Summary: Kagome couldn't help but regret agreeing to these terms. Ken was insufferable to deal with and they clashed most of the time. The trials of rearing a baby Kaiju might just be the one thing that can bring them closer together. Who could've ever figured?

Pairing: Ken/Kagome

Disclaimer: I do not own either series. Each belong to their rightful owners.

Chapter One

Insufferable. Frankly, it was the only way she could think to ever describe Ken Sato. He was insufferable and grating. Not only that, it seemed that she would never, ever see eye-to-eye with him. Why in the world did she ever agree to these terms in the first place? Surely, she must hate herself deep down to keep putting up with him.

At the start, she tried giving him the benefit of the doubt. He was new to the ropes, and he hadn't exactly been what one would call receptive to the idea, but there came a point where a line had to be drawn.

He seemed even more aware of her soured mood than usual, if his silence was any given indicator. Well, not just that, but she could sense the way he seemed to walk on eggshells around her, as if he was anticipating her frosty bite of ire. It'd yet to come, she was holding herself back to try and salvage some sort of connection between them.

On her phone, she scrolled through the news feed, her heart dropping when she met the news headline. From over her shoulder, Ken saw it as well, and he immediately turned away from her with a sigh. He lifted a hand to rub the back of his neck as her grip on her phone tightened a bit more. She felt him glance back at her, but she didn't mirror him.

"Okay, I know I messed up-"

"Do you really?" she cut him off before he could finish his poor attempt at damage control. She had yet to look at him since he got back. Her tone didn't betray her ire, only further cementing the dread Ken felt. She locked her phone and slipped it back into her pocket, her actions silent.

"Listen, if you're about to go off on a spiel, save it," he fired back. "My dad's better at guilt-tripping."

"Oh, so it's guilt-tripping now?" she remarked as she turned. It was immediate, the way he accounted for that one fatal mistake. He flinched at the tone, already dreading the beast that was her anger. "Did you even read it?" she asked. "What happened, that is?"

"Look," Ken brushed his bangs out of his face as he rubbed his eyes. "I really don't want to get into it." He found it hard to meet her icy stare. Her eyes, usually that warm blue shade, seemed hard to meet when she was so disappointed. Her eyes were like a mother's eyes. "I never wanted to do this in the first place, you know," he said. "I'm not cut out for it."

She was silent for a long moment after that. Somewhere along the dragged out minutes, he finally looked at her. There was something subdued in her eyes, something unidentifiable.

"Newsflash, sometimes we have to do things we don't want to," she stated in a tense voice. Her hands had tightened at her sides. "That's life. It's not fair, but you agreed to fill this role," she said. "It doesn't change the fact that it's a mantle you've agreed to take on. Simply resigning to say you're not fit for the cut isn't an option out," she stated. "You're selling yourself short giving in so easily."

She turned away from him. It left him feeling as though he'd made some drastic mistake in his choice of words, which, he knew he had. It could be so hard to talk to Kagome. She was impossible to read in the first place.

"Kagome, look, I-"

"You got hurt, didn't you?" she cut him off again with a slight change of subject. At the comment, he was reminded of the pain in his shoulder. She made her way away from him, her feet barely making any sound as she walked. "You should tend to it, then."

Seconds later, she was out of sight. Ken pressed his head into his hands with a groan.

He'd messed up. He'd messed up big time this time.

A glare lingered on her face as she vented her frustrations on the chopping board cutting up vegetables for curry. It was a few hours after she'd last spoken to the man who'd swiftly risen to be the bane of her existence in the short time she'd known him. He'd avoided her, which she was appreciative of given the circumstances.

She could've helped him tend to his wounded shoulder, but she'd decided to let him make with his own devices for now. As upset as she might be, she didn't stop caring entirely, which was why she'd decided to cook dinner for the two of them. Angry or not, she still cared.

On some level.

Something about what he'd said remained imprinted in her head. It was hard to ignore, and it was even harder to forget.

"... we don't all have the luxury to choose the path we take," she murmured, her grip tightening on the knife she held as a more gloomy shadow settled in her eyes. She thought back to her life, and how she'd been quite literally forced into a situation that nearly killed her over and over again. She couldn't help but be a little infuriated with him after it all.

She never had a choice, it seemed. Even now, she found herself drawn to inhuman matters. It seemed the one purpose she had. If she wanted to resume an ordinary life, she didn't even know where to ever begin. Especially since she was stuck with the jewel.

She stirred the pot on the stove before leaning to rest her weight against the counter beside her. She lifted her hands to cover her eyes as she sighed.

It was quiet for several minutes. That peaceful silence was soon broken by the sound of someone entering the kitchen. Promptly they froze in the doorway upon catching sight of her.

She lowered her hands and lifted her gaze, blue eyes catching a pair much deeper than her own. There was silence between them that seemed to drag out for almost an eternity. After a long while, Kagome sighed.

She should've known by now that if anyone was gonna be the bigger person, then it had to be her. She turned, reaching to lower the heat on the stove before stepping away from it entirely.

"How's your shoulder?" she asked. She could tell even without his vocal response that it was still bothering him. He held a hand up in a flippant wave, and she arched a brow.

"It's fine, all fine," he responded. Her expression told him very well just how easily she saw through it. "Okay, it hurts a lot," he admitted with a defeated sigh. Kagome rolled her eyes and walked off down the hall. She was gone for only a few minutes before she returned with a small, round container. Upon reaching him, she promptly held it out for him to take. "What's this?" Ken asked, looking it over curiously. He twisted the cap off, spotting a pink-tinted cream inside.

"It's a balm," she responded. "It's one I made," she continued. She folded her arms across her chest as she leaned back against the wall. "When it hurts, you put it on. It'll numb it a bit, but it'll absorb through the skin."

"You made it?" he repeated. Kagome nodded. "Since when can you do that?"

"I can do a lot of things," she responded in a flat tone. "I have several for different needs."

"Huh…" Ken looked at it for a few more seconds before lifting his gaze back up to her own. "Thanks," he finally managed. Kagome shrugged and turned back to the stove.

"I don't want you getting hurt," she stated. "Be more careful, okay?"

"I will be," he managed a quiet response.

It was good enough, Kagome decided. She reached for the spoon she'd been using to stir the pot on the stove, stirring it once more to prevent it from burning any. "It'll be ready soon, if you're hungry."

Ken sighed in relief at her words. "Oh, thank god. I thought you were pissed enough to take your cooking away."

Kagome stifled a faint laugh as she glanced at him. "Now that's a tempting thought."

"Wait, no, no, no," Ken held his hands up in a sign of peace. "Let's not get crazy here."

Kagome arched a brow before turning back towards the stove. "Go put some of that balm now. It's obvious you're shoulders killing you."

Her comment was the definitive push that had him walking off. As he left, she sighed and shook her head.

He was frustrating and could get on her nerves like no other, but she still cared about him.

Auroua-chan: I absolutely loved this movie. Emi's such a cutie and Kagome's best mom.

Kagome and Ken don't have the best relationship by far right now, but that'll change. She's more of a guide at this point. His feelings for her, however, aren't known. He hates letting her down, however.

Anyway, that's it for now! Thank you all for reading and I hope you all enjoyed. Hopefully I caught all the errors before posting, but if not sorry.

Please remember to Review&Favorite&Follow, thank you!

Bye for now~