InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Silver-Haired Beauty ❯ My friend's will like you. Really. PUT DOWN THE BOOMERANG!!! ( Chapter 4 )

Week One

Day Three

Wandering the halls aimlessly, Jaken seemed like a deflated shadow of his former self. After a dispassionate flogging for his failure, he had pressed himself harder to serving his Lord's needs. It would have been a piece of cake if the Lady Kuroi wasn't making it so difficult.

"Two days. She's only been here for two short days and she's already the main topic of the rumor mill." grumbling sourly, he rounded the corner leading to his room. "The tutor was one thing, but this," he tapped the end of his staff for emphasis, "this is a real piece of work. 'Future Lady has secret midnight rendezvous with fiancée's bastard half brother'?" Shaking his head violently, he resisted the urge to scream. "How in the hell did the staff find out? How did I NOT know before the rest of the mansion?!" Stomping his feet in frustration, he entered his room crying out, "I AM JAKEN! There should not be anything in this household that I'm not privy to. So how did I NOT know!?"

"Because I spread the rumor."

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!" Completely startled, Jaken jumped high in the air and fell unceremoniously on his head. Quickly righting himself, he bowed before his master. "L-Lord Sesshomaru! I did not know you were here!"

A glance dismissed his statement for the folly it was.

Straightening himself, Jaken gaped at his Lord as the words sank in. "Y-you my Lord? But why?" Small green hands spread in supplication, "Why would you spread such a tale about your intended?" The logic was failing to sort out and provide any clarity. "I do not understand."

"As if you could Jaken." Inspecting the view of a miniscule square of earth Jaken's solitary window afforded him, Sesshomaru tossed a pale lock of hair behind him. "Shortly, father will hear of it and annul this ridiculous arrangement due to her infidelity. I will be free and will blacklist my brother in one stroke."

When platitudes for his cunning brilliance failed to come, Sesshomaru turned from his contemplative inspection to look at his retainer instead. "What is it Jaken?"

Becoming a more unpleasant shade of green, the retainer replied too brightly, "Your plan sounds most effective my Lord!"

"But?"

Jaken sighed. He was going to be visiting the healers again soon, "But the Lord Yamatsu is at the home of the very hanyou you implicated. He will not hear the tale until the dinner party tonight where you and the lady will be presented to the rest of the family."

Silence met his revelation. Turning quickly, Sesshomaru strode out the door.

Jaken felt a sudden sense of foreboding concerning the dinner party tonight. "This is not going to go well."

{}

A large blue youkai opened the door, smiled in recognition and revealed a nice small-fanged smile. "Lord Yamatsu! It's a pleasure to see you again. Mom's round back."

The old Lord smiled in return. "Hello Kiso! My, you're getting big enough to join the army." Walking with the laughing young man around the side of the house, Yamatsu wondered idly if Jaken had believed that lie about where he was going to spend his day. 'Blasted toad's too damned nosy as it is.' Yamatsu knew that the retainer wouldn't go near Inuyasha and his pack. But here… Glancing around at the large rambling house, his handsome face lit up. 'This is someplace that toad doesn't need to come to.'

Kiso tapped his shoulder and pointed to a small garden plot. Thanking him, Yamatsu made his way over, admiring the neat rows of flowers and foodstuffs growing out of the rich dark soil as he went. The delicate and familiar perfume of roses caressed his senses.

Shinaki didn't look up from the rose bush she was trimming. "And why has the mountain come to visit the rose?" her voice held a gentle teasing quality that she'd managed to bestow on her children.

Sinking down to sit beside her and watch her work, Yamatsu chuckled. "To see something lovely." She snorted delicately, but smiled.

A small pack of children raced by, calling out a quick greeting before stripping and diving into the nearby water. Yamatsu looked at them in wonder. "Shinaki, it never ceases to amaze me how well your children get along with each other."

The aged face shifted in surprise. "They are family to each other. Hanyou, youkai or human, none of that is more important than the fact that they are a family. Everything else is irrelevant."

"Some don't see it that way, you know."

"Aye, and more the fool for it." Looking fondly at her old friend, Shinaki screwed up one bright lavender eye at him. "I've known you too long Yama. What do you need of these old bones?"

"Old? You're a hundred years younger than me!"

Gazing down at her uplifted, dirt-smudged wrinkled hands before appraising his unlined and handsome face, Shinaki gave a mirthless laugh. "Some of us age more gracefully than others." Her hands lowered, but he stopped them with his own. His face was unreadable when she looked at it, "No, we all age gracefully together." He released her fingers and contented himself with simply watching her face.

Which was managing a light bluish blush. 'I cannot believe this old dog is trying to flirt with me.' Dismissing the thought for the silliness it was, she still found herself warming under that silent gaze. Sensing her change in mood, Yamastu cleared his throat. Now she knew why he was here. His quiet rumbling tone was as familiar to her as her next question was to him, "Sesshomaru troubles you again Yama?"

"Aye. I don't know how to reach him, but I am worried about the consequences if I don't try." Deep honey eyes watched meticulous blue fingers snip leaves and buds with a dexterity that belied their age. "Talk to him when you think he is ready Yama, that is all you can do."

"But what about the thing with Kuroi and Inuyasha?"

Pale purple eyes filled momentarily with irritation, "Did I not tell you to deal with that before this betrothal? It is bad enough that Kuroi believes you did not know of her before the day you went to her outpost, she is also unaware of how deeply the rivalry between those boys of yours really is!" Snipping fast and forcefully, Shinaki halted when she realized she was going to prune her beloved bush to death.

"Yama, our two children are the closest and dearest of friends, and that alone will make Inuyasha and Sesshomaru try to kill one another." Fingers rubbed her lined brow fretfully, "I understand Inuyasha has a mate as well?"

Yamatsu nodded his snowy head, "Kagome. She's a very lovely girl. She's good for Inuyasha."

"Has he told her about Kuroi?" the question was as pointed as the look he was getting. Yamatsu gave an embarrassed cough, "Not that I am aware of, no."

"Baka." Tossing her hands in the air, Shinaki fumed. "If you were one of mine Yama, I would throw you over a knee." An odd light danced behind the tawny eyes at the threat, but she didn't see it. "Kuroi and Inuyasha will be well, as long as the other is whole and happy. You will have to deal with the mate and your eldest son on your own." Yamatsu groaned.

"I wish Haniko or Ukiyo was alive."

At the mention of her deceased adopted cousin, Shinaki stilled in her work. "As do I Yama. For that matter, I wish my beloved Tenchin was still beside me." despite creaking slightly from age, a wistfulness could still be heard in her voice. Picking up a clod of dirt, she placed it squarely in the startled man's hand. Pointing a gnarled finger at it she said, "In this hand you have a lump of dirt, on the other you have our wishes." Rapping the back of the full hand with the flat of her clippers, she caused him to spill the soil. "Only one of those you could ever do something with."

Laughing hard at the home grown wisdom, Yamatsu gave her cheek a quick peck, then stood and walked over to the river. Stripping down to his loin cloth, he dove in with the delighted children. Behind him, Kiso joined his mother in watching the carefree antics in the water. "Someday, he'll be able to do this at his home."

Shinaki shook her head sadly. "I have known him for a long time Kiso. He cannot allow himself to be like this in his home. There is a great honor in being a Demon Lord." At Yamatsu's happy laughter, her gaze softened, "But there is also a great burden with it."

"Is that why he comes here all the time? To get away from the burden?" Confused, Kiso set the tray he'd been carrying down and sat next to his mother. Shinaki shook her head again. "One cannot get away from great burdens unless they are cast aside. Yamatsu cares too deeply for those living in his territory to leave them in harm's way by abandoning his duties."

She laughed as Yamatsu became a large dog so the children could slid down his tail into the water. "He comes to us because here, he does not feel burdened at all."

{}

"There's a monkey in the middle of the room. Ook, ook!" humming happily, Inuyasha was relaxing against a tree trunk, tapping his foot on the branch in rhythm with the song. Every refrain or so, he would break out in a carefree smile, chuckle and start humming again.

Below him; Sango, Miroku, Kagome and Shippo gaped in disbelief.

As the eldest, Miroku was the first to speak. "Kagome, are you pregnant by any chance?"

BAM!

Re-shouldering her massive weapon, Sango winced and reached down to help him back up. "Sorry Miroku. I think it's becoming a reflex now."

Forming a serene smile despite the lump growing on his head, the monk accepted the offer of assistance. "It is perfectly understandable dear Sango. You are used to my less than noble ways, so all is forgiven." He tilted his head a fraction to the side as he turned back to watch the hanyou. "You are strangely silent Kagome, care to enlighten us?"

Kagome was beet-red and getting darker. "I am not pregnant baka. I don't know why he's like that, although I could guess." Waving a dismissive hand, she looked at her extended family. "Ever since the lunch where we met his brother's new fiancée, who just happens to be an old friend of Inuyasha's, he's been acting a complete idiot."

Both companions blinked and looked at her simultaneously. Their questions weren't so synchronous.

"Sesshomaru is getting married?"

"Inuyasha actually had a friend before us?"

WHAM!

Inuyasha stood over the prone body of the monk wearing his characteristic scowl. "Yeah I had a friend you bouzo! Her name's Kuroi and she's getting hitched to my idiot brother." Rudely yanking the young monk back on his feet, the hanyou released him as soon as he seemed steady. Heading in the direction of Kaede's village, he yelled over his shoulder, "Not that it's any of your fucking business!!

"But Inu, he's just curious." the laughing voice carried to them from the other side of the clearing. All eyes turned to watch the young woman dressed in a short cobalt blue kimono step out of the trees. Kagome frowned slightly, 'What is Kuroi doing here?' The other girl waved and came to join them. When she ran over to them, one pair of eyes watched the effect with more interest than the others.

Miroku beat Inuyasha to the young lady's side. Taking her hand in his, he flashed her his most harmless and winning smile. "Hello lovely lady. My name is Miroku and I am but a humble monk seeking the road to enlightenment whilst battling truly villainous and powerful foes. Since my fate is uncertain from day to day, I was wondering if you would do me the honor of bearing my child?"

BAM! THUMP!

Sango and Inuyasha caught him in a tag team strike.

Kuroi gave a delighted giggle before kneeling beside the fallen young man. Taking his chin in hand, she tipped his head towards her with a finger. Her warm eyes were luminous as she gazed deeply into his, "If I were not intended for another man, I would not hesitate to give myself completely into your strong knowledgeable hands, most noble and handsome monk."

Since she didn't blush from that bold statement, everyone else did it for her. Shippo fell over in shock and even Kirara took a moment to sit down.

Miroku shot to his feet fully revitalized and proclaimed with happy tears, "At last! I have found a goddess!!"

WHACK!! A growl drifted through the air and warned him to stay down for a while. Inuyasha took Kuroi's hands out of the stricken monk's clasp. Nearly dragging her towards the scattered houses, he said sharply, "Kuroi, you really should NOT encourage that bouzo, or else you'll wind up on the wrong end of his damned wandering hands."

"Do they detach or something?" Her gentle teasing coaxed a grin out of him, ruining his efforts to frown. Inuyasha finally stopped and gave in to the laugh he felt coming. "I forgot how easily you make me laugh." The hand holding his squeezed softly, making him meet her eyes.

"Inu, tell her now. Please." Kuroi whispered urgently, stepping aside a little to give a clear view of both girls he'd all but left behind in his haste. Both wore similar expressions of surprise and concern. "Do I really have to?" he knew he sounded like a child begging for a sweet, but with Kuroi, he didn't mind. She knew him too well. "Maybe a little later Inu, but you do need to make it soon." Her words carried a gentle chiding. He squeezed her hand in silent thanks.

From a distance, two sets of eyes watched them with mixed emotions. Leaning close, Sango whispered, "I thought you said they were friends?"

Exasperated, Kagome snapped back "They are as far as I know!" Seeing another intimate look pass between the hanyou and the girl whose hand he still held, Kagome's voice shrank down, 'As far I know, they are just friends.' Sango frowned worriedly and said nothing else. The older girl wasn't too sure of her friend's state at the moment. She herself had been more astonished at the way Inuyasha was acting around the azure-garbed girl, so she couldn't really gauge how her friend might react.

For her part, Kagome couldn't seem to decide whether to be hurt or angry. So she chose neither. Dredging up a kilowatt smile, she grabbed Sango's hand and pulled the startled girl towards the others. Coming abreast of them, she turned and greeted Kuroi warmly, "Hi Kuroi! It's nice to know you can dodge Sesshomaru enough to get out the house." Gesturing to her side, she indicated the young woman dressed in a pink and coral kimono, "This is Sango." Pointing out the large boomerang riding on Sango's shoulders, she explained, "She a taijiya, or demon exterminator." Rolling her eyes towards the prostrate monk behind them, she said levelly, "And you've met Miroku."

Kuroi bounced and giggled. That was all the warning they got before both girls found themselves on the receiving end of a sudden hug. Holding tightly, Kuroi chirped. "It's so nice to meet Inu's friends! I'm so happy you guys found each other!" Releasing them, she gave a happy little dance and scooted past them. A bit stunned from the enthusiasm and familiarity of the hug, Kagome and Sango nodded to thin air. Inuyasha laughed nastily, snapping them out of their reverie.

They didn't need to worry about Kuroi noticing their failure to hug her in return. She was back beside Miroku helping him to his feet, where he wobbled unsteadily. Kuroi offered her shoulder for support that he gladly accepted. Sango seethed. 'He's faking for sympathy! That baka has been hit a lot harder than that and walked away whistling. I can't believe she's falling for his bull.' Eyes widening, her emotions shifted from angry to shocked. 'I am not seeing this.'

To everyone's further surprise, Kuroi was holding Miroku's head in both hands and laying a light kiss on each of his bumps.

"You guys are so mean to him!" Wagging a finger at them, she draped the still staggering monk's arm back across her shoulders. "He's just being honest about how he feels. Is that so bad?"

Sango snorted, "Just wait until he gropes your backside. I bet it won't seem so simple then."

"Like he's doing now?" Twisting her hips, Kuroi gave them a good view of the monk's traveling hand doing what it did best. Miroku looked positively ecstatic.

"MI...RO...KU!!"

"Excuse me Lady Kuroi, I am afraid I must hastily depart for the moment, but please accept my thanks with the knowledge that you will always have a fond place in my heart." Somehow, the wily young monk managed to kiss her hand and deliver his parting line while simultaneously avoiding both the razor sharp claws, which sought to forcefully remove his head, and the giant bone boomerang that threatened to squash him. Ducking the hiraikotsou once more, he dashed off with Inuyasha in hot pursuit.

Panting, Sango watched as Kuroi doubled over in in a fresh fit of giggles. Cocking her head she whispered to Kagome, "Is that really her? She seems...well, nice."

"Yeah, I know. After Kikyo, I was kind of disappointed that she wasn't a raving psycho bent on my bodily destruction or something. She's a little silly, but pretty much normal." The taijiya's next statement made her laugh.

"If she let's Miroku grope her without so much as batting an eye, how normal could she be?"

{}

Afternoon

Kagome smiled. She loved Shippo, but it was kind of nice to let someone else spoil him for a while. From the way the little guy was acting, she guessed he felt the same way. She was right.

Shippo was in heaven. There was no other word for it, because he was pretty sure you couldn't feel this good and still be on earth. Purring loud enough to bring an amused smile from every person in the room, save one, he gave himself over to Kuroi's magical hands. On her part, she was fawning over the little tyke wholeheartedly.

"You are the most adorable little thing I have ever seen! Ooh, I bet you have tons and tons of wonderful spells and charms. Look at the size of that tail! You are going to grow up so big and handsome, you'll have to ward the girls off with a ring of fire." Picking the apparently boneless body from her lap, Kuroi nuzzled and kissed both his cheeks.

Deliriously happy, the cub focused one droopy blue eye on the growling hanyou. "Inuyasha, you finally did something right in bringing auntie Kuroi here. I forgive you for ever being a complete baka. She makes up for all of it."

"Bite me twerp."

Shippo didn't deign to give him a response, he was enjoying himself way too much. When the pleased vibrations threatened to rattle the walls of the hut, Inuyasha threw a pebble at his head.

"Ow! That hurt you big dummy!" The kitsune shook an angry fist in the air, but his anger evaporated as cool fingers worked lightly to soothe the bump. Practically oozing back into Kuroi's lap, the purr picked right back up. Amber eyes glared at the pair. "Little twerp. Be a real man and get the hell out of there. You look like a fucking lap dog." Shippo gave a mocking bark. Inuyasha snarled, "That is so damned sad." Rolling his eyes, he huffed from his seat by the door. Miroku and Sango hid laughter behind spontaneous coughs.

Kuroi's next words brought amusement of a different kind. Reaching out a hand, she tickled a silver ear and said solemnly, "I promise to do you next Inu. Then maybe you could do me!" The hanyou froze, one unseen eye twitching uncontrollably.

Silence is a funny thing. Although there's no sound, you can hear so much that begs to be said when it happens. The first sound was Miroku taking a deep breath, followed by three thumps as everyone close by took a turn whacking him upside the head.

Clearing his throat, Inuyasha gave a pointed look over one shoulder to the girl holding the kid. "Kuroi. That is not something I would be interested in." The tight civility of his tone made more than a few brows raise speculatively. Kagome took in his whole posture. 'I know that look. That's his 'We'll talk later, just shut up for now' look.' Despite the forced niceness, Inuyasha sounded like he was swallowing crushed glass, which made her wonder, 'Why would he rub her ears? Unless it's not her ears...?' She knew when the blush started because her face was suddenly too hot.

Bright blue eyes noted the ruddy color and watched her with concern. "Are you okay Kagome? I just meant that Inu and I would..."

Panic flashed across his face when he whirled completely around to face her, "Shut the FUCK up!!" Unthinking, he grabbed the girl's wrist and despite Shippo's protests, dragged her quickly outside. Every eye turned towards Kagome, who blushed deeper and hid her eyes behind dark bangs.

Sango stared across the little space at her friend. 'That was not like Inuyasha to be so evasive. Rude as hell, but not evasive.' Nice or not, Kuroi was causing the other girl unknowing stress, and she didn't like it one bit. Her irritation seeped out, "Kagome, who did you say this girl claimed to be?" It hurt to hear her friend sound so small and lost.

"She said she was an old friend of Inuyasha's. From before he was sealed into the tree." When they looked surprised, she waved a hand dismissively, "She said she's not as human as she seems, but I don't sense any evil from her." Chewing her lower lip, she half heartedly patted Shippo's head, 'This would be easier if I did. All I can do is watch them and try to figure it out.'

Escalating shouting drifted in through the door. Which opened and admitted a visibly upset Kuroi. The transformation from the bright bubbly girl to the tear stricken wreck stunned the other two girls. A flustered Inuyasha followed right behind her, "Look Kuroi, I didn't mean it like that!" His only answer was a stiff back presented as the crying girl faced a corner. "Go away Inu!" the shrill note to the cry put him on edge. 'I didn't mean to upset her. Shit!'

Handling emotional turmoil can bridge a lot of differences. Kagome and Sango rushed to the sobbing girl's side and glared death at the hanyou. "At least we know being rude to your friends doesn't just apply to us." The taijiya said coldly and rubbed Kuroi's shaking back while Kagome held a hand and patted a shoulder in a placating gesture. Her own eyes darkened with stormy anger, "Yeah. You need to stop being such a jerk Inuyasha!"

"What?!" Mouth agape, he wondered when the hell it had all become his fault? Frantically, the hanyou tried to think of anything that might stop the tears coming from Kuroi and still salvage his pride. "Shit, I didn't mean to yell like that. I just...fuck!" the apology faltered off badly. 'Why am I apologizing in the first place?' A sniffle reminded him, 'Because I'm an idiot.'

Kaede gave him a look of amused patience and Miroku was still on his side from the three-way punch. Shippo had a annoyingly familiar smirk on his face. But the worst was the way Sango and Kagome were wearing the same look of furious expectation. They were waiting on an apology as well.

His face blackened in fury, knuckles cracking ominously. He had rights too, didn't he? She was his friend, not theirs! He knew what was best for them, hell he saved their asses often enough that it was second nature by now, he shouldn't have to explain every little thing he did. So why didn't they just listen to him? 'Fuck this... I do what I want when I want to do it. Right now, what I want is simple, it's easy so I'm just going to do it. If they have a problem, they can all bite me.' Mind set and ready, he drew himself up and waved for Sango and Kagome to move away. Surprised by his sudden change, they did.

"I'm sorry Kuroi." the level whisper traveled around the hut, shocking everyone inside.

Inuyasha, apologizing? In front of people?! Sango looked around at the astonished faces of her friends. What kind of woman was this Kuroi that she could get Inuyasha to do that? What happened next made everyone prepare to escape. Inuyasha was notorious about public displays of affection and quite vocal on anything that even hinted at weakness on his part. So naturally, when they saw what he did after the quiet apology, they fully expected to die in order to keep word of it from traveling beyond those four wooden walls.

Giving up all pretenses of pride, he knelt down in defeat and scooted over beside his friend, where he laid his silver head in her lap. "I'm sorry Kuroi. I shouldn't have yelled like that."

Kagome stared slack jawed at the event before her. 'Oh fuck no.'

Shocked? No, too light a word. Stunned? Getting there, but still ineffective. Drowning in the yawning abyss of complete and utter denial of reality? Bingo!

When it became apparent that death wasn't imminent, they relaxed and continued staring at the pair.

"Kuroi child, what manner of being are ye that ye have such strong sway over the hanyou." Kaede asked since it was clear the others felt they couldn't.

"No one special mistress Kaede. The two of us are just old friends." Adoration shone down at Inuyasha as he returned the look with his apology still bright in his eyes. Kuroi smiled gently. "We are only friends. Nothing more."

Kagome fought to keep her breathing under control, since she really wanted to scream. She wore a scowl that would have done her mate proud. 'I am not jealous. I am not jealous. Just because she's gorgeous, seems knows every little thing about him and can make that idiot practically jump when she pouts, that doesn't mean I'm jealous!' As she looked on, Inuyasha tugged playfully on a smooth inky lock of the other girl's hair. 'Fuck it, I'm jealous.'

"Why are you two so close Auntie Kuroi? Inuyasha doesn't apologize to Kagome even when he knows he's wrong." Taking in the half breed's relaxed state, the little guy cocked his head, "He's acting weird." A quick kick from the hanyou in question sent him skittering into his 'mother's' lap. "Normal enough for you twerp?"

"Not really Inuyasha. I will admit that while I am enjoying the sight of this aspect of your personality, I do not think our dear Kagome is so appreciative." Leaning forward, Miroku tapped Inuyasha hard with his staff. It didn't get so much as a snarl from the hanyou.

Making a resigned noise, Kuroi pulled her hands away and swatted playfully at Inuyasha's ears. "Sit up Koinu, or she might shoot you with those arrows she keeps eyeing."

Still feeling a pleasant buzz from the ear massage, Inuyasha sat up with an arrogant smile on his face, "Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm up already." He then stood, walked a short distance and planted his head in Kagome's startled lap with the terse demand, "Keep rubbing woman." If he was going to admit to liking ear rubs, then it was going to be his idea damn it!

Incredulous, she tweaked his ear, hard. He yanked away with a yelp. "Damn it bitch, that's why I laid down in her lap and not yours! You're just plain fucking evil to me!" He started to really get vocal, but a blow to the back of the head dropped him.

Brow twitching, Kuroi growled, "Damn it Inu, you are really not helping!" Bowing in apology, Kuroi faced the seething miko and coolly appraising companions. 'Boy did he put me in the tight spot.' Scratching the back of her head, she gave an embarrassed laugh. "Kagome, please ignore baka boy here, and listen to me. I really am just friends with Inuyasha." At the chorus of disbelieving looks, she sighed gustily. "I know we seem kinda close, but that's only because we knew each other for so long." When that had no effect, she switched tactics. "Kagome, do you love him?"

Caught off guard, Kagome blushed but nodded. "Yeah, even right now when I want to kill him, I love him." She blushed harder as honey dark eyes twinkled smugly at her, but she stuck her tongue out in response.

"Then you know how I feel. I love Inu too," she hastily amended, "but not the way you do." Leaning back against the wall, Kuroi smiled, eyes looking away into the past. "Inuyasha and I met almost seventy years ago."

"But you don't appear that old, Lady Kuroi. How is that possible?" Mindful of the way Kuroi had reacted to that question before, Kagome braced for an out burst. It didn't come. Instead, she smiled sadly at Miroku. "I can't tell you noble monk. I'm sorry." Miroku nodded his understanding and motioned for her to continue.

"At first, he didn't trust me. Hell, I don't think he trusted anybody, but the first time we met really didn't help. He saw me when I had been wandering through a forest known for the number of youkai and oni in it."

"Yeah, I saw a human girl surrounded by a pack of feral fire cats. I thought it would be fun to watch." His silver hair shimmered as he shook his head ruefully, "Shit, that was a show all right, just not the one I expected." Beaming with pride at the girl who barely came to his chin, he ruffled her hair affectionately. "She wiped them out with nothing but a broken katana. I never saw any human move that fast."

"Never will Koinu." Kuroi chirped and refocused on her audience. "Needless to say, after that, he just followed me around, but wouldn't come closer than a stone's throw."

"If you saw me do what you did, would you?! Shit, I ain't a complete boob." he kicked Shippo when it looked like a comment was forthcoming.

"Stop that Koinu or I'll kick you myself. The only thing that brought him close was when I went to visit my family."

"Still a pack of youkai, only these mob you with hugs, not claws."

"Shut up or I'll tweak something!" When he let out a scandalized gasp and scooted aside, she rolled her eyes. "After a few of mom's sweet cakes, he started to come around to me. Mom's cooking has that effect on people."

Miroku asked wisely, "Magical?"

"No, just really tasty!" he fell over at the bright reply. "Anyway, he started coming with me whenever I went any place. He said if he didn't watch out for me, my mom would blame him and never give him a cake again. It was too big of a risk to take in his mind." They all gave her similar looks of polite disbelief.

Producing a familiar bundle from one sleeve, Inuyasha wordlessly opened it and broke apart only one of the many cakes inside. Pressing a piece in each person's hand, he raised a brow when they frowned at his lack of generosity. "Eat it, you'll understand."

On contact with their tongues, the air was filled with shimmering light and they said in a joyful chorus, "We understand!!!" Nodding sagely, Inuyasha put the purloined cakes back up his sleeves. Everyone watched and made plans to steal them later.

Kuroi made a mental note to knock the hell out of Inuyasha for stealing her cakes, but kept talking. "After three years or so, we became really good friends. It took four years before I found out about the…" Inuyasha nodded encouragingly, "moon cycle."

At their telling looks, she smiled with relief. "I see he trusts you guys enough to have told you about that already." Inuyasha snorted, "Fuck no. All of them found out on their own." He warmly appraised the small pack he'd assembled around himself, "But I do trust them to keep it to themselves."

"You are so silly sometimes Koinu. You know you love them, you're just being pig-headed." Ignoring his sputtering and the group's poorly hidden laughter, she went on. "Inu and I traveled together for well over ten years Kagome. We did everything from fighting, eating and damned near breathing no further than twenty feet from each other the whole time."

"I helped her and she helped me. It's hard not to get close to someone when you've lost track of the number of times you've saved each other's lives." Staring at each one of his friends, he asked pointedly, "Am I wrong?"

Everyone shook their head slowly. They have done for each other exactly what he'd just described, and weren't they as close to one another as Inuyasha seemed to be with Kuroi because of it? There was no censure this time when they watched as the two laced their fingers together.

Kuroi beamed, "Even though we both had separate homes, we never stayed longer than a visit at each one. We didn't need to. We were a family unto ourselves." A brooding expression clouded her open face. "Then he met Kikyo." Her lips pulled faintly to the side. "No offense Kaede, but we didn't hit it off when he introduced us."

"None taken child. I know my sister kept her own council." The old miko closed her eyes sadly. "She keeps it still since her resurrection."

Kuroi almost fell over in shock, "You mean I have to watch out for that psycho again!?" Clapping a hand over her mouth, she made apologetic motions to Kaede. "Sorry, it's just that when we first met and I wouldn't tell her why I had lived for so long, she tried to exorcise me with an arrow in a vital spot." Slanting her eyes to the side, she mumbled to Kagome. "Personally, I don't think she liked Inuyasha having a female in his life who wasn't her." Kaede cleared her throat, eliciting more apologetic gestures.

Inuyasha snorted. "Kikyo hated your ass. The first time we went to see your family together, it took me an hour to convince her not to purify the whole area." moaning sadly the hanyou pouted, "I should have known we weren't meant for each other when she said she didn't like your mom's sweet cakes."

Even Kaede looked at Kuroi with a scandalized expression. "Kikyo always did have a strong sense of ethics, but thine mother's cake was divine child. I cannot believe she could find them distasteful." Rubbing her wrinkled chin, Kaede mused aloud, "Perhaps she was indeed simply being petty." Her admission to a possible fault on the part of her beloved sister would have shocked them, if they hadn't eaten that cake. Anyone who could refuse one had to have something wrong with them.

Kuroi blinked at Inuyasha, "I can't believe she wanted to purify mom. She takes in orphaned human and hanyou kids for crying out loud! Who the hell purifies a widow caring for orphans? Even if mom is a youkai, that's just plain sick." Shuddering, she patted Kagome's knee affectionately, "You on the other hand are a whole other story. You didn't try to shoot at me or tell Inu not to hang around with me." With a gleeful cry, she launched herself at the other for another hug. "I like you!!"

Powerful hand pried her off, "Geez Cuckoo. Lay off, she has to breathe you know." Reluctantly letting go, Kuroi made a plaintive sound. "But she's sooo nice..." Kagome blushed and replied hesitantly, "Thanks Kuroi, you're nice too."

That brought a thrilled laugh from the cheerful girl. 'Boy, she is really easy to please. She just bounces around chirping all the time.' Inuyasha's nickname for Kuroi suddenly seemed very appropriate. An amusing thought crossed Kagome's mind, 'She'll probably kill me if I gave her a cuckoo clock for a wedding gift.'

Lounging contentedly against each other, Miroku and Sango smiled. Kuroi was turning out to be really kind, and if Inuyasha could admit freely to her fighting prowess, she might make a great ally against Naraku. Unseen, their hands met and stayed together. The future suddenly looked brighter.

Shippo shifted over beside them and opened his hand slyly. Inside were two of the cakes from earlier. They accepted them with silent thanks from the proud little cub. Smirking at Inuyasha around a mouthful of sweetness, the little kitsune thought to himself, 'I might be small Inu-baka, but kitsune are nothing if not the best at theft and trickery.'

Kuroi touched Kaede briefly on the back of her hand. "I might not have liked Kikyo very much, but I respected what she and Koinu meant to each other. I never tried to sway him when she asked him to change for her, and I tried to honor her request by staying away as much as I could bear. Even after I found out she had imprisoned him against that tree, I couldn't quite hate her, because he'd loved her." Her words were given in honesty and kindness, bringing a surprised tear to the old miko's eye.

"Thank ye child, your words are most welcome to these old ears." Returning the warm touch, her aged voice held concern, "But if ye knew of Inuyasha's imprisonment, why did ye not try to free him?"

Pain darkened the ice clear eyes. "I did. I spent a year trying." She held out her trembling hands, exposing crisscrossed welts and faded scars across the palms. Fifty years had managed to erase many, but not all the signs of magical damage. Kaede gasped. Clutching them back against her chest, Kuroi fought to breathe.

"I came and I came. I pulled until I went blind from the spell and passed out. One of my brothers had to drag me home. When I could see enough to walk, I went back and I pulled again. I did that for the first year straight. Mom thought I'd lost my mind." Her voice was hollow and filled with a yawning absence of hope, making the brilliant sunset seem murky and haunted. Inuyasha wrapped an arm around her stiff shoulders, but she was too far into her memories to acknowledge it.

"Kikyo was a powerful miko and that arrow stayed put even as my blood poured out on it. I came to the tree and I pulled, nothing else mattered to me except seeing my friend again. I told myself every time before I blacked out, 'If I can just see his eyes again, if I can just see his eyes...'" Her voice trailed away, unwilling to complete that promise from the past. Kuroi looked down at her hands again. 'I would have died to see his eyes again.'

"Mom saved me, again. She told me after the last time Kiso dragged me home, that I had something more important to do for Koinu." Large tears spilled down her cheeks, "She told I had to live for him if I couldn't set him free. That now I had to watch out for him the way he'd watched out for me."

Looking around the room, her gaze touched on each person there, finally stopping on Kagome. She smiled at the miko through joyous tears. "That's why seeing you with him makes me so happy Kagome. You see, I was afraid for him." the smile wobbled as the tears fell. "I was afraid he'd be alone again."

Wiping her face on the hem of her short robe, she drew a tremulous breath. "Ever since the day he was shot by Kikyo, I came to his tree once a week to sing to him and clean away the leaves and debris. The tree and spell protected him from rain and some snow, but I needed to be sure he was really okay."

She faced her friend squarely, "I joined your father's army hoping that by traveling with it, I could find someone who might know how to remove the spell. When I came to see you, I would try out anything I had learned." Her laugh was watery, "As you saw, nothing worked! But it didn't stop me from looking and coming back to you. That became my routine and before I knew it, fifty years had slipped away." Glossy and dark, her ponytail waved from side to side as she shook her head, "That didn't stop me from coming back either."

Kuroi turned to Kagome and laid a hand softly against her face, "You freed him, and freed me as well. But more importantly, you loved him, and stayed by his side. That was the greatest service of all. You see, the reason I came to see him wasn't only to release him. It was to let him know he wasn't by himself. Even bound, I couldn't bear the thought of him being alone!"

The silence grew heavy as each member mused of Kuroi's words. Kagome most of all, 'Fifty years?! She watched over him for fifty years!? No wonder he's so calm around her. That kind of devotion makes me feel like a grade school crush.' Looking at the linked hands laying between them, she wondered if the other girl was telling the truth. 'Is her love really that different? Is it really so pure that she doesn't want him that way? Do I have to worry that one day, she might go after him like Kikyo?' Solemn blue-gray eyes watched the two friends, 'Can I actually trust what she's telling me?'

"Then it was ye who was the tree spirit the villagers spoke of Kuroi?" Kaede's remaining eye watched the nodding girl in amazement. "I had wondered why the wards and barriers I had set around the bound hanyou had no affect on ye."

"So you don't want to marry Inuyasha auntie Kuroi?" the kitsune was back in his place in his 'mother's' lap. Kagome silently blessed him and made a mental note to bring him as much chocolate as she could carry.

Looking much better after her stormy tears, Kuroi leaned forward and tickled his chin. "No my little one. I am to be his sister in law soon. I don't think it would work even if I weren't engaged." Her nose wrinkled cutely, "We just don't think we like each other that way. I am betrothed to the other handsome man with silver hair."

"Pretty boy with a shitty attitude you mean." Scratching his head as he yawned, Inuyasha asked her seriously, "How the fuck can you stomach the idea of marrying that cold bastard anyway? He's a complete snob and arrogant as hell.' Closing his eyes, he added, "Shit, you'd do better with Miroku."

When the monk sat up brightly, he barked out, "Sit the fuck down hentai!! Kuroi may not have had a problem with your hands wandering, but if you try that shit again, you won't have to worry about the wind tunnel or Naraku 'cause I'll kill you myself!" A short growl accented his words.

Miroku sighed longingly, but turned hopefully towards Sango, "Would you..."

BAM!

"No."

Easy laughter bloomed as the sense of normalcy returned, and Kagome smiled faintly. She wanted to talk to Inuyasha, but it could wait. 'They spent fifty years apart, I guess they deserve some time in each other's company without more nosy questions.' For now, she just watched the two interact with each other with a faint hope blooming through her doubt. 'They're so close. Will we ever be that close? I hope so.'

A fretful gasp roused her from her thoughts. Kuroi was staring out the window at the gathering dusk. "Oh no, I'm going to be late." Standing up, she bowed to everyone before rushing to the door. "It was wonderful to meet you all. I wish you could come to this stupid dinner party Yamatsu is having, but it's only for his immediate family." Raising her brows hopefully, she looked to her old friend. "Do you want to come Koinu?"

He shook his head quickly. "I love you kid, but no amount of ear rubs would make me step foot in that house again." At her look of supreme disappointment, he smiled his encouragement. "But you go give them hell for both of us."

"Bad Puppy."

"Silly Bird"

"Evil Monkey Boy!" with a last wave, she left where she wished to stay to return to the place she didn't want to be.

Behind her, Inuyasha pulled Kagome close to him and whispered tenderly, "Thank you for accepting her koishii." Relaxing against him, Kagome just wished that was entirely true.