We hope you enjoy this story and the journey it will take you on! A big Shout out to ClassySassy for her amazing art that inspired the story, which can be found on Tumblr or Ao3, same user name, and Yukinon for helping keep us on track (we know you worked your but off on that one, especially with me).

"WIND SCAR!"

The loud cry echoed through the woods, preceding the three blades of yoki that streaked through the trees. A screech of pain was cut off abruptly as the bear yokai the silver haired man was facing was caught by a blade, its body swelling before it exploded, and the fight was done.

"Keh." Two triangular ears at the top of the man's head twitched as he landed, the giant fang he held in his hand pulsing slightly before fading back to its inactive, worn down katana state. The sleeves of his red haori flowed around him as his feet touched the ground, a smirk on his face as he observed the carnage.

"INUYASHA…." A growl from his left had his ears twitching as golden eyes darted to the side to see his companions…

Covered in blood and bits of the bear.

"What, it's dead isn't it?" Inuyasha turned to face them, his ears lowering slightly as his gaze took in the center figure. The raven haired girl stood there with the most blood and guts strewn through her hair, covering the white of her blouse and dripping from her green skirt.

"Did you have to SPLAT the thing though…" the girl groaned as she shook her hands, trying desperately to get as much of it off of her as she could.

"Be glad he was able to defeat the thing at all, Kagome," a tall woman with long brown hair wiped her face with the edge of cloth, scowling at the stains on the kimono she held.

"I know, I know, but did he have to get my last uniform dirty in the process Sango?" Kagome sighed as she gingerly lifted her foot, making her way to Inuyasha's side slowly, leaping through the puddles of blood as best as she could.

"It's not like I was trying to or anything, the stupid thing wouldn't die." Inuyasha shot back as he watched her move.

"Doesn't matter, you don't get to gripe when I say we are stopping at the first river we find so I can wash."

"WHAT?" Inuyasha's jaw dropped as Kagome's chocolate eyes met his, and he swore he saw sparks in her gaze, momentarily stopping his train of thought.

"As if you didn't know that was going to happen." A small red ball of fur bounded from behind Sango, his fur miraculously free of any bits of bear.

"Her asking to stop, or him losing his train of thought?" The last member of the group said, a chuckle evident in his voice as he placed the two tailed cat he held back on the ground.

"Both." Sango chimed in as she watched the raven and silver haired pair bicker, lost in everything but the other. "Come on Miroku, Shippo, I am pretty sure we passed a stream about 20 minutes ago. We should go make camp."

"What about them?" Miroku's purple eyes danced as he watched his friends move closer together, even as their voices got louder.

"I say she is going to use an…"

"OSUWARI!" Kagome's voice cut off Shippo's comment as Inuyasha's body was pulled to the ground.

"There it is." He finished as he scampered up to sit on Miroku's shoulder, his little shoulders shaking as he held in his laughter.

"Come on Sango." Kagome fumed as she stomped passed the remainder of the group.

"Umm, Kagome…?" Sango's hands came up as Kagome spun to glare, "the river is back that way."

Kagome sighed, her hand coming to rub her head as she turned back the direction Sango had pointed. "Of course it is."

"Keh, like you could…"

"Inuyasha, I would recommend not antagonizing Lady Kagome any further." Miroku chided, grinning at the single amber eye that lifted to meet his gaze before it turned to watch Kagome's retreating figure.

" This is never going to come out…" Kagome groaned as she desperately scrubbed her blouse at the edge of the river. "I don't know how my mom keeps affording to replace these, I really don't."

"Here, let me." Sango held out her hand. "I was able to pick up the herbs needed for a taijiya soap, we used it to clean our armor at the village, it may be able to get the blood out."

"Oh Sango, really?" Kagome's eyes lit up as she gratefully handed her friend the blouse. "I was able to get most of it out of the skirt but this… they never really come clean."

"Sure, why don't you clean up while I take care of this?"

Kagome sighed in happiness as she eased herself into the river. Yes, it was cold, but she had long become accustomed to cold baths in the feudal era. Her body relaxed as she lay back in the water, her eyes watching the clouds move through the sky.

"I shouldn't have sat him."

"Hmm?" Sango tilted her head towards Kagome, her eyes still focused on the shirt she was cleaning.

"Inuyasha." Kagome sighed, her head dropping back to wet her hair. "I had promised him I wouldn't use it as much, and then today I just… I don't even know, we were arguing and then I realized how close we were and I just… I panicked."

"Kagome, you have been trying to get closer to Inuyasha since I met you." Sango teased as her lips curled into a little grin.

"Yeah, I know. But for some reason today it was… I don't know." Kagome's eyes closed as she let the gentle rhythm of the current flow over her. "I think it's because Kikyo is no longer here, but I still feel that she is, like she will always be between us, and even though I may want something more with him, I don't know if he sees me or sees her, you know."

"Kagome, I think that the only person still putting Kikyo between you and Inuyasha is you." Sango pulled the shirt out of the water as she spoke, looking it over carefully. "I've seen the way he watches you when he thinks you aren't looking, and it's different from how he would look at Kikyo. He always looked at her as if she were an idol almost, the way some people see monks or the temple keepers, as if she were someone he needed to revere, not someone to be with. But with you, with you he looks at you the way he does the ramen you bring, as if you are something he needs, something he wants."

The silence in response had Sango looking to the river, her brow furrowing as her eyes scanned the area, confused to find herself alone.

"Kagome?" Sango placed the now clean shirt over her drying kimono as she rose, concern beginning to lace her voice as she moved.

"Ahhhh…" Sango let out a little cry as Kagome's head broke through the surface of the water, her dark hair flipping back as Kagome tossed her head, beads of water cascading with the motion.

"Hmm?" Kagome's eyes blinked as she turned to see Sango's hand move to her chest. "Oh I'm sorry Sango, did I splash you?"

"No, no it's ok Kagome. You just startled me." Sango felt her chest ease as she watched Kagome swim towards her, her movements lazy against the smooth flow of the river.

"Oh no, I'm sorry!" Kagome gasped as she rose out of the river, shivering as the breeze brushed her skin.

"Don't worry about it," Sango smiled as she handed Kagome a dry kimono she had brought with them. "I was able to get your shirt clean, I still cannot believe how soft the fabric is, your weavers never cease to amaze me. How they get it so fine and soft, it must cost a fortune to replace."

"Oh I won't say it's cheap, but most fabric is like this in my era, there are… uhhh… new ways of weaving that make it faster." Kagome draped the kimono around herself gratefully, putting a barrier between her skin and the chill. A slight rustling of the bushes just beyond the river had her glancing over, a smile touching her lips as she caught the glint of gold amongst the green and caught a faint huff of breath.

Sango's soft chuckle had Kagome's cheeks flushing lightly, a knowing look in the older girl's eye as she looked between Kagome and the bushes. "We should get going," her voice was laced with amusement as she gathered her cleaning supplies, "the air is going to get cold and I for one look forward to sitting by the fire."

"Y…yeah." Kagome forced her attention away from where she knew Inuyasha waited, pausing only when she heard a brush of fabric against leaves moving away from the two girls as they made their way back to camp.

"I WANNA GO SEE KAGOME!" Shippo's voice reached the two women as they moved through the forest towards the camp that had been hastily set up.

"Sango and Kagome will be here soon, could you please help me get this fire started?"

"It's not fair Miroku, why couldn't I go with them."

"Because I cannot set the fire without assistance."

"You have Kirara though, or Inuyasha could help when he gets back from fishing."

"Fishing huh?" Sango whispered, shooting a glance to Kagome as they entered the clearing, Kagome's cheeks flushing at the word.

"KAGOME!" Shippo launched himself into her arms, chattering away about his adventures helping Miroku light the small fire that burned in the camp. Kagome laughed as he told her how he had fooled Miroku into thinking the fire was lit with his foxfire, only for it to fade as soon as Miroku had turned his back.

"It wasn't that funny." Miroku grumbled as he fed another branch onto the flames, his face turned suspiciously away from the ladies.

A snort from Kirara had Sango, Kagome and Shippo all laughing, the sound echoing through the trees.

It was a sound that Inuyasha had never once thought would sound so welcoming, laughter usually meant jeers and jests from the other children, but over the past year, it had come to be a welcoming sound. His eyes met Kagome's as he lifted the fish he had quickly caught after she had noticed him, the warmth of his cheeks caused by the… the fire, yeah.

Who was he kidding. Laughter now meant Kagome, and Kagome meant home.

He just needed the guts to tell her.

'After Naraku is dead,' he promised himself as he quickly got the fish onto stakes and put them over the fire.

Dinner was its usual loud and chaotic experience, with Inuyasha and Shippo arguing over the last fish, which was silently eaten by Kirara as the two had bickered over who deserved it more. Sango and Kagome's laughter was accompanied by Miroku's chuckle as the arguing pair turned and saw that the fish they were fighting over was no more.

"Oh kami, we needed that," Kagome giggled.

"I know what you mean, it's been so tense lately, ever since the last fight with Naraku and…" Sango's voice died off before she could say the name that sat on the tip of her tongue, Kagome's smile fading slowly.

"Yeah…" Kagome sighed as she stood, her eyes focused on the ground. Inuyasha shot Sango a glare that she sheepishly returned as Kagome grabbed her now dry uniform. "I'm gonna… I'm gonna go change." Kagome's voice was soft as she moved.

"I'm going to come with you!" Shippo announced as he gleefully jumped up, only to stop at the soft shake of Kagome's head.

"No Shippo, you stay here, I'll be right back."

"But Kagome…"

"Feh, you heard her runt." Inuyasha's eyes watched Kagome as she seemed to slump out of sight. He held back his sigh, he knew how she felt, yeah, losing Kikyo had stung, hell it had been the second time she had passed on. He still felt slightly guilty about kissing her, yeah, it had been her dying wish, and it had seemed like Kagome understood that, but… given he had never clarified things with Kagome about where she stood in his life…

His ears drooped as he kept his attention trained in Kagome's direction. That would be changing soon, he hoped. Hopefully they could kill Naraku, the bastard, and then he could focus on making sure Kagome never left his side.

His ears rose as he heard Kagome's footsteps grow in strength, the young miko finally coming into his visible range, once again clad in her familiar white shirt and green skirt. Yeah, he liked how she looked in clothing he was used to but, the uniform just suited her better. It always made him think of spring, of happiness, of Kagome, and now he felt weird seeing her in anything else. Her eyes briefly met his before flitting away, and he bit back a whine at how she seemed to be avoiding his gaze.

"I think I'm going to turn in guys," Kagome's voice was soft, her eyes focusing on the floor as she shuffled away from the group. "It's been a long day."

The sharp scent of her anguish burned Inuyasha's nose, his ears lowering once again. Yeah, it was probably his fault that even thinking about Kikyo caused that, but… A growl resonated in his chest as a new scent caught his attention, almost completely hidden by the almost lemony smell coming off Kagome. It teased his senses, both sweet and rancid at the same time, a scent he was not familiar with, but it almost smelled like…

As soon as he focused on the scent it was gone, no lingering trace left as if it had been a figment of his imagination. His nose twitched as he tried to isolate everything he he could pick up, the tang of the forest, the musky scent of Miroku as he reached out for Sango's cloth clad bottom, the sharp yuzu of Sango's anger as she slapped him, the familiar nightly routine doing nothing to settle Inuyasha's nerves. His golden eyes scanned the clearing, piercing into the darkness as far as he could as the hair on his ears rose, a clear sign of something being wrong, but he could not for the life of him figure out what. He couldn't feel any other yokai in the area, there were no scents that didn't belong except for that one, elusive scent he had caught before.

He lept into the nearest tree, wanting the high ground but not willing to be too far away from his friends, his pack, because something just wasn't right. HIs gaze landed on Kagome, his eyes softening as she turned, trying to get comfortable. He would watch over he… them, all night.

Inuyasha settled back into his tree branch, letting memories play through his head, moments with Kikyo, how awkward he had always felt, mixing with moments with Kagome, her smiles, her laughter, her hand in his, and how he always made her feel.

As lost in his thoughts as he was, it took more time than it should have for his brain to register the sounds that he was hearing… or more importantly, the sound he wasn't.

A loud shout startled Kagome out of her deep sleep, her brain foggy from being suddenly forced awake.

"What is it?" She murmured, her arms stretching as she turned onto her back. Her eyes opened to meet Inuyasha's fierce golden gaze, a look in them she had never seen. "Inuyasha?" She questioned, pushing herself into a sitting position. "What's wrong?"

Inuyasha dropped to the floor, his movements frantic as he scrambled towards her, the look in his eyes now turning into what she could only describe as pure panic.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome reached for him as she heard the others in the camp stirring, the murmurs of their questions as Inuyasha ran towards her. Her hand met his shoulder as Inuyasha ran through her, his gaze focused right behind her.

Wait…

Through her?

Kagome spun at Sango's soft scream, and felt a chill at the sight that lay before her.

Inuyasha knelt on the ground, cradling the still figure of a girl in his arms. His shoulders shook as he called down to her, the sound lost over the rushing Kagome heard in her head. Raven hair cascaded over Inuyasha's arm, and for a moment Kagome felt a ball of ice in her chest, suddenly afraid that once again Kikyo had been brought back from the afterlife. But the hair was different, familiar… too familiar. Her vision narrowed to the figure in red cradling the girl to him, the tortured sound of his voice so unlike anything she had ever heard from him before.

"KAGOME…" His words finally broke through the noise in her head and she gasped as his head tilted back with a loud roar and she got her first good glimpse of the girl he cradled.

Her own face stared back at her, her eyes open and unmoving.

Please don't hate us, just give it time.