Hello

She didn’t really feel regret at leaving the modern world behind, not with Inuyasha and a life of friends and nature to surround her, and yet… 

Kagome found herself seething in angry tears. Angry at her body, angry at her attitude, angry at life. While she was always an emotional person, this hormone-induced storm was driving her crazy. She felt everything stronger, and no amount of logic or sleep was pulling her out of it because when she really really thought about it, it was all so unfair. She was raging at the world for making her choose between one family and another. The past was her future, and the future was now her past. But why did she have to choose? Why couldn’t she have a child with the love of her life and introduce her baby to her mother and grandfather and brother? Her righteous sorrow and her selfish cravings swirled into an indistinguishable mass of feelings. One second there was joy, another pain, the next irrepressible annoyance. She was guilty that she felt this way, upset as a tantruming toddler over a greasy burger and salty fried potatoes. 

And ultimately she was sad to be so far from her mother. 

Her thoughts turned to her poor husband. 

Inuyasha had been very sweet since she’d gotten back, and her pregnancy ramped up his doting completely. From warming her bath, to fetching her the ripest fruits, to building her the most comfortable approximation of a mattress possible, she felt spoiled and grateful. But her pregnancy-addled brain and hormonal body had her feeling so at odds with her heart. She loved being here. She loved her friends and the family they found in each other. She loved Inuyasha. 

Yet she longed for the crepes at the Shinjuku station mall, ice cream from a stand, steak from the grocery store cooked at home… her mouth was practically a waterfall at the thought. But by far the biggest craving was a Wacdonald’s cheeseburger with extra cheese and a side of fries dipped in ketchup. Make that two sides of fries. She could cry thinking about it, which she knew was stupid. 

It didn’t help that so many things made her feel nauseous. She’d helped out with pregnant mothers before, giving them herbs to help, learning from Kaede the rough timeline. She’d given reassurances and her best empathy, but in the throes of morning sickness Kagome wished to strangle her past naivety—and as much as she adored Kaede, the woman never actually had to go through pregnancy. 

Sango helped the most, understanding her anger, giving practical advice to give her the slightest relief. After all, carrying the twins had been an ordeal.

But Kagome was tired of ginger root and plain rice. 

She was tired in general. It has been such a joy to find out she was pregnant, and the first few weeks were a breeze. Then the morning sickness kicked in and subsequently kicked her ass. Morning sickness. God, it was unending sickness. Any time of the day sickness! She huddled under her blanket, willing the fatigue and nausea away. 

Then Inuyasha emerged from the door with her requested pile of potatoes. His look was apprehensive. He wanted to help her in any way he could, knowing that his wife often repressed cries for her mother. 

“I scrubbed ‘em already, and the pan’s good to go.” 

“Thank you, Inuyasha.” 

“I’ll cut ‘em too. It’s supposed to be like sticks, right?” 

She nodded. “Not too thin though.” Her husband was really good with a knife. She might be envious of his skills if he wasn’t such a good partner. 

Before he could start chopping, she stopped him. “Wait! Maybe cubes are better. They’ll move around the pan more easily.” 

“‘Kay,” he replied easily. 

Kagome stifled a groan as she slowly got up. Inuyasha had set the pan to heat already, so all she had to do was add the oil. 

“This look alright?” Inuyasha asked, checking in with her about the size. 

“Those look good.” 

Something about the sound of him chopping away triggered something. Everything triggered some emotion or another—but the domestic simplicity of their lives came at her full force as she heard the rhythmic sounds of their knife hitting their wooden chopping block. 

“It’s wonderful,” she whimpered, tears gathering in her eyes. 

“Woah, woah!” The hanyou turned around in concern, his hand immediately at her back to try to comfort her.  “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” she lifted her head and sobbed, unable to hold it back. “It’s just the hormones, but I do think you’re wonderful. I’m so lucky to have you!” she wailed. 

His entire being was on high alert since she got pregnant, and even though he knew emotional outbursts were bound to happen, he still went into overdrive trying to make sense of it and fix whatever he could. “T-thanks.” 

“Thank you for getting me potatoes so we could try making fries. I’m sorry I’m probably going to hate it or throw it up but it’s the closest thing I have to Wacdonald’s.” She wiped her face with her sleeve and sniffled. 

“I told you, woman, I’ll do anything I can. I’m sorry we don’t got wako’s or whatever here.” 

“I’m being unreasonable.”

“It’s normal. You know it is. I know it is. You shoulda seen Miroku while Sango was having her cravings. Damn near swindled every ingredient from every vendor in every town just to find something she couldn’t remember the name of.” 

Kagome gave a watery laugh. “That makes me feel better.” 

“We’ll make something good, and if you hate it and retch I’ll make you two something else.” 

‘Us two,’ Kagome thought in awe, placing her hand on her belly. “We appreciate you.” She sent him a smile and got on her tiptoes to kiss his jaw. 

“Yeah, yeah. If you’re done, I’m going to go finish cutting now,” he brushed off, trying to hide his blush as he turned around. 

“Okay, but we’re following you,” Kagome declared. As her husband resumed chopping the rest of the potatoes, she wrapped her arms around his middle and rested her cheek against his back. 

“I’m gonna be done in five seconds, you know.” 

“Go slower.” 

And tonight, at this random party in Osaka, fun was a very attractive guy that she dragged into a corner to make out with aggressively. He was so pretty—at least that’s what she believed. Her eyes were closed and she was pretty drunk, so maybe he was average looking in sobering daylight, but perhaps not. He was admittedly a clumsy kisser, shy and cute, and somehow that was turning her on more. 

She didn’t ask his name, nor did she give hers. It went against all her instincts. She was always known for forming connections and bonding with people. Her friends told her she wasn’t the type to throw caution to the wind. She’d never have a wild hookup. She’d always been so responsible. Kagome didn’t take pride or shame in that as an attribute, but god she hated being told what she wasn’t capable of. She was capable of dressing up and going out, she was capable of drinking too much and loosening up, and she was absolutely capable of finding a hot guy to have sex with in a closet. And she was here now in her skimpy red dress to prove it. 

“Is this a good idea?” The hot stranger asked, panting as Kagome hiked up her skirt and began fumbling with his jeans. 

“I don’t know. I don’t want to think tonight.” She finally got the button undone and pulled his pants down. 

“You’re okay with this? I think we’re both—“

She shoved her mouth on his fervently, tongue thrusting back into his mouth, hoping she could convince him to shut up before he made too much sense. 

“Drunk,” he finished, but sounded out of breath and dopey. 

“I’m okay with this.” He was single. He said he was clean. Those were the only two extra qualifiers that she had needed before she threw herself into his arms. “You want me?” 

It was apparently a struggle for him to answer her properly when her hand was already in his boxers, but he managed a, “Yes,” into her shoulder as she pushed them down. 

They were in a closet for heaven’s sake. There wasn’t much time or space, but Kagome was wasted and determined as she wrangled them onto the floor, straddling him in the cramped space. 

“Good, because I want you,” she confessed into the crook of his neck. 

Apparently that hit some kind of switch, because at that moment he grabbed her hip with one hand, and yanked her panties aside with the other, entering her with a groan.

“Oh! Oh yes.” She threw her head back as she clung to his shoulders. They weren’t wasting any time. “Yes, yes, yes!” It was amazing. She’d never felt this hot in her life. “How is this so good?” 

“No clue,” he replied. “It’s you, I swear. Or the alcohol.” 

She would’ve laughed or thanked him or something, but she was so caught up in the moment that she simply nodded. In the darkness, every sensation seemed to multiply—the squeeze of his hands, the heat of his lips, the oh so satisfying way he fit into her. 

“Yes! There! There, there!” It only took a few minutes of rocking up and down, but Kagome was so turned on that she reached her peak just moments later. “So good. You’re incredible!”

In turn he finished to her encouraging moans. 

And that was that. After only a brief moment to collect her breath, Kagome kissed his cheek sweetly. “Thank you. That was amazing. That was just what I needed and so much more.” 

“Y-you’re welcome,” she couldn’t make out his expression in the dark, but his voice was shaky.  

“Do you mind staying back for a minute? I… I’m trying to prove something dumb to my friends, so I’ve got to disappear.” 

“You have to?” He was so cute that Kagome almost gave in and asked his name, but she was stubbornly holding onto her pride, so she got up before this turned into something more. It would be just like her to get all mushy and exchange numbers and make it all romantic. No. Not this time. 

“I have to,” she confirmed. “But it’s not because of anything you did wrong. You’re really wonderful and you seem very nice.” 

“You too.” 

“Too nice, according to my friends. Nice and boring.” 

“You ain’t boring, that’s for sure.” 

She giggled. “Just for tonight.”

“Lucky me.” 

“I’m glad you think so. I’m really happy it was you, for the record. I hope you don’t feel like I used you, whoever you are, hot stuff.” 

He almosted coughed at the nickname. “You made my night, I promise. Get out there and give ‘em hell.” 

Kagome nodded, her legs a little wobbly. Then she turned the knob and let herself out, emerging smug and satisfied, but with a slight pang in her heart for the guy she’d left in the closet. 

It happened so fast that he had to rub his eyes and blink.

Ane-ue was hanging clothes to dry, bent over slightly at the waist.

Kohaku had to mention that last part, because while this would have been an insignificant occurrence in any other household, this was his sister's household, and his brother-in-law had a habit of getting excited whenever she bent over slightly at the waist. He'd only been in the house for all of two hours and that was glaringly apparent.

So there his sister was, hanging clothes to dry, when Miroku reached out and calmly patted her backside, as if this were a completely normal thing to do while Kohaku was in the house and watching every single thing they did.

Ane-ue snorted and reached out as well, giving Miroku a light playful spank in response, as if this too were a completely normal occurrence in their household.

Kohaku stared.

"Dearest Sango," Miroku said in a soppy, completely besotted voice as Kohaku's sister finished straightening out the last of the clothes.

Apparently he enjoyed being spanked.

"Will you do me the honor of bearing my children?"

His elder sister didn't bat an eye at this question.

"I've already done so three times."

Miroku was undeterred.

"How about a fourth time? Or a fifth? Or a sixth? Or a seventh – "

"I prefer to have dinner first."

"Certainly, sweet Sango!" the supposed monk said, rubbing his hands together with sparkling eyes. "After dinner, shall we – "

"Yes, yes, whatever." Sango rolled her eyes, which were also sparkling with something that Kohaku decided not to examine closely for the sake of his fragile mind. "Now please stop bothering me and go find Kirara. I think she's been hunting in the forest."

It got worse the next day, as they were all sitting around in the late afternoon sun, sipping tea.

Kohaku had only stopped by to play with his cute nieces and nephew. He did not come to hear –

"My sweet Sango, do you know that, as I am a married man, I take my vows of fidelity completely and totally seriously?"

Blood slowly rose from the soles of his feet and then in a sudden rush surged into his face.

He did not come here to hear this.

"Uh-uh."

Ane-ue's tone was alarmingly casual: bright and cheerful as she sipped at her cup of tea (Kohaku had been about to take a sip of his own tea, but for his brother-in-law's sudden and most unwelcome interjections with what he evidently assumed were good topics of conversation).

"You know that I have no eyes for anyone except you?"

Make it stop, Ane-ue. Please make it stop.

She did not make it stop.

"Okay."

Okay. Deep breaths, calm down, deep breaths, all right?

"Do you know that I burn with desire for you, and only for you?"

No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, I'm not hearing this, I'm not, I'm not, I'm NOT –

"You have said so several times."

Why do they have to do this in front of me?

Kohaku cleared his throat feebly. He made a sound not unlike the one Kirara made when suffering from hairballs.

His sister and brother-in-law took no notice.

"Shall I prove it to you tonight? That I am completely serious?"

"Hmmm." Sango sipped some more tea, as though pondering this.

"Shall we make Kin'u an elder sister?"

"She's already the eldest."

"Let us make her the eldest once more, dear Sango."

"Very well. After we've put them all to sleep."

The sound from Kohaku's throat was inhuman: born of despair, agony, and a desperate need to claw his eyes and ears out.

Sango and Miroku still didn't notice.

She spanked him.

Again.

There was more than one room in the house. There was absolutely no universe in which he needed to see his sister do that.

Baby Kin'u started shrieking loudly, and Gyokuto drooled and pulled on Kohaku's hair.

Miroku seemed far too happy about this.

Kohaku crept outside when no one was looking and tried his best to sleep under the stars.

He had no interest in witnessing just how seriously Miroku was determined to prove his faithfulness to Ane-ue.

He fell into a fitful and restless sleep, punctuated with a shadowy spider monster's evil cackles and Kagura's smirk.

They were punishing him. Surely they were punishing him.

Miroku coming up behind Ane-ue and wrapping his arms around her, usually while she was doing something important, and getting nothing more than a playful swat in response.

Miroku asking her every other hour if she wished to bear his children...usually while he, poor Kohaku, was within earshot. Ane-ue, if she was busy, humming noncommitally in response, and other times...other times she would nod enthusiastically.

There were other topics in this household: Inuyasha, Kagome, yokai killing campaigns, the village's rice harvest this year, the announcement of a new era name. But they were few and far between, like an oasis in the middle of a parched and scorching desert. Kohaku was dehydrated.

It was terrifying.

He knew there was much in his life to atone for: slaughtering his family with his own two hands, being forced to cut down innocents, doing Naraku's bidding. No matter how many times his beloved elder sister assured him that it wasn't his fault, that he was mind-controlled the whole time, he still did his best to scrub his hands so hard of the darkness that they turned red and bruised.

He knew already.

But this was cruel and unusual punishment. What had he possibly done to deserve this?

Every day. Every single day.

He had only meant to come back to visit his beloved elder sister after taking a small break from his demon slayer training. She'd invited him over, happily and with brilliant cheer. They'd been separated for months, she said. Surely it would be a fine idea to spend some time with her and her husband and their children, she said.

So why were they doing this to him?

That night, when Miroku started batting his eyelashes at Ane-ue in what he clearly believed to be a seductive fashion, Kohaku decided it was time to run far, far away.

They didn't exactly notice his presence lately, and a prickly part of his mind wondered just why they had invited him over in the first place if they were only going to fixate on bringing forth dozens of children anyway.

He didn't make it too far before bumping into Inuyasha, and, surprisingly enough –

"Watch where you're going, brat," Inuyasha said, scolding tone seemingly more out of habit than anything else – his joyous face did not match the words at all. The reason for that became clear soon enough.

"Kohaku-kun? Is that really you?"

Kohaku, not for the first time, had to rub his eyes and blink.

Dark hair, sparkling eyes, strange clothing. Only this time, her odd thigh-length garment was dark blue instead of green, and she had shot up in height.

Blessed relief dawned on Kohaku's face. He launched himself into Kagome's arms, the stress and horror of the past few days finally escaping his body.

"Kagome-sama, help me! Help me, please, please, please."

Kagome smelled like smoke, what she had once said was 'exhaust fumes,' and that odd soap from hundreds of years into the future. The scent of the person who had defeated Naraku and wished the malevolence of the Shikon Jewel out of existence.

It was the most comforting thing he had yet smelled.

If anyone had the ability to help him, it was her.

A clawed hand wrenched his face from her waist. Kohaku looked up into Inuyasha's scowling face.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome scolded.

"What?" he snapped. "The kid was slobbering all over you!"

"He was asking for help!" She turned concerned eyes back to him. "Kohaku-kun, what's the matter?"

"They're...they're – " His tongue tripped and stumbled in his mouth. "They're...they're like rabbits."

Inuyasha stared blankly.

"They just...they won't stop. Every single day. It's the same every single day. They do it in front of me. They don't notice I'm there. They don't even care. You have to save me, Kagome-sama."

Realization bloomed on Kagome's face. Kohaku thanked every deity on earth that she was much quicker on the uptake than Inuyasha.

"You poor child," she said, putting her hands on his face and leaning in closely, checking for signs of torment. She obviously found plenty. "I understand completely how disgusted and horrified you're feeling." She turned to her side. "Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha still had that mix of bafflement and irritation on his face. He crossed his arms and scowled again. "What?"

"Go get another futon from Kaede baa-chan's hut for Kohaku-kun."

"Huh? Why?"

She sighed. "Miroku-sama and Sango-chan are torturing Kohaku-kun. How many times has he asked her to bear his child, Kohaku-kun?"

Kohaku counted in his mind. There was that time when he arrived, and then that other time when they had all gone to the stream to bathe, and then when they were walking around the village, and then there was...

It took a long time for him to finish counting. Kagome waited patiently, looking gratifyingly sympathetic and horrified at the amount of time it took.

"I think...seventy-three times?" he finally squeaked out.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that, Kohaku-kun." She cracked her knuckles. "I'll have a talk with Miroku-sama tomorrow. You can sleep in our room tonight."

"WHAT?"

Kagome raised an eyebrow at Inuyasha's outburst.

"But – but you said – you said tonight that we could – "

Kagome tapped her foot impatiently, silently daring him to continue.

Inuyasha touched the beads around his neck and opted not to dare. Instead he stomped off to Kaede's hut, growling in a decidedly canine way about the tongue-lashing he would give Miroku and Sango.

When Kagome found herself in Sengoku that fateful day, lost beyond worlds, she’d run to Goshinboku to find her home, and there he’d been (her real home, though she’d never have guessed it back then). Sure enough, he saved her from the Mistress Centipede. Despite their rocky start, time and time again he’d prove his capabilities. Learning to depend on Inuyasha’s strength came fast by necessity. If she were in trouble, she believed that Inuyasha could and ultimately would deal with it—if only to ensure his Jewel Shard detector could fulfill her duties (at first).

Then they became friends, and she knew in her heart the way that he’d call for her, “Kagome!” had to mean he cared beyond her usefulness. Not because he had to save her, but because he wanted her to live.

She trusted him to defend her, to protect her, to find her—time and space and rules of the universe be damned.

She believed in Inuyasha. She put her whole heart into her faith in him.

And now, in her newest moment of terror, he was here.

“Kagome, would you quit being a baby already?” her husband admonished.

She was too horrified to be offended, and instead shouted, “No!” before smushing herself further into his arms. Okay, so maybe she was being melodramatic, but she couldn’t help it.

Inuyasha sighed over her antics. It was her weak spot after all.

Maggots. In their home.

Kagome hated bugs. She turned into such a sissy over them despite having faced far worse in her life.

With her body essentially glued onto him, Inuyasha warned, “I have to get closer to them to get rid of them, you know.”

She squealed, “No! Just use Tessaiga! You took out a wall in our house’s kitchen over a cockroach. Remember? I’m sorry I got mad before, just do the same thing now!”

He winced at the memory. It’d been years ago, but he still recalled the way she had screeched so loud that he had overreacted at the time. It’d been a lot of damage after all. He’d like to think he had a little more sense than he did back then.

“I’m not rebuilding our home because of some bugs.” Gross as the rotten heap of fruit was. The smell bothered him most, but even Inuyasha had to admit that the wriggling creatures were disturbing.

“Please, please, please just get rid of them,” she sobbed pathetically, this time burying her face into his chest and practically clawing up his torso to get off the ground. He doubted there were any near them, though she acted as if there was a huge infestation threatening to crawl up her legs any second.

Blowing his bangs up, Inuyasha relented to his wife and unsheathed his sword, which automatically transformed to its full size. Thankfully their home could accommodate it, but the contrast of the weapon compared to the compact pile of mush was comical.

Now, how to deal with this?

Not used to making such minuscule movements, Inuyasha did his best to scoop the mushy peaches onto the end of his sword. It wasn’t the worst idea. After all, he wasn’t keen on getting closer to the rancid smell. Unfortunately the resulting squelching sound made his wife let out a string of, “Ew, ew, ew!” before letting out a short scream.

His ear twitched. “You’re okay.”

She shook her head, gripping at him.

It didn’t seem like she was going to let go of him any time soon, and while he was used to carrying her around, the tight space and task made it cumbersome. But maybe he enjoyed, just a little, how close she was. He could do without her having a meltdown though.

“Okay, let’s go.” He held her to him with one arm, doing his best to navigate their way out the door along with the sword. Once out the door he carefully flung the offending pile of nastiness as far away as he could.

“Are they gone?” Kagome asked. She didn’t dare to pull away just yet.

He gave Tessaiga a good thwack to rid it of any remaining peach liquid. Then he sheathed it. “Most of ‘em. I’ll go back inside to take a look. You oughta get off me unless you wanna deal with them.”

A muffled sigh came from his chest. Kagome peeled herself off him sheepishly.

“Okay…” she replied as she stepped away.

“You wait out here.”

She nodded, and he disappeared behind the screen door only to emerge two minutes later. He chucked something once more as far away as possible, wiped his hands on his pants, and turned to her.

Kagome shoved herself back in his arms, this time hugging him with relief. “You got them all?”

“Uh-huh.”

“You checked near the sleeping mats?”

“Mhmm. You’re safe now.” His affirmations were tinged with affectionate mockery.

She didn’t care. “Thank you,” she mumbled as she clung to him. “You’re my hero.” Quickly (because they were outside) she kissed his lips to show her gratitude.

That caught his attention more fully and he turned to peek over her shoulder. She was holding a round black object, shiny but scuffed. There was a white circle with a black symbol on top. "What the hell is it?" It gave off no discernible scent, no sounds he could hear. Kagome rolled her wrist, flipping it over, and he noticed the bottom was flat.

"It's a magic eight ball." Inuyasha squinted as a triangle appeared in the flat space, words he couldn't decipher at first in bright white.

"Should you be carrying around some magic thing with the jewel shards right there?" he asked, highly skeptical. He thought Kagome knew better than to pick up random – possibly dangerous – items by now.

To his frustration, Kagome started to giggle.

His scowl must have caught her attention, because she smothered it and coughed. She scooted closer to him, her side pressing against his arm. "It's not actually magic, Inuyasha. It's a toy." She explained that it had fluid inside and the triangle was actually a multi-sided block floating around. "The idea is that you ask it a yes or no question and it tells you the future."

"The future?"

Kagome shrugged. "Most of the answers are vague enough aside from yes or no that you can interpret it how you want, really." She showed him how it worked by flipping it right side up and asking if Miroku would ask a woman to bear his child in the village they were staying in. When she rolled it over You may rely on it appeared in the window. "Not really a fair question…"

Both their heads popped up when an indignant screech was followed by a resounding slap.

"Definitely not fair." Inuyasha peered at it more closely. "Try something else."

"Hmmm… Will I make it back in time for my English test next week?" Better not tell you now. "Not promising," Kagome sighed with a wry smile.

The sound of children squabbling rose outside the hut they were borrowing and Kagome rolled her eyes when they heard Shippou's voice ringing above the others. His tone was decidedly haughty and it was clear he was about to get himself into some trouble. The young miko groaned as she rolled to her feet, dropping the eight ball into Inuyasha's startled hands.

"Your turn!"

"Keh." Inuyasha watched her duck out of the doorway, calling for the runt as she went. He rolled the ball between his hands for a moment in thought. It was just a toy, she said, it didn't really predict anything. "Will I ever be a full youkai?" he finally whispered to it. He hesitated before flipping it over quickly. It took a moment for the block to settle in place. Reply hazy, try again. "This stupid thing." But he couldn't help repeating the question… and got the same answer. 

Which made him curious. Was this thing more than it appeared? 

He sniffed it again, turning it over and looking carefully for any sign of tampering. There was nothing. "Will we defeat Naraku?" Signs point to yes. Well! That was some good news! Inuyasha's chest puffed with pride until his ribs twinged and he was reminded of why he was sitting in a strange hut in a strange village, ribs and chest wrapped in gauze. "Keh."

Kagome took good care of him, whether he liked it or not. He shook his head with a smirk. She'd gotten much better at this first aid stuff too. Efficient. Which was sad in a way, because it meant she was doing it more often.

"Will Kagome always be safe?" he murmured to himself. The sphere in his hand felt heavier for a moment. My sources say no the little triangle read. His face fell. "Will Kagome… will she stay with me like she said?" Cannot predict now. Inuyasha fought the very strong urge to hurl the thing across the room. He had to ask one last thing, his curiosity too much to ignore. "D-Does she love me?" he barely breathed aloud.

So focused, he had missed the sound of Kagome's footsteps as she returned to the hut. She was steamed about Shippou's antics and his propensity for mischief. She froze when she realized he was staring at her. Seeing the eight ball still in his hand, her brow furrowed when he still said nothing. "What's wrong?" she asked, dropping to her knees in front of him. Her hands fluttered over his torso to check that he wasn't suddenly bleeding out or something. When there was nothing obviously dire, her gaze went to the ball. She lightly took his wrist and looked at the response still floating there. "It is decidedly so, huh? What did you ask?" Her scent and expression were a mix of curious and concerned. Inuyasha finally took a breath.

"J-Just if we had ramen for dinner. I'm starved." He quickly plopped the ball in her hand and stretched out on the futon. "You want me to rest or not, woman?" he snapped when she kept watching him carefully. Kagome only rolled her eyes at his blustering before getting up to put water on to boil. When her back was turned, humming under her breath as she worked, Inuyasha allowed himself a little smile.

Kagome had never seen him this out of it. Even the handful of times he’d gotten piss drunk around her, he hadn’t been anywhere near this level of daffy.

And he was freaking heavy too!

“Come on, InuYasha,” she coaxed in her best teacher voice as she urged him forward with a gentle squeeze around his waist, “We’re almost to the car, and then we can go home and you can take a nice long nap.”

“Shhh!” Suddenly InuYasha’s index finger smashed against her lips (eliciting a startled “eep!”), and he leaned his face in closer to hers, his warm breath fanning across her cheeks, golden eyes nearly crossing as they tried—and failed—to focus on her. “You gotta be quiet, K’gome," he said, bumping his nose into the side of her face, "or the dragon will hear you.”

His cheeks were a little swollen from the operation, and he still had gauze in his mouth, wadded up near the back of his jaw, making his words slow and more than a little garbled.

Kagome turned her head to dislodge his finger and reminded herself that she really shouldn't laugh at her post-op, high-as-a-kite husband. She sighed quietly, then said, "Okay, InuYasha, I’ll try not to attract its attention.”

She managed to navigate them both past the red sedan without much trouble. But as they approached their own car—a small silver two-seater—she could almost feel InuYasha's back stiffening, and a rolling growl issued from his throat. He came to a dead stop a few feet away from the passenger door, and no amount of coaxing or pulling could get him to budge.

Now torn between amusement and complete impatience, Kagome opened her mouth to try some sweet-talking on him—but she was interrupted when his arm dropped from her shoulders to her waist, and he yanked her firmly against his chest, twisting his body in the process so that he stood between her and the car.

"It'ssa 'nother one," he hissed to her under his breath. "But don't worry, K'gome, I'll protect you."

"InuYasha, it's just—"

"Shh, don't move, I'll take care of this." He raised one of his hands and flexed his fingers, showing off his claws.

Kagome gasped and grabbed his wrist. "InuYasha, don't you dare claw up our car! There's no way the insurance will pay for that!"

His brows slanted in a perplexed frown, those golden eyes staring blankly at her face. "Dragon.... insurance?"

"All right, that's it." Kagome reached up and gently cupped InuYasha's face in both her hands. She looked him square in the eye and said, "This one is a friendly dragon, InuYasha. It's going to take us home."

His lips pursed in clear skepticism. "Friendly...?"

"That's right," Kagome nodded, "I asked it to give us a lift home. So why don't you take a seat, okay? We don't want to keep the dragon waiting."

InuYasha shot their car a sidelong glare, eyeing it like a wild animal. "I don't like it."

"Trust me, it's fine. Get on the dragon, InuYasha."

It took a little more coaxing, but Kagome managed to get her husband slumped into the passenger seat. She leaned over him to buckle his seat belt, and as she began to draw away, his hand came up to touch her face, his fingers grazing somewhat clumsily over her cheeks and lips. "K'gome," he mumbled, "how do you know a dragon?"

Kagome finally allowed herself the laugh she'd been suppressing. She cupped one of his swollen cheeks and said fondly, "Whenever the drugs wear off, I hope you appreciate that I didn't film this for posterity. That's how much I love you, you big dope."

He'd been sporting a mild frown, but when he heard the "I love you," a fangy grin spread across his face and his thumb swiped over her bottom lip.

Kagome kissed his cheek, closed the passenger door, and slipped into the driver's seat.