InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Easy as 1, 2, 3... ❯ Demon's Weakness ( Chapter 22 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, but if I did I wouldn't be staying up half the night writing fan fiction about him, LOL!

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Easy as 1, 2, 3…

Chapter Twenty-Two

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The next morning in the usual style, the Higurashi family gathered for breakfast at the kitchen table and all seemed to be relatively peaceful. Kagome and Inuyasha were getting along quite well after the picture incident, and the hanyou had long since forgotten his injured pride. The two were even considering spending the day together, or at least they were till Mrs. Higurashi dropped the latest chore bomb.

All was quiet for several moments, and Inuyasha stared at Mrs. Higurashi in horror. Now he was more sure than ever that she must be out to get him! "You want me to do WHAT?"

Kagome's mother flashed him a slightly amused, tolerant smile from across the table. "You aren't afraid of a little paint are you? The fence is so small that it won't take you any time at all! Be a good boy and do this for your mother."

From her spot at the breakfast table next to Inuyasha, Kagome watched a look of near panic cross his face, before looking down and becoming very interested in the food sitting in front of her. It was taking all her effort not to laugh at him!

Frowning at Kagome's obvious amusement, Inuyasha growled and crossed his arms in a classic pose. "Keh! Maybe I don't want to."

"Don't be like that Inuyasha." Mrs. Higurashi admonished him.

He opened his mouth to argue with her again, but was abruptly cut off when Kagome laughed and placed her hand on his arm. "If it will make you feel any better, I'll help and it will get done faster, okay? The little fence surrounding the Goshinboku tree won't take very long at all to paint!"

The shock on his face was priceless! Kagome was actually offering to help him? His brain became a little fuzzy and all he could do was nod dumbly.

"So it's all settled then!" Mrs. Higurashi announced. "The sooner you two get started, the faster you'll finish! In the meantime, I need to do some shopping if we're going to have food to eat around this house."

With the plans for the day settled, everyone went back to eating without giving it another thought. And because of the pleasant surprise of Kagome offering to help, Inuyasha completely forgot the reason why he didn't want to paint.

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While waiting for Kagome to change into some old clothes, Inuyasha stared at the huge tree in front of him with awe, and a little something else.

'Something about that old tree gives me the creeps! I'm not sure what it is exactly, but it's almost like a feeling of déjà vu.' Scanning the trunk of the tree carefully, he noticed a small groove, surrounded by a scarred area. 'What the heck caused that?'

"What are you staring at, demon?" A slightly cranky voice suddenly spoke behind him. Inuyasha turned around and saw Kagome's grandfather standing what he deemed to be a safe distance away.

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Inuyasha turned back to the tree. "I wasn't staring at anything old man." They were such a mature pair, calling each other names!

"Yes you were, so don't try lying to me! You were staring at that spot on the ancient Goshinboku tree. It actually has a story behind it."

"Yeah, like everything else around here." Inuyasha muttered.

"Once, a long time ago, there lived a half-" The old man paused. "It was a half-something! It might have been a half-wolf creature, or was it a half-horse?"

Inuyasha smirked. "A half-demon maybe?"

The grandfather shook his head. "No, no! That wasn't it! Oh, I remember now, I think it was a half-monkey! Anyway, he got pinned to the tree by a-" The old man stopped again. "Was it an old woman? No, I think it might have been by a little girl. That's right! Well, she took her bow and arrow (At least he got something right) and shot the monkey because he stole her favorite jewelry. He slept for five years I believe, before-"

"That's enough!" Kagome cried, coming up behind her grandfather and grabbing him by the shoulder. "I've heard that story so many times that I'm sick of it! Go pray for rain or something in the shrine!"

Muttering under his breath about 'ungrateful youth', Kagome's grandfather wandered off in the direction his granddaughter had pointed as she spoke. Inuyasha breathed a sigh of relief once the man was gone. Even chores beat listening to such a confused story! Although deep in his mind, it did strike a familiar chord. Perhaps he'd heard it somewhere before?

Shaking off his strange thoughts, Inuyasha gathered his wits just in time to see Kagome trying to pry the lid off a can of white paint. She didn't seem to be getting anywhere with it though, and he motioned for her to move aside.

"Keh! You humans are so weak!"

Kagome made a face at him behind his back, and briefly considered shoving his face in the paint as soon as he opened the can. But to her credit, she only thought about it seriously for a moment or two.

When Inuyasha took control, he quickly popped off the lid without a problem. Turning to Kagome, he smiled arrogantly. "Next time you should ask me instead of trying to do it yourself! Humans are so-" Inuyasha suddenly stopped and blinked, making a strange face.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome leaned towards him. "Are you okay? You don't look so good."

"I-I dunno……" He answered in a faint voice. Before Kagome could respond though, Inuyasha's unfocused gold eyes began to swirl and he fell over without another word.

"Inuyasha!"

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The first thing Inuyasha noted when he began to wake up was the pounding in his head, about the same feeling you would get if someone decided to use your head as a drum. The second thing he noted was the feeling of the lumps in the couch, jabbing him in the back.

Wondering how the heck he got there and why his head hurt so bad, Inuyasha pried open his eyes and ignored the pain of his intensified headache.

"You're awake!" A relieved voice cried.

Inuyasha turned his head to see Kagome sitting beside him, her eyes looking suspiciously teary. He couldn't help but feel baffled and a little touched that she would be so worried about him, even if he wasn't quite sure yet what had happened.

"Can you remember what happened?" She inquired anxiously.

Trying to ignore the pounding in his head, Inuyasha thought back to before he'd passed out. 'What did happen? We were going to paint the-' Understanding dawned quickly.

"That damn paint!" He muttered under his breath. "The smell was too strong for my demon senses and it made me pass out."

Kagome blinked in confusion. "The smell was too strong?" So demons had a major weakness after all! Although it wasn't a good thing, the thought was oddly comforting to Kagome. It severely lessened the feeling of inferiority she got with Inuyasha at times because of his extraordinary abilities as a hanyou.

Inuyasha growled at her. "Why the heck are you smiling? Are you happy I made a fool of myself by fainting in front of you?" He tried to sit up, but it only made his head hurt worse so he had to lay back down.

"No, baka!" Kagome blushed and looked down. "I was smiling because I was worried about you. I thought it must have been something much worse to make you pass out like that. I-" She hesitantly picked up his hand. "I'm just really happy that you're okay."

The astounded look on Inuyasha's face would have amused Kagome, had she actually had the guts to look him in the face when she said that. Instead she was staring at the floor, blushing and fiddling with the hand she was still holding.

'I can't believe she just said that!' Inuyasha's headache was quickly forgotten at this interesting turn of events. 'Does this mean she's starting to care for me more?'

Sitting up without a problem this time, Inuyasha's intense gold eyes stared into Kagome's, who had looked up when he moved. "Do you really mean that?" He whispered.

Kagome's eyes softened at the hopeful look on his face, and she smiled at him. "Of course I do. I wouldn't say it if it weren't true."

The next thing she knew, Kagome found herself being pulled from her chair and into the hanyou's waiting lap. Wrapping his arms tightly around her, Inuyasha just breathed in her scent and held her close. He had wanted to do that for so long, and he could feel the pain in his head lessening from the familiar, comforting smell of her.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome gasped loudly, more than a little embarrassed at the situation. "What do you think you're doing!"

"My head hurts." He admitted gruffly with a satisfied smile that she couldn't see. "It's making me act this way, so deal with it wench!"

A small laugh escaped Kagome, and she tried to push herself into a more dignified position. "Well if it hurts so bad, then let me get up and get you some medicine for it."

Keeping a firm grip on her so she couldn't escape, he sighed and placed his head between her neck and shoulder. When he answered, all his previous gruffness had faded away. "You're the best medicine for it Kagome. Let's just stay like this for a while."

Kagome stopped her struggling, and could feel herself melting at his words and the feel of his warm breath on her neck. She suddenly wondered why she'd even tried to get up in the first place. Even though she didn't really want to admit it, there was nowhere else on earth she'd rather be.

'I was so worried when he passed out today. I guess it just goes to show that no matter how hard you try to ignore them, your feelings are always there, and stronger than ever. I don't know what I would do without him anymore.'

Inuyasha smiled at the sudden acceptance he could feel from her, and it just grew wider when she actually laid her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.

'I've wanted this so much that it hurt.' He admitted to himself. 'Ever since I first saw Kagome, I couldn't help but wonder what it would feel like to hold her, knowing she was mine, knowing that she loved me. I'm not sure that she loves me yet, but I have hope now. I don't feel like I have to be alone anymore.'

Kagome's sudden shifting in his arms pulled Inuyasha from his intense thoughts, and she smiled up at him a little mischievously. Wondering what she could be thinking, he soon found out when she moved to rub his ears.

She giggled when he started purring like he had done once before.

"What is it with you and my ears?" He questioned mildly, happy that she seemed comfortable and didn't look like she was planning on moving any time soon.

"They're cute!" She stated simply.

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow at her, a thought suddenly occurring to him. "If you can touch me where you want to, why can't I do the same? I personally don't think it's fair."

Kagome blushed to the roots of her hair and quickly let go of his ears, causing him to laugh at her. "Because you're a pervert!" She hurried to respond, voicing the first excuse that came to mind.

Inuyasha growled in mock annoyance. "I'm not a pervert! I've slept with you twice and didn't try anything!"

If possible, Kagome's face got even redder. "You were out cold both times! Even Miroku could behave himself when he's passed out!"

Inuyasha laughed out loud then, and pulled Kagome closer to him where her head could rest on his shoulder once more. Rubbing his cheek on the top of her head, he smiled. "I would never hurt you or take advantage of you Kagome."

Kagome responded by wrapping her arms around his waist, because she could honestly say she believed him without a doubt. The man who had once kidnapped her and turned her whole world upside down, had somehow become the center of that world.

Realizing his headache was now completely gone, Inuyasha marveled at the feeling he got from just being with Kagome. 'She's become my home now. Even if I have to stay here and take orders from her mother the rest of my life I could be happy. I feel like I'm finally home.'

Leaning back on the couch and cradling her figure to him closely, Inuyasha couldn't help but hope with all his heart that the feelings he had, as well as the moment, would last forever. He didn't ever want to let her go.

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Sesshoumaru sat down at his desk to sort through the daily mail, when a curious-looking envelope caught his attention.

"What could this be?"

Picking it up, he neatly sliced the seal open with one of his built-in letter openers (claws), and pulled out the contents. A moment later a smile graced his stoic face, and it was wider than anyone would think possible for the normally expressionless dog demon.

Placing the contents of the letter on his desk, he moved to pick up the phone and dig out his phone book. Flipping it open, he searched for a certain number.

Finding what he wanted, Sesshoumaru dialed the number and was rewarded with an immediate answer on the other end of the line.

"Yes, I'm calling to find out if you make things like coffee mugs, T-shirts, posters, and calendars using personal photos. *Pause* Good. Then I would like to have a few things made as a surprise for someone. *Pause* I'll have the picture delivered within the hour……

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I hope you enjoyed this chapter! We are getting close to the end now...^_^