InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Hidden Identities ❯ Illuminating Conversations ( Chapter 4 )

 

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or anything associated with him except a few AU storylines.

 

Acknowledgements: Gratitude and thanks to the ever-lovely Fenikkusuken, a beta above and beyond the call of duty who braved this chapter despite a determined assault from the evil piggy flu. I have told you you're great, right? And also thanks to SplendentGoddess, whose reviews always make me smile!

 

*

 

“And now on the eleven o'clock news…”

 

With a grimace, Kagome carefully closed the text book after marking her page. Urg! I'm not even half way through the immunodeficiency notes for next week. This weekend is going to hurt. The young woman pushed the chair out from the table and made her way over to the kitchenette. Peering at the new summer term schedule taped to the cupboard, the medical student winced at the next day's 9am lecture followed by two and a half hours of lab work before lunch. I should go to bed to be ready for that tomorrow, but I'd put money on the fact Inuyasha will be back tonight to sleep here, even though he probably shouldn't. And he'll be gone by the time I wake up tomorrow, even if I ask him not to, and we still won't have straightened this out. Remembering that she'd told him last night that she wanted to talk and he'd left nonetheless, her mouth twitched in amusement. You know, I think the big bad vigilante might be avoiding the conversation!

 

Putting the kettle on, she pulled out a mug and began to spoon extreme amounts of instant coffee granules into the mug. We're going to get this sorted one way or another: I can be as stubborn as he is!

 

*

 

It was nearly one in the morning when there was a soft thump from the direction of the bedsit's window. Kagome was curled up on the sofa watching some particularly appalling late night films on the tiny television, the remains of her fourth cup of coffee of the night in her hand. Glancing towards the window, the young woman threw a smile towards the silver-haired man currently straightening up.

 

“Good evening, Inuyasha,” she greeted.

 

“It's one in the morning, wench! How come you're not in bed?” the vigilante asked.

 

Kagome mock-pouted, “Why, don't you like me when I'm awake and conscious?”

 

He laughed under his breath and sat down cross legged on the demon-patterned carpet in front of her. “I like you fine the way you are. You know that.”

 

“I wanted to spend some time with you,” Kagome admitted truthfully, “not just sleep next to you. We haven't talked properly for a month.”

 

The sudden flash of a genuine smile, along with that softening in his golden eyes, temporarily took her breath away and she found herself smiling back like an idiot. There was silence for a minute, before Kagome's brain wrested control of her hormones, and poked her about The Talk. The young woman's smile faded, and she started psyching herself to bring it up.

 

“Is there something you're not telling me?” Inuyasha asked quietly.

 

How does he do that? Is mind reading a Youkai Pack trick as well? Kagome hesitated, noting the obvious opening for the conversation she wanted to have… before chickening out. “How about I just like being around you?” she murmured, using his favourite evasion.

 

He laughed at that. “Touché. I'll get it out of you anyway, wench. I know when you're lying.”

 

“Everybody knows. I'm a terrible liar.”

 

“So what do you want to talk about instead?”

 

“Um… how was your day?”

 

He rolled his eyes, before dryly replying, “Fine, thank you. I spent the day signing documents, testing sports cars, avoiding women that only want me for my money, hunting for Naraku whilst on patrol and trying to discover where exactly Sess hid that stick up his arse.”

 

It was Kagome's turn to laugh at the ridiculous picture he painted. “Fine, don't tell me.”

 

“How was your day?” he mimicked.

 

Kagome grinned. “I had four hours of lectures, lunch with Ayumi, got spooked by a disappearing ghostly pre-schooler, did three hours of tutorials…”

 

“Stop,” he interrupted sharply; taken aback, Kagome halted mid-hand gesture. “What do you mean, `disappearing ghostly pre-schooler'?” he asked.

 

“There was a small, really pale girl today on campus near the Akamon Gate. She seemed fine, but was playing with a mirror which worried me, and was a bit… er… well, her parents didn't do so well on socialisation,” Kagome explained.

 

Inuyasha frowned. “A small pale girl? With really dark eyes? About this high?” he held his hand out roughly to a height of three feet off the floor.

 

“Yes,” Kagome answered, surprised. “Do you know her?”

 

“Shit. Yes. Interesting that she's a day late. Or maybe it's unrelated. Or somehow you…” he muttered. When he focused on the bemused young woman, there was something intent and highly urgent in his expression. “What did she want? Did she see you? Did you speak to her?”

 

“Yes, of course… I was worried that she was lost, so I asked her if she was OK. She told me she was `looking for things', whatever that meant ….” I won't mention that she told me `he' would like my face.

 

“Fuck. Promise me you won't speak to her if you see her again,” he demanded grimly.

 

“What?” she asked, completely bewildered.

 

“Promise me!” he snapped.

 

“Fine. I promise not to speak to a helpless six year old,” she grumbled in exasperation.

 

“I can assure you she's not helpless,” he stated with authority, unable to hide the worry in his voice.

 

“You're going to drive me crazy, you know that? I'm already seeing patterns where there are none. You know, for a while I'd half convinced myself you were really were a youkai,” the young woman said ruefully. As he stiffened, she hastily added, “I know, I know, it's stupid.” Giving him a wry grin, she gestured to the floor. “Especially when that rug appeared. Which reminds me, I never did thank you for it.”

 

Inuyasha gave her a slightly crooked smile “You don't have to. I gave it to you entirely for my own reasons.”

 

“I should though. I mean, it's gorgeous and Hojo said it was unique...”

 

The man went utterly still, the air almost crackling around him. “How the fuck does Hojo know what the floor of your bedroom looks like?”

 

“This isn't my bedroom, it's my flat,” Kagome countered tartly.

 

“Which is all one fucking tiny room!” Inuyasha spat.

 

Kagome felt her temper rising. “Look, friends visit each other…”

 

“…But not in your bedroom, for fuck's sake!”

 

“You don't have the right to dictate that!” she retorted indignantly.

 

“I have every right!” The vigilante was simmering with rage. “I'm gonna…”

 

“For goodness sake! He's not been up here! He knows because I described it to him!” Bolstered by anger, Kagome stiffened her spine. Right, that's it. Talk time! “Inuyasha… are we in a relationship?”

 

The man went white, releasing all his breath in one whoosh. A myriad of different emotions flickered over his face as the silence between them stretched uncomfortably. Kagome drew up her knees and wrapped her arms around them, her own feelings confused at his lack of response.

 

“What do you mean by a relationship?” he answered finally, his tone far too neutral.

 

“As in being part of each other's lives, going out, doing things together, being able to contact each other, usual relationship things…”

 

“Yes… no… kind of... Aww shit.” Inuyasha grimaced, and ran his claws through his hair before starting again. “I want to be around you because I like your company. I can be myself here in a way that I'm not with anyone but The Pack and I want to protect you. Do you have to stick a label on it?”

 

“You're putting yourself in the same category as my friends like Eri and Ayumi,” pointed out Kagome. “Should I treat you the same as them, or them the same as you? By that logic, I should let Hojo sleep in my bed every night!”

 

“Fuck no!” he growled angrily. “You belong to… you belong somewhere safe.”

 

“Then what are we?”

 

Inuyasha stood up abruptly and began stalking around the bedsit. Kagome didn't say anything, because the suffocating silence made it hard to breathe. Gods, I hate this, but it needs sorting. I don't want to agree to date someone else, then have Inuyasha take exception to it and terrify them half to death, or worse, to spend my nights waiting alone for something that only exists in my head.

 

Finally the colourfully-dressed man threw his hands in the air, his claws flashing in the electric light. “It's not that I don't want to, but… I can't bring you into my life, Kagome. It's too dangerous.”

 

“But you're in my life already, and I'm in yours,” Kagome observed, swallowing the lump that had appeared unexpectedly in her throat at the apparent rejection. “This is the third night you've come here. If you don't want this, why would you sleep here night after night? Why threaten any other man that might show an interest if you don't want me?”

 

“Because I'm fucking selfish, OK?” he snapped. At that confession, the anger seemed to drain out of him. Taking in her pale face, the man dropped to his knees on the rug in front of her. His canine ears flattened into his hair, the vigilante bowed his head, resting his forehead on the sofa by her legs. “Shit… I'm sorry Kagome. I am selfish. I do want you; hell, I've half-way claimed you already, but I'd never forgive myself if anything happened to you. Naraku's speciality is destroying and twisting relationships. If we were together right now, I'd be putting an even bigger target on you than you have already. I just… I haven't really been thinking things through… been running on instinct more than anything.”

 

Half-way claimed? And I have a target on me already? The disquieting thoughts slipped away, distracted by the distressed vigilante at her feet. Resting her hand on the back of his head in a comforting fashion, she whispered, “It's OK,” but the wobble in her voice betrayed the brave words. “Are we still friends?”

 

He pulled away from her hand and gave the young woman a shadowed smile aimed somewhere at her left shoulder. “Of course. Do you want me to go?”

 

Kagome shook her head, noting the slight twitches in his hands and the way he was refusing to meet her eyes. If he leaves now, he's probably not going to come back, the young woman admitted starkly to herself. We need to redefine this relationship right now if we want any chance of actually keeping this as a friendship. I don't want this to be the last time I see him. Plus, despite telling myself I didn't mind what he chooses either way, I'm going to cry if I remain sitting here. “Can we go out somewhere? Just for a walk, or to sit and look at the stars; nothing that costs money or where you'll be seen, but it would be nice to take our non-relationship out of my bedsit…”

 

“You know that line about not bringing you into my life because it's dangerous?” His voice was flat.

 

“I know the risks of being involved with you in any form. I'm not stupid and I have thought hard about this. I'm willing to take that risk because you are my friend.”

 

The man on the floor visibly vacillated, still not looking her in the face. “You don't know what Naraku would do to you.”

 

“I know he's capable of torturing and killing children, and someone like that is capable of anything. But it's still my choice,” the young woman said quietly. Inuyasha opened his mouth to protest and Kagome held up a hand. “It's at least one in the morning and you must know of some private places where we'd be safe together… Please?”

 

Finally, the vigilante looked directly at the young woman's earnest expression, and threw his hands up in resignation. “Damn it, woman. I hate it when people turn puppy dog eyes on me, especially when I'm trying to be noble for once in my life.” He smiled crookedly. “Out then, I guess. Trust me?”

 

Kagome's countenance lit up. “Yes.”

 

“Put on a coat, then. It's chilly out there.” As she scrambled into a discarded cardigan, the vigilante caught her hands in an oddly intimate gesture and gave her a half-smile when she flushed. Twisting with a catlike agility, the silver-haired man pulled her arms up over his shoulders and scooped her legs so she ended up awkwardly straddling his back. Kagome's squeak of surprise rapidly turned into a frightened screech as Inuyasha leapt out of the window and plummeted towards the pavement.

 

Oh God, I'm going to die! There's no way we can get out of this alive! The wind roared past her ears, the windows of the tenement block blurred past faster than she could count. Terminal velocity… Out of desperation, the young woman clenched her teeth to stop herself from biting off her tongue on impact with the ground, frantically trying to relax her main muscles to lessen the system shock when they inevitably smashed into the concrete. The ground approached, faster and faster. Kagome hid her face in his hair and prayed, her stomach left somewhere near the third floor.

 

And suddenly, the stomach lurching lunge reversed direction, and they were soaring upwards. Opening tear filled eyes, the young woman gasped as they landed several stories onto the roof of a nearby building. Inuyasha ran full-tilt towards the gap between it and the next building. Kagome tightened her arms around him in shock. He's really going to jump it! His powerful muscles bunching underneath her, they took flight over the space. We're flying! The speed of the head-long flight took her breath away, the wind whipping at her cheeks until they stung. Thrill took over from fear, and she laughed in sheer delight as Inuyasha took her on a very personal rooftop tour of Tokyo.

 

Their dizzying passage continued for what could have been hours or minutes; Kagome was so overwhelmed that she couldn't track the passage of time. His final series of acrobatic leaps were positively mind-boggling, and the young woman held on for dear life as her silver-haired ride bounced with inhuman agility up the bright orange superstructure of the Tokyo Tower, past the observation decks up to the very small platform supporting the transmission antennae.

 

Inuyasha balanced on the edge of the platform, turned and let her slide off his back. Kagome transferred her death-grip from his shoulders to the antenna's supporting bracket. This is really, really, really small… and it's really, really, really far off the ground. But… he asked me to trust him… and I do…. Gathering her courage, she forced herself to look outward instead of downward, and was dumbfounded at the glittering lights spread out before her in an endlessly moving blanket of energy. It looks so much cleaner and brighter from up here… wow. Nervousness gave way to wonderment, and finally silent awe. It's so beautiful.

 

“You wanted something like star gazing, right?” Inuyasha's voice broke the spell. “The Ueno district is to your left.”

 

“This is amazing, but I'm too afraid of this height to turn around and look,” the young woman admitted, her knuckles white on the chilled metal. “I can't even see Shiba Park from here and that's directly below us. Can I borrow your arm?”

 

His ears flickered at her anxious tone. Assessing the situation, Inuyasha slipped around behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her firmly. Kagome's heart rate sped up as his proximity and his breath on her neck started to play havoc with her nerves. “I know this probably is a bit too close considering our earlier chat, but this is the safest way of making sure that you can enjoy the view,” he murmured softly in her ear.

 

Kagome felt her lips curve in an involuntary smile. “OK… but only because I'm at risk of imminent death.”

 

She felt the laugh against her back rather than hearing it. “I promise that I won't let anything happen to you.”

 

Unsure of where to put her arms, Kagome finally rested them over his, slipping her hands inside the warm, slightly scratchy material of his jacket cuffs. Inuyasha waited until the girl had relaxed fully against him, her staccato heartbeat calming into a more normal rhythm before slowly turning both of them in a complete circle. Over the course of several minutes, the young woman murmured with wonder as the cityscape gave way to docks and distant ocean. Cushioned against the solid warmth of his body, Kagome watched the extended banks of cloud rolled in long ribbons overhead from the city to the sea and beyond, and a few stars appeared here and there in the gaps. They stood for some time, his hair streaming like a silver banner over her shoulder, as she exclaimed over the scene and picked out various distant landmarks.

 

Eventually Kagome's legs started trembling, and the girl shifted restlessly in his arms. Temporarily transferring her grip back to the antenna support, Inuyasha took off his jacket and laid it on the platform before assisting the enthralled woman to a seat beside him. Smiling widely at him, she nudged his shoulder. “How did you do that? The running - jumping - leaping thing? I wouldn't have believed it was possible. And some of those websites had some pretty interesting theories on how you do things!”

 

Inuyasha cocked an eyebrow at her. “You saying I'm beyond your expectations? And that you read up on me?”

 

“Yes and yes. Does that make me a stalker?”

 

“Close enough,” he smirked.

 

“Fine talk from a man who has crawled into my bed two nights in a row,” Kagome retorted, amused. “So, how do you leap tall buildings in three bounds?”

 

“Magic.”

 

“I can tell you as an official ex-shrine resident and recipient of too many `magical' talismans from my Grandfather that there's no such thing as magic,” the young woman said archly, “so you'd better have another explanation.”

 

Inuyasha flicked his canine ears. “I really am a hanyou?”

 

“As in `half-demon'…like in the book?” At his nod, Kagome started giggling. “Just because I admitted that I thought you could be a youkai…trust you to throw that back at me!”

 

He grinned back, and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close to shield the shivering young woman from the night wind. “You know, I love being outside; I hate being cooped up. Too many bad experiences when I was younger.” His voice was peaceful as he looked towards the twinkling horizon.

 

I don't I've seen him smile this much before. Coming out here was a good plan. Kagome tilted her head up to smile at him. With a jolt, she realised that their faces were only a few inches apart. Inuyasha's gaze fastened on her mouth, his eyes darkening. Slowly, he leant over, pausing a hairsbreadth away from her face, his intent obvious.

 

“Kissing is definitely not allowed between `just friends',” the young woman whispered. “You made it clear we're not in a relationship.”

 

“Fuck it,” he murmured, his voice husky. “It was a really stupid call and I take it back.”

 

Without looking away, he decreased the distance, until his lips touched hers. What does he mean, `take it back'? I really should stop this now and ask for clarification… Kagome watched his eyes flutter shut before closing her own, concentrating solely on the whisper soft feel of his mouth against hers. One claw-tipped hand slid slowly up the side of her face to tangle in her hair as his tongue touched the seam of her lips. In response, the young woman granted him access, allowing him to gently explore her mouth. Sensation ran from her lips down her down to her stomach until they broke the kiss, gasping for air. Inuyasha looked at her in wonder, before he smiled and wrapped both arms tightly around her in a bear hug.

 

“That… that's really not fair… and this isn't either, if we're not in a relationship!” The girl protested as her mind returned enough to give a real sense of righteous indignation, then stilled as he nuzzled her forehead.

 

“You blindsided me earlier when you asked, and I spooked. The last proper `relationship' I had with someone that I really cared about didn't exactly end well. So… yes we are in a relationship. I think of you as `mine', and if you have any other men in your bedroom it'll get monumentally messy.”

 

“And this is how you ask someone out, you idiot?” Kagome huffed.

 

“No,” the vigilante replied thoughtfully, “I believe it's more like this.”

 

Pulling her into his lap, he proceeded to kiss her thoroughly. The young woman's annoyance vanished in a haze of feeling that left her light headed and her fingers wound tightly in his hair. After a minute he pulled back and regarded her dazed expression with a no little smugness. Stroking her cheek with the back of his claws, he asked seriously “Kagome Higurashi, will you consent to be in a relationship with me? I'm not going to lie to you; I'm not a great person to be involved with. I can't promise to take you out to places, I can't involve you in my life beyond this… hell, I can't promise a lot. But I can promise there'll be no-one else but you.”

 

Caught off balance, Kagome flushed scarlet. “Err… yes.”

 

Inuyasha smirked, flashing a fang. “Should damn well think so. I don't come out with crap like that for just anyone.”

 

The young woman burst out laughing, before he claimed her mouth for another kiss.

 

*

 

An hour later, with her cheeks flushed and her lips swollen, Kagome slid off Inuyasha's back onto the floor of her bedsit. Whilst she vanished into the bathroom to brush her teeth and hair, the vigilante dropped down on the vibrant rug. Kagome stuck out her tongue in the mirror to examine the small cut on the tip, smiling as she remembered Inuyasha's almost embarrassed apology. It was rather sweet, telling me he wasn't used to kissing girls when he had fangs! Emerging in a different but equally antique tee shirt after the Inuyasha-sponsored demise of her usual one the night before, the girl dithered as she looked between her bed and the man sprawling on her floor.

 

“Are you going to invite me to stay?”

 

The soft question voiced her current quandary, and Kagome gave a nervous smile. “Aren't you supposed to leave me at the door on the first official date?”

 

“That only works when both people on the `first date' didn't wake up in the same bedroom this morning,” he snorted.

 

Flushing, the young woman muttered, “I don't know. It feels different to invite you to stay as opposed to you dropping in unexpectedly… it seems… kinda brazen? Like I'm asking for something more than I actually want right now? I mean, I don't want to lead you on…”

 

The playfulness dropping from his expression, Inuyasha rose to his feet and moved gracefully to stand in front of her. Giving her a level look, he assured, “It'll just be to sleep, I promise… unless you change your mind. I like being around you.”

 

Lost in his eyes, Kagome found herself nodding. He stepped back, and the blushing young woman scrambled into bed, tucking herself under the duvet. Nervously, she flipped back the corner of the quilt in invitation, but her expression was vulnerable.

 

“I promised… remember? Trust me.” His bittersweet smile calmed her nerves and she was able to settle back into the bedding with only the slightest flutter. As he dropped his clothing into a pile with an economy of movement, Kagome glanced away to give Inuyasha some privacy as he stripped to his underwear. “You're allowed to look, you know,” he offered with badly-disguised smugness.

 

That sounded like a challenge! Kagome met his amused gaze squarely before deliberately running her eyes over taut skin covering lean muscles.

 

“You're drooling, wench.”

 

Pulling up the blanket to disguise her burning cheeks, Kagome tried not to ogle and failed. OK, maybe not such a good idea to check out the person about to come into your bed, when he looks like a male model!

 

Smirking at her reaction, Inuyasha turned off the light before slipping under the covers and tucking the nervous young woman firmly against his chest. A rumble started up; Kagome almost commented before realising what it was. He's… purring? Isn't he supposed to be a dog?

 

Her guest began running his claws up and down her side under her tee shirt, each pass slower and less co-ordinated. The young woman relaxed into the caress, although she wondered ruefully if this tee shirt would meet the same fate as the one from the day before. Eventually, his hand came to rest on her hip, his fingers tapping on her skin. “I meant t'ask,” he slurred, his voice thick with sleep, “where'd you get this scar? Nev'r saw it until yest'day”

 

Why's he so interested in my scars? Kagome replied, “An accident when I was fifteen. I fell down the well at my family's shrine and a piece of debris stuck deep inside. It had to be surgically removed; I had so many stitches the doctor lost count. My grandfather nearly had a stroke over the whole thing.”

 

“F'teen? Five years `go?”

 

“Yeah… nearly six.”

 

“Y'know, was same time t'ping'd up.”

 

“Hmm?” An answering rumble was her only reply. He's out cold! Biting her lip in thought, Kagome wriggled out of his arms with some difficulty and sat up against the pillow. Gazing down at her bedfellow in the dim light, the young woman realised she had never really seen the vigilante slumbering without pain.

 

Inuyasha looked younger in sleep, long eyelashes fanning down onto smooth cheeks. One ear flickered, and unable to resist any longer, the young woman gently stroked the soft, downy fur, folding over the tip and running her fingers around the base. There's no circuitry, no wires…. In response, the man purred contentedly in his sleep. These ears seem to be a part of him… I'd swear that they were real. Sliding her fingers gently down his head, she brushed her fingertips over the smooth, unmarked skin where a normal human's ears should be. This is strange… has he had his ears surgically removed? That would leave some sort of scar! Frowning, she considered what else she hadn't noticed while he was undressing. Hang on… there was nothing unusual on his body or in his clothing. No weapons, no augmentations, nothing strapped to him, nothing that would help him jump like that. Just… fabric and muscles. And no scars at all from his wounds in February, either. Something really doesn't add up here…

 

Her uncomfortable thought train was derailed as Inuyasha reached out for her in his sleep. His clawed hand latching onto her thigh as he located his goal, he pulled himself closer until his head was in her lap and his arms around her waist. Kagome stoked his hair in a soothing manner, leading to another round of purring and his arms tightening. What he might or might not be doesn't matter, really… Overwhelmed by strong feelings for this strange, wonderful man, Kagome pulled her tee shirt over her head and snuggled back down into Inuyasha's embrace. The vigilante muttered something and wound himself possessively around her. Twining her legs with his, she gloried in the bare velvety skin touching hers almost everywhere. I hope he doesn't mind was her last conscious thought before she drifted off to sleep.

 

*

 

Kagome woke up a few hours later, at the usual time her alarm would have rung, despite a lot less rest than usual. Surfacing from her warm and contented state, the young woman found her vigilante still asleep, her limbs intertwined with his, her head pillowed on his shoulder, bare skin against bare skin. Ruefully, the girl considered the compromising position which was entirely of her own making. I should be grateful he didn't wake first for once, because it certainly looks like I changed my mind! I have to get up for lectures, anyways. Intending to escape his grasp, she gently pushed away from her bed companion's chest and her palm slid over warm, firm skin.

 

Her common sense had a minor fight with her hormones and lost. Instead of disentangling herself, the girl ran her fingers down the man's chest, tracing the planes and curves of his body. He moaned softly, and she hastily pulled her hands away. Now I'm groping him when he's asleep! After a minute with no reaction, Kagome relaxed and contemplated the morning's schedule while trying to not be tempted by the sleeping man in her bed. I really don't want to go, but I have to. A goodbye kiss won't hurt, then I'll get up… Pushing herself upright, she leaned over and pressed her mouth against his.

 

Faster than she could have expected, Inuyasha's arms wrapped tightly around her. The young woman gasped as the contact sparked down her nerves, emphatically aware that the only thing between her and a very awake and aroused male were two thin scraps of material. The vigilante used the opportunity to kiss her thoroughly whilst slowly grinding his erection against her thigh. Kagome shuddered as the silver-haired man unlocked his arms, sliding his hands round to palm her breasts, his thumbs gently rubbing her nipples into peaks. The young woman whimpered and arched into his hands, heating pooling between her legs.

 

Inuyasha somehow managed to pull away. “If you want me to keep that promise, we need to stop now,” he gritted out. “I mean it.”

 

Kagome tried desperately to ignore her surging arousal. “It's a little too quick…” she murmured, her voice almost inaudible as she squeezed her thighs together in a vain attempt to control the thundering in her veins. Inuyasha nodded, his fists clenching against her ribs as he took deep, calming breaths. After a few minutes he relaxed, but tucked her against his side, apparently intending to go back to sleep with her in his arms. Reluctantly, Kagome tried to sit up. “I have to get to class.”

 

“Skip it,” he suggested.

 

“I can't… I have 9am lectures.”

 

“You haven't had much sleep.”

 

“I know… but it's hard to catch up, especially on labs, and I have a long one this morning.”

 

He sighed quietly, pouting his lower lip in a very distracting manner. “Please? Just a little longer? I have to leave before it gets much lighter anyways.”

 

Her resistance crumbled in the face of his persistence, as well as the warm length of his body pressing against hers. She curled into him, and laced her fingers with his claw-tipped ones. “OK… but I'll probably curse you this weekend, when I have a pile of homework that'll rival Mount Fuji.”

 

“Curse away, but leave the purification salts out of it. They make me sneeze.”

 

*

 

Inuyasha came back the next night, and the next, and the night after that, too. Kagome deliberately pushed her curiosity about his appearance and abilities to the side when he was with her, preferring to enjoy his company than fret. However, she pondered the enigma he represented during the days when her textbooks held less attractive prospects. The medical student even found herself fruitlessly haunting the Edo fiction of the Katei Collection in the General Library for inspiration on youkai and hanyou, until she was politely directed back to the science sections by an unimpressed librarian.

 

Kagome grew used to the warmth of Inuyasha's body next to hers in her narrow bed, the pressure of his mouth on hers and over her body, the feel of his muscles under her fingers, their soft pants and whimpers in the darkness, and the shedding of more of her inhibitions as his fangs scraped her skin. He didn't deliberately push her into the final levels of intimacy, but when all of their clothing ended up on the floor by the fourth night after their high-flying date, Kagome realized that it wouldn't be long before they took the final step and the idea made her positively glow with anticipation.

 

Who'd have thought he'd bother dying all his hair to match?