InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ A Prayer for Loneliness (Continued on this account) ❯ Those Quiet, Peaceful Days ( Chapter 2 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Lacrymosa 
Adjustments and the calm before the storm.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Angst | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 10.15.2006 | Updated On: 10.15.2006 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.6K | Visits: 209 | Status: Work In Progress
Adjustments and the calm before the storm.
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Angst | Type: Continuation | Uploaded On: 10.15.2006 | Updated On: 10.15.2006 | Pages: 2 | Words: 3.6K | Visits: 209 | Status: Work In Progress
NOTE! PLEASE READ THIS! : This Fan-fic is being continued on this account, this is where updates will go for new chapters and what-not.
Disclaimer: Inuyasha and other characters mentioned in this Fan-fic aren't mine, and they most likely never will be.
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My life closed twice before its close;
It yet remains to see
If Immortality unveil
A third event to me,
So huge, so hopeless to conceive,
As these that twice befell.
Parting is all we know of heaven,
And all we need of hell
-Emily Dickinson
It took awhile to adjust to everything first.
Things were different, though Kagome never had any doubts that they wouldn't be. How could they not? It was difficult enough for her to grasp the concept of Naraku actually being dead, why not add more confusion to her hectic life? She was busy, she had never thought that life in a feudal village would be so time consuming. Kagome vaguely wondered how it had slipped past her recognition, she had been in plenty of villages before. Maybe it had been her youth, her innocence, her stubborn illusion that life was good, and God forbid for it to actually be hard.
Or maybe it was simply because she had never actually been required to do any hard work. She was usually treated as a guest in whatever village she came to. And it's not like Inuyasha had ever really made her do anything during their travels.
After the wish had been made, it had been nothing but hard work, whether Kagome like it or not.
Without his youkai strength, she hadn't expected Inuyasha to do any arduous tasks without help. Usually Miroku was quite enthusiastic to help, but mostly was source of constant entertainement. Sometimes other villagers would come to help on their spare time.
A house was to come first. Sango and Miroku had already begun to construct theirs, it was more on the outskirts of the village, where Sango kept up her youkai-slaying services to the village. Inuyasha and Kagome chose the site for their home not very far away from them, mostly for the sake of being close to friends. Kagome had know little of actually building a house, and she refused to let Inuyasha do it on his own. This was where the villagers came in handy, they had always been eager to help them in any way that they could. Kagome could tell that Inuyasha wasn't exactly thankful for their aid. He didn't like being needy.
Yes, adjustments were certainly in order.
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"Hey! Let me help! I can do some things too, you know!"
Up on the roof of their half finished house, Inuyasha busied himself with easing the beams of wood into place. Instead of his familiar fire-rat kimono, he was dressed in something a little plainer, more appropriate for hard work. His expression was twisted in apparent disapproval and annoyance. Kagome had been nagging at him all day, and as usual he had refused to let her help build the house in any way. But she wanted to help. She hated the fact that she could just sit and be lazy all day while Inuyasha worked himself crazy for the house to be finished as soon as possible.
"Keh. Yeah right. You can mess something up pretty good, can't you?" He sneered back at her, trying to sound as contempt as he could. He could have used the help though. He would never admit it, but the days of working had begun to take their toll on him. The villagers who had been so convinced at helping him had left hours ago, too worn out to help him any longer. He was tired too, but he couldn't stop. If he acknowledged his weakness, it would only get worse, he knew.
Kagome huffed up at him, disgust playing on every feature of her face. Did he have to be so difficult? She wasn't that clumsy! She huffed again and placed her hands on her hips in a stance of determination. She wasn't going to be put off that easily.
Inuyasha rolled his eyes at the sight. The afternoon sun gleamed off the beads of sweat on his forehead, and he raised his hand in an effort to wipe it off before it dripped in his eyes. The day was unusually hot, for last few days they sky had been cloudy and foreboding, a violent wind gusting up to tear and pull at whatever got in it's way. Winter was coming, and autumn had come earlier then usual. He wanted the house done being built before the weather took a nasty turn, he wasn't looking forward to sleeping outside in the rain, and he sure as hell wasn't going to ask Miroku and Sango for shelter. He didn't want to interrupt anything, as Miroku had so bluntly put it. Of course, Inuyasha wasn't in the habit of actually listening to someone who seemed to have a permanent red mark on his face. Tokens of appreciation from Sango, so he presumed.
Kagome still was't leaving. He was getting annoyed. Didn't she know the meaning of the word no? Inuyasha cocked his head and looked at her square in the eyes. His temper flared.
"Remember what happened last time? It took an extra day to fix all the damage that you caused!"
Kagome cheeks abruptly felt warmer, and she knew that she was probably reddening slightly at the memory. Because of her folly, but mainly her inexperience, a main beam of the house had collapsed, nearly crushing her at the same time. It had been a shocking experience for her, and Inuyasha had immediately refused to let her help any more, and had even forbidden her to come near the house until it was done. Obviously, a fight had been closely followed by the incident, and ended with Kagome stalking away in a frenzy, leaving Inuyasha alone to figure out just what exactly he had done wrong.
But it had been her fault. Kagome sighed, knowing that Inuyasha was right. A frown puckered her lips as she looked up once more to look at Inuyasha. He looked exhausted, but she wouldn't tell him that directly. She knew how touchy he was about showing how he really felt, but she wasn't about to just let him keep working. He had been at it all day, even when all the rest of the villagers had left from the sheer heat of the sun on their backs. Frankly, she was amazed at his stamina on the matter. He really wanted this house to be finished, didn't he?
Still up on the roof, Inuyasha resumed whatever work he had been doing before Kagome had so rudely interrupted him, engrossing himself in whatever mundane task he could find. He was trying to ignore her and it was starting to get on Kagome's nerves. She breathed in and out slowly, trying to calm herself. No good. Okay, she thought, let's try counting backwards from ten. Okay...
Ten.
Nine.
Eight...
Damn.
Ka gome looked up at Inuyasha's hunched form on the roof, trying to decide what to do. She raised up her hand to shield her eyes from the sun's vicious glare, and it's heat was so strong that she could feel it on the back of her hand. Despite her thin summer kimono, she was almost unbearably hot. Kagome couldn't remember ever being this hot, even in modern-day Tokyo where the temperatures tended to reach impossible heights. She couldn't imagine how hot Inuyasha must be, not only was he on top of the roof for God's sake, but he also had that thick blanket of jet-black hair that hung around his shoulders. Was he trying to suffer from heat stroke? No wonder he was the only one to keep working on the house, the heat was unbearable out here. Most of the villagers were in the shade, trying to cool down. Suddenly Kagome couldn't remember why she had been so angry at him. He just didn't want her to get hurt, didn't he?
"Inuyasha."
If he still had those adorable dog ears, Kagome thought that they probably would have twitched when she said his name. He gave the impression that he was pretending to not listen to her.
"Inuyasha."
He looked genuinely interested now. Or irritated. One of the two, but usually if he was interested in something, it made him irritable, so the two were interchangeable. He sighed. Already his defenses were wearing thin.
"What the hell do you want, bitch?"
Ignoring his profanity (she had gotten used to it by now, anyways) she just gave him a piercing look and replied tersely that he was to come down and give the house a rest already. She saw him roll his eyes at her, giving her the stoic reply of shrugging his shoulders. Goddamn! That wasn't like him at all. She continued, starting to get exasperated.
"Aren't you going to even say something? It's burning hot out here! You're going to collapse if you keep this up!"
"Keh."
"I'm serious! The house can wait! You don't want to get heat stroke, do you?"
"I'm not so fucking weak that something stupid like that would happen to me. Stop your worrying."
"INUYASHA!"
He cringed, and Kagome gave a small smile of satisfaction. She forced herself to relax before she spoke to him again. She was starting get really hot out here, and was anxious to get out of the sun. She was even panting a little. Once again it amazed her how well he was seeming to cope with heat. It was unbearable. She didn't notice how much her feet were trembling, how they seemed unable to find purchase on the ground.
Up on the roof, Inuyasha went from irritated to concerned in about 5 seconds, a puzzled expression clouding over his face. Kagome had become strangely quiet for someone who had just been yelling at him. He pulled himself over to the ledge of the roof, trying to get a better view of her. Immediately his concern became more severe. She was quivering violently, her face a very scarlet red. He vaulted himself off the roof, taking long quick steps to reach her before she toppled over.
Kagome felt warm hands grasp her shoulders before she even realized who it was who held her. She was only aware that she no longer felt so disoriented, but more steady on her feet. One shaking hand reached up to grasp more tightly at what it was that held her up. Her hand came in contact with the rough fabric of a threadbare kimono, her fingers brushing gently against the hard muscle underneath. She lifted her head to peer at the flashing eyes of Inuyasha, who was glaring down at her in mock anger, and maybe even faint flickers of concern.
"What the hell is your fucking problem? Don't you enough to take care of yourself?"
Maybe not so much the concern. He then proceeded by practically dragging her by the arm to the nearest tree.
"Sit here and don't move!" Pressing down firmly on her shoulders, Inuyasha laid her against the rough bark. With an exhausted sigh, Kagome let her knees collapse and reclined her head against the tree. The shade was a welcome change from the burning sun, and she could already feel her body temperature dropping. She felt much more grounded now that her dizzy spell was over. She closed her eyes and then lifted them gently to peer through her dark lashes. A frown puckered on her forehead. Inuyasha looked like he was about to leave.
Before Inuyasha could walk away and just leave her there, Kagome gripped the sleeve of his kimono and tugged firmly. He stopped abruptly, turned around, his head cocked to the side in a puzzled expression. She graced him with an amused smile. He still looked just like a puppy, despite the absence of his silver-white hair and silky ears.
Kagome shifted to the side a bit and gestured to the spot beside her.
"Come sit with me."
The quizzical expression faded to understanding, and Kagome noticed the tell-tale softening of his eyes. But, surprisingly, he didn't sit down beside her like she expected, but crouched down in front of her. Kagome watched with wide eyes as he slowly raised his hand to cradle her chin. His eyes were wide and searching, as if was trying to find the answer to a question that was hidden in her eyes.
Kagome felt a questions form on her lips, but before she could say anything, he whispered, "Okay."
Inuyasha slowly withdrew his hand and then eased himself down beside her. Kagome raised her hands to caress her chin, the soft imprint that his fingers left there. They seeped through her skin, weaving thin, penetrating trails of ice through her veins. She brought her hand down from her chin and placed it on his, the coolness of his hands soothing the flushed skin of her own. She let a sigh escape her, gently, and relaxed, lounging her head against his shoulder. She felt, or maybe even imagined his hand tightening protectively around hers. It was a comforting thought, that he was there to watch over her. It's nice... just to be here with him..., she thought wistfully.
"I love you," she whispered in his ear.
"I love you too."
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Winter came even sooner then expected.
Torrential rains tore at the newly built walls of Inuyasha and Kagome's hut only a few days after it had been finished. Kagome was actually quite happy with how the house had turned out, and Inuyasha's eyes gleamed with a blunt satisfaction. Yes, it certainly was putting up with it well, considering that the winds weren't usually so violent. Kagome, however, was just grateful that she had something hard and strong between her and the unforgiving weather. Whenever she left the hut, the rain pelted down on her like a thousand needles, piercing through her clothes and pounding against her skin. She was always soaking wet when she returned. Kagome had finally decided that she hated rain.
The rain continued for three days.
The first day wasn't so bad, that rain had just begun to drizzle in the afternoon and few dark clouds had began to marshal themselves along the horizon. Kagome had left to spend the rest of the day with Kaede to continue her education in the many tasks of being a miko. Kagome suspected that Kaede expected her to take
her place when she died. Mostly the lessons were on healing, something that Kagome was eager to learn and seemed to be fairly good at it anyway. She wanted to help people.
The rain had begun to take a nasty turn by the time she had returned home. She was surprised to see that dinner was already being made ( after much nagging from Inuyasha she had brought back an entire stash of instant ramen noodles,) but she was even more surprised to see that Miroku and Sango had decided to join them. She was glad to see her friends, she hadn't had much time to talk to either of them in the past few days, but she wished that they had chosen a different time to pop in. She suspected that she looked like a little less than a disaster, her hair flying in every direction out of it's loose ponytail, her kimono wrinkled and dirty. Once again she cursed this time that didn't have hot baths, dammit! She had been forced to make due with what she had. Which wasn't all that much, really.
The second day was much worse. Overnight the wind had increased in it's fury, making it sound like someone was pounding on the door in an attempt to get inside. Kagome was reluctant to go outside, and Inuyasha had left hours before to do whatever it was that he had to do. She had lingered, and would have enjoyed just opening the sliding doors to watch the rain fall if the wind hadn't been so damn cold, or so whipping. When she had finally been forced outside she had come back soaking wet.
The third day was pure agony. Kagome and Inuyasha had made a silent pact not to leave the house that day. It was colder then yesterday, and the wind was still screaming through the trees, tearing the leaves from brittle branches. The sky was overcast and Kagome's mood was... let's just say irritable.
Across the tatami floor from her, Inuyasha watched as Kagome grumbled to herself, and from what he could catch it was mostly just complaints. About the weather and... well, it wasn't his fault that his time didn't have warm water! What was her problem, anyway? He was thinking of expressing his thought with a select choice of profane words, but decided that it wasn't in his best interest, anyways. He didn't want Kagome to be getting more pissed off, and even less at him. God, he was tired of this. All day she had been ranting and grumbling about weather like it was his fault. He didn't tell her that he was just as irritated as she was, he had just seemed to be in peculiar sober mood that day. How odd.
Kagome was really getting herself in a rage now, she just hated having to be cooped up in the house for whole day. She wished that the rain would just stop, already! It was becoming more and more of a problem each day. But it wasn't just the weather, either. She stole a quick glance at Inuyasha who was sitting quietly (quietly for God sakes!) in the corner of the far wall. His solemn mood had been unnerving for her all day, it was just so... unlike him. Maybe she was just trying to fill up the silence that he had left with whatever came to mind... which was, coincidently, mostly complaints. She gave a empty sigh, it's not that she didn't like it here... she had everything she ever wanted. At least, emotionally. But there were some things that Kagome considered basic necessities, like a bathroom, for instance..!
She sighed again, but this time a little louder. She really was feeling much self-pity at the moment. She looked over to Inuyasha, stoic as usual in his little corner. It almost looked like he was sulking. She had never seen him so quiet before, and for a few moments she wondered what he was thinking of. He looked so deep in thought.
Inuyasha eyes slid swiftly to meet her gaze, and they flashed in irritation (amazingly, one of the only few reactions he had made today ) as he registered that she was staring at him. How rude. Kagome felt her cheeks redden with embarrassment, but attempted to arch her eyebrows in what she hoped was a look of elegant non-chalance. She opened her mouth, stammering over the quickest excuse that she could find.
"Ano.. a-a-are you, uh ready to...go to bed?" she asked, hesitantly. He scoffed at the suggestion, muttering "Fine with me," under his breath, loud enough for her to hear. She smiled at him as she unrolled the futon that had been curled up in the corner. It looked soft and comforting in the dim light of their hut. She shivered slightly as she felt a dozen needles of heat pierce through her backbone, and she squirmed under it's weight.
Kagome turned around to see that now it was Inuyasha who staring unabashedly at her instead of the other way around. She felt another blush creep up her neck, and suddenly felt very self-conscious. It looked as if she was watching him through a haze as he approached her, his movements were so silent and unhurried. She felt a strange detachment from her body as she watched him walk towards her. She barely registered his arms around her, and hardly noticed as he lowered both of them down and pulled the drew the covers around them. Kagome seemed to really regain full consciousness right before she fell asleep, and listened quietly to his rhythmic breathing, his chest that rose and fell against her back. With a deep sigh, she listened to the sound of the wind, the rain, and felt that in the chaos of the storm around her, she had finally found a place in which she was truly peaceful.
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A/N
Thanks for reading, I really didn't think that anyone would be interested enough to read this far, unless you just skipped to read the author's note, in which case you made me cry. *sobs*
Please review even if you think it sucks!
~Lacrymosa
Disclaimer: Inuyasha and other characters mentioned in this Fan-fic aren't mine, and they most likely never will be.
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My life closed twice before its close;
It yet remains to see
If Immortality unveil
A third event to me,
So huge, so hopeless to conceive,
As these that twice befell.
Parting is all we know of heaven,
And all we need of hell
-Emily Dickinson
It took awhile to adjust to everything first.
Things were different, though Kagome never had any doubts that they wouldn't be. How could they not? It was difficult enough for her to grasp the concept of Naraku actually being dead, why not add more confusion to her hectic life? She was busy, she had never thought that life in a feudal village would be so time consuming. Kagome vaguely wondered how it had slipped past her recognition, she had been in plenty of villages before. Maybe it had been her youth, her innocence, her stubborn illusion that life was good, and God forbid for it to actually be hard.
Or maybe it was simply because she had never actually been required to do any hard work. She was usually treated as a guest in whatever village she came to. And it's not like Inuyasha had ever really made her do anything during their travels.
After the wish had been made, it had been nothing but hard work, whether Kagome like it or not.
Without his youkai strength, she hadn't expected Inuyasha to do any arduous tasks without help. Usually Miroku was quite enthusiastic to help, but mostly was source of constant entertainement. Sometimes other villagers would come to help on their spare time.
A house was to come first. Sango and Miroku had already begun to construct theirs, it was more on the outskirts of the village, where Sango kept up her youkai-slaying services to the village. Inuyasha and Kagome chose the site for their home not very far away from them, mostly for the sake of being close to friends. Kagome had know little of actually building a house, and she refused to let Inuyasha do it on his own. This was where the villagers came in handy, they had always been eager to help them in any way that they could. Kagome could tell that Inuyasha wasn't exactly thankful for their aid. He didn't like being needy.
Yes, adjustments were certainly in order.
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"Hey! Let me help! I can do some things too, you know!"
Up on the roof of their half finished house, Inuyasha busied himself with easing the beams of wood into place. Instead of his familiar fire-rat kimono, he was dressed in something a little plainer, more appropriate for hard work. His expression was twisted in apparent disapproval and annoyance. Kagome had been nagging at him all day, and as usual he had refused to let her help build the house in any way. But she wanted to help. She hated the fact that she could just sit and be lazy all day while Inuyasha worked himself crazy for the house to be finished as soon as possible.
"Keh. Yeah right. You can mess something up pretty good, can't you?" He sneered back at her, trying to sound as contempt as he could. He could have used the help though. He would never admit it, but the days of working had begun to take their toll on him. The villagers who had been so convinced at helping him had left hours ago, too worn out to help him any longer. He was tired too, but he couldn't stop. If he acknowledged his weakness, it would only get worse, he knew.
Kagome huffed up at him, disgust playing on every feature of her face. Did he have to be so difficult? She wasn't that clumsy! She huffed again and placed her hands on her hips in a stance of determination. She wasn't going to be put off that easily.
Inuyasha rolled his eyes at the sight. The afternoon sun gleamed off the beads of sweat on his forehead, and he raised his hand in an effort to wipe it off before it dripped in his eyes. The day was unusually hot, for last few days they sky had been cloudy and foreboding, a violent wind gusting up to tear and pull at whatever got in it's way. Winter was coming, and autumn had come earlier then usual. He wanted the house done being built before the weather took a nasty turn, he wasn't looking forward to sleeping outside in the rain, and he sure as hell wasn't going to ask Miroku and Sango for shelter. He didn't want to interrupt anything, as Miroku had so bluntly put it. Of course, Inuyasha wasn't in the habit of actually listening to someone who seemed to have a permanent red mark on his face. Tokens of appreciation from Sango, so he presumed.
Kagome still was't leaving. He was getting annoyed. Didn't she know the meaning of the word no? Inuyasha cocked his head and looked at her square in the eyes. His temper flared.
"Remember what happened last time? It took an extra day to fix all the damage that you caused!"
Kagome cheeks abruptly felt warmer, and she knew that she was probably reddening slightly at the memory. Because of her folly, but mainly her inexperience, a main beam of the house had collapsed, nearly crushing her at the same time. It had been a shocking experience for her, and Inuyasha had immediately refused to let her help any more, and had even forbidden her to come near the house until it was done. Obviously, a fight had been closely followed by the incident, and ended with Kagome stalking away in a frenzy, leaving Inuyasha alone to figure out just what exactly he had done wrong.
But it had been her fault. Kagome sighed, knowing that Inuyasha was right. A frown puckered her lips as she looked up once more to look at Inuyasha. He looked exhausted, but she wouldn't tell him that directly. She knew how touchy he was about showing how he really felt, but she wasn't about to just let him keep working. He had been at it all day, even when all the rest of the villagers had left from the sheer heat of the sun on their backs. Frankly, she was amazed at his stamina on the matter. He really wanted this house to be finished, didn't he?
Still up on the roof, Inuyasha resumed whatever work he had been doing before Kagome had so rudely interrupted him, engrossing himself in whatever mundane task he could find. He was trying to ignore her and it was starting to get on Kagome's nerves. She breathed in and out slowly, trying to calm herself. No good. Okay, she thought, let's try counting backwards from ten. Okay...
Ten.
Nine.
Eight...
Damn.
Ka gome looked up at Inuyasha's hunched form on the roof, trying to decide what to do. She raised up her hand to shield her eyes from the sun's vicious glare, and it's heat was so strong that she could feel it on the back of her hand. Despite her thin summer kimono, she was almost unbearably hot. Kagome couldn't remember ever being this hot, even in modern-day Tokyo where the temperatures tended to reach impossible heights. She couldn't imagine how hot Inuyasha must be, not only was he on top of the roof for God's sake, but he also had that thick blanket of jet-black hair that hung around his shoulders. Was he trying to suffer from heat stroke? No wonder he was the only one to keep working on the house, the heat was unbearable out here. Most of the villagers were in the shade, trying to cool down. Suddenly Kagome couldn't remember why she had been so angry at him. He just didn't want her to get hurt, didn't he?
"Inuyasha."
If he still had those adorable dog ears, Kagome thought that they probably would have twitched when she said his name. He gave the impression that he was pretending to not listen to her.
"Inuyasha."
He looked genuinely interested now. Or irritated. One of the two, but usually if he was interested in something, it made him irritable, so the two were interchangeable. He sighed. Already his defenses were wearing thin.
"What the hell do you want, bitch?"
Ignoring his profanity (she had gotten used to it by now, anyways) she just gave him a piercing look and replied tersely that he was to come down and give the house a rest already. She saw him roll his eyes at her, giving her the stoic reply of shrugging his shoulders. Goddamn! That wasn't like him at all. She continued, starting to get exasperated.
"Aren't you going to even say something? It's burning hot out here! You're going to collapse if you keep this up!"
"Keh."
"I'm serious! The house can wait! You don't want to get heat stroke, do you?"
"I'm not so fucking weak that something stupid like that would happen to me. Stop your worrying."
"INUYASHA!"
He cringed, and Kagome gave a small smile of satisfaction. She forced herself to relax before she spoke to him again. She was starting get really hot out here, and was anxious to get out of the sun. She was even panting a little. Once again it amazed her how well he was seeming to cope with heat. It was unbearable. She didn't notice how much her feet were trembling, how they seemed unable to find purchase on the ground.
Up on the roof, Inuyasha went from irritated to concerned in about 5 seconds, a puzzled expression clouding over his face. Kagome had become strangely quiet for someone who had just been yelling at him. He pulled himself over to the ledge of the roof, trying to get a better view of her. Immediately his concern became more severe. She was quivering violently, her face a very scarlet red. He vaulted himself off the roof, taking long quick steps to reach her before she toppled over.
Kagome felt warm hands grasp her shoulders before she even realized who it was who held her. She was only aware that she no longer felt so disoriented, but more steady on her feet. One shaking hand reached up to grasp more tightly at what it was that held her up. Her hand came in contact with the rough fabric of a threadbare kimono, her fingers brushing gently against the hard muscle underneath. She lifted her head to peer at the flashing eyes of Inuyasha, who was glaring down at her in mock anger, and maybe even faint flickers of concern.
"What the hell is your fucking problem? Don't you enough to take care of yourself?"
Maybe not so much the concern. He then proceeded by practically dragging her by the arm to the nearest tree.
"Sit here and don't move!" Pressing down firmly on her shoulders, Inuyasha laid her against the rough bark. With an exhausted sigh, Kagome let her knees collapse and reclined her head against the tree. The shade was a welcome change from the burning sun, and she could already feel her body temperature dropping. She felt much more grounded now that her dizzy spell was over. She closed her eyes and then lifted them gently to peer through her dark lashes. A frown puckered on her forehead. Inuyasha looked like he was about to leave.
Before Inuyasha could walk away and just leave her there, Kagome gripped the sleeve of his kimono and tugged firmly. He stopped abruptly, turned around, his head cocked to the side in a puzzled expression. She graced him with an amused smile. He still looked just like a puppy, despite the absence of his silver-white hair and silky ears.
Kagome shifted to the side a bit and gestured to the spot beside her.
"Come sit with me."
The quizzical expression faded to understanding, and Kagome noticed the tell-tale softening of his eyes. But, surprisingly, he didn't sit down beside her like she expected, but crouched down in front of her. Kagome watched with wide eyes as he slowly raised his hand to cradle her chin. His eyes were wide and searching, as if was trying to find the answer to a question that was hidden in her eyes.
Kagome felt a questions form on her lips, but before she could say anything, he whispered, "Okay."
Inuyasha slowly withdrew his hand and then eased himself down beside her. Kagome raised her hands to caress her chin, the soft imprint that his fingers left there. They seeped through her skin, weaving thin, penetrating trails of ice through her veins. She brought her hand down from her chin and placed it on his, the coolness of his hands soothing the flushed skin of her own. She let a sigh escape her, gently, and relaxed, lounging her head against his shoulder. She felt, or maybe even imagined his hand tightening protectively around hers. It was a comforting thought, that he was there to watch over her. It's nice... just to be here with him..., she thought wistfully.
"I love you," she whispered in his ear.
"I love you too."
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Winter came even sooner then expected.
Torrential rains tore at the newly built walls of Inuyasha and Kagome's hut only a few days after it had been finished. Kagome was actually quite happy with how the house had turned out, and Inuyasha's eyes gleamed with a blunt satisfaction. Yes, it certainly was putting up with it well, considering that the winds weren't usually so violent. Kagome, however, was just grateful that she had something hard and strong between her and the unforgiving weather. Whenever she left the hut, the rain pelted down on her like a thousand needles, piercing through her clothes and pounding against her skin. She was always soaking wet when she returned. Kagome had finally decided that she hated rain.
The rain continued for three days.
The first day wasn't so bad, that rain had just begun to drizzle in the afternoon and few dark clouds had began to marshal themselves along the horizon. Kagome had left to spend the rest of the day with Kaede to continue her education in the many tasks of being a miko. Kagome suspected that Kaede expected her to take
her place when she died. Mostly the lessons were on healing, something that Kagome was eager to learn and seemed to be fairly good at it anyway. She wanted to help people.
The rain had begun to take a nasty turn by the time she had returned home. She was surprised to see that dinner was already being made ( after much nagging from Inuyasha she had brought back an entire stash of instant ramen noodles,) but she was even more surprised to see that Miroku and Sango had decided to join them. She was glad to see her friends, she hadn't had much time to talk to either of them in the past few days, but she wished that they had chosen a different time to pop in. She suspected that she looked like a little less than a disaster, her hair flying in every direction out of it's loose ponytail, her kimono wrinkled and dirty. Once again she cursed this time that didn't have hot baths, dammit! She had been forced to make due with what she had. Which wasn't all that much, really.
The second day was much worse. Overnight the wind had increased in it's fury, making it sound like someone was pounding on the door in an attempt to get inside. Kagome was reluctant to go outside, and Inuyasha had left hours before to do whatever it was that he had to do. She had lingered, and would have enjoyed just opening the sliding doors to watch the rain fall if the wind hadn't been so damn cold, or so whipping. When she had finally been forced outside she had come back soaking wet.
The third day was pure agony. Kagome and Inuyasha had made a silent pact not to leave the house that day. It was colder then yesterday, and the wind was still screaming through the trees, tearing the leaves from brittle branches. The sky was overcast and Kagome's mood was... let's just say irritable.
Across the tatami floor from her, Inuyasha watched as Kagome grumbled to herself, and from what he could catch it was mostly just complaints. About the weather and... well, it wasn't his fault that his time didn't have warm water! What was her problem, anyway? He was thinking of expressing his thought with a select choice of profane words, but decided that it wasn't in his best interest, anyways. He didn't want Kagome to be getting more pissed off, and even less at him. God, he was tired of this. All day she had been ranting and grumbling about weather like it was his fault. He didn't tell her that he was just as irritated as she was, he had just seemed to be in peculiar sober mood that day. How odd.
Kagome was really getting herself in a rage now, she just hated having to be cooped up in the house for whole day. She wished that the rain would just stop, already! It was becoming more and more of a problem each day. But it wasn't just the weather, either. She stole a quick glance at Inuyasha who was sitting quietly (quietly for God sakes!) in the corner of the far wall. His solemn mood had been unnerving for her all day, it was just so... unlike him. Maybe she was just trying to fill up the silence that he had left with whatever came to mind... which was, coincidently, mostly complaints. She gave a empty sigh, it's not that she didn't like it here... she had everything she ever wanted. At least, emotionally. But there were some things that Kagome considered basic necessities, like a bathroom, for instance..!
She sighed again, but this time a little louder. She really was feeling much self-pity at the moment. She looked over to Inuyasha, stoic as usual in his little corner. It almost looked like he was sulking. She had never seen him so quiet before, and for a few moments she wondered what he was thinking of. He looked so deep in thought.
Inuyasha eyes slid swiftly to meet her gaze, and they flashed in irritation (amazingly, one of the only few reactions he had made today ) as he registered that she was staring at him. How rude. Kagome felt her cheeks redden with embarrassment, but attempted to arch her eyebrows in what she hoped was a look of elegant non-chalance. She opened her mouth, stammering over the quickest excuse that she could find.
"Ano.. a-a-are you, uh ready to...go to bed?" she asked, hesitantly. He scoffed at the suggestion, muttering "Fine with me," under his breath, loud enough for her to hear. She smiled at him as she unrolled the futon that had been curled up in the corner. It looked soft and comforting in the dim light of their hut. She shivered slightly as she felt a dozen needles of heat pierce through her backbone, and she squirmed under it's weight.
Kagome turned around to see that now it was Inuyasha who staring unabashedly at her instead of the other way around. She felt another blush creep up her neck, and suddenly felt very self-conscious. It looked as if she was watching him through a haze as he approached her, his movements were so silent and unhurried. She felt a strange detachment from her body as she watched him walk towards her. She barely registered his arms around her, and hardly noticed as he lowered both of them down and pulled the drew the covers around them. Kagome seemed to really regain full consciousness right before she fell asleep, and listened quietly to his rhythmic breathing, his chest that rose and fell against her back. With a deep sigh, she listened to the sound of the wind, the rain, and felt that in the chaos of the storm around her, she had finally found a place in which she was truly peaceful.
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A/N
Thanks for reading, I really didn't think that anyone would be interested enough to read this far, unless you just skipped to read the author's note, in which case you made me cry. *sobs*
Please review even if you think it sucks!
~Lacrymosa