InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ To Nowhere ❯ Lift ( Chapter 18 )

Disclaimer: Do not have rights to Inu Yasha

A/N: New chapter, Yay! This chapter might have a lot of mistakes in it… I'm sorry. It's really late and I'm really tired and I can't think enough to edit this story well. But I want to post now because I don't know when I'll have internet access again. I'll probably have a re-edited version posted later on but please tell me what you think.

Oh, and there IS a lemon in this chapter. If you don't like lemons, I suggest you stop reading now. Or at least stop reading before you get to the end of the chapter. Important things do happen in this chapter so the first part would be good to read but the lemon is at the end.

On with the story…

*LEMON WARNING*

"Inu Yasha…"

With a deep breath, he opened his eyes from his short sleep. Kagome was still lying in his arms wearing nothing but a bed sheet and the morning sun was shining on his face. He was warm, happy, and content. He wanted to sleep longer but Kagome nudged him in the stomach, wearing on his nerves quickly as his he felt his perfect moment slipping away.

"Inu Yasha…" she repeated, her voice quiet and weary.

"Hn?"

"I think I'm going to be sick."

He furrowed his brows and gave her a questioning look. Once his eyes adjusted to the light, he had to agree that she did look rather pale and he could see perspiration clinging to her forehead. "What hurts?" he asked, pushing her up by her shoulders. He could not keep the disappointment from showing through in his voice since the previous night he had been so sure that she was healed.

"Need to go… outside now…" Kagome finally bit out as she pushed off of him. She crawled to the front of the cave not caring how much of the blanket slipped off. She got to the edge and clung to the side wall as she threw up much to her own chagrin.

Shortly after, she heard footsteps and felt Inu Yasha's hand against her back. As much as she appreciated his kindness, she would have rather he did not see her in her current condition. She tried to shrug him off but he turned her around, forcing her to look him in the eye.

"Feel better?" he asked, hopefully.

Kagome thought for a moment before answering. "A little." She finally replied.

He frowned at her but said nothing. She turned back around and started coughing. She once again felt Inu Yasha encouragingly patting her back as she felt another wave of nausea come over her.

"Are you sure you want to be this close to me right now?" she asked apprehensively.

"Keh." He replied but said nothing further.

Kagome reluctantly leaned back against the hanyou when she felt her nausea pass. "Thank you." She said quietly.

He said nothing but wrapped his arms around her body to pull her back against his stomach. "Do you feel better now?"

"Mm… yeah" she said closing her eyes. "Not great, but better than before."

"Your scent is still normal." Inu Yasha remarked.

"Really?" Kagome asked. "My throat is really scratchy though. Kinda weird." She continued absently.

Inu Yasha nodded and she started coughing again. Inu Yasha rubbed her back as she leaned forward and her body violently with her deep coughs. He continued the action until her coughs died down and her breathing returned to normal, but when he tried to pull her back against him, she resisted.

"Yuck." She said, looking at her hand.

"What?" he asked, irritated that she had shrugged him off.

"I coughed up black stuff." She said, turning to make a face at Inu Yasha.

"Eh?" he asked, furrowing his brows.

"I need to go take a bath." She said, ignoring his contorted expression. She started to stand but was once again reminded of her swollen and very sore ankle. "Take me down there?" she asked sweetly.

Without a complaint or question, Inu Yasha lifted her up bridal style and brought her down to the hot springs while she grappled desperately to keep herself covered in the twisted blanket. As soon as Inu Yasha met the ground, Kagome started struggling to reach the water. He stopped her pulling her hand in front of his space to inspect this `black stuff'.

"That's so gross!" Kagome whined. "Don't look at it!"

She kicked and turned, trying to struggle out of his grip. He gave her a hard look and ignored her protests. After a long moment he pulled her to the water and forced her hand in. "Bathe in the water somewhere else, okay?"

Kagome made a face. "It was inside of me… does it really-"

"Just do it." He said, not wanting to argue.

"Do you know what it was?" she asked, her irritation fading.

Inu Yasha's features tightened but he ignored her question.

"Hey, Inu Yasha?"

"Go take your bath." He said. "I don't know what it was. Did you drink ink or something?"

Kagome glared at him. "That's not funny. I could be dying, you know."

Inu Yasha glared back. "Go take your bath."

"Tell me what it was."

"No."

"Ha! So you do know!" she declared triumphantly.

"No I don't! Get in the water, woman!"

Kagome sighed, rubbing her head as she felt a headache coming on. "Fine." She said, turning around to limp toward another spring. She reached the edge and started to drop the blanket. Yet, she had the strangest feeling she was being watched. She spun around and saw Inu Yasha looking at her blankly.

"What do you think you're doing? Turn around!"

"Hmph! You act like something you have is actually a big deal. I've seen it before anyway."

Kagome's eyes turned to fire. She grit her teeth and clenched her hands and she held up the blanket. "Inu… Yasha…" she drew out lowly. "OSUWARI!"

He Flinched and tensed waiting for the pain, but it never came. Opening his eyes, realization dawned. He turned and pointed at Kagome's horrified face. "HA!"

Kagome turned red with embarrassment, anger, and frustration. "You jerk!" she yelled turning around, trying to slide into the water before he could catch much of a look.

He sat, amused, as he heard Kagome utter curse words in a voice she did not think he could hear. He thought it was funny how the wench picked up his vocabulary but refused to admit it. He was so enthralled with his own victory that he forgot to watch her slide into the water. His arrogant smile turned into a frown as he saw the tops of her shoulders already submerged under water.

He was, however, relieved to have diverted her mind from her sickness that morning. He could never be sure what had come over her but whatever she had coughed up had smelled… dead. His only conclusion was that she had purified whatever invaded her body when she attacked the boar demon. As much as he hated to admit it, her powers were far past impressive. If she were ever fully trained and was able to call upon those powers at will, she would put Kikyou to shame.

Inu Yasha huffed at the last thought. He decided a while back that he would not compare the two anymore. However, it was hard when they were technically the same person. He eyed Kagome carefully, worried that she might have somehow heard that last thought. When she did not turn to him, he leaned back and closed his eyes, basking in the surprising warmth. It really was a beautiful day.

He took the peaceful moment to try and address the more serious issues pressing on his mind. The things Kagome had said to him in the past few days regarding Kikyou hit him hard. He was well aware that the situation was not as simple as he wanted it to be. At first he thought it was okay because Kikyou finally found rest. He was trying to be nicer to Kagome and `court' her as had been instructed by Miroku during one of his `that is not the proper way to treat Kagome-sama' lectures. Yet, Kagome was pushing him away. She still told him to resolve things with Kikyou even though he thought they were resolved.

Of course he still missed Kikyou. Did Kagome really expect him to forget about her? Was that what she wanted? Or was it something else she was getting at? As much as he chided Kagome, he knew she was actually a very smart girl and even more caring. He had a hard time convincing himself that her true wishes were indeed for him to forget Kikyou. But what else did she want him to do about it?

He could not change the past, no matter how much he wanted to. Those things would always remain a part of him. Kikyou would always be a part of him. It was a truth he had realized only shortly before but he still found it hard to believe Kagome would not have realized it.

He shifted, trying to get more comfortable as his thoughts ranted on. He knew he wanted to be with Kagome. After traveling with her for so long, he was beyond denying it to himself. Her smiles, her laugh, and even her tears. He loved everything about her. Especially the way she always showed her emotions loud and clear. But none of that changed the fact that he once felt the same way about Kikyou.

No. He thought. It was different with Kikyou. Something was different… but what?

He was jolted back to the real world when he felt warm droplets hitting his face. He opened his eyes to see Kagome glaring at him; her arm leaned on a rock that regretfully concealed her body from his view. When his response was not fast enough Kagome picked up a rock and threw it as his head. With his skewed concentration, it slammed in right in the forehead.

"What the fuck was that for, wench?"

"Well, the water wasn't working and I've been calling you forever!"

"Have not!" he yelled defiantly.

"Have too!" Kagome yelled back. "You need to go get me my clothes."

Inu Yasha blinked at her.

"Go!" she yelled, searching for another rock.

He narrowed his eyes. "Why should I?"

"So I have something to wear. I got the blanket wet when I got in the water."

"Hmph. And who's fault is that?" he asked wryly.

"Just go get me my clothes!" Kagome seethed.

"And what are you gonna do if I don't?" he asked calmly.

"Inu Yasha…" Kagome ground out. She was beginning to truly regret removing his prayer beads. Maybe she could slip them back on while he was sleeping.

"You don't need clothes today. It's warm." He reasoned leaning back and once again closing his eyes.

He was surprised moments later, to hear splashing followed by soft footsteps along the stone ground. He could not believe she actually came out of the water without her clothes. His reverie was cut short when he suddenly felt a sharp pain on his head, causing him to open his eyes directly across from a furious Kagome. She had a death grip on his left hear and any joy he could have taken out of her body clad in nothing but a soaked white cloth was cut short by his subsequent fear.

Her lips moved into a smile but her eyes maintained their cruelty as she pulled harder on his sensitive ear. "Inu Yasha…" she said slowly in a low voice. "Go… get… my… CLOTHES!" she screamed the last word loud enough that he was quite certain his ear was bleeding.

"Oi, bitch. Calm down!" he spat out as his hand went up to cover his freed ear. "I was going to be nice but-"

Kagome resumed her death grip on his other ear. "Do we really need to go through this again?"

"Fine!" He yelled back, disoriented from his splitting headache. "Stay right here."

"Where do you think I'm going to go? I'm naked."

Inu Yasha glared back at her and jumped up toward their hiding place. Kagome sighed heavily as he left and stretched out her leg to inspect her aching ankle. As she did so, however she felt a sudden wind hit her body and droplets of water flew out of her hair and across her back.

She moved the stray hairs out of her eyes and was stunned to see the leader of the wolf demon pack standing before her.

Sango smiled as she and Miroku flew above the rice fields below. She was unsure as to why, but for some reason she just felt relieved. So much stress had left her and she just felt certain that things were going to turn out okay. For some reason, she felt encouraged that they found Kagome's book. As Kagome had shown her before, those books were very insightful and she hoped they could find an answer among its pages.

She was also happy that Miroku had not attempted to grope her all morning. Her day was going splendidly. They had been circling around the diseased village to see if the disease had spread to the neighboring territories, but they found nothing but healthy people. Things were certainly looking. Not counting the strange smoke-like demon looming in the other village, of course.

At the same time, however, both Miroku and Sango reasoned that a single demon would be easier to take care of than a full countryside of possessed villagers.

"K-Kouga-kun…"

"Oi, Kagome!" the wolf demon greeted enthusiastically.

Kagome winced as she saw Inu Yasha crash into Kouga's side. "Inu Yasha!" she yelled angrily.

He turned and gave her a sharp look.

"Don't bully Kouga!" she asserted, faintly taken back by the vicious look in his eyes. Telling herself it was nothing other than her imagination she continued "And where are my clothes?! You really want Kouga to see me like this?"

This time Inu Yasha growled at her. Kagome stared wide-eyed. Something deep inside her told her that this was not one of their normal scuffles. Nervousness filled her stomach as she wondered once again whether removing the prayer beads really was such a good idea.

"If you dare look at her one more time filthy wolf, I will tear your eyes out!" Inu Yasha snarled at the other demon.

Kouga scoffed, unfazed by Inu Yasha's threats. "Keep talking, dog-shit. We'll see who's standing when this is done."

The two went after each other and collided. Kagome yelled at both of them but they acted as though they did not hear her. She could do nothing other than stand and watch wide eyed as they attacked each other relentlessly. She winced violently every time Kouga sent Inu Yasha flying with a punch and she felt a pain in the pit of her stomach as she saw blood on both of them.

She continued to cry for them to stop but to no avail. They were not fighting like they usually did. It was a completely different kind of fight altogether. It was not their usual power struggle to find out who's big talk was the most bluff. They were out for blood. Half the time she could not even decipher who had the upper hand. They were fighting close together, snarling and clawing. Kagome was starting to panic.

She frantically looked around for something - anything - to get them to stop. Of course, there was no object to assist her purpose. Desperate, she turned to the fight and made the only decision she could. If they could not hear her, then she would have to get their attention some other way.

She lifted a particularly sharp rock from the ground and ran it sharply against the underside of her forearm. She growled in frustration when she could seem to draw no blood. She threw the rock down and lifted another hoping it would do the trick. After a few tries, she found success.

A thin stream of blood ran down her arm from the jagged cut and she turned so that the wind could carry her scent toward the fight. She crossed her fingers, hoping it would work, lest she risk infection and tetanus for nothing.

Fortunately, both combatants stopped and turned in her direction.

"Stop that! NOW!" She yelled once she was certain she had their attention.

Both demons calmed down significantly when they saw Kagome standing weakly as she balanced on her good leg while her arms clutched the blanket around her shivering body. Tears were streaming down her face and her hair, still wet, was matted against her face. She looked pathetic and the shame hit Inu Yasha hardest. He reached her first when both males sprang in her direction.

Inu Yasha growled at Kouga once he had Kagome in his arms and Kagome tried to push him off. When he did not budge, she sighed but took what she was given. She turned her head to Kouga and gave him a sad look.

"Kouga-kun." She addressed, earning her a disparaging squeeze and growl from Inu Yasha. "Please leave."

Kouga looked at her wide-eyed but Kagome continued. "I've already told you. I love Inu Yasha. I'm sorry. You're a good friend but if it is going to be like this, you can't stay."

"That mutt is the one who-"

"Enough!" Kagome yelled, feeling her tears starting again. She felt awkward and off balance from the grip Inu Yasha still held around her waist but she continued. "I don't care who started it. I don't want either of you to get hurt so I need you to stay away from us, Kouga-kun. Please understand."

Kouga looked like he was about to retort something, but said nothing.

"Please…" Kagome pleaded, "You can't keep following me like this. I've made my decision, so go."

Kouga glared at Inu Yasha but gave Kagome a warm smile. "When he screws up, you know where to find me, right Kagome?"

Kagome gave him a sad smile and nodded absently, earning yet another growl from her hanyou. He turned and left and Kagome sighed heavily with relief. She turned back toward Inu Yasha to see him inspecting her cut arm.

"Why the hell did you do that?!" he asked angrily.

"I didn't have much other option!" Kagome yelled defensively. "Why the hell did you do that!" she said pointing to the location of their earlier battle.

"What? Did you like him gawking at your body like that?!"

"If you had just brought me my clothes it wouldn't have been a problem!" Kagome screeched.

"Dumb bitch! You can do what you want. He CANNOT look at you!" Inu Yasha seethed while tightening his grip on her arm.

"He didn't do anything! He just said `hi'! If you hadn't come in and attacked him, it would have been okay!" Kagome yelled, starting to cry again.

Inu Yasha's ears lowered at the sound of her sobs but he continued to chastise her ignorance. "What the fuck do you think is going on? Are you really so stupid to believe he only wanted to say `hi'?"

Kagome looked at him defiantly as the tears continued to fall.

"Answer me!" Inu Yasha ground out.

"How would you know?!" Kagome forced out between sobs. "Who do you think you are to tell me who can can't talk to? He was my friend! But now I can't see him because you won't let me talk to anyone!"

Inu Yasha tried his best to control his temper. "Sit down." He commanded harshly.

Kagome stood in her place, refusing to look him in the eye. He growled and pulled her down with the hand still clutching her arm. He sat across from her and turned his attention back to the jagged gash she had cut.

"You can't control me." Kagome continued to complain as she cried.

"You want to go home after this? Fine. You go live you life, but you will NOT be with Kouga. As long as you're here in this era, I'm responsible for you. Got that?"

Kagome nodded numbly at his harshness.

"This is going to get infected." He stated in a surprisingly calmer voice.

Kagome sniffled but could offer him nothing. She thought she might want to apologize but she was unsure as to exactly what she was apologizing for. "I'll go wash it" she said dejectedly.

"That won't do it." Inu Yasha stated pulling her arm forward. Kagome froze as he suddenly licked her arm.

"Inu… Yasha?" she asked tentatively. He didn't answer.

She shifted uncomfortably as his tongue ran along the inner part of her arm. She was a tad bit ashamed at the feelings the act invoked in her. The fact that Inu Yasha's tongue was touching her skin coupled with the fact that she was covered in nothing other than a wet bed linen made the situation utterly sensual. Kagome shuddered instinctively as she watched him gently caress her skin with his eyes closed. Her senses were heightened tenfold by the sudden change in mood and she could feel his warm breath reflecting off her cool skin.

He looked up at her after a moment. "You cold?" he asked.

Kagome swallowed. "Yeah, a little."

"Let's go back, then. You're clothes are dry so they'll be warm."

Kagome nodded; disappointed that he offered no other means of warming her up. She shook her head, wondering when she became so dirty-minded.

He turned around, offering her his back. Kagome felt her heart fall even further when he was not even willing to carry back in his arms as he had been those last few days.

Both were silent as Inu Yasha made his way back up to the cave, being careful not to jostle her too much in respect of her bruised ankle. Kagome felt her eyes brimming with tears the whole way. He was really offended by what she had said to him. He was distant again. After making so much headway, she was losing him once again. And this time it was no one's fault but her own.

Once they were inside, Inu Yasha promptly walked to the opposite end of the cave and sat with his back toward her. She bit her lip to fight off the tears she felt from the cold shoulder he gave her. She watched him as she slipped on her clothes. His back was stiff and he was clearly angry. She sighed as she threw the oversize hakui over her shoulders and limped toward Inu Yasha. She sat next to him as he faced the wall and waited for him to speak.

He said nothing so she decided to speak first. "I'm sorry." She said quietly.

No answer.

She breathed in deeply and leaned onto his shoulder. He stiffened under the contact. "If you don't tell me why you're mad, I won't know how to fix it." She said softly.

He stayed quiet.

"You don't really think I want to be with Kouga, do you?" she asked as her hand trailed innocently up his back into his mass of hair. "I want to be with you, Inu Yasha. You should know that. No matter what, I want to stay by your side as long as you will let me. We've talked about this, right?" Kagome said, glancing up to give him a sweet smile. She felt relieved to see his face relaxed and eyes closed as she ran her fingers through his hair.

"I spoil you." She said, scooting under his arm so she was cuddled against his chest. He grunted in reply.

She smiled slyly as she let her fingers brush the ear she had earlier sabotaged in a silent apology. He leaned into her touch and she smiled in success. Feeling brave again, she sat up and pulled his head toward her to give him a quick kiss where she brushed her fingers. "Feel better now?" she asked.

"Hm.." was his only response.

"I'll take that as a yes." She replied happily. Satisfied with herself, she dropped her hands and snuggled against Inu Yasha's warm body. In doing so, she felt a deep reverberating vibration in his chest. She glanced up and saw him growling softly. "What?"

He looked down at her. "You stopped."

"Huh?"

He glared at her, flicking his ears to give her the hint.

"Oh." She replied dumbly. "But I thought it made you…"

"So?" he asked, looking slightly embarrassed.

"Well, I mean… it's just… it's like…" Kagome stammered trying to find the words to explain to him that what he was asking her to do was akin to four play. "Isn't it kind of personal though? I mean… would you really want me to…"

"What's your deal? You didn't have a problem with it two minutes ago."

"Well…" Kagome said, pressing her fingers together… "I wasn't really thinking…"

Inu Yasha glared at her.

"But if you want me to… I mean… if you're okay with it… then I'm…" Kagome continued on.

"Oi, wench. Just forget it."

Kagome frowned at him as he grumpily leaned back pulling her into a not-so-intimate embrace. "Here," she said resolutely. I'll sit and you can lay your head in my lap." Kagome scooted next to him and motioned to her legs.

Inu Yasha paused for a moment, then complied. Kagome smiled as he lay there and closed his eyes. She ran her fingers across his cheek and remembered the first night she saw him as a human. It was the first time he had really acted affectionate toward her. She smiled at the memory and started to absently twist his long hair in her fingers. She felt relaxed in the dim light of the cave and cool air circulated around while golden rays of light filter in all around.

"Better?" Kagome asked.

"Mm… my ears." He replied.

Kagome smiled at his straightforwardness. "Demanding, are we?"

"hmph."

"Can you ask nicely?" Kagome asked, running her index finger along his jaw.

"Please."

"Much better." Kagome confirmed. With a smile she caressed the soft fur of his ear, rubbing the base between her thumb and forefinger. She delighted in the soft look of contentment that crossed his features and her body answered in odd ways to the way his jaw would sometimes clench and his body would shudder. She was amazed at the joy she felt in knowing she had him in the palm of her hand. It thrilled her in ways she never dreamt of.

"That okay?" she questioned after a few minutes, worried about what he felt and uncomfortable by the thickening tension in the air.

"Don't stop" He almost whined.

Kagome's stomach did flip-flops. "Okay." She replied lamely. She was growing more and more dazed as he continued, knowing full well what it was doing to him.

"Are you sure this is okay?" Kagome asked after a few more long moments.

Inu Yasha murmured a response and turned around so that his nose was against her stomach. She shivered, feeling his breath even through the fabric of the hakui. She continued her ministrations on the other ear he had exposed for her.

With her free hand she started brushing her fingers along his neck with a feather light touch. She slid her hand across his chest, brushing the rough texture of the fire rat robe. Her curiosity urged her on, but her shyness kept her thoughts jumbled together.

Inu Yasha turned on his back, and looked up at her through half-open eyes. Kagome felt her heart jump into her throat from the look he gave her.

"Do you want something?" he asked softly.

Kagome swallowed and tried to find her voice. "No, I was just…" Kagome started to say, waving her hand in an effort to explain their wandering tendency. He caught her hand and held it still.

"That's not what I meant." He said, in a voice that made chills run down Kagome's spine.

"Oh?" she asked, trying to break out of the haze her lazy mind left her in.

"Do you want me to do something for you?"

"Umm…" Kagome replied nervously. "Like what?" she finished with a slight giggle. She knew what she was saying was incredibly naïve, but her innocence allowed her little else. Sure, she knew about things. She had heard about things from her friends at school but experience was something different altogether. She suddenly needed everything spelled out for her in case she might be misunderstanding his meaning.

Inu Yasha did not seem too amused by her games. He gave her a slightly irritated look before leaning up and sitting in front of her. Kagome scooted back instinctively and Inu Yasha put a hand on her shoulder.

"If you want me to stop, just tell me… okay?" he said, giving her a sincere look.

"O-Okay." She answered faintly.

With her consent, he leaned in and kissed the right side of her neck right below her jaw line. The hand that had been occupying her left shoulder, moved up and held her head still while tasted her neck. She closed her eyes, confused by her own body's reaction.

Inu Yasha continued his actions slowly, waiting to appraise her reaction to his touches. He listened to the sound of her breathing increase and he could smell the heavy scent of her arousal. Taking it as enough encouragement to continue, he followed a trail further down her neck, applying gentle open mouth kisses on her pulse. She squirmed slightly as his actions became more forceful.

All the while, she remained perfectly still as a series of emotions ran through her. She was perplexed and awed by Inu Yasha's behavior. She was seeing a side of him that had never been revealed to her in any way. Sure, she always knew he was a hot-blooded male and that he did, on occasion drop by to watch her and Sango bathe, but she had never imagined he was actually capable of seduction. Although her own fantasies had fancied him being just that, she always believed he would just get flustered if he were ever faced with a sexual situation.

But he wasn't flustered. He was confident and cool. What troubled her most in the back of her mind, however, was how he suspiciously seemed to know what he was doing. She knew some aspects of sexual behavior were instinctual, but he was acting a little too sure of himself for her taste. He certainly wasn't acting like the shy virgin hanyou she always assumed he was.

Annoyed by her own drifting mind, she closed her eyes and tried to focus on the sensations he sent through her body rather than contemplating where her possible lover would have gotten his experience from. Then, the sensations stopped.

Kagome opened her eyes to see Inu Yasha staring back at her with a somewhat troubled expression.

"Something's wrong." He stated.

Kagome frowned, wondering why he was backing off suddenly. A silence stretched between them until Inu Yasha spoke again.

"You're not enjoying this…" he said with doubt showing clearly across his expression. "I'm sorry… did I hurt you?"

Kagome blinked. "No… of course not… all you were doing was kissing me. Why do you think I wasn't enjoying it?" she continued and finally lost her fight to conceal her blush.

He furrowed his brows. "But you weren't happy."

Kagome shook her head, bringing her hands up to cup his face. "I'm fine. It's just… I've never…"

"We shouldn't do this." He said, backing away from her.

Kagome felt her heart twisting in her chest and tears started to burn in her eyes. "I'm sorry…"

"What are you sorry for?" he asked.

"I don't know… I don't know what I did… but I'm sorry."

Inu Yasha flinched and looked away from her. "You didn't do anything. I shouldn't have started doing… that. It's just I got a little distracting with the… ear touching… and all. I'm sorry."

Kagome leaned forward and caught his lips with hers. "You told me to tell you when I wanted you to stop so…" she said as she lifted his hand with hers and placed it on her breast. "Don't stop yet."

"Kagome…" he said, looking worried.

"Please?" she asked in a whisper. "Don't run away from me again. It's taken me so long to get this close to you and I don't want to let that go."

"But this…" Inu Yasha said, looking down at his hand that was still pressed against her breast, "I can't take this from you… I don't have anything for you in return. No house, no money -"

"Don't you get it?" Kagome interrupted. "I'm not worried about any of that. I just want to be with you."

He looked into her eyes, his own eyes still showing doubt and fear. "I don't want to hurt you."

"You won't." Kagome said with a warm smile. She leaned in and kissed him once again.

For a few minutes they did nothing else but share sweet, fleeting, and innocent kisses. Kagome wondered where her confident Inu Yasha had gone, but she felt more comfortable with the unsure one.

His hand eventually moved so that his fingers brushed along the underside of her breast, still concealed by thin fabric. She kissed him more passionately as to urge him on and within in moments he was tugging the fabric off her shoulder. She shivered as she felt the cold air touch her bare skin and she was instantly pulled closer into Inu Yasha's body as he did what he could to help her fight off the cold.

His warm breath slid down her neck and across her shoulder as he planted open-mouthed kisses along her skin. She wrapped her arms around his neck and twisted her fingers in his soft hair. As she did so, Inu Yasha wrapped his arm around her waist and leaned her back so her back was flat against the cave ground. The cold stone ground chilled her entire body and she tightened her grip around his neck pulling him closer against her body.

He continued to kiss and caress her bare shoulder, taking great joy in the way she reacted to each and every touch. He followed his path downward until he was breathing on the top of her breasts, slowly peeling down the fabric that still concealed them. Kagome held her breath, somewhat self conscious even though she knew it was by no means the first time he had seen them.

Once her upper body was completely exposed, he kissed her chest, carefully running his hands across the sensitive skin that he was unable to cover with his mouth. He avoided her nipples for the time being, having already assumed the reaction they caused.

Kagome lifted her body in an attempt to absorb more contact and she moaned while still running her hands through his hair. She could feel the warmth growing in her stomach and her body was aching for something more. She felt detached from her body and she only wanted to feel Inu Yasha even closer. She gasped and shivered as he let one of his hands maneuvered across her stomach downwards where he began to pull at her hakama, having them loose enough to pull off within seconds.

Before taking them off, however, he slid his fingers under the fabric and brushed the skin of her hip. She bit her lip at the new contact and of his fingers on the hand still occupying her chest brushed across her nipple for the first time. She sucked in a deep breath of air and he lifted his body up long enough to pull off the hakama.

Kagome bit her lip out of self-consciousness but he simply went back to his ministrations with her chest. She slid her hands across his back as he finally pulled one of her erect nipples into his mouth. She gasped and her eyes fell open as she felt his tongue caress the hardened skin. As he licked and sucked gently, he glanced up at her face to make sure she wasn't upset. He reveled in the pure rapture he saw painted across her features.

Having paid attention to both breasts, he started to kiss down the center of her stomach as her hands fell to her side and gripped the fabric of her discarded hakui. He kissed her lower stomach with the same passion he did the rest of her body and she practically squealed at the contact. Her body was burning and suddenly Inu Yasha was face to face with her again, sharing passionate kisses. She felt as he undid the ties of his own hakama and she pushed her hands under the fabric of his haori, exposing his chest fully as it fell loose from his unsecured hakama.

For a moment the kisses stopped and they looked each other in the eye with sincere and honest looks. Kagome bit her lip and gave an encouraging smile.

"Are you sure?" Inu Yasha asked in a low breathless voice.

Kagome nodded. "I love you."

His expression turned sad for a moment, and then he put his face close enough to hers that their noses were touching "I… love you too."

Kagome smiled and they kissed slowly as Inu Yasha lowered his hips, preparing to enter her. For the first time, Kagome felt him. Also, for the first time since they had started their little rendezvous, Kagome felt a little unsure. He was larger then she remembered him being in the two times she had seen him naked and she realized what they were about to do was probably going to hurt. A lot.

She clenched her eyes shut as she felt the pressure increase against her center. Then… nothing happened. Kagome opened her eyes to see Inu Yasha glaring at her.

"Oi, you're tensing again." He said in his usual rash voice.

"S-sorry." Kagome stammered, still shy. "It's just… this is going to hurt… isn't it?"

"How should I know?" he asked incredulously.

"Just go slow… okay?" Kagome asked gently.

Inu Yasha paused as he looked at her, searching for any doubt. "Sure? We don't have to do this."

"Just slow." Kagome repeated, doing her best to relax.

He nodded and started to push against her again and her eyes once again shut tightly. He sighed, frustrated with himself for making her feel uncomfortable and frustrated at the fact that he wasn't seeming to get anywhere. He leaned back and tried to use his hand to direct himself in better. Kagome opened her eyes when she felt his warmth leave the top half of her body. She blushed when she saw him, for all she could tell, intently studying the are between her legs.

"S-something wrong?" she asked, embarrassed.

He looked up to see her worried face and instantly felt guilty. "No." he assured her, "You're beautiful… every inch of you."

Kagome smiled and he placed himself directly in front of her opening and leaned forward, confident he wouldn't need to `re-adjust' himself. He kissed her once more and slowly pushed inside her. She gasped against his mouth and he could smell the salty scent of her tears. He gritted his teeth, unhappy with himself for causing her pain.

For a moment, he remained still, simply enjoying the feel of being inside her. When he felt her body start to relax he began to move, slowly. She gasped every time he pushed inside her and his heart clenched as he wondered if it was pleasure or pain that made her eyes shut so tightly.

"Are… you okay?" he asked.

"mm… yes." She said, forcing a smile.

"This is hurting you… I'll stop." He replied, pulling away from her.

She gripped his shoulders in objection. "No. Please don't stop. It only hurts a little."

He looked at her, unsure of her answer but slowly began to move again, trying to be gentle as he pumped in and out of her, but finding it harder and harder to suppress the desire growing within him. He kept his eyes on her face, watching for any sign that she was going to change her mind. No sign came. After a couple minutes he saw the look of pain fade away.

Finally able to concentrate on his own pleasure, he quickened his pace moving in and out of her moist opening. The sounds she was making were driving him mad and he buried his face in her shoulder, wanting to cry out, himself. Kagome wrapped her arms around him and twisted one hand through his hair, finding his ear. She rubbed more roughly than usual as was with the pace his manhood sliding in and out of her core. In response to her action, he moaned loudly against her skin and she gripped at what she could as her pleasure started to build.

She muttered Inu Yasha's name and all at once, she felt him release inside of her. One of his hands gripped at her side and she winced as his nails dug into her side. She wrapped her arms tightly around him as he shook from the waves of his orgasm.

For a long while, they lay still just as they were until the scent of Kagome's blood finally drafted to Inu Yasha's nose and woke him from his stupor. He raised up instantly and found the spot on her side where his own nails had dug into her skin. He felt a twinge of nausea at what he had done but he then felt Kagome's hand on his cheek. He looked to her with a horrified expression but she just offered him a warm smile.

"It's okay." She assured him.

He didn't look convinced. "I shouldn't have…"

"It's fine." She said again. "It's already stopped bleeding so I'll be okay. Don't worry so much."

He looked back at her and they were both surprised at how naturally they could talk to each other, still naked, after doing what they had just done. Kagome smiled and blushed, running her fingers over the mark where he scraped her. He lifted her hand from the wound and leaned in so that he could lick the wound clean. Kagome sighed, oddly turned on by the action. She had after all, not been able to reach her peak, though she decided it best not to bring that fact up to Inu Yasha.

"Thank you." She said when he finished and leaned up, already pulling back on his haori. He gave her an odd look and she waved it off. "I mean thank you for everything. Thank you for sharing that with me."

He looked at her and for once Kagome saw him as the unsure young boy and not the gloating bestial creature he pretended to be.

"I love you." She repeated as she gave him the most since smile she had ever given in her life.

omygod. I can't believe I just wrote that. I feel so dirty…

Okay, guys… I'm really nervous about this chapter because of the lemon. I've never written one before and I really need to know how I did and what I can do to improve it. Please please please review for this chapter. If you review for just one, please let it be this one. Thanks!