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Kagome had been back in the fuedal era for a short time and everything was going well. Kaede had happily agreed to apprentice her while she and Inuyasha were elated to finally be reunited and together with no obstacles in their way. Sometimes too enthusiastic but she wasn't complaining! It was on a beautiful spring day when the cherry blossoms were in full bloom and the grass was a brilliant shade of green that the two had their first fight as a couple. It wasn't like the petty ones from when they were younger. It was real and it was bad. He'd been ecstatic to return home from a hunting job and rushed to find Kagome. She was on a hill that that held a large cherry blossom tree and over looked the countryside. The petals danced in the wind as they fell all around her.
He stopped short and his eyes widened in shock. He saw a woman with her back turned, in priestess clothes with long black hair that was tied with a white ribbon. 'It can't be...' He thought in horror. "Ki-" He started to call out when she turned and he saw Kagome smile brightly and bound over happily to him. A heavy weight of guilt suddenly fell on his shoulders.
"Inuyasha! You're back! How did the job go?" She asked excitedly and hugged his middle.
"Oh, uhh, f-fine. It was pretty easy to take down." Her smile was so sweet and brilliant that he struggled to look at her.
"Well, that's good! Although I know you wanted a better fight!"
"Yeah, of course." His voice was distant. She pulled away and looked up at him with concern.
"You okay?" She asked, reaching her hand up to his cheek. He grabbed it, gently holding it in his own.
"I guess I wasn't expecting to see you in priestess garb. I was just surprised." She tilted her head him. It was true that she got her official robes while he was gone but still his reaction was strange.
"I told you I was going to become one though. Does it... Look bad on me?" She sounded sad and he hated himself.
"No, nothing like that! Like I said, I was, uuhhh, surprised that's all." Kagome pulled her hand away.
"Inuyasha?" Her voice was quiet. "Why won't you look at me?"
"I don't know what you mean-" He started to lie and took a step foreward but she stepped away, her eyes downcast and hidden under her bangs. "Kagome...?" He said in a hushed tone. She clenched her fists.
"When you got here, you seemed really shocked by something. Who did you think I was?" He hesitated and her eyes shot up at him with anger. "Who did you think I was, Inuyasha?!" She suddenly yelled. He grit his teeth as his temper began to rise.
"I thought you were Kikyo, okay?! There I said it!" He argued back loudly. She gasped and he immediately regretted it.
"You were happy, weren't you? I thought we were past this!"
"I was surprised! And yeah I was a little happy! So what if I was?! Could you blame me?!" He wanted to explain that it wasn't for the reason she thought but couldn't find the words. She looked up at him with angry tears forming in those beautiful brown eyes.
"I came back for you! I gave up everything!" She exclaimed and despite how much he wanted to hug her and apologize, instead he dug his heels in further.
"Yeah well, I sure as hell as didn't ask you to!" He yelled and a heavy silence fell between them. Inuyasha felt sick to his stomach. He hated himself in that moment, truly loathed his entire being. "W-wait- that's not-" He softly stumbled his words and the strong scent of salty tears floated up to his nostrils. He reached towards her but she took another step but she once again backed away.
"DON'T!" He flinched from her tone and volume. "I don't want to look at you right now!" She ripped the ribbon out her and tossed it at him then walked down the hill.
"Wha-?! Kagome, wait! That's not what I-" He moved to go after her.
"Don't follow me!" She exclaimed over her shoulder, knowing what he was going to do.
"UGH! Fine! If that's how you're gonna act then what do I care?!" Inuyasha stayed rooted where he stood, watching her until she was back in the village, probably to Kaedes hut. He groaned in anger and frustration at both himself and at Kagome. He wondered if he should run after her but instead he simply jumped in the opposite direction, briefly considering going to his own house but decided to just go sit in his favorite tree.
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The next morning, Inuyasha was high up in the Tree of Ages when he heard someone call out his name in anger. "Inuyasha!" Sango yelled up at him. "I want to talk to you!"
"N-now, dear!" Miroku said close behind his wife. "I'm sure we can discuss like calm adults-"
"I said get down here!" The demon slayer demanded again. Inuyasha didn't look at her, choosing instead to put his hands behind his head, already guessing she knew about his and Kagome's fight
"Butt out, Sango! This has nothing to do with you!" That was the last straw.
"Oh boy..." Miroku sighed. There was nothing more he could do. Inuyasha was very surprised to hear Sango yell "Hiraikotsu!" before a whizzing sound came at him. He barely dodged and fell from his perch onto the hard ground below.
"Have you lost your mind?!" He exclaimed as her weapon flew back to her hands and she approached.
"Have YOU?!" She argued. "How could you say that to her? Do you have any idea how hard it was for her see you with Kikyo back then? How often Kagome secretly cried on my shoulder in heart break every time you carelessly ran off to see her?!"
"C-cried? Wait, Kagome did?"
"Of course you idiot! How would you have felt if she did that to you? I watched my closest friend go through something like that but she won you in end! Kagome has been the happiest I've ever seen her!" Sango pulled him by the collar of his robe and he let her, averting his eyes from guilt while his ears pinned themselves to his head. "So I want to know what was going on your brain to make you say that!"
"She didn't let me explain and I got angry! I wasn't happy because I'm still in love with Kikyo! I was surprised for a second and happy to see someone I cared about! CARED! Not loved! Kagome is the only one for me!" Both men were surprised and alarmed when Sango started laughing.
"Honestly both of you are so stubborn. You really are made for each other." Sango let him go and turned to walk away. "Just go talk to her. She didn't take it well and I imagine she didn't sleep much either." Inuyasha stood and thought about what Sango said. Kagome cried that much back then? And the idea of her running off to secretly see Koga made him pissed off just thinking about it. Without hesitation he ran to find her.
Inuyasha stopped on the branch of a tree to scan the area. His ears twitched, he sniffed the air and looked but couldn't find her anywhere. He spotted Kaede passing by and decided to ask her. "Hey old woman!" He called out before jumping down, causing the elder priestess to stop and turn in his direction.
"Do ye need help, Inuyasha?" She asked upon seeing him.
"Where's Kagome?" He was mildly irritated when he saw a knowing looking in her one good.
"So you've decided to make up with her? A wise choice." The comment was met with a short growl. "Truth be told I'm not sure. I sent her to gather herbs at the edge of the forest but that was some time ago." She pointed north. His head snapped in the direction in alarm.
"Aw shit!" He cursed before taking off as fast as he could.
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Kagome sighed heavily. The clothing she was once so excited to wear now felt tainted. Did she look that much like Kikyo in them? To be honest she never really saw the resemblance between herself and the other woman. Normally she found this activity strangely relaxing but now her feelings weighed heavily on her mind. She looked into the woods before her, remembering hearing that there were some rare herbs deeper in. Kagome didn't have her bow and arrows though. She looked back at the village, which was quite a good distance away, then back to the forest. She straightened herself and walked foreward.
It took a decent amount of walking but she found them. The problem was that they were located up on the side of mountain base several feet up. Kagome pulled back her sleeves and gripped a chunk of stone that jutted out then used another as a foothold and began to climb. She was doing surprisingly well and before long she was almost in reaching distance of the plant she sought. Just as she thought she would have it in hand, a roar bellowed from the top of the cliff above her. That's when a large bear demon appeared. It was loud enough to dislodge her feet so that she was dangling helplessly. She tried to find her footing but then the demon swiped at her head and in a moment of panic she flinched, her hands going to shield her head and causing her to lose her grip and fall. "Inuyasha... I'm sorry... Please... Help me!" She cried to herslef.
"KAGOME!!" She heard a familiar voice shout before she was caught in a pair of strong arms.
"I-Inuyasha?" She said in disbelief before tangling herself around his neck and crying into his shoulder. "You came for me!" He scoffed when they finally landed back on solid ground.
"Dummy! Of course I did! What the hell were you thinking?!" He scolded but before she could answer they were interrupted by another loud roar as the same bear demon ran at them, assumingly mad to see it's meal get away. Inuyasha set her down then pulled out Tetsaiga, stepping in front in a protective stance. The demon looked at him and seemed even more enraged than before. "I forgot to mention before... The demon I hunted down was a Bear Demon."
"So you think this is...?" Kagome asked and he nodded.
"Look I'm sorry I took down your mate the other day!" He called out then glanced at Kagome. "But now you tried to hurt mine so that's a real problem for me!" Kagome blushed at his words. Both demons lunged at each other. "Wind Scar!!" He exclaimed and just like before the beast went down easy. The attack sent it flying in shreds. Inuyasha slipped his sword back into its sheath. "Are you okay, Kagome?" He asked gently after rushing back to her side.
"Yeah." She said quietly. Both looked away awkwardly, Kagome kicked a rock while Inuyasha put a hand in his hair.
"Hey..." They both said in unison then smiled with amusement.
"You first." Inuyasha offered.
"I'm so sorry, Inuyasha. I should have trusted you before. It's just that..." Kagome looked away shamefully. "I was reminded of feelings I tried so hard to push down. They make me so childish and insecure. They're such ugly feelings. I took my frustration out on you and that wasn't fair." He closed the gap and put his hands on either side of her face.
"Me too. I was surprised but I want you to know that I didn't mean what I said. I meant that I'd be happy to see her as a friend. And as for those feelings, let them out." Her eyes grew wide. "They aren't ugly or childish. You're feelings are you're feelings and they're valid." He looked away for a second as he tried to think of what to say next. "When we were traveling together... Did you, well..." She listened with an unsure expectancy. "Did you really cry to Sango because you were that hurt?" His question came out in a soft, careful voice. Inuyasha watched as her eyes watered with tears and could smell the salt before they appeared in the corner of her eyes. She didn't talk, just nodded slowly before she was suddenly engulfed by the large sleeves of his robe. "I'm so sorry..." He whispered in her ear.
"I never wanted you to see that side of me. That weak, selfish, jealous side. I didn't want you to stay with me out of pity." She quietly sobbed against his chest.
"That's not fair, Kagome." He said. "I was like that everytime Koga appeared and it didn't change how you felt did it?"
"Yeah but this was different. There was history between you two. Besides if a guy acts jealous it's seen as protective but when a girl does it, they just see her as petty or bitchy. If I had yelled, you would have gotten defensive and angry." Inuyasha hugged her a little tighter. He didn't want to admit how right she was.
"All of that doesn't matter anyway. It's in the past. You're the only one for me, Kagome. I'm so glad you chose to stay with me. Every day I wake up I'm beyond thrilled I get to be with you." She looked up at with love and admiration as he leaned down to kiss her. "Oh, I almsost forgot!" He dug in his robe for a second. "Turn around for me." Kagome seemed confused but did as he said. She felt some small tugs at her hair. "That's better."
After reaching behind her, she felt some kind of fabric tied around her hair. "It's not perfect, I don't know anything about women's hair." She turned to look at him and saw he was blushing with embarrassment. "I don't want you to think you don't look good in your priestess robes, cause you do. You look good in anything. And I don't want to make you feel awkward about something you enjoy. If it makes you happy then I'm happy too." Kagome hugged his middle then, burying her face into his chest and feeling the surprisingly soft fabric of his haori against her skin.
"You really are the sweetest. Like a puppy! That's what I'll call you! Puppy!" She giggled and he did his best to glare but there was no malice in it.
"Fine but if anyone hears it then it's banned!" She giggled and hugged him a little tighter.
"And, uhhh, I'm gonna call you Baby then. That seems fair. O-only when we're alone!" Kagome looked up at him with a playful smirk before lightly pulling his beads to get him to lower his head. When he did she kissed him again but with more passion.
"You should take me to your hut." She told him and for a moment he seemd confused. "So we can PROPERLY make up..." She got up on her toes, as close to his ears as she could. "Puppy." Inuyasha couldn't explain why but hearing that nickname broke something and he suddenly hated the sight of her wearing clothes.
"Oh you've done it now!" He said in a low voice before picking her up bridal style and running in the direction of his home as fast as he possibly could, reveling in her excited, happy giggles.