"Scentless?" Kagome held up the bottle. Inuyasha leaned forward to sniff cautiously. The other patrons of the store eyed them curiously. Her white-haired hanyou shook his head. She reached for another bottle and popped the cap. His nose wrinkled less and he nodded slightly. Pot's Allergenic Shampoo was added to her cart with the lady's razors and bland shaving cream. Explaining the purpose of those items had only been slightly embarrassing, after she had explained why she removed the hair from her legs, where she removed the hair, that it was normal in her era, that it wasn't weird and letting him drop into a crouch to peer at her calves. In the middle of the store.
"What's this?" Inuyasha picked up another jar. His eyes were bright.
"Leave-in conditioner." Kagome explained the restorative properties of the cream. Inuyasha shrugged and replaced the item.
"Hey Sis! Need these?" Her younger brother turned the aisle. Her face turned bright red as she realized he was holding a package of tampons above his head and doing a little dance. An elderly woman passed them with a disapproving look. Fury at her little brother raced through her veins. Inuyasha stepped away carefully, years of experience warning him she was about to throttle someone.
"Souta, stop that!" Agreeing to take her little brother shopping, to spend time together, instantly seemed like a foolish idea. "What are you doing? What if your friends saw you?"
"Don't you want your GIRL things?" Souta beamed gleefully. The malicious twinkle in his eye couldn't be quashed.
"Do you even know what those are? Give me those!" Kagome made a grab for his arm but he spun out of the way.
"Ha ha! Catch me!" Souta sprinted down the next aisle. Kagome turned to Inuyasha. The hanyou exhaled but moved faster down the opposite direction. She heard the boy's protest as Inuyasha caught him.
"Be-have!" Inuyasha ordered quietly. Her little brother was tucked underneath his arm by the waist, letting his legs dangle. The little blue package covered with daisies and words like 'extra large' and 'heavy flow' were in large flowery script. She noted the wariness in the male's eyes as he offered them to her, as if something dangerous was about to erupt, as if he knew. She accepted it humbly and pushed it to the back of an empty shelf.
Inuyasha easily held her brother though the checkout line. The little beeps and boops interested her fiancee. The little paper scrolling out of the machine caught his eye. She thanked the annoyed cashier and handed over the yen. Paper money still confused Inuyasha and it tore easily in his hands. She took the bags. The electronic doors opened into the street as she began to recover from the traumatic ordeal.
"Mom said we could get ice cream!" Souta remembered his motivation for obeying their rules.
"After acting up like that?" Kagome grit her teeth. Inuyasa set him on his feet with one hand.
"I was just playing! You should have seen your face!" Souta grinned.
"I'm going to tell ALL of your friends you were dancing around with tampons." Kagome hissed.
"I'll tell Inuyasha what tampons DO." Souta countered. The bewildered hanyou looked between them. Kagome grit her teeth as she briefly imagined Inuyasha's reaction, if Souta even recited the right facts. Any number of horrifying words came to mind.
"What do you want?" Kagome bent forward, resting her hands on her knees. I'm not ready to explain THAT to Inuyasha. Not on the street in broad daylight!
"I want triple scoops and whipped cream and a piggyback ride." Souta crossed his arms. "Inuyasha promised but he forgot. I want him to take me to school, like he takes you."
"Kagome – "
"Once." Kagome held up her finger.
"Five!"
"Two!"
"Three!" Souta's voice rang with finality.
"...deal." Kagome extended her hand. Her sibling shook her hand happily. It occurred to her that her little brother's act might have been intentional, to blackmail her. As he marched over to Inuyasha and tugged on his coat, she internally steeled herself for a challenging afternoon. The purpose of the little plastic cylinders would have to be disclosed sooner than later before the little extortionist could get something costly. She clasped her hands pleadingly. Souta happily climbed on his new big brother's crouched back, holding onto his shoulders.
There was no ice cream in the Feudal Era. Kagome asked for a sample of vanilla and handed Inuyasha the little stick. The clean, white shop was run by a pretty widow who prayed at the shrine, on occasion, and seemed hesitant to give Souta three scoops instead of his usual two. Kagome restated the order. Inuyasha's ears flickered cutely as his mouth closed around the stick. She beamed as he licked his lips.
"A double cone of vanilla, a double cone of chocolate."
The little stone wall outside accommodated them as they enjoyed their treat. Inuyasha was focused on his little cup, ridiculously dainty in his powerful hands. His sharp claws rested on the side of the little paper cup. The little indentations showed from where they had pierced the thin paper. He cursed as the melting cream started to leak down the sides. Kagome wrapped the cup in another layer of napkins and wiped his hands. The affection in his eyes touched her heart.
"It's good, isn't it?" Kagome raised his sticky hand to her mouth and kissed the side of his thumb.
"Y-yeah." Inuyasha cleared his throat. His eyes held hers for a tender moment before they shifted away. He rested the cup in the flat of his hand and dropped his head so that his bangs hid his eyes. She leaned against his side comfortable as she played with the spoon in her mouth, sucking every bit of goodness from the plastic. The back of her heels bounced against the stone gently. The relative warmth of the day and Inuyasha's presence was doing wonders to improve her mood. Feeling his arm and leg pressed against hers was comfortable.
This could almost be a date, if we were alone.
"Are you going to – " Souta noted their cuddling and puckered his lips. Immature kissing sounds turned Inuyasha red. The middle school kid had greedily eaten his ice cream. Standing on the sidewalk, he wrapped his arms around his chest and swiveled. "Remember when you used to kiss your teddy bear? Oh, Inuyasha! Kiss me!"
"You little freak!" Kagome jumped off the stone. Her kid brother tore down the grass that separated the ice cream shop from the little park. She circled around the merry-go-round, determined to catch the little creep. He was still making those kissing sounds!
Inuyasha's leg bounced wildly as he waited outside the home. Kagome's mother had caught him in the doorway and practically shoved him outside with strict instructions to wait nearby, no exploration. He sat on the top of the front steps, his weight resting on his arms, his hands flattened against the cool stone. He wasn't sure what the human was up to. It was ridiculous to force him outside. Heightened senses told him that the matron, his future mother-in-law, was doing something unusual. The screech of wooden legs protesting. The thump as furniture settled. The stink of something wafted from Kagome's open windows into the clean air. Even at a distance, the heavy fumes had gifted him with an aching head.
Kagome turned the corner and began the climb up the stairs. He didn't budge from his lounging position. She stopped once she was only a few stairs below, a concerned wrinkle forming between her eyes.
"Inuyasha?"
"Your mother won't let me in the house." The clatter of something metal concerned him before he heard Mama Higurashi mumbling to herself.
"Did you break something?"
"I haven't done anything! I went to see Kaede while you were at orientation and she pushed me!"
"What is she doing?" Kagome noticed the movement in her bedroom. The girl let out an immediate squeak and threw her backpack at his chest. The weight knocked the wind from him temporarily. Long, lean legs disappeared in an all-out sprint as the human girl crashed against her front door, calling for her mother. The banging against the wooden steps issued distinctive creaks as Kagome raced up the stairs. He turned on the steps as he heard the panic in his intended's voice.
"Mama, what are you doing!"
"We discussed the changes. Isn't it lovely?" Kagome's mother even sounded like she was smiling. A satisfied little breath escaped into the open window. Inuyasha nearly retched as the fumes thickened on the wind.
"I would have helped you."
"I wanted to surprise you with the work done! Isn't this a darling chair?" There was another small collision as something moved. "There's a drawer for Inuyasha's clothing and your grandfather installed the sword display. Your old bed is in storage now. Ooh – the mattress is still propped against the back door."
"Mom!" Embarrassed agony filled Kagome's voice.
"What is it? Oh." Kagome's mother went silent. The tension in the air set Inuyasha's hackles on end. The smell of sweat and guilt had his ears rotating forward. "I wasn't thinking. I just bought a few things. I wasn't sure what he wears."
Things? Inuyasha thought. His familiarity with Kagome allowed him to picture her pink cheeks and tight fists. The girl's trembling stomach as she fought against herself.
"Mom!" Kagome's angry whisper still reached his ears.
"He wears underwear, doesn't he?" The matron's exasperation burst forth. "I've shopped for your father and grandfather and brother. When I picked up the pants –"
Underwear? Inuyasha wasn't familiar with the word.
"Have I overstepped?" The woman became thoughtful. "It was habit. Would you rather take him to the shops? Underwear is an odd gift from your mother-in-law, isn't it?"
"Yes!" The words burst out. "Yes it is!"
Inuyasha grabbed the bag and landed on the windowsill in two bounds. He pressed his sleeve against his nose as the fumes threatened to make him sick. Kagome squeaked and hurried to cover something on her desk with a bag. Metal cans sat in the open doorway. Kagome's mother was dressed in an apron splattered with colors. He blinked as the fumes stung his eyes. A new frame without a mattress had been assembled. A cloth chair waited in the hall, square and with seams along the middle. Her bedroom walls had been repainted a pale cream. Twin hooks on the wall were at the correct distance for a sword. Kagome's dresser had been repainted to match the longer bed. He stared in amazement as the women continued to sort themselves out.
Kagome's mother actually did it. She changed her bedroom.
