She wasn't sure how long she had before Sesshoumaru returned, but she knew she wouldn't be able to hide it once he did, so Kagome forewent sleep in favour of finishing it as quickly as possible.

Inuyasha was strangely accommodating when it came to the task; he kept the fire burning into the night so she could see the stitching and didn't gripe when it took her longer to get going in the morning.

Maybe he was more in tune with youkai traditions than she thought.

Or maybe he just didn't want to get into a fight with his brother.

She smiled at the thought; the last time they'd actually come to blows was when she'd found out about Sesshoumaru's disguise. It wasn't the best memory, but Inuyasha's willingness to take on the daiyoukai simply to keep her safe lightened the load.

Turning her head, she caught Inuyasha's gaze from his perch in the tree. A brow rose in question, and she mouthed, 'I love you' so as not to wake the children sleeping at her feet. His cheeks turned pink, ears twitching madly, but he leaned back against the tree. "Kinda weird for you to be sayin' so when you're working on that," he whispered.

She shrugged, then went back to her sewing. "It's different."

"Keh, I sure hope so. I don't feel like havin' his claws go through my chest again."

Shippou and Rin stirred but didn't wake, turning over on their sides, hands still clasped together. She waited until their breathing evened out before replying. "He wouldn't do that."

Another snort ruffled his bangs. "The only reason the wolf left in one piece is 'cause you were already cuttin' him down."

"It was a composed discussion—"

"—and he hadn't touched you." Kagome scowled up at him, but he just shrugged. "There's a difference. The wolf was just runnin' his mouth, so he wasn't a threat."

She pursed her lips, wanting to argue to point, but the image of Sesshoumaru's reaction when she'd put on the helix crossed her mind, and she bit her tongue.

Death was one thing. Being stolen by someone else was another.