Kagome yawns as she dries her hair with the cream-colored towel. Her lavender pajamas, a simple short sleeve top with what she suspects is the Gojo clan symbol on the front, and shorts, is like heaven on her skin. The silk material is far more kind than the rough priestess robes she wore while in the past.

Not that she blames Kaede. No, she blames Satoru for constantly gifting her silks and finer fabrics over the years.

Kagome blows out a breath. She is becoming a snob like him. That just will not do. She lays the towel around her shoulders and opens her door.

Kagome stops and blinks. What is Satoru doing here? Doesn't he know what time it is? It's far too late, far too dark out, for an impromptu visit.

"Satoru? Does Dad know you're here?"

He sets the book down, off to the side. Kagome squints. Who reads a math textbook for fun? She closes the door and sits down on her chair since he is taking up most of her bed. His legs hang off. She swears Satoru stretches out more and more every time she sees him.

"I don't need his permission to come and see you."

"But it's late. What if something happens on your way home?"

"I am home," he quips, patting the bed. Satoru picks up the textbook and scoots closer to the wall. "Come on, I can help you with your homework."

Kagome squints, not quite a glare, but what is his angle? Is he trying to spend the night? Sure, he's slept over lots of times, but she's 15 now and he's 14. They aren't little kids anymore. Should they still be sharing a bed?

Maybe he plans to go to Sota's room to sleep? Or maybe he'll sleep downstairs on the couch. Though his clothes are in her closet.

"If I study on the bed, I'll fall asleep." She tosses the towel into the hamper and reaches for her comb, detangling the strands from ends to roots.

Satoru scoffs and slides off the bed. His shirt rises and Kagome turns her head away. He sets the textbook down on the desk and tugs the chair back.

"What are you doing?" Kagome sets the comb down and cranes her neck upward. Satoru glances down at her. Have his eyelashes always been so full?

"Sit in my lap. You only have one chair and I am not standing the whole time," he says, but he reaches for her and plucks her out of the chair and onto his lap before she can open her mouth.

Kagome leans back against him. He picks up a pencil and reaches for her notebook. "What don't you understand?"

Kagome blows out a breath. "Everything. It's all a bunch of mumbo jumbo in my head." She blows out another breath, shifting a bit in his lap. "And there's a test next week that I am not ready for. We went over a lot during the time I was gone."

Thank Kami, the girls grabbed her homework for her, or she would have been even more lost.

Satoru grunts. His fingers tightened around the pencil. Has his fingers always been that long?

"Satoru?"

"Yeah? I'm fine. I just…don't go back there again. Don't even go near that well."

Kagome blinks. If he squeezes that pencil any more, it will surely snap. "I have no plans to go back. InuYasha is more than capable of handling things."

"Inu…Yasha?"

She turns her head. He presses his face closer. "Half demon. He kinda saved me from that centipede demon. The one that pulled me down the well."

She has no plans on ever going back down the well. InuYasha was so rude and nasty to her, even after she freed him from the tree. You would think that InuYasha would have been a little more appreciative.

"You shouldn't depend on other guys," he mumbles, writing out a math problem. His handwriting is neat. Meticulous. His writing is usually awful like chicken scratch.

Oh.

Kagome worries her bottom lip. He's writing neatly for her benefit.

"It was either accept his help or get crushed to death." Kagome holds out her hands in front of her. "I wouldn't have been able to kill that thing alone."

"I don't believe that," Satoru says. "You came to my rescue, after all."

"You didn't need my help back then," she grumbles, picking up another pencil. She sticks her tongue out to the side as she works the next problem.

"I always need my wife."

Kagome flushes. "Idiot," she mutters. "We never got married."

Satoru hums as he corrects her work. "You want to solve it like this. The way your teacher is showing you is convoluted for no reason."

Huh? His way is simpler. Kagome works through the next problems in silence. Satoru's heartbeat is strong. Her heart rate spikes as it tries to match his.

She likes his song. The tempo. She'll never tell him that. He'll joke and tell her she's a creeper for liking the sound of his heartbeat.

Kagome yawns as she sags against him. Her brain is so done. She needs sleep.

"Tired?" he asks, organizing the notebook and textbook into a neat stack.

She nods.

Satoru wraps an arm around her and scoots back. He picks her up and sets her down on the bed. "Be right back," he says, walking out the door.

Be right back?

Kagome's brows furrow together as she gets under the cover. Satoru returns and hits the light.

"What are you doing?" She whispers.

"Sleeping." He slides under the cover and tucks her to his chest. "I'll sleep on the outside just in case."

"Just in case what?" She fists his shirt.

"In case InuYasha shows up and thinks he can take you from me," he says. "Now sleep."

Kagome rolls her eyes. He's lucky she's too tired to think of a retort. She closes her eyes and exhales.

Satoru smells nice.

His heartbeat slows down, and hers does the same as sleep calls her name.

Snap!

Kagome blinks and rubs at her eyes as she pulls away. Oh…gross, she drooled in her sleep.

"I'mma kill you," Satoru grumbles.

Kagome startles. Is he talking about her? Is it because she got drool on his shirt?

"Why are you even here?" Satoru asks.

Kagome blinks and then turns her head. Mom stands there with a camera in hand and…what is Dad doing here? She glances at the window. It's so early? Did he come over first thing? She looks back at him and squints.

He's wearing a robe, though. And so is Mama.

"Get dressed and come downstairs for breakfast," Dad says, crossing his arms. He glares at Satoru. "And you're going on missions with me today."

Satoru yawns. "Come on, Kagome —"

"Separate!" Dad cuts in.

Mom lowers the camera and covers her hand with her mouth. "Oh dear, you two can't take showers together anymore."

Satoru frowns. "It's just Kagome."

"Get up," Dad barks, "Outside, now."

Kagome shrinks back and frowns. She's never heard Dad get mad. She chances a glance at Satoru, but he seems unfazed. Satoru looks at her and smiles. He brushes her hair back and then slides out of the bed.

"Damn, you're grumpy in the morning," Satoru quips as he follows Dad out of the room.

Kagome fists the cover. "Did Satoru and I do something wrong?"

"Yes and no," Mom says, sitting on the bed. "You're getting older, so it's not appropriate for you two to take baths together or…sleep in the same bed."

Kagome frowns. "I wasn't going to wash up with him, but we just slept."

"I know, which is why I'm not yelling at you." She tilts her head to the side. "Have we not had the talk yet?"

Kagome's ears burn. "That's embarrassing! I don't need the talk." She looks at the wall. "And it's Satoru! He's…just Satoru."

Mom hums. "Right, of course. He's Satoru to you. Not brother like he is to Sota." She sighs. "I won't force you to have the talk right now, but when you're ready…after you're married…"

"Got it." Kagome pulls back the cover and stretches her arms. "So, I can't ever sleep in the same bed with Satoru."

"I would prefer if you two waited until you're married or at the least when you're adults."

Kagome wrinkles her nose. "If we're married, why would we be in the same bed? Isn't that cheating?"

"Cheating? Not if you're married to each other."

Kagome scoffs. "Satoru isn't being serious. He's just…being silly."

"I wouldn't be too sure about that." Mom stands. "When you're older, I'll share this picture with you." She waves the camera in her hand. "Now come on, you do have school. And I need to get Sota up."

Kagome scratches her cheek. What the heck does that mean? Satoru isn't serious. She's seen movies. The guy always gets down on one knee and he asks, doesn't demand.

She's never even seen Satoru on his knees.

Kagome sighs as she makes her way to the bathroom. Fresh out of the shower and dressed in her school uniform, she still can't make sense of her mom's words.

She walks down the steps and freezes.

Shouting?

That sounds like InuYasha.

Oh craaaaap! InuYasha and Satoru together.

She rushes down the stairs to InuYasha clawing at Satoru, but his attacks aren't getting past infinity. "InuYasha! Sit Boy!"

Satoru's head snaps to her. Sota pokes InuYasha's shoulder. Dad has an arm wrapped around Mom, and Gramps is staring at his stack of sutras in his hand.

"Oi! The hell ya do that for?" InuYasha jumps. Something glints on his clothes. What the heck is that?

"What are you doing here? And what the heck are all those strands on you?" Kagome walks over and plucks a strand.

Ouch.

"Stupid!" InuYasha grumbles. "You're—Oi!"

Satoru pushes InuYasha out of the way and grabs her finger. "You're bleeding," he says, frowning.

"It's only a small cut." She sighs. "Umm, Mom? What are you doing?"

"I can't believe his ears are real! They are so cute," Mom gushes.

Kagome swallows. Oh, Dad looks pissed.

InuYasha stammers, "Course they're real." He takes a step back. "Kagome, we gotta go. I can't see the strands, but you can, and Kaede is too old and useless."

"Absolutely not." Satoru tenses.

"InuYasha, can I touch your ears next?" Sota asks, bouncing.

InuYasha rolls his eyes, but bends down. "Kagome, we gotta go. That bitch has a shard. I can't kill her if I don't know where the shard is."

Kagome sucks her teeth.

"No," Satoru says.

"I got to. If I don't go, a lot of people might die."

"People die every day."

"Satoru!"

"But those people aren't you. I can't lose you. I'm not willing to risk your life for those people." He stares at her and doesn't blink. Not once.

Kagome sucks in a breath and exhales. "I promised to always come back to you. And I will. But these people need my help. I can't ignore them." She nods her head at InuYasha. "He's a bit rough around the edges, but he doesn't want the villagers killed, either."

"Keh." InuYasha walks over to them. "I'll keep her safe."

Satoru's lip curls. "If one stand is out of place, I will feed you your own intestines."

"…I think big brother is mad," Sota whispers, but it may as well be his normal talking volume.

InuYasha stares back at Satoru, unflinching. "Let's go, Kagome."

Satoru hugs her and then lets her go. "I'll be here when you get back."

Kagome smiles and boops his nose. "I'll see you in a few." She waves goodbye to everyone else and rushes out of the house.

The faster they get this over with, the faster she can come home and put Satoru at ease.

A/N: Feeling a little better, though I'm still pretty congested. Gonna work on the other talk that needs to happen in One night. Tentative plan is to have that uploaded this weekend and if not then early next week. And then the next update will be How To Tame. Sesshomaru is so done with everyone for allowing Sukuna to take over Naraku's body.

Stay safe. Take your vitamins and drink lots of water. I'm gonna drink some tea because drinking tea makes me think I'm getting better when I'm sick. And stay awesome!

P.s I saw there have been a lot of Inu x JJk fanfics popping up and that makes me sooo happy.