InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ That Which Shines Brightest ❯ 07: What the Heart Knows ( Chapter 7 )

That Which Shines Brightest

 

***Warning*** This chapter contains adult situations

 

 

 

Chapter Seven

 

 

 

 

Shirogane stopped before the door of his sister's hut and waved at Shippou who came bounding down the lane like a little rubber ball, rapidly approaching from the other side.

“Is that the water for Yukino?” he asked courteously, and Shippou nodded.

“Do you want to give to her?” Shippou asked in his piping voice, holding the bamboo canister up, more than happy to pass the task on, his green eyes already straying eagerly towards Kagome's hut .

With a half-smile and a word of thanks, Shirogane took the canister watching as Shippou skipped off in the direction he himself had come. But then Shirogane belatedly remembered the message he was supposed to deliver and he turned and called out to the young kitsune who reluctantly turned in his direction.

Shippou took Rin's message hard, and Shirogane regarded his crestfallen expression with sympathy, for he well understood the desire to spend more time in Kagome's company - although he himself much preferred her to be conscious for the visit.

“There's always tomorrow,” Shirogane observed, his words failing to noticeably lift the flagging spirits of the young fox cub. “She'll even be awake then, Shippou - you know sleeping people are terrible at holding a conversation.”

Putting his fingers together in front of him, Shippou murmured ponderously, “That's true… but still… just to sit for a while in her company, even if it's while she's sleeping that is more than I have had in, in - forever! - and there's so much that's happened! - and she could still listen!….” He heaved a defeated sigh, his shoulders weighted with the burden of disappointment, and waved goodnight to Shirogane.

Shirogane watched him amble slowly along the street like a rubber ball that had been slightly squished, until he was out of sight, and then he turned and entered his sister's hut. He was surprised at how chilly it was inside the small room and then realized that the fire inside the irori had burned low and almost completely out, allowing the late autumn night's air to filter in along with the long shadows of the evening.

Turning his head, he saw that his sister lay on top of her covers curled into a ball facing the wall, and the supplies that Rin had left her were within arms reach. Shirogane looked over the neat pile, noting that there was a small basin of water, some strips of cloth, a few rectangular tenugui** towels, a cup of medicinal tea like the one he'd had, and a small crock of herbal ointment.

There was even a needle and some thread - for stitches, just in cast they were needed, although, Shirogane shuddered to think of anyone using the sharp metal to repair his sister's flesh without anything to deaden the pain. But then, he supposed that was what the tea was for. Still, hopefully the gash at the corner of her mouth was not too severe to require mending. All of these things however, even the water and the towels, remained untouched.

Taking a few limping steps towards her, he softly called out to her, thinking she might be sleeping. She didn't respond, and he stood there, deliberating as to whether he should awaken her or let her continue to sleep. Still undecided, he slowly bent at the waist, using his staff to keep his weight off his leg, and put the container of water next to the neat pile of other supplies. The lack of heat drew his gaze back to the irori and he plodded his way to the coals, finding the task of stoking the flames a wretched one as he bent, going to his knees, his face twisting into a grimace at the throbbing pain as the muscles contracted in his leg and thigh.

By the time he was done with his task, the fire was crackling brightly, the searing heat beginning to spread its warmth to the corners of the little hut and the light gilding everything in its orange-gold color. Panting and weak, Shirogane remained motionless for a long moment next to the flames, waiting for the pain to subside, lacking the strength to rise back to his feet on his own. He wondered if perhaps the chill of the night would have been the wiser choice to the white hot pain that left him unable to move.

He closed his eyes, biding his time as he waited, mulling over the events of the day in his mind. A few minutes dragged by after what seemed like an eternity and Shirogane could feel the tide of the pain begin to ebb, his legs finally regaining some of their strength. Gripping tightly to his bo with both hands, he pulled himself shakily to his feet, a trickle of sweat inching its way uncomfortably between his shoulder blades beneath his shirt as his whole body broke into a clammy sweat.

Getting down on his hands and knees was not something he'd be doing again until his leg had healed a little more, he thought grimly, using his sleeve to wipe at the beads of perspiration that peppered his brow. But then his eyes caught the waiflike appearance of his sister as she huddled on the coarse cotton blanket in the corner. Her flame color hair was all tousled, and her legs were badly scraped and bruised. The long sleeves of her blouse hid the condition of her arms, but the fabric had become dirty and torn, as had the dark blue skirt she wore.

Shirogane's gaze wavered between the bowl of clean water and the hard-packed earth which had nearly declared its victory over him only moments ago.

The pain had been severe, but it was tolerable, he grudgingly tried to convince himself as he slowly limped back in her direction. And besides, this was for his sister who was the most important person in the world to him.

Silently groaning, he positioned himself in the most favorable spot he could find and with a great deal of trepidation, he lowered himself to the ground with the help of help his staff. Again he had to pause to recover, and after a few more minutes of panting and shaking, he picked up one of the towels and dipped the end of it in the clean bowl of water.

Ready to begin, he put his hand out, wanting to roll her towards him so he could reach her more easily, but was startled when she flinched at his touch.

“Yukino?” His amber eyes widened and he withdrew his hand, a bit puzzled and alarmed at her reaction.

Yukino slowly sat up, and turned to face him, but she kept her face averted, looking shamefully at the ground, her cheeks bearing track marks that looked suspiciously like dried tears.

“You were right, onii-chan,” she murmured softly, almost too softly for him to hear, “all along you were right. I understand now why you're trying to replace me. A good miko would not have let any of this happen.” She waved her hand around the room before letting it drop listlessly back into her lap.

A wave of dismay crashed over Shirogane, but it was fast being replaced by a rising tide of anger as the heart of what she said sank in.

“I am not trying to replace you, Yukino,” he denied calmly, attempting to remain rational as he tried to make her see reason. “Where did you get that idea from?”

Yukino looked up then, a flash of anger sparkling brightly in her eyes before dying out. “Isn't that why you wanted to renovate the shrine, nii-chan?” she challenged him with a bitter smile, watching as Shirogane closed his eyes and wearily looked away from her. “Isn't that why you've have such a keen interest in Kagome Higurashi? To be a miko for our shrine? To replace me?”

“No!” he lashed out, his amber eyes snapping open, an anger he was tired of hiding flaring to life within their depths.

How sick he was of continually feuding with her over Kagome! Yukino didn't seem to understand what it was he was trying to do and it infuriated him.

“-- Not to replace you! No one can replace you, Yuki! That's the whole point! I want Kagome to become the miko for our shrine so that you no longer tremble in fear at the thought of having to enter the temple's domain, or worry about the purification ritual! I can't stand to watch that Tama drain the life out of you!” he ranted loudly, pausing for a moment when he realized he was letting himself get out of control, something he was not accustomed to. When he'd mastered his emotions once more, he continued in a more moderate tone. “Someone like Kagome might be better equipped to deal with the Forbidden Soul -“

“Why?” Yukino demanded resentfully, “because you think she's stronger?”

“No,” Shirogane struggled to keep his voice level, clinging to his patience despite how his sister was pushing him, “because she's dealt with something similar to it in the past - The Shikon no Tama.”

“But you said it yourself, onii-chan,” Yukino argued, “the Shikon no Tama is nothing like the Forbidden Soul - it was not born from the heart of a miko -“

“It makes no difference!” He interrupted, running exasperated fingers through the silken strands of hair threatening to spill into his eyes. “She still has experience with the youki that pervades the Tama, Yukino. That is what counts. I don't understand why you're so unhappy about this! I would have thought you would be glad to be free from your duties concerning the Kinmotsu no Tama!”

Yukino stared miserably at him for a long moment, and when she spoke it was to pose a question of her own.

“Would you be glad to be rid of your duties, onii-chan?”

“Yes and no,” he conceded after a moment's consideration.

“Why no?” she prodded. even though she already knew the answer.

“Because guarding the Tama has been a part of our family for centuries. It's not something that I can give up so easily - even if I wanted to.”

She had predicted as much, knowing that even as he worked to free her, the Tama was what shaped his destiny, giving meaning to his existence. But for Yukino, the freedom he so wanted to give her was just an empty, barren place if it meant she had to sacrifice her love for him to gain it - and she knew he didn't understand that.

“That is also why I do not wish to give it up,” Yukino earnestly confessed. “I may not have Suketsune blood running through my veins, but I do not wish to give up being a part of your family, nii-chan.”

Shirogane seemed stunned by what she'd said and could find no answer for it, but she could see from his expression that it hadn't changed his mind concerning Kagome. Yukino's chest tightened and it felt like his implacable stubbornness was crushing her heart, and she found it difficult to breathe. Be happy for him, she told herself fiercely, knowing that was what she should do if she truly loved him. She should be happy for him and support him if this is what he truly wanted… she mused, if it was what he truly wanted…

“Do you love her, nii-chan,” Yukino asked quietly staring at her fingers, pressing them tightly together, afraid to look at him.

Shirogane didn't say anything for a long moment.

“She is a very beautiful woman,” he acknowledged softly, “she put your life before hers, and I will forever be indebted to her for that, Yuki. She seems very kind and warm and caring. What more could any man ask for?”

His words brought a shimmer of tears to her eyes and as he watched her, it felt like someone had stuck something sharp in the middle of his chest. He didn't want to be the cause of his sister's suffering, he thought, feeling helpless. He only wanted to alleviate it.

Yukino tried to take a deep, steadying breath, but the hard know of misery in the middle of her chest made it difficult, and she stared dully at her fingers as they wavered and blurred.

Hadn't she done enough crying for one night? she asked herself sharply, surprised when her brother reached and out and engulfed her hands with his own. Raising her head, she blinked at the tenderness of his gaze, a sweet pain twisting through her until she realized the cruel trick her eyes had played. It wasn't tenderness but empathy that she was seeing.

“I can't say that I love Kagome, Yuki, because I don't know her well enough. And now with Inuyasha the hostile watchdog ready to gnaw my leg off at every turn, I may never get the chance.” His words had been for her benefit, to lighten her mood, but his smile took on an ironic twist all the same as he squeezed her fingers before letting them go. “Still, that doesn't mean I should stop trying, does it?” he asked, wanting her to understand the way things had to be as he busied himself by dipping one of the cloths into the basin.

He had to try to find a way to end her fears, find a way to end her suffering, he thought with determination. Surely she would come to see that this was the only way?

“I suppose not,” she replied with quiet restraint, resisting the urge to argue the point as she watched his long fingers compress the limp fabric, wringing the excess water from it.

His faint smile told her he was pleased she'd finally given in, and he was content to finally let the subject drop. Folding the cloth into a square, his hand came up in a beckoning gesture.

“Let me see your knees,” he instructed softly and she slid them forward, laying them across his one good leg so he could examine and clean them.

“Would you promise me something then, oni-chan,” she asked hesitantly, her eyes beseeching as he stroked and dabbed at the blood and dirt on her legs.. She wasn't quite ready to surrender, despite what her brother thought.

“And what might that be?” he inquired absent-mindedly while he worked, suddenly struck by the realization that beneath the bruises and scratches, his sister's legs were quite long and slender.

The last time he'd checked she'd had legs as straight as sticks: all bone and no flesh, and, feeling abashed, he wondered when they had become so shapely.

“If you find that even after you get to know Kagome that you can't fall in love with her, promise me that you will not… that you … that you won't…ask her to be… miko for our shrine,” Yukino just couldn't force herself to bring up the subject of marriage, but it hung unspoken in the air between them, and she knew from the intense way he was looking at her that he knew exactly what it was she was asking him to abandon.

But as long as he doesn't fall in love with Kagome, then that means I still have a chance, Yukino earnestly assured herself as she waited for his response.

The rigidness of her body while she waited for his reply gave him pause, and for reasons he couldn't explain, Shirogane suddenly desired to give her the answer he knew would bring her ease.

“I swear if my heart is not moved by Kagome Higurashi, I will not make her miko of our shrine,” he pledged solemnly, his amber eyes steady as he watched his sister's tense expression, hoping to see it finally relax.

He was completely unprepared for the big, soulful smile that transformed Yukino's face, a face he was used to seeing every day, and one he thought he knew so well into something extraordinary. He felt his cool composure begin to slide when his heart skipped a beat and he turned away, momentarily distracted by it. In that one moment she had looked so grown up, and so very… he stopped himself from thinking any further thoughts.

Of course she looked grown up; she would, after all, be starting her first college semester in the spring, he reasoned, trying to rationalize away what had just happened. But no matter how grown up she looks, he forcibly reminded himself, she is still your baby sister!

Perhaps so, but not by blood, another sly voice rejoined, and he tried to squelch the quickening the voice had stirred within his veins.

What in god's name was wrong with him!? he thought, horrified with himself.

He used the excuse of dipping the cloth back into the bowl to regain his composure, wishing that he could use the cold water to wash away some of the heated suggestions that wanted to insinuate themselves into his head. Almost afraid to look now, he flicked a superficial glance at her legs, pronouncing them finished and allowed her to tuck them back beneath herself, secretly relieved to have them removed from temptation. Now that they were gone, he no longer had to stifle the unexpected urge to let his hands roam and explore their softness. He just had to deal with the smoldering fascination that remained which threatened to ignite uncontrollably, shaken by how his mind and body was suddenly betraying him.

“Let me see your arms, Yuki,” he mechanically requested, waiting while she unbuttoned her cuffs and pushed up her sleeves.

Her left arm was bruised but less scraped, thanks to the protection offered by the long sleeve from her blouse, but as he looked at her right arm his gaze sharpened, and he gently grabbed hold of it and dragged her closer towards the source of light so he could see better.

“What the hell is that?” he breathed softly, looking at the ugly red and purplish spiral mark burned into her flesh.

It started at her wrist and wound its way up her arm, disappearing beyond the border of where her sleeve was pushed to her elbow. He traced the beginning of the groove with his finger and immediately she cried out in pain, jerking her arm out of his grasp. He let go and gave her an apologetic look.

“How did you get that burn, Yuki?” he wanted to know, watching her hold her wrist close to her body in a defensive position.

“It - it happened when I was trying to get the Forbidden Soul back from Lokki - ,” she told him. “I managed to take it for a very short time, but it had already been corrupted - the whispers - they were more powerful than they had been before, and because I would not listen to them, I think it was their way of punishing me.” Yukino's voice trailed off, and she looked away from him, feeling awkward beneath his intent stare.

After a moment he again reached out and gently captured her hand, examining the deep groove, thinking how hard it must have been to hang onto the jewel despite the intense pain.

“How far does it go?” He attempted to put the cloth to it to gently clean it and again she jerked away with a reproachful glare and he frowned.

“A ways,” she muttered noncommittally, her glare wilting some beneath his continued frown. He was just trying to help she knew, but every time he touched her with the cloth it felt like he was scraping her skin off. “It's very sensitive,” she mumbled defensively, her lashes sweeping against her cheeks as she dropped her gaze, feeling ashamed for being angry with him.

“I can imagine” he sympathized, “but it still needs to be cleaned.”

Slowly she put her arm back out and as gently as he could he continued, hesitating when he reached her elbow, his vision suddenly beginning to blur slightly.

Rin's tea must finally be starting to take effect, he thought to himself. He'd best move quicker.

“Can you slide your blouse off your shoulder?” he asked her brusquely and she nodded.

“Onii-chan…” Yukino began querulously as she unbuttoned the first few buttons of her blouse, wanting to talk about the other issues that had been bothering her since they'd left the well and arrived at the small village. “What are you going to tell Inuyasha and the others tomorrow?

“About what?” he wanted to know, a slight crease forming between his brows as the blurriness in his eyes seemed to move upward, encompassing his brain, and a thick haze began to fog his concentration.

“About you; about the Forbidden Soul's origins… about everything.” Yukino gingerly slid her upper arm and shoulder free from her blouse, exposing the ugly purplish spiral as well as the lacy, upper portion of her bra on the right side.

Shirogane's mind went momentarily blank, his sister's question forgotten as he stared at her.

When!?... When in hell did his sister get that!? …

God help him, but he couldn't seem to draw his eyes away from the enticing swell of Yukino's beautifully proportioned breast, momentarily thunderstruck. And what was worse was the rising urge to reach out and touch it. A silence fell between them, and he could feel her eyes on him, waiting for an answer and he tried to recall what she'd just said, struggling to arrest the disturbing emotions churning inside of him.

“I - I'm not going to tell them any more than I have to - I've already said enough as it is,” he replied with difficulty, his thoughts in a muddled mess. “I think exposing the truth of our origins would only endanger the Suketsune line, since we do not know how much Lokki knows. If I told Inu- Inu-..” he paused, the furrow between his brows increasing, and he closed his eyes, and rubbed at them with his thumb and index finger, trying to clear his head.

“Inuyasha?” she supplied faintly.

“Yes, Inuyasha,” he nodded absently, dropping his hand away, the frown still there, his eyes looking slightly unfocused.

“A-are you feeling all right?” Yukino stammered anxiously, and when he saw her concern, the furrow smoothed itself out.

“It's nothing. The miko, Rin, gave me something for the wound on my leg and I'm getting a little sleepy, that's all,” he assured with a negligent wave.

Sliding closer to her in order to work on her upper arm and shoulder, he used the conversation and his job of playing nurse as a means of trying to keep his hands and mind busy. That way he would have less opportunity to let his eyes stray to where they shouldn't be. But with his mind becoming so unfocused, he found that holding a conversation was beginning to be very difficult, and despite all of that, his eyes, tended to stray anyway.

“If I told Inuyasha and the others about our family origins,” he murmured slowly, his head beginning to hurt just from trying to concentrate, “and if the truth became widely known, then it would be dangerous for my descendant - I would not want to put his life in jeopardy, Yuki -were he to become endangered, then in reality my own existence would then be in peril as well, you know.”

Yukino mulled over what he said for a few moments, sucking in her breath as he worked to diligently apply the ointment to her upper arm before winding the strips of cloth around it to protect it and then she said in a tight voice, “So you'll tell them any resemblance to Inuyasha and his brother is coincidental?”

“It's the best answer that I have at the present time, since I can't think of any other,” he replied, bemused, wondering how she could be so oblivious to the fact that his eyes were continually straying down to her chest, toward the lacy edge of her bra, and the creamy skin beneath it.

“And you don't think that they'll become suspicious at all?” she inquired as he moved to wring out the cloth once more, noticing that he took an abnormally long time, concentrating intently on the little bowl and the towel as if his life depended on it.

She wanted to ask him again if he felt all right, but she refrained, knowing he would again brush off her concerns.

“I'm sure they will, but we don't have many options at this point,“ he told her without looking at her, “-- as for the Kinmotsu no Tama - perhaps we can disclose a little more information about its origins just to try and keep everyone satisfied -- as long as it doesn't get too specific. Again, we can't afford to give Lokki any more information than he already has through absorbing part of its energy.”

Having spent as much time as he dared at the bowl, he reluctantly turned back to finish the job he'd already started. He noticed with great relief that she'd spared him the torture of looking at her by adjusting her blouse so that her bra was no longer exposed while still managing to leave her shirt dangling off her shoulder, the wavy lengths of her shoulder-length hair now the only obstacle in his way.

“Good god, Yuki!” Shirogane breathed, his voice momentarily rising, appalled at what he saw as he lightly pushed the tangled locks aside, the cloth poised above her shoulder. “Even the side of your neck is burned!” The tips of his fingers brushed against the back of her nape and she gasped, feeling a tingle creep down her spine. “Did I hurt you?” He asked, pulling back, his hazy eyes darkening in concern.

“No,” she shook her head, avoiding his gaze, “I just didn't expect it, that's all.”

He moved closer again, his breath falling against her cheek and she closed her eyes, her stomach tightening in reaction to his proximity, gritting her teeth at the same time as he touched the cool cloth to the abraded skin of her shoulder. After applying the ointment, he again wound a few strips of cloth beneath her arm and around her shoulder to anchor them in place, and the back of his hand lightly grazed the side of her breast several times as he worked.

The first time it happened, Yukino's eyes flew open in surprise and she shot him a startled look, her face flooding with color. But he seemed not to notice her flustered reaction. His jaw was clenched tight, and his countenance was set into such lines of stern concentration that she thought perhaps he hadn't been aware of the provocative contact at all. She decided not to say anything, even when it happened a second and third time, thinking that she was making something out of nothing.

But Shirogane was all too aware of the contact. Even though it had been accidental, he couldn't discard it from his mind; the sensation of the soft, rounded curve of her breast from the back of his hand.

God help me, I'm losing my mind, he thought numbly, dimly aware that his thoughts were even more hazy than before. He needed to hurry, he needed to leave before he did something irreparable.

Without pausing to give Yukino an opportunity to slide her sleeve back up her arm, Shirogane softly murmured, “Let me see your face,” his amber eyes becoming heavy lidded, the drugging effect from Rin's potent tea increasing.

He used every effort of mental energy he had left to try and focus, but the room seemed to take on a dream-like quality and he knew from the heaviness that was beginning to seep into his limbs that he was going to have difficulty just getting up off the floor, much less actually trying any coordinated motion liked walking. He didn't want to think about that though as he put his finger beneath her chin to lift her face.

Very carefully he began to clean the jagged tear at the right corner of her mouth, his head beginning to spin a bit as he noticed how thickly fringed Yukino's lashes were and how her eyes were a perfect crystalline blue. Clear and serene, they stared at him now full of trust.

But would she trust him so implicitly if she knew what he'd been thinking? he wondered blearily as he found himself ensorcelled by her eyes, his head still spinning, the urges to touch her finally finding the breaking point of his restraints, ready to put his body in motion.

“You were very brave today, Yuki,” he murmured, the cloth pausing as he finally managed to rip his gaze away from her eyes, and examine the awful tear that Lokki had made.

It was satisfactorily clean and he cupped her jaw, allowing his thumb to lightly trace the soft fullness of her lower her lip, watching the spark of surprise ignite in her eyes.

He couldn't blame her. In the deep recesses of his brain he realized that he too would have been completely appalled by what he was doing had he been more lucid. But he wasn't lucid. He felt sluggish and distorted as if trapped in a dream, reacting only to the urges that drove him, the saner parts of him, watching helplessly as a bystander as he was ensnared by the soft curves of the body in front of him -completely uncaring of the fact that the body belonged to his baby sister.

“I wasn't brave,” Yukino told him, her voice breaking unevenly when Shirogane moved his other hand up to cup her face, and she gave him a questioning look.

Errant strands of hair fell across his brow and into clouded amber eyes, and to Yukino, it almost seemed as if he was inebriated. Unsure of what to do, but knowing she should do something, she reached up and wrapped her fingers around his, gently disengaging them from her face, thinking that this was the proper thing to do, thinking that this would be what he would want her to do.

“I was afraid I was going to lose you, onii-chan, and it scared me,” she told him, her eyes earnest as she spoke.

Immediately his fingers twined through hers giving them a squeeze, and it felt as he had performed the same action to her heart when his thumb finally abandoned her lip, and he slid his hand caressingly along her jaw until it came to rest in the thick tangles at the back of her neck. Little shivers went racing down her spine as he slowly brought his face closer to hers, and he said in a slightly dulled voice, “You'll never lose me. I will always be here to protect you.”

“Onii-chan?” she whispered uncertainly, eyes wide in alarm when she realized he was going to kiss her. She tried to draw back, but he'd laced his fingers through her hair and his grip kept her from moving, so she placed her hand against his chest and pushed, feeling her breath flutter restlessly in her throat. “Onii-chan!?” she repeated a little louder, feeling panicked, seeing a strange heat flare in his hooded amber eyes.

He is truly not himself, she realized in shock. I have to stop him. Otherwise, he'll never forgive himself in the morning if I let this happen!

Shirogane could see the agitation and anxiety in Yukino's eyes and he paused, his breath feathering across her face as he whispered, “Are you afraid, Yuki?”

“A-afraid?” she stammered, her eyes luminous, and uncertain, and he let go of her hand, so he could let his fingers drift comfortingly through the unkempt tendrils of silken flame around her face, smoothing them carefully behind her ears.

“Are you afraid of me?” he clarified, ignoring the painful pull in his leg as he inched just a little closer to her, his head really spinning now.

“N-no.” She shook her head, but then thought that perhaps that wasn't quite true.

She wasn't afraid of him at that moment; only what would come after when he had returned to the rational Shirogane that she knew. She knew he would regret this - and she knew he would take steps to make sure that it could never happen again. That was what she feared.

“If you're not afraid, then close your eyes,” he bid her in a low, mesmerizing voice.

“But, onii-chan -“ she tried one last time, her breathing so fast that her voice almost sounded like a squeak.

“Yuki,” he whispered, his fingers momentarily resting lightly against her lips, effectively silencing her protests before coming to rest on the ivory column of her neck, “just close your eyes.”

He brushed his lips persuasively against her cheek and her eyes drifted closed, her breath catching in her throat when his lips suddenly grazed hers. Then she felt him tense and he let his mouth press more firmly against hers, careful to stay away from the torn flesh at the corner. In that one moment nothing existed for Yukino except for the feel of his lips moving against hers. When he opened his mouth over hers and let his tongue play teasingly along the softness of her bottom lip she gasped, her lips parting as it felt like she would stop breathing altogether.

With a whisper of a groan Shirogane took advantage of her open mouth and deepened the kiss, his tongue plunging hungrily inside to move against hers, until Yukino could no longer think straight as a strange liquid heat began to build inside her body. Over and over, his mouth slanted urgently against hers, fueling the heat, making her body indolent and heavy.

It wasn't until she felt him leaning towards her, his weight bearing down on her, pushing her back against the mat that she vaguely began to realize things were quickly escalating out of control and if she didn't stop, there would be more than a kiss to regret in the morning.

She wanted to push at his chest, to push him away, but found instead that her fists convulsively twisted at the white fabric of his shirt holding him place as she felt his hand come up and pull at her blouse, impatiently ripping the buttons free to cup her breast the way he'd been longing to since he'd felt it brush so enticingly against the back of his hand. Yukino arched her back, squirming beneath him as she felt his thumb graze the sensitive tip beneath the thin layer of satin and lace of her bra. She let out a shuddering gasp when his mouth trailed away from hers, opening her eyes and staring sightlessly up at the thatched ceiling as his lips slowly rasped along her jaw and the unburned side of her neck, feeding the heat flowing through her veins.

Think of tomorrow! a voice cautioned somewhere deep inside and she knew she had to try again

“Nii-chan,” she whispered breathlessly, her hand coming up to cup the back of his head where the thickness of his silver braid began. “You must stop.” Her last word came out slightly garbled and her fingers curled into his long braid as his fingers left her breast and joined his other hand, to begin pushing up her skirt, exploring the sensitive skin along her knees and thighs. “Onii-chan,” she tried again, panting, thinking desperately “w-what about Kagome?”

“Kagome?” he mumbled distantly, as if the name was unfamiliar to him. “I'll think about that tomorrow… right now, I just want to hold you. You feel… really good, Yuki,” he murmured in a husky, sleepy voice as he nuzzled against her neck, letting his hands drift a little higher wrapping his fingers around her upper thighs and gently pulling at her legs to separate them so he could slide his body between them.

“Onii-chan,” she breathed, her voice sounding wispy in her own ears as she tried to steel herself against the clamoring heat that was building at the center of her body. “o-onii-ch-chan, you may think I f-feel really good right n-n-now, but you won't f-f-feel too good tomorrow if you don't s-stop.”

His long, “Mmm,” didn't sound too convinced by her argument and she knew he hadn't been listening when his hands slid beneath her, curving around her buttocks to pull her closer to him.

She was completely unprepared when he tilted his hips towards her just once, and she felt the rigid hardness of his arousal press up against her, sending an incredible piercing pleasure rocketing through her. She gasped, instinctively arching her hips against him and she heard a low, smooth chuckle issue from him.

“Methinks that Yukino likes the way I feel as well,” he observed with a wry trace of humor, his voice sounding even sleepier.

Yukino didn't respond, feeling incapable of coherent speech at that moment, but she did seem to notice that he'd suddenly gotten quieter. His body had become very relaxed against her, and he'd brought both his arms back up to encircle her in a secure embrace. “I'm very tired, Yuki,” he mumbled, his head resting along the graceful curving line of her neck and shoulder. “…I feel…very odd…at least m'leg… can't feel it anymore…”

Yukino closed her eyes, her heart still thundering violently in her chest. She was glad, she told herself tremulously, trying to ignore the aching disappointment that seemed to grow as the fire ebbed from her veins. But then her face twisted in misery as she thought about the coming day and she covered her eyes with a shaking hand, wondering what she should do.

Regret and self-condemnation.

With a certainty, come tomorrow he would be full of both, and things would be worse, unless she could find a way to undo what had been done. Tentatively she nudged his shoulder, relieved when he rolled away from her and she was able to sit up. Quickly slipping her blouse back onto her shoulders she buttoned it, her eyes widening in alarm when she realized that she was missing a few buttons.

They must have come off when onii-chan pulled open my shirt, she concluded uneasily, searching frantically for them and finding all but one. She poked around the area where Shirogane was laying, trying to slide her hand beneath his hip without disturbing him, and then jerked back in alarm when he slowly opened his eyes. He gazed sleepily at her, as if he wasn't really seeing her before his eyes drifted closed again and Yukino was afraid to try the maneuver again, afraid the next time she might not be so lucky. That one button, she regretfully concluded would just have to stay lost. Turning away, she hastily reached for the needle and thread that Rin had provided, though not for common mending purposes.

How ironic that was what she was using it for, she reflected as she slanted a look at Shirogane's handsome face before removing her shirt to repair it, wracking her brain for a solution to her new dilemma while she prepared to start her work.

Yukino shivered as the cool night air hit her bare skin and she examined the irori. The coals were burning low again. Wearily she clambered to her feet, performing the same task Shirogane had done once before, and then returning to the mat to enfold him in the blanket he was lying on top of, wrapping him it its warmth. With a deep sigh, she numbly she sank to the mat next to him and took up her blouse to begin the job of fixing it.

After her task was complete, she put it back on and examined the place where the button was missing. She'd positioned it near the top, so it would look natural, since she never buttoned those anyway.

Like anyone was going to notice, she thought with a touch of bleak amusement, with all the dirt and tears, who was going to notice a missing button?

In a few hours it would be daybreak, and she still had yet to think of a viable solution to her problem with Shirogane. Feeling despondent, she pulled her knees up to her chest and stared into the bright orange flames of the irori.

She wondered, was it possible to make him believe that it had all been a dream? She turned her head, letting her gaze slide over him, noting how peaceful he seemed, and how beautiful he was; the fringe of silver hair framing his brow falling across the dark crescents of his long lashes as they fanned out along his cheeks. Reaching out with a gentle finger, she smoothed the wayward locks away, her hand hovering when he didn't react to her touch.

Just how deep was his sleep now? Biting her lip, she hesitated a long moment but then gave his cheek an experimental poke, smiling weakly when there was no reaction; not even a slight change in the tempo of his breathing to suggest that he'd been disturbed.

She poked again and couldn't help the small snort of hysterical laughter that escaped when nothing happened, her shoulders slumping forward in relief.

Maybe, just maybe, it would work, she mused with a small ray of hope. But she would have to rely on complete mastery of her composure; otherwise, he would know she was lying….

She put her hands to her cheeks, praying that they wouldn't give her away in the morning, and then tried not to think about it. Instead another thought struck her, one that gave her even more hope.

Was it possible that Rin's medication wasn't entirely responsible for what had happened tonight? Could Shirogane feel just the tiniest shred of real attraction for her? If that were so, how was she to know? When she had mentioned Kagome to try and dissuade him, it had made no visible impact on his actions. But neither did tonight's interlude seem to change his long term goal of continuing to pursue Kagome. …I'll think about that tomorrow he'd said. So how was she to find out the truth of how he truly felt?

With a groan, Yukino lowered her head to her knees. “Onii-chan,” she mumbled in a defeated way, “you have made things so very complicated!”

 

 

 

Opening his eyes, he stared up at the starry sky, his mind fragmented with sounds and images that didn't seem to fit together.

I'm cold, he thought, and then paused.

Or was he?

The darkness of the night felt comforting, as if he belonged to it, was a part of it, but at the same time, could not truly embrace it. The autumn wind was sharp; he felt it pull at him, and yet it seemed to blow right through him, leaving him feeling more unsettled, his thoughts more vague and scattered. It rustled softly through the trees, coaxing from them a few errant leaves that drifted to the forest floor to lie like splashes of crimson against the darker green and brown.

Crimson… there had been blood… Had he died?

No, it had been someone else's blood. He tried to catch the fleeting images as they slipped just beyond the reach of his conscious mind, pulled by the wind as another more pressing question rose to plague him.

Who am I?

“You are me,” someone responded, someone he didn't recognize.

It troubled him, this strong new presence. He looked around but saw no one and then realized the voice he'd heard had come from within. Feelings of intimidation, rage, lust and a craving for power seemed to swirl around him, confusing him, mingling with the wind, becoming so entangled that he could not sort them out. And still there was the looming presence, the one that had spoken to him that seemed to stand strong against the wind that wanted to blow everything else away.

I do not know you! he wanted to rage, but found that as a mere shadow he had no voice.

There was amused laughter and then words full of sly promise.

“Don't worry, you will.”

 

 

Kagome was drifting through dreams, through layers of darkness with flashes of colors that exploded with such painful intensity it sent shockwaves through her head. Images from the past and present intermingled until she could no longer tell the difference between the two. Voices grew from indistinct murmurs rising to echoing shouts, becoming fragmented and then fading back into the darkness until there was nothing but pain.

Just don't expect me to come and get you when the man of your dreams doesn't appear!! Inuyasha's caustic voice echoed hurtfully through the darkness.

…to meet you, Kagome-sama… I've been waiting for this moment for a very long time… he said in a kinder voice… no, not Inuyasha, but someone else who spoke in softer, subtler accents and yet to Kagome it felt so very like Inuyasha -- the gentleness, the kindness, how she'd so longed for him to speak to her.

And then the two voices overlapped, running over each other, tense and hostile.

What the hell did you do to her? Inuyasha's strident tone cried, but it was drowned out by smoother, softer words.

Looks like you won, Inuyasha, but only for the moment… Not everything can be won by brute force…

Who was this? came the desperate thought, a troubled restlessness assailing her because she could not recall his name or his face as his words kept falling like rain into the darkness of her mind.

…it's all right, Sango… it's obvious that he's not thinking about Kagome at all…

And then Inuyasha's voice was silenced, as if he'd completely vanished, the only thing left, the soft words of that smooth voice against her ear and the autumn wind gusting against her face.

You were wise to leave him Kagome. All he ever thinks about is himself, never considering what you want. He could never make you happy…

For all their softness, the words invaded her thoughts, uncomfortable and stinging, like the sharp bite of the autumn wind against her cheeks.

…if you were mine, Kagome, you would always come first…

And then a name popped into her head.

Shirogane.

He had held her, she remembered, on the back of Kirara as they had returned to Kaede's village and though she had been incapable of opening her eyes, she had drifted in and out of semi-consciousness, listening to the voices of those around her during their battle with Lokki and afterwards.

That phrase: the one full of ripe promise seemed to linger, unwilling to be pushed away by the others crowding around it.

- if you were mine, Kagome, you would always come first…

She found no comfort in such beguiling words - they only stirred a strange longing in her as the voice faded into memory and the blackness turned to grey.

Had they been real, those words, or had they been conjured out of dream? she wondered as her body slowly began to rise through the numbing ether of sleep and return to the real world, her head, fuzzy and aching dully.

Was she at home? She pondered sluggishly, listening to the strange repetitive sound of Kchack! Kchack! followed by a series of footsteps and then Kchack! Kchack! What was that? It was completely unfamiliar, but extremely annoying.

Over and over, she listened to it without moving; her head feeling like an overripe melon, and then finally, when she could stand it no more, she cracked open her eyes and turned her head, her vision blurred as she looked at the person sitting next to her.

Silver hair.

Shirogane?

With all those soft, tantalizing words of promise he'd spoken, had he come to watch over her? Was it he that was sitting there?

Kchack!

Only one this time, and then Kagome realized that she'd said his name aloud, her voice coming out rather loud in the relative silence of the room, drawing the attention of the person sitting next to her.

She blinked several times, trying to bring her eyes into focus.

“Inuyasha,” she breathed, feeling like she'd walked through a field of butterflies, and some had gotten trapped inside of her. Her face spontaneously broke into a lopsided smile as she looked at him, but it faded quickly when he just stared at her, his countenance somber, his eyes guarded.

Shirogane, Inuyasha thought darkly. How easily his name fell from her lips, like a soft embrace meant for a familiar lover upon rising. The thought made Inuyasha inwardly writhe in pain.

Slowly he rose to his feet, towering over her, and Kagome struggled to sit up, feeling weak and slightly nauseous, noticing, rather absently, that he had her shoe clutched in his hand.

He still wore the same red kimono, and went barefoot, she realized, taking comfort in these unchanging characteristics, signs that he was still the same Inuyasha that she knew. But there had been undeniable changes to his appearance as well. His chest had gotten much broader, his face had filled out, becoming more defined, more handsome and his hair had gotten longer too, she observed with painful perception; signs that he was no longer a boy, but now a man; a man with a confident swagger in his stance. She supposed that would never change and neither would his rebellious air.

“Shirogane is in another hut,” he informed her rather curtly. “I'll go get him for you.”

“No! Wait, Inuyasha! Don't go!” she called out to him desperately, her hand reaching for his, not wanting him to leave.

He ignored her and she pushed back the blanket, clambering to her knees, trying to rise, feeling her world tilt from attempting to move too fast. Panting from effort, and with a few light grunts she made it to her feet as he yanked something from the bamboo shade and then push it aside and she frantically realized that he would be gone before she could stop him.

Taking a step towards him, she whispered the word, “No!' as he turned and slanted a brooding look over his shoulder at her just as her knees buckled and she headed straight back towards the ground in defeat.

Her eyes glazed over as several sharp pains went slicing through her temples and behind her eyes and she waited to feel the hard impact of the ground against her body. But then he was there, his arms around her, to keep her from falling.

Oh god, she inwardly cried, for so long, this is where I've wanted to be for so long.

Her face was close to his neck, almost touching him, when she began to shake, and found herself, embarrassingly enough, on the verge of tears. Feeling mortified at how weak she was she prayed that her lack of fortitude was the head injury wreaking havoc on her emotions, but she somehow felt that wasn't entirely the case.

“What are you doing?” she heard him ask gruffly somewhere above her head, holding her stiffly, both of her shoes now clutched in his hands, “You're going to hurt yourself! I told you I would go get him for you, stupid woman!”

Kagome didn't care about seeing Shirogane. All she wanted was to stay like this, close to him, feeling the heat of his body penetrating through her suit, warming her, hear heart expanding with a familiar joy of being near him that she thought she'd never have the chance to experience again.

“Inuyasha,” Kagome breathed, her voice trembling. She closed her eyes as the tears welled up and she pressed them against the strong column of his throat to hide her painful grimace, her hands grabbing hold of the scarlet fabric of his kimono sleeves and twisting it, not wanting to ever let him go. “Y-you haven't s-seen me in t-ten years,” she whispered tightly, “and that's all you can say to me?”

Inuyasha's expression changed, becoming startled and he stared helplessly at the wall, his mouth opening and closing as he listened to the pent up misery in Kagome's voice. His body began reacting to her closeness despite how his heart felt betrayed by her whisper of another man's name.

“You can't even say h-hello?” she asked in a weak, watery voice, her fingers tightening even more against his sleeves, until her hands began to tremble.

Unable to stop them, hot tears breached her eyelids, slowly leaking from the corner of her eyes to scald his neck, and their heat seemed to melt some of the stiffness in his arms. Inuyasha's body relaxed and he leaned into her. He tilted his head, letting his jaw rest lightly against the smooth softness of her brow and he dropped one of her shoes, bringing his hand up, to run it caressingly down the length of her hair.

It couldn't be, he thought in vehement denial - she couldn't have taken a lover. Not when it felt so right to hold her. But even if she did belong to another man, Inuyasha thought rebelliously, he would take her away. The gods had made her for him. No one else.

“Hello, Kagome.” He murmured gently, the soft rasp of his voice instantly drying her tears.

A feeling of comfort enveloped her at the sweetness of his greeting and she tried not to let him squash it when he added with his usual bluntness, “Are you staying this time?”

He was never one to beat about the bush, she silently admitted, but couldn't he just this once let that warm and alluring softness he'd shown her last a little longer? And besides, Kagome thought, her mind shrinking away from his question, she knew she wasn't emotionally prepared to make a decision about that yet.

But Inuyasha wanted an answer, and as his impatience grew, he tightened his arm around her, forgetting that he still carried her shoe. Now the heel of it dug painfully into her hip.

“Inuyasha?” she murmured plaintively, squirming to relieve the pain as she craned her neck to look behind her. “What are you doing with my shoe?” she asked, her sable brows soaring in curiosity as she sought to divert his attention to another topic.

“Oh, I was, uh, I was practicing,” He loosened his arms from around her, letting her go and Kagome tried not to feel disappointed.

“Practicing? Practicing what?” Her brown eyes left the shoe and returned to him, her intrigue growing.

“Well they've got these sharp things on the bottom,” he pointed out, holding her shoe up for her perusal as if she'd never seen it before, using his thumb to tap against the long spike at the bottom.

“See?” he declared, looking down at her as if that cleared the whole thing up.

Kagome just blinked helplessly at him.

“That's the heel, Inuyasha.” She watched as his brow furrowed in vexation when she didn't automatically acknowledge his explanation. “- Were you wearing them?” she wondered aloud, recalling the strange sound she'd heard.

“Gah! No!” he responded scornfully, “Why would I wanna do that? It would be like walking on the end of a stick!”

Kagome just shook her head then, her brows knitting together and replied, “Well I'm sorry, but I can't say that I see all that clearly how a heel can help you practice anything.”

“I'll show you then,” he said, a slightly smug smile tilting his lips. “Watch.” He turned his gaze to the bamboo shade hanging in the doorway and lifted her shoe, holding it by the instep. Using a great deal of force, he flipped it forward, and Kagome watched it go shuttling through the air until it hit the bamboo shade with a loud Kchack! the heel embedded deeply within the fibers. “It could become a very deadly weapon - your shoe, Kagome. `Put a hole right through someone's skull,” he speculated with a kind of feral glee - like he thought all shoes should be made that way, and in some strange way Kagome felt like laughing, but she didn't.

This is what he'd spent his morning doing, came the dawning realization; finding a way to throw her shoe, and not only that, but from the looks of it, and the numerous holes he'd made in the door covering, he'd been doing it for quite a while. Just how long had he been sitting there? she wondered, glancing speculatively back up into his face.

“That's… quite amazing, Inuyasha,” she praised with an appeasing smile, and watched him shrug it off.

“It passed the time,” he replied carelessly his eyes drawn to her upturned face and the sweetness of her smile.

It pulled at him, making him feel strange and uncomfortable urges, urges that he didn't remember having ten years ago; just like the urges he'd experienced so vividly last night from inhaling her scent…

“But what about the person who normally lives here?” Kagome asked, thoughtfully, looking around at the small, one room home.

For the tiny village it was furnished well: wooden floors instead of hard packed earth, several ornate tansu with decorative vases sitting atop them, an oshiire** for storing bedding along the far wall with the doma** and the irori in the middle, not far from which a moderate-sized, highly polished kotatsu** was placed for eating and working. It was obvious to Kagome that this was the home of someone of high rank within the village and she shuddered to think of their outrage at having a guest shred their door covering so disrespectfully.

“I can't imagine the owner of this home is going to be very happy with the holes you've made, Inuyasha,” she pointed out, surprised when again he just carelessly shrugged.

“He won't care,” Inuyasha replied in an offhand way as he bent to retrieve her shoe, suddenly examining it with an absorbed interest in its design.

“How can you say that?” Kagome exclaimed with a wide sweeping gesture towards the contents of the room. “Everything here is very well taken care of, and—“ Kagome broke of, startled when Inuyasha rounded on her with a frown.

“This home belongs to me, okay!?” he snapped, his ears flattening in irritation at her persistence and Kagome's eyes widened, mystified when his cheeks began to change color.

“B-but I thought-“ she stammered, confused. He looked away from her with a deep scowl, the color only becoming more pronounced, and Kagome experienced a moment of great trepidation.

Surely things hadn't changed that much, she thought, finding the idea of Inuyasha living indoors unsettling for one specific reason: it meant that he could have started living inside to appease someone else - a woman perhaps?

“What I mean to say is, I thought .. you preferred the outdoors, Inuyasha,” she remarked awkwardly, twisting her hands nervously together in front of her when he remained obstinately silent. She had to know, she thought… and so she tried again. “Have you taken to sleeping inside then?” she asked, trying not to sound too strained, while the silent phrase with someone else burned in her mind.

And then an insidious, pernicious voice began to fill her head with horrible thoughts.

What if Shirogane's striking resemblance to Inuyasha was more than just coincidence? What if he was the direct descendant of Inuyasha, and she was currently standing in the place where that descendant would one day be born or worse yet, had already been born? Kagome's heart lurched in her chest at the thought, her face, already pale, changing to an even sicklier color.

As she stood there looking at him, his shoulders stiff and awkward, his face bright red, she began to consider a fact that she never thought would ever be an issue: that he might have someone in his heart other than Kikyou.

Really, what had she expected? It had been ten years, after all, and with a man's body came a man's need, that same little insidious voice whispered.

Kagome tried not to let such speculations affect her while she waited for his answer, but it was too late, for the damage had already been done. Even so, she honestly admitted, she had no one to blame except herself if that were the case. In running away, she'd given in and given up the right to claim any part of Inuyasha's heart.

So if she stayed now, would it be too late to try and make him take notice of her? Could anything she do now make a difference?

“No, I still sleep outside,” Inuyasha begrudgingly admitted, his voice cutting across her tumultuous thoughts.

His admission relieved some of her worries, but they weren't all banished. Some still lingered, fed by the fact that he kept his face averted from her as if he were hiding something.

“--But this place is mine and I had these things placed here because… because…” his voice trailed off, his mouth working with no sound coming out, as he struggled to express his reasoning, and he finally came up with, “I thought maybe one day in the future, I might change my mind.”

Even to his own ears, it sounded weak, his tone defiant, as if he dared her to argue. But he couldn't very well tell her that he'd had this place fixed for her, could he? Not now, not with the gaping distance that had been created between them because of the ambiguous relationship between her and Shirogane and the ten years that stretched between them like a yawning, black chasm.

Inuyasha would wait and tell her after he could clearly claim her as his - And she will be mine, make no mistake, Shirogane, he vowed in grim determination, thinking back to the priest's smile as he held Kagome in his arms for the journey back to the village.

“Oh, I see” Kagome replied weakly.

His answer somehow made her feel even more depressed, again fueling her wild suspicions, and then she jumped slightly as his head whipped around, and his brooding gaze came to rest upon her as he inexorably returned to what she had yet to tell him.

“You never answered my question, Kagome,” he reminded her sharply, his face falling into lines of concern at how her wide brown eyes seemed lost in the intense pallor of her face. She looked as if she might collapse at any moment.

“Kagome?” he murmured and he took a step towards her, one of his hands reaching out, taking her by the arm and dragging her gently towards him. “Are you all right?” he asked, his other hand tipping her chin upwards, giving her a searching look.

“I'm fine,” she stammered with a wavering smile, feeling her heart flutter out of control at being so close to him. .

“You don't look fine,” he told her suspiciously.

“Yes I do,” she argued, reaching up, pushing his fingers away from her chin so she could look away.

“Well then answer my question,” he commanded acridly, angry at her persistent denial.

Kagome opened her mouth, wanting so badly to tell him yes, but she hesitated, letting her fears stay her voice.

Hadn't this been what she wished for just yesterday, she asked herself sharply? She'd thought she'd never be granted another opportunity and yet here she was. The gods had given it to her. She should take it. And yet she was letting her underlying fears paralyze her. She was so terrified, terrified that things would end up like they were before, of her feeling lost, of having no future, and waiting for a man who was infinitely tied to the past, bound to a love that would never be fulfilled, or worse, that he'd found that love with someone else, and it wasn't her.

She wanted to stay. So desperately. But what about him? Is that why he was asking? Because he wanted her to stay? Or did he want her to go back home as soon as possible? There was only one way to find out.

“I'm - I'm sorry, Kagome -“ Inuyasha apologized gruffly, seeing the disorientation in her eyes and how tense her face was. She was still very fragile from her wounds, Perhaps he should have waited, he thought belatedly, his arms dropping to his sides, “I shouldn't have pushed you -“

“Do you want me to stay, Inuyasha?” Kagome interrupted him, trying to keep her voice steady and serene, managing fairly well despite her inner turmoil.

Inuyasha looked startled that she'd even asked that. How could she not know the answer to that, he thought incredulously? He wanted so badly to tell her, but he couldn't. He tightened his jaw to keep himself from blurting out the truth, and looked away from her, his brows knitting together in a frown.

“It's your choice Kagome. It always has been.” he muttered with an inscrutable expression.

And just how exactly was she supposed to take that? Kagome thought miserably, foundering in turbulence of all the doubts she'd created for herself. Then her eyes widened as it hit her, and out of nowhere, she remembered Shirogane's soft voice saying, all he ever thinks about is himself…

It was a lie, she realized.

Just now, Inuyasha had put her first, telling her that she should do what she wanted regardless of how he felt.

--Because he wanted her to stay. And she didn't know why she knew that's what his answer meant. She just knew that's what it meant.

Some of her most horribly dark thoughts lost their power to inflict their pain, and Kagome began to feel more hopeful. She loved him, and no matter how terrified she was of things going wrong, she had to try. She had nothing to lose and if she was successful, she would have found what she'd been looking for: a lifetime of love from the man who meant everything to her.

“Would you mind, then,” she asked haltingly, biting her bottom lip, “if I stayed for a while, Inuyasha?”

Inuyasha shook his head mutely and watched as Kagome's face broke into a relieved smile. He thought he would have been relieved by her answer as well, but he wasn't. It left him feeling very disgruntled.

Just how in the hell long was `a while' supposed to be anyways?! he reflected, sourly.

 

 

 

Notes:

Irori** the small fire usually found in the domo - the central workplace of the home - the domo always had an earthen floor although in nicer homes, the floor around the domo might be made of wood.

Oshiire** built in cupboard for bedding

Kotatsu** in this era it is a charcoal heater used under a table; but in today's modern era it is used to reference a low table with a built in heater.

Doma** the earthen work area on which the irori is usually constructed

Tenugui** a rectangular piece of cloth (a towel) that could be used for just about everything from a head covering , to a washcloth, to a towel. It was small and thin, so it could be tucked and carried easily and it dried quickly in the humid climate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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