants, he wore khakis, complete with wallet chain and key ring attached to the belt loop. He was wearing a fleece jacket instead of his usual coat, his long hair neatly held back at the base of his neck. He was temptation in red fleece.

"Nothing," she said quickly. "Come in." She was grateful for the excuse to look away from him, and opened the door further to usher him inside.

"Thanks." He shed his coat and looked around the living room as she stepped inside. It was warm, cluttered and homey inside. He liked that it smelled like food and dust rather than that clean, antiseptic smell that had the tendency to linger around his house. "You have a nice place."

"It's no where near what your house is," she commented, taking his coat and hanging it up on the rack beside the door.

"It's warmer here," he insisted.

Suddenly, three cross faces peered at him from the huge sofa. Two dark heads and one fair. "You know my brothers," Kagome said, patting each of them on the head as she walked passed. "Kohaku, Souta, and Shippou."

"We've had the pleasure when they've been over visiting Rin," he said. "Hi guys."

"Grimm," the three of them intoned, with a choreographed nod. It was a big difference between playing against this guy in video games when he was just Rin's brother, but now he was after their big sister, and such a thing was unacceptable.

"Mom?" Kagome called, entering the kitchen. Kaori sat at the table, drinking coffee from a mug, dressed in her uniform for work. "This is Inuyasha Reaper." She gave him a little prod forward, as if sacrificing him to the lions.

"Uh, hello...Mrs. Higurashi," Inuyasha greeted awkwardly. He had never been a good people person, and her nerves were making him fidget.

"Hello," Kaori greeted, giving him a once over before getting up and shaking his hand. "You're Sesshomaru's brother, aren't you?"

"Yes. You know him?"

"Does that surprise you?" In all truth, it did. "I met him once or twice, when he and Kagome first set up their carpool with karate."

"Ah, I didn't think of that."

Kaori smiled. "Rin talks about you a lot, I'm surprised we've never met before now."

"So am I. It's funny the way things work."

"Isn't it, though?"

Kagome watched, silently, as Inuyasha charmed her mother in a way Hojo never had: he simply had a normal conversation with her. No condescension, no looking for Kagome to rescue him, just a civilized chat about random little things. The more they spoke, the more at ease Inuyasha became, and the more Kaori liked him.

"Well, I should get going," she announced, looking at the clock on the wall. She grabbed her purse and headed into the living room, depositing a kiss to the top of each of her sons' heads. "Be good, munchkins. Be in bed by ten thirty and listen to what Kagome tells you."

"Yes, ma'am," they all said, readying their overflowing bowl of popcorn and playing rock-paper-scissors to decide which DVD to watch first.

Kaori turned to Kagome and Inuyasha, who followed from the kitchen. "Make sure they don't drink any soda after nine," she lectured. "No going out, and don't stay up for me. Curfew is still eleven. I'll be home by four, but don't wait up."

"Yes, ma'am," Kagome smiled.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Inuyasha," Kaori said, smiling at him. "Kagome, walk me out."

Curious, the teen walked with her mother out the front door. "What's up?"

"I like him," her mother said, kissing her on the cheek. "Remember what I said before. Follow your heart." Then she got into the car and drove off, leaving Kagome to face the evening alone.

When she got back inside, Inuyasha was on the couch, sandwiched between Souta and Kohaku, fighting for his say in the first movie. It would have been endearing if he wasn't so much of a child that it made her sigh. Instead of joining them, she just went to get drinks from the kitchen before settling on the floor beside the couch.

The first and second movies passed without much trouble. Kagome refilled snacks and drink occasionally, with help from one or two of the boys in shifts. They suffered through a classic Van Damme action flick -- during which Inuyasha and Kohaku voiced comments and eventually broke down into reenacting one of the scenes, and a sci-fi thriller that Souta just had to see. By the time Shippou's movie came around, the three boys were crashing, but Kagome put it on anyway. Beauty and the Beast, a classic Disney favorite.

She had always loved that movie, though if asked she'd never know why. It was just a story she identified with. There were times when she felt like a beast. Nearing the end, she began cleaning up the living room. Inuyasha was quick to help her, grabbing up empty bowls and cans and carrying them into the kitchen for her.

"Explain the outfit," she commented when they were alone in the kitchen.

"What about it?" he shot back, leaning against the sink as if he did it all the time.

"Did you fall into Sesshomaru's closet?"

"I just asked him for a little advice. There is no harm in that; we're brothers."

"I'm just surprised is all," she admitted. "Don't tell me the make-over was for me."

"It was for your mother," he replied, liking the blush he got in return for throwing her off balance. "I wanted to make a good impression. Sesshomaru told me that it might not be the best of ideas for me to show up like I'd just crawled out from under a car."

"He's a smart one."

"Sometimes." They lapsed into silence for a few moments. "You, uh, wanted to talk, right?"

He brought it up; she could at least be big enough to talk about it. "About what happened...between you and me..."

"I'm sorry that I scared you," Inuyasha said, jumping in when she floundered. "It wasn't my intention."

"I know," Kagome nodded. "It's just that...while I'm still with Hojo...there can't be anything between us." She felt like she was digging herself deeper into a hole. "I don't want to be a cheater."

"I'd never want to make you one," was his earnest reply. "Respecting the boundaries of others has never been my strong point. I'm an aggressive person."

"Get them before they get you," she said with a nod. "I've noticed."

He hung his head, staring at the floor. "There has always been bad blood between me and Hojo Montgomery. I won't pretend and say there isn't, but my feelings toward you have nothing to do with that. I just want you to know that."

"I know," she repeated. "I never thought they were."

"While I'm in a confessing mood, I have to say that...I've got a lot of problems. I'm not the easiest guy to deal with."

She smiled. "So I've noticed."

He met her eyes and offered a wan smile in return. "I'm not the easiest to deal with either. I've got my share of baggage too. Nothing is ever easy, is it?" he voiced, not really looking for an answer. "I mean, I've grown up in the same castle as Montgomery, and I have never been jealous of him. I was always happy with my family, even when I hate them. And I might not have a legion of followers, but I have Miroku and Sango and they're better than anyone else."

"Inuyasha..."

"I've never wanted anything of his," he pressed on. "Not until I met you."

She was pinned by his gaze, same as always. That haunted, sad look that could see right through all her defenses and smoke screens. That same look that made her want to cry. Kagome took a few steps across the kitchen floor, until she was right in front of him, but she still didn't know what to say.

"It pisses me off," he whispered.

"I'm sorry," she offered. Kagome was suddenly aware of how much she wanted to bring back the cocky Inuyasha, the one who overstepped his bounds and acted stupid and made her feel a million things at once. She was suddenly aware of how much she came to depend on that.

"Don't be," he replied. "I came along years too late."

"No," she denied, moving closer, placing a hand to his chest. "No, you didn't!"

She was asking to be kissed. She wanted to be kissed. Inuyasha smiled that heart-aching smile of his. "I'm not going to do something you'd regret," he told her.

"Fine," she agreed. Instead, she put her hand over his mouth and leaned up, kissing the back of her hand. "My gift to you."

There was a long moment when they just stared at each other, eyes burning, wanting but never touching. "I should go," he said at last.

"Yes," Kagome breathed.

"I'll talk to you soon," he promised.

She nodded and walked him to the door. They spoke no more and he only nodded when he left. As she watched him, Kagome felt like crying again. In some ways, it made sense. It was another cosmic joke, a taunt by the powers that be in order to make her feel like even more of an unlovable, ugly thing. She had been given Hojo, someone who loved her, but then they gave her Inuyasha. Perfect enough to break your heart.

Kagome didn't love Hojo. She didn't want him or need him, as horrible a person as that made her.

No, Kagome wanted Inuyasha. She wanted that smile and those eyes for her own. She wanted that kiss to be hers alone, every day for a hundred years. She wanted that boy to chat with her mother and joke with her brothers and say he liked her cluttered house, all while being totally sincere.

God help her, she was in love.


Bravery is something defined in many ways. Some people say it is the conquering of one's fears, the overcoming of obstacles. Other people think of it in simple actions. Bravery is resisting temptation. It is rising up when you're low, against something stronger.

Bravery is admitting, out loud, what it is you truly want.

Kagome, for all her life, had been strong. When her father left them, she had shouldered responsibilities that would have been beyond normal thirteen-year-olds. When her mother went back to work, when they were struggling to get by, she took care of her brothers above and beyond the calls of a sister. She had gotten a job the minute she was old enough, socking the money away to use on her family instead of saving for a car like a normal teenager. She was the person who others could turn to, rely on, and aspire to be like.

Goodness incarnate.

She had never really allowed herself to want things too badly. New clothes and expensive gifts weren't important to her. Replaceable things, material things, had never mattered to Kagome half as much as the love of her family and friends did. But now she had found something that she wanted, wanted more than she had ever wanted anything before in her life, and she would not let anything stand in her way of it. It had taken that desire, that feeling, to make her brave enough.

As beastly as that made her.

She had never considered herself to be very brave, but she had always been strong. So when she rang to doorbell at the Montgomery house and waited while a worker fetched Hojo, she drew upon that strength to keep her floating. She ignored the white marble and polished brass of the decadent world to which this boy belonged. She ignored that feeling of inferiority that always swamped her when she entered this place.

"Kagome," Hojo called, coming down the stairs. "We didn't have a date today."

He came up and presented her with his usual greeting, which she accepted without resistance. "I know, but I needed to talk to you."

"Oh, what's up?"

When she looked at him, she saw them freshmen year. She saw the Hojo she had thought she loved, the boy who had loved and treasured her. Tears welled in her eyes as she thought about breaking the heart of that boy, but he was long gone now. That boy would never be within her reach again, and now there was someone else in her heart.

"I don't think I can do this anymore, Hojo," she said, feeling tired and overwhelmed.

"Do what?" he asked, puzzled.

"This, us," she said, swallowing the lump in her throat.

His eyes hardened. "Are you breaking up with me?"

"Why are we still going out?" Kagome asked in all seriousness. "We're always fighting and you're always angry at me. What we had when we were fifteen is over now. This isn't working, and you know it!"

"No, I didn't know it," Hojo shot back, grabbing her arm. "Where is this coming from? You've never been unhappy before."

"I've always been unhappy," she shouted, wrenching away from him. "When was the last time you ever cared about what I wanted? All you ever do is complain about what I'm doing wrong in our relationship rather than ever trying to help me fix it."

"Kagome--"

"This is over," she said firmly. "I'm done."

"Don't do this!"

She shook her head sadly, tears falling. "We're too different. This isn't working."

"There's someone else, isn't there?" he said suddenly, grabbing for her again.

This time, Kagome was too quick. She did something she had never done before: she stood up to Hojo instead of pacifying him. "Goodbye, Hojo," she said as she walked out the door. "You were always good to me, and I'll always think of you fondly."

"You'll regret this," he warned.

She turned and smiled. "I doubt it."


Inuyasha spent his Saturday channel surfing, as he did most every weekend. He was home alone, for once, and expected nothing but a calm evening to himself. When the doorbell rang, forcing him to remove himself from the couch, he grumbled all the way to the door.

He never expected to find Kagome Higurashi on his doorstep.

And he certainly never imagined at she would push the door open and throw her arms around him.

"Kiss me," she demanded, lifting her face to his.

"You'll regret it," he argued, not knowing where his self-control came from.

"Never again," she vowed before kissing him herself.

"What about Hojo?" he asked between breaths.

"We're not together anymore," she replied. "I'm brave enough now."

"Brave enough?" Inuyasha questioned, half drunk on kissing her.

"I can say it out loud," Kagome told him. "I want you."

He sobered for that, staring at her for a serious moment before shaking his head. "I must be dreaming."

"No," she laughed, kissing him again as proof. "Just say you'll be mine."

"Idiot," Inuyasha told her, closing the front door and embracing her properly. "I already am."


A/N: The end? Not hardly. Oh, it may seem all signed, sealed, and delievered -- but we're only at the half-way point dear readers. Now, the real fun can begin. I threw you guys a bone and broke up Hojo and Kagome (for now?), but just wait for it. It's fun playing God, and I do so love my drama. By the end of the next couple chapters, I'm sure you'll all hate me again! Thanks for reading, remember to review and tell me how much you love me!