#inukag christmas fic

[mamabearcat]

Chest Nuts

"So you cleaned the bathroom right?"

"Yes I did. And before you ask I put the new towels in there too."

"Are they nice and straight? Oh and the new soap, the cranberry hand soap, is that in there?"

"Yes it's all there. And all our usual junk is in our bedroom, there's only toothbrushes and that fancy new water glass in there."

"What about all the cheese we bought this afternoon - did that go in the fridge? Oh and the salmon. Please tell me the salmon went in there!"

"Yes Kagome."

"Don't roll your eyes at me! This is a Big Thing Inuyasha! Your parents are meeting my parents, and it's the first time your Mum and Dad are staying with us! And everyone's coming here for brunch, oh my God. Why did I say this would be a good idea? I must be insane."

"Kagome, settle down. Everything will be fine. Ma and Pops love you, and your mother is practically a saint. They'd be happy if you fed them a croissant outta a paper bag."

"But I want to make a good impression! Maybe I should check my list again. Oh, the presents. Are all the presents under the tree?"

"Nope."

"No!? Which one's missing! Who did I forget?!"

"Nobody. There's just one left."

"Do I need to wrap it? Where's the sticky tape? Oh fuck, I used the last bit on Souta's present. Inu, quick, go get my jacket while I find my keys, I need to go out and buy sticky tape!"

"Kagome, stop. Just look at me baby. You don't need to do anything sweet girl, except take a deep breath and open this.

*whispers* "Open it Kagome, and tell me what you see."

"Inuyasha... oh my God Inuyasha! Yes! YES!"

"Thank fuck!"

"Did you honestly think I'd say no, you dummy!" *crying and laughing* "I love you!"

"I know, but you were so stressed about all this Christmas shit, you were stressing me out too! I love you baby. Merry Christmas Eve."

Merry Christmas to all my followers who celebrate, and Happy Holidays and end of the year shenanigans to those who don't. It's been a bit of a weird year, but doing these little bits of inukag art and dialogue only snippets has always lifted my spirits. I hope they lifted yours too.

Best wishes to you all from your friendly not so local Mama Bear.

[cannibalsforbreakfast]

FIC MASTERLIST

WIP Series - Stranger Things

Cruel Summer (AO3) The Eddie Munson speedway AU no one asked for. Enemies to friends to lovers. No Upside Down, no use of Y/N. Fast cars, fast times.

Tumblr Chapter 1 | Chapter 2

Completed Series - Inuyasha

The Fifth Flavor Grumpy-sunshine photographer Inu, chef Kagome. Enemies to lovers. Ramen is made.

Entitled to You MirSan two-shot featuring books, misunderstandings, fake-dating. Disabled Miroku and wingman Jakotsu.

Just Another Day in the Life of Superheroes *group fic* Inu Gang, but it's the Incredibles. I wrote Chapter Four.

WIP Series - Inuyasha

I Love the Flaws You Try to Hide *WIP, hope to update soon* When Kagome Higurashi wakes up on the morning of her 21st birthday to find that she doesn't have a soulmate mark, she doesn't know what to do.

Kotodama *WIP, hope to update soon* A modern InuKag friends-to-lovers, high school AU with powers, gangsters, words that mean more than words, and a cross-class romance.

I Can Quit Anything, But I Can't Quit You *on hold* Inuyasha is a professional "quitting consultant" and Kagome can't find the perfect job.

One-shots - Inuyasha

Sing, My Little Bird An Inuyasha homage to Angela Carter's "The Erl-King."

Skeins and Schemes Kagome wants to make Inuyasha an extra special Christmas gift. Canon-compliant, sweet, sweet fluff.

You've Got a Read on Me InuKag coffee shop meet-cute with tarot cards.

Tasting Spoons Part of the TFF universe. A sweet-spicy one-shot complement, featuring licking and chocolate.

In My Pulse, There Is Only You Reverse Bang 2021 for Art Inu-spiration with @kirrtash. Mind control, angst, pining, ambiguous ending. My fav.

Constellation Consolations Since she's returned to the Feudal Era, Inuyasha notices that Kagome's always sleepy. A sweet little post-marriage InuKag story.

I Don't Need Perfection Friends to lovers InuKag. There's only one bed.

Lae's IY Ficlets *ongoing one-shots* Inuyasha drips and drabs.

Unpublished WIPs - Titles

These will some day make it out of my brain.

Werewolf

Iscariot

Rural Shenanigans

Hello, Harbinger

[inukag-archive]

Inuvember Part 2

In honor of @inuvember InuKag Day, the Archive Mods have put together a 30 day InuKag recommendation list: one fic per event prompt, all with a distinct InuKag (as OTP and OT3) flair. Since this is longer than our usual lists, we split it into two parts. Enjoy!

Day 16 Kohaku

Three Is A Crowd by Happy_Ocelot (G)

While stopping by to babysit his cute nieces and nephew, Kohaku comes to the horrifying realization that his beloved sister is in some kind of strange exhibitionist relationship. There were only so many times he could listen to his brother-in-law talking about hitting the ten or twenty children mark before snapping.

Good thing Kagome is there to help.

Humor, post-ending.

Day 17 Kaede

If We Fall Anyway by @soliska (M)

What if the shikon jewel didn’t exist and Naraku never came to be? What if Kagome fell down the well anyway and met a gruff, young inu-hanyou. Would they still become friends? What would be their story?

A tale told in snippets.

Day 18 Totosai

Mamorinuku by Nindeoronra (T)

Inuyasha commissions Totosai to make a new sword. Is it for him or for another?

Day 19 InuKag

Little Family by @xoxopandapanda (T)

Post Canon and A/U: Inuyasha and Kagome's family grows in time, starting with a little child who needs parents to teach him to love.

Day 20 MirSan

Shelter by @lavendertwilight89 (E)

Song fic inspired Stuck with You and Shelter

Inuyasha has been alone most of his life and one moonless night he gets caught up with a young priestess. She saves him and he, in return, helps her. What he doesn't realize is this priestess holds a lot of secrets which may or may not cost both of them their lives...

Day 21 InuKik

Kokoro no Kakera by @callmegri and @kirrtash (M)

She didn’t remember how she got there, only knew that it was warm, and soft. She hadn’t felt warmth since she was brought back to life. Where was she? What happened to her? The last thing she remembered was her reincarnation sitting on the ground next to that waterfall… She didn’t understand why Kagome helped her, again.

When a tired heart starts beating again, gravity itself has to rearrange to make space for it. But old wounds ask for closure before unspoken feelings can bloom, so all the pieces of shattered hearts can fit together.

Day 22 Sess Ships

In Hindsight by @mrfeenysmustache (T)

Hindsight is 20/20. Or.. it’s supposed to be anyway. A Drabble series about overcoming our misconceptions and all the little ways we talk ourselves out of happiness. InuKag Post Canon

Day 23 Kouga Ships

From the Hearts - and the Wrapping Company by @clearwillow (NR)

A gift for UnderwaterOphelia in the IYFF Book Club Secret Santa exchange. Christmas isn't going according to anyone's plans, except Koga's. Between the heat in the apartment making it feel like it's July and the endless boxes Inuyasha and Kagome keep finding, there has to be a good reason for the devious look in their boyfriend's eyes.

Day 24 Other Ships

There's Something In the Mist by @splendentgoddess (X)

A gruesome discovery in the forest is a warning that goes unheeded by the Inu-tachi who have no idea what demonic influences are at play. They will soon have intimate knowledge of what fate awaits them...intimate knowledge of each other.

Day 25 LGBT

The Real Me by @fawn-eyed-girl & @kalcia (E)

Kagome Higurashi is one of the top music journalists in the country, and her latest assignment is to write a story on one of the biggest rock bands in the world: Inutachi. She is immediately attracted to the lead singer, Inuyasha Masaki, a brooding, edgy hanyou who is battling his own inner demons. As Inuyasha and Kagome are increasingly drawn to one another, Kagome becomes more and more determined to discover just what has happened to Inuyasha that caused him to turn down such a dark path, and why she cannot seem to stay away from him.

Day 26 LGBT

Three's Company by @anisaanisa (E)

Threesomes were good. Threesomes were fun. Threesomes were safe. Threesomes didn’t involve feelings. Inuyasha’s in love with his best friend, and it takes five years and long-distance for him to get his head out of his ass.

Day 27 Platonic

Snoring Is the Sixth Love Language by @superpixie42 (T)

Somewhat against his will, Inuyasha finds himself sharing a hut and its one small futon with Shippo after a thunderstorm traps them in a foreign village. But Shippo's snoring means Inuyasha won't be getting any sleep, and instead spends the night alone with his thoughts. A three-year-gap, There Was Only One Bed Prompt fic, filled with found family feels. Rated T for language. Featuring art by Artnisa (AnisaAnisa) !

Day 28 AU

The Captain and the Hanyou by @goshinote (T)

In a world in which youkai have been forced into hiding after the Great War, Captain Higurashi is known as one of the cruelest youkai-hunting pirates. After Captain Higurashi kidnaps Inuyasha, a prized hanyo, a plan is set in motion. Inuyasha will find out Captain Higurashi is nothing like the stories say, and he will discover that nothing is truly as it seems...

Day 29 AU

Aurora by @thunderpot (T)

"It is said that a long time ago in the age of heroes — when Mother Earth was awake and the Gods walked among mortals — there was once a beast created by the Sun that fell in love with a great warrior."

A creative exercise from inuvember prompt: Myth Au

Day 30 Fandom Day

Like Shards of the Shikon (a multi-author/artist collaborative AU)

A little craziness that got too big for Tumblr. "Like Shards of the Shikon" is a live action television version of the popular manga 'Inuyasha'. Follow the actors as they live, learn, and laugh together. Expect fluff, laughs, a little romance on and off screen. A mixture of art and text - we're just making it up as we go. Join the general craziness!

READ PART (1) HERE

--

A special shoutout to friend of the Archive @sometimes-icanstillhear-sitboy for creating a series of Inuvember fic-rec TikToks based on this list!

[inu-mothership]

Inu-Mothership Spotlight Saturday: Holiday Edition! Week 4: Gift Giving

Hi everyone! We here at @inu-mothership are back with another week of holiday-related fic recs! This week's theme is "Gift Giving," and we are so glad to be able to share this list with all of you 💝

This week, below the cut, we have a baker's dozen list of recs, all with the theme of gifts and gift giving. Fics are listed, as always, in alphabetical order, with ship, rating, and status (complete or ongoing) listed in the parentheses. We hope you enjoy and find some new favorites 🌟

4 Carats (SessKag; M; complete) by @sereia1313

Most misunderstandings come from a lack of communication, and this Christmas is no exception.

Chasing Cars (InuKag; T; complete) by @lavendertwilight89

Inuyasha meets Kagome in his freshman communications class and immediately tries to close him off only to be surprised when she doesn't quit. He ends up in a group with her and his other friends and ends up falling for her. When they draw names for secret santa at the end of the year, guess who he ends up with? Will he confess his feelings or continue down a path of loneliness?

Christmas Plushy (InuKag; T; complete) by @windkissedsakura

A Christmas at an idyllic cottage for our favorite couple. A small puppy plushy that surprises a former grumpy hanyou with its significance. 

Everything But the Pear Tree (InuKag; E; complete) by @fandomobsessions016

After going through a rough break-up, Kagome decides she's going to pull herself out of her slump by diving head first into holiday preparations. With her friend Sango and the help of her new neighbor, Inuyasha, Kagome is reminded why the holidays are so special to her.

From the Heart - and the Wrapping Company (InuKogKag; NR; complete) by@clearwillow/BrigidtheFae (Ao3)

Christmas isn't going according to anyone's plans, except Koga's. Between the heat in the apartment making it feel like it's July and the endless boxes Inuyasha and Kagome keep finding, there has to be a good reason for the devious look in their boyfriend's eyes.

If You Dare (InuKag; Rated E; complete) by @fawn-eyed-girl

Inuyasha hates Christmas, and looks forward to spending it alone.

Kagome loves Christmas, and is devastated that she has to spend it alone.

She decides to leave a notebook in the stacks at a bookstore, in hopes of making a special connection. When Inuyasha finds it, does he dare take her challenge? And will she dare to accept his?

The Kissing Plant (InuKag; T; complete) by @heynikkiyousofine

Inuyasha finds this so called kissing plant and decides to use it to show Kagome how he feels.

Lucky (InuKag; G; complete) by @lavaffair/coccinelleroses (Ao3)

Inuyasha is on a last-minute mission to find Kagome a Christmas present on Christmas Eve! Luckily, he has the perfect little helper by his side to make sure Kagome gets everything she deserves this Christmas.

A Moment, Together (InuKag; G; complete) by @yukinon-writes

A moment between Kagome and Inuyasha the night before Christmas!

One Little Thing (InuKag; T; complete) by @smmahamazing

Inuyasha wants to propose to his long time girlfriend, Kagome, but can't come up with a good way to pop the question. That is, until he gets her as his Secret Santa.

A Secret Santa (NarSess; T; complete) by @roseheartwhitefox

Naraku loved his job working at Walmart.

He loved it because most of the time, people shopping at Walmart were miserable. They were tired, overworked, underpaid, and generally disgruntled human beings. Not much unlike himself. 

It was a glorious job. 

It brought Naraku great pleasure to watch the miserable customers plowing through the store at the hand of life’s struggles. That was the case at the store pretty much all the time, except for one time of year.

Christmas.

Skeins and Schemes (InuKag; G; complete) by @cannibalsforbreakfast/Laeoukka

Inuyasha didn’t understand why she was insisting she needed to go back to her time, because this time last year Kagome had said her school was on “ho-li-day” and that there were no classes. She’d tried to put Inuyasha off with excuses — she had a makeup exam, her school had changed its schedule — but she could tell he didn’t believe her.

Because how could she tell Inuyasha that she needed to go back to her time to make him a Christmas present?

Wrapped in Red (SessKag; M; complete) by @sereia1313

Christmas has always been a special time for Kagome, but after Rin invites Sesshomaru to join in the festivities, the holidays will never be the same.

[shinidamachu]

Reading Inukag christmas fics just to feel something.

[clearwillow]

Happy Holidays, @jeremymarsh! I was your Secret Santa this year for @inusecretsanta!I wanted to add a little fic to go with this art, and it got away from me XD I really hope you enjoy your gift 💕

Title: Coffee, Kisses, and a Side of Christmas Cake    

Summary: When her plans for Christmas go awry, Kagome finds herself quickly making a friend with the half demon she'd made small talk with at the airport. So why does everyone assume that they're a couple?

Rated: T

AO3 | FFN

Also hugs to @dchelyst for being a second set of eyes for me in editing and listening to me when I was going through it. After everything this month you really helped me find my confidence to write again 💕

@keichanz @lemonlushff @dawnrider @mamabearcat @inuykago @sailorbabydoll92 @zelink-inukag @itzatakahashi @superpixie42 @sticky-llama-perfection @the-rebel-alchemist  @digitl-art-monstr @theinuyashareader @eternalnight8806-3 @cstorm86 @sarah-writes-stories @animelove1313 @nartista @smmahamazing @xfangheartx @cyncyn981 @bluejay785 @witchygirl99 @lady-dark-69 @kazeinori @willowandfog @lavendertwilight89 @gaysonthefloor @senneth-pendra @ruddcatha @pinkpigeonstudio @shinidamachu @cammysansstuff @little-inukag-obsessed @arcprz @liz8080 @trying-not-to-loveu @wulfintheforest @memusicmuse @princessinume @hnn-wnchstr @that-weird-kid-charlie @cannibalsforbreakfast @mr-fairywings @nsr0716 @eringobroke @ladyphoenix0711 @malditamigs @fawn-eyed-girl  @littlestuffstohide @smh1821 @karina-inuphantom @dreaming-of-soup @irrationalandimpossible  @boostyourmind-blog @anisaanisa @inussunflower @sacred-arrow @nillavanilla21 @yusukesmomjeans @lordofthechips @bluehawaiicat @kawaiichan67 @kagometaishostory @hopidoodle   @omgitscharlie  @themusicalshoo  @heynikkiyousofine @preciouslyours @roseheartwhitefox @brokenangelwings22 @banra-yar @knittingknots @scaponigifs @shardetector @fudalfighter  

[anisaanisa]

Tis the season! For some Inuyasha Christmas themed fic recs ❄ I’ve listed 7 sweet treats to get you into the holiday spirit; there’s one for each day of the week, including links, pairing, rating, authors handle (if applicable) and small commentary, sans spoilers…

1. 'Tis the Damn Season | T | InuKag | by @akitokihojo ❄

Why yes, best friends to strangers to lovers is a weakness of mine. A tale about friendship, mutual pining even if you don't think it's so mutual and finally going after what you should've all along. Being home for the holidays doesn't have to be so bad. [Oneshot, Complete]

2. A Christmas Favor | T | InuKag | By @anxietyaardvark ❄

Fake Dating! Office Chrismtas parties! Childhood besties! Avoiding that one pesky guy! This fic has so many sweet tropey treats packed into it, there's too much to love. [Oneshot, Complete]

3. Skeins and Schemes | T | InuKag | By @cannibalsforbreakfast ❄

What do you get a gruff half demon who has no real concept of Chritsmas for Christmas? Kagome figures it out, in possibly the sweetest way. [Oneshot, Complete]

4. Frost Thaw: Lessons in Drowning | T | KagKik | By @gaykagome ❄

Canon-esque Kagkik has a special place in my heart. Sweet angst turns into sweet fluff as these two figure themselves - and each other - out. Includes gorgeous artwork from the lovely @kirrtash [Oneshot, Complete]

5. “It was the bow again. Your people really don’t seem to like it.” | T | KagKik | By Ike ❄

Wibbly. Wobbly. Timey. Wimey. Plus fake dating, misteltoe and sharing a bed. Need I say more? It's fun, it's funny, it's fluffy, it's great. [Oneshot, Complete]

6. Secret Santa | E | InuKag | By @splendentgoddess ❄

Workplace traditions are a great way to crush your OTP together. Such interesting modern demon world-building and stellar enemies-to-lovers dynamics throughout. Bonus! Sequels live in this collection [Multi-chapter, Complete]

7. Unwrap Me E | InuKag | By @lavaffair ❄

We're wrapping this list up (pun absolutely intended) with Christmas Smut™! Give your other half the gift of you this Christmas. It's what Kagome would do. Sugar, spice and everything nice packed into one ribbon-shaped fic. [Oneshot, Complete]

Feel free to add your own recommendations! This is by no means a comprehensive list, and represents only a small fraction of the skill and talent this fandom has shown. The more the merrier!

If you missed the last Spotlight Saturday (Enemies to Lovers) click here.

[aerin-of-the-isles]

fic request open

Hello! I shoukd have time to squeeze out another fic before Christmas.

Inukag? Kyoru? Twiyor? Zelink?

let me know!

[keichanz]

guys. it's happening.

i'm writing again.

and oh my GOD does it feel good. y'all i'll be completely honest, i was so scared that my motivation to write was gone. it has been so long since i've actually been inspired to write anything, and then suddenly i come across a tiktok video and BAM. like i've come across vids that make me go "hmmm that'd be a cute oneshot" and then file it away to ponder at a later time, but this particular one made me go !!!!!! and ZWHOOOP off to microsoft word i went lmao.

now please dont get too excited - i dont know when ill actually finish it, or how long it's even gonna be. at the moment i surmise maybe ten or so pages. but yall know me - it could be way longer than that lol. and yes before you ask it's inukag pfftt. like i would write anything else. c'mon.

but anyway. i'm writing again and i'm so happy adj;ifa;lf. no i will not post the video that inspired me lmaooo y'all gonna have to wait until i post it huehuehue~ i just hope it doesn't turn out as complete trash because i haven't written anything in so long pfftt

in addition, since im making a post, ill also take the opportunity to say that i'm going to be moving most of my fanfiction from ffnet onto ao3 eventually. possibly near future. i say most because there are a few fics that i have no problem dying right along with ffnet.

if there is a certain fic of mine on ffnet that you want to read on ao3, drop a line and lemme know. if its one i plan on not posting on there, if it gets enough "votes," ill consider posting it.

thanks guys. for hanging around this long and being patient with me, i mean. i know ive probs lost a few followers for being so inactive, which that's fine, it happens. but im grateful for all of you that stuck around with me this long. and i really hope this oneshot i'm writing is worth the very long wait for new content lol. who knows maybe ill have it done in time for christmas 👀

i love you all ❤️

keiz

[lavaffair]

Unwrap Me - Rated Explicit

Kagome has a special gift for Inuyasha underneath the Christmas tree, and it's wrapped in a tiny little red ribbon.

you can find it on AO3!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/35989174

___

It was a cold Christmas morning as Inuyasha awoke in an empty bed, his beautiful girlfriend nowhere in sight. He thought nothing of it, knowing how Kagome is a huge lover of the holiday, and groggily stood up to brush his teeth and drink his morning coffee. After a quick run to the bathroom to freshen up his face and breath, he made his way to the kitchen where he was expecting Kagome to be.

Turning the corner of the hallway he called out to her, “Baby, what do you want… for… breakfast.” He blinked, too surprised to speak another word.

“Holy shit.” He muttered to himself. Sitting underneath the Christmas tree was his beautiful girlfriend wearing nothing but a red ribbon tied intricately around her breasts, and a little red thong tied around her hips.

“Merry Christmas Yash.” She said sweetly as she stood up from where she sat. The rich, red color made her skin stand out even more and accentuating her delicious curves.

“Babe, you look. Wow.” Inuyasha felt like an idiot as he stuttered in front of her. Here is his girlfriend who looks amazing and stunning in nothing but a red satin ribbon underneath their tree, and he looks like a blubbering idiot.

Kagome giggled, “Do you like your present?”

Inuyasha’s cock was already hard in his pajama pants as he watched Kagome’s hips sway towards him. His throat was dry, and it was like he could not speak. He’s seen her naked more times than he can count, but it doesn’t matter, because no matter how many times he does he will still be in awe of her beauty.

“So much.” He moaned.

She grabbed his hands and intertwined her fingers with his, and leaned in to kiss his lips. It was shy at first, but it grew deeper and passionate with every moment that passed. Inuyasha’s shock melted into something more primal, and a deep desire to get his girl in bed and take her then and there had taken over his senses. His hands roamed her body, feeling every soft curve of her skin to make sure nothing was left untouched. In turn, Kagome was on fire with every caress of his hands in her skin, the bits of her shyness leaving her as he touched her.

Inuyasha gripped her waist as he moved them towards the bedroom while their lips never stopped moving. He sat her down on the mattress as soon as they reached the bed as their kisses grew more heated and sloppy. Inuyasha’s hands smoothed over her bare thighs, relishing in the soft gasps she released and little goosebumps her body made in response. He wanted her immediately, he wanted to drink her in and get drunk off of her flavor.

“You look so good in red.” He complimented her before kissing her neck. “Fuck, you’re so beautiful.”

He kissed her passionately, the movements growing deeper and deeper as a primal desire continued to creep between them.

“Inuyasha.” Kagome whispered. The sound of his name on her lips caused a chill to run down his spine. He stared into her brown eyes as she bit her pink, swollen lips.

“Unwrap me.” She whispered again.

Never breaking eye-contact Inuyasha took off the ribbon slowly, paying attention to the way she looks when she bites her bottom lip. As he tossed the top somewhere carelessly behind him Kagome leaned back on her arms and parted her legs a bit more to allow him to enter the space between them. She was completely bare for him, full and perfect tits ready for his hands to touch and pert nipples for his tongue to taste.

He sucked in a breath and leaned forward, his hands moving before he could process his motions as they slowly caressed her thighs upwards. Kagome’s breath hitched at the touch but refused to break eye contact.

“Look at you.” Inuyasha growled, “So fucking sexy.” He instantly crushed his lips against hers in a hot kiss. One of his hands held her waist to keep her steady while the other continued to move its way up to her bare breasts.

His clawed thumb swiped at her nipple, causing Kagome to gasp in reaction. Inuyasha took the opportunity to slide his tongue into her mouth, hoping to get more of the taste but knowing he would never be satisfied. As he pinched and twisted the pink nub, Kagome’s hands went to grip his shirt while the other gripped the arm that held her waist. She moaned into his mouth, and he kissed her even harder in order to swallow it.

“Inu-“ Kagome cried in a broken voice.

“All this from a little bit of touching?” He replied huskily. He tweaked and pulled her nipple again and watched hungrily as her mouth opened and her eyes shut. “You’re so beautiful like this.”

He kissed her jaw before licking down her neck and giving attention to the spot by her jugular, the most sensitive spot in her neck that drives her crazy. He licked and sucked the area, making sure he leaves a mark for everyone to see and for him to kiss afterward. Kagome jolted involuntarily at his touches, causing her tits to bounce in Inuyasha’s hand and he groaned deeply; the vibrations from his reaction caused wetness to pool between her thighs.

Inuyasha squeezed the breast in his hands and rolled her nipple between his fingers at the same time, his goal was to build her up as much as possible in order to fuck her the way she deserves. He wanted to get lost in her body, learn about what makes her squirm, and rewrite the map in order to pleasure her in all of the ways she likes.

Satisfied with the way he left her neck Inuyasha continued to lick his way down, dragging his tongue down her collar bones and in between the valley of her breasts. Kagome was breathless above him, chest heaving with her cheeks a pretty shade of pink as she waited in anticipation for his next move.

His right hand never stopped pinching and rolling her right nipple, so he decided to give some extra attention to her left. He kissed and licked her breast and sucked the skin around the areola. Kagome whimpered above him as she couldn’t decide whether she wanted to lay back or stay sitting up. He growled deeply causing her to open her eyes and look down at him, and with her attention back on him he flicked her nipple with his tongue. She gasped and her legs parted further, silently begging to be touched right between her thighs.

“Mmm Inuyasha..” Her breathy moans of his name made his cock harder in his pants. The effects this woman had on him were unlike anything he has ever experienced, and he wanted to find out what his limit was when it came to her; if there even was one.

He sucked her nipple hungrily, the lewd sounds were enough to make Kagome embarrassed if it were not for how wet and turned on she was. With Inuyasha’s mouth and hand only on her tits, he continued to pay attention to her face and how her body reacted to his touch. With her head tilted back as she whimpered and moaned his name he swore he could stay like this forever just to watch her fall apart in the most beautiful way.

Kagome was so wrapped up in her own pleasure she subconsciously started to roll her hips to relieve some of the pressure between her thighs. Inuyasha could feel the heat coming from her clothed pussy and he almost faltered, her delicious scent and warmth almost too good to make him devour her from there.

He briefly popped his mouth from her red and puffy nipple and smirked, “Getting impatient are we?”

“Inuyasha, please.” Kagome begged prettily.

He flicked her nipple with his tongue, “Please what baby?”

“Please touch me, touch me more, please?” Her hips rolled again in response.

His fingers replaced his tongue as both hands rolled and squeezed her pink nipples. “I’m already touching you, aren’t I?”

Kagome cried out, practically sobbing at his nonstop teasing. She grabbed one of his hands that were latched on her breasts and placed it on her soaked pussy. “Here, please, touch me right here!”

His eyes grew darker with lust as he watched her use his hand to pleasure herself. her hips rolling in a tantalizing rhythm. Her juices were coating his fingers through her soaked panties as she continued her dance on his hand.

“Fuck Kagome, you’re so fucking sexy, holy fuck, look at you.” Inuyasha’s mouth watered at the sight in front of him, “You’re so wet, baby.”

Kagome looked at him with half-lidded eyes. “Taste me. Please? I want you to taste me.”

Upon hearing those words Inuyasha immediately kissed her lips in a hungry daze. Her mouth accepted entry from his hot tongue while she continued to ride her sopping pussy with his large hand. He bit her bottom lip and sucked while using his thumb to massage her clit, causing her to mewl loudly into his mouth.

“Y-yes!” She whimpered. “Like that!”

Inuyasha laughed darkly, “Baby, you’re so worked up.” He added more pressure to her clit, rubbing in small circles as he watched her spread her legs wider and lift her pelvis up in an attempt to feel more from him. Her cheeks, neck, and chest were painted in a delicious red blush from all of the teasing he has done to her.

“I need more Inu.” She cried, “Need you to touch me more.”

He bit his own lip in an attempt to control himself, hard enough to taste blood, and looked down at her pussy. Her little red panties looked like they had been dropped in a bucket of water, with no dry spot in sight, completely covered in her slick juices and her scent was becoming harder to resist. Inuyasha knew he was torturing himself by holding back, but he wanted to watch her beg for him like this all day if he had the option to. He knew she was ready for him, he could feel her pussy throbbing in his hands, practically sucking his fingers in.

He leaned in close to her ear, “Let’s take these off then huh?” His voice was rich with arousal, and she could feel the deep vibrations coming from his chest. “They’re in my way.”

“Yes, please!” Kagome pleaded, “Please take them off me!”

Carefully Inuyasha used the tip of his claw to sever the red lace through the middle, having them successfully come apart and squelch lewdly onto the floor. The cold air from the room immediately hit Kagome’s dripping pussy and she shivered involuntarily.

Inuyasha groaned as he looked at her glistening wet cunt, her arousal dripping slowly onto the bed and making a small puddle. “Look at you, you’re making a fucking mess.”

Taking in the nipple he had not sucked yet into his mouth, he continued to hold her steady with one hand as he gently coated his fingers with her juices. He touched her everywhere, except

her clit, and reveled in her soft cried and breathy moans. He sucked her nipple and flicked it with his tongue, giving it all the attention he had not given it before. She was squirming in his hold. wanting to run away from his hand but also wishing he could just touch her where she really needed to be touched. His name was being chanted like a spell coming from her lips, and it was taking even an ounce left of his self-control not to fuck her right now.

He let go of her nipple with a wet pop and sloppily kissed her lips. “Spread your legs wider for me baby, I want to see all of you.” Desperate for more, Kagome spread her thighs as much as she could in the position that she was in and moaned pathetically as she felt the pad of Inuyasha’s finger finally massage her clit.

Inuyasha would not be able to successfully describe just how wet Kagome really was to anyone. She was beyond soaked, her arousal was so thick and heavy that his fingers were slipping easily with every stroke of his hand. His fingers were coated in her delectable scent, the squelching sounds coming from her pussy were only turning them both on even further. Kagome finally felt like a match was finally lit from within her, the unimaginable need of having Inuyasha touch her where she wanted was being met. As he quickened the pace her body jolted and shook in response, the pleasure growing too much and too quickly in the pit of her belly. In her pleasured frenzy she fell back on the bed and pinched her nipples, moaning Inuyasha’s name repeatedly until she saw white and arched her back. Her first orgasm crashed through her faster than the wind and her legs shook with the aftershocks. Inuyasha watched intensely, waiting for her to catch her breath.

“Baby, you made such a mess.” Inuyasha teased her. The eye contact between them was breakable as he licked and sucked his fingers. “You taste fucking delicious, I’m going to need to taste you some more.”

In a blink of an eye, Inuyasha was on his knees as he stared at Kagome’s pussy like it was his last meal. He quickly removed his shirt and tossed it somewhere behind him before grabbing Kagome’s thighs and helping her bend her knees so he can spread her out even further.

“You have such a pretty pussy.” He told her huskily before kissing each of her thighs until he was met in the middle.

He ran his tongue across her wet folds and Kagome cried out in pleasure. He lapped her juices and fucked her hole with his tongue. Her taste, her scent, and the way she was crying in pleasure, he could not get enough of it. She was a drug he could not quit and he would take every inch of her every day if possible.

“Inuyasha, fuck yes, like that.”

He said nothing in response because he was too drunk on her taste. Flicking her clit with his tongue he basked in how her body shook and her back arched, one hand pinching her pink nipple while the other was fisting the bedsheet. Wanting more of the same reaction from her he sucked the bundle of nerves, and it caused Kagome to lift off the bed. He held her legs down with both of his arms and continued to pleasure her with his mouth. He fucked her sopping hole while he rubbed with his tongue as he rubbed her clit with his fingers, watching her cry and scream from above him.

“I’m gonna cum!” She wailed, her moans becoming higher pitched. “Please, please, I’m gonna cum!”

Inuyasha continued to hold her body down as she shook on the bed, her orgasm was so powerful she continued to shake for another minute. While he waited for her body to recover Inuyasha kissed and licked her inner thighs gently before moving his way up her body. He kissed his way up her stomach and kissed her breasts, making sure he sucked each nipple once again before meeting her lips for a hot kiss. She moaned into him, the taste of her pussy still on his tongue as they explored each other’s mouths.

“God, I love you.” He told her between kisses. “And I’m not done with you yet.”

Kagome hummed in response, feeling tired but still craving him more and more. She gently touched his ears and ran her fingers through his hair lovingly. “I love you so mu- oh!” Her head tilted back, interrupted by one of Inuyasha’s fingers circling her puffy clit once again.

He backed away from her and finally removed his pants and underwear, and his hard cock sprung out of its confines. Kagome leaned on her arms for a better view of him in his naked form, completely bare and delicious. His body seemed to be sculpted by every famous artist known to man, making sure there were no flaws or missing pieces. She could run her hands on his body all day long and kiss every part of him if she could.

She was not aware that she was biting her lip as she stared at him, and Inuyasha could not bite back his smirk. “If you keep looking at me like that this’ll be over a lot faster than you want it to.”

“I’m sorry, but you look like a god standing over there while you watch me lay here doing nothing.”

“Doing nothing? You look fucking incredible, Kagome.” He pumped his cock and groaned at the touch of his own hand. “If you doing nothing gets me like this, then I’m gonna need you to do nothing everyday for the rest of your life”

She blushed prettily on the bed, her lip-biting not helping Inuyasha in the slightest as he continued to pump his cock at the sight of her. “Touch yourself.” He commanded, “But don’t cum. Only I will make you cum.”

Kagome fixed her position before opening her legs again and slowly moving her hand down to her pussy. She was so wet, her fingers were already dripping with her slick, and it was the hottest she has ever felt. The way Inuyasha was watching her, all she wanted to do was put on a show. Her fingers found her sensitive clit and she began to rub it, building up the speed as she tried to match with Inuyasha’s own hand. Her pussy was pulsing around nothing, and she desperately wanted to be filled, and so she inserted two slick fingers into her hole and pumped herself.

“Fuckkkk yeah.” She heard him moan, “Fuck yourself like that. You look so fucking good baby, keep fucking yourself, I wanna see.”

Kagome cried in delight as she continued to match the pace of his hand. “Mmm, so good!” She whined, “I want more!"

He held onto the wall as he continued to fist his cock, “What do you need baby? I’ll give it to you, you just gotta tell me.”

She could feel another orgasm on the way, and she knew she needed to stop herself soon, but she felt so good fucking herself with her fingers.

“You! I want you, please fuck me!” Almost giving in to her own desires, she stopped herself from cumming, and removed her fingers from her pussy. She could feel herself throbbing from the missing tension, and wanting nothing more than to keep fucking herself if it meant she could have another orgasm.

Stopping himself from his incoming orgasm Inuyasha walked towards Kagome and kissed her passionately. She was what he would want forever, for the rest of his life, and if she was begging him to fuck her after an hour of teasing, then he was going to give her what she wants.

He let go of her lips and grabbed her legs, he bent them towards her chest before spitting on her pussy. Kagome moaned in response to the action, and Inuyasha grabbed his cock and teasingly slid it over her slick folds. He would get close to the entry just to slide back up, making sure he was completely coated in her wet slick. Inuyasha fisted his cock and slapped it on her folds where lewd sounds appeared and echoed in the bedroom. Satisfied with how lubed he was, and with the squirming Kagome was making underneath him, he inserted himself slowly into her sopping hole until he was fully sheathed in her warmth.

They both gasped at the new form of contact, and the feeling of being completely filled had Kagome almost cumming instantly. Whereas Inuyasha needed a moment to focus on the task before him, because Kagome seemed to be sucking him in, and the warmth of her gummy walls was too much all at once.

After a moment of clarity, Kagome began to roll her hips. “Inuyasha, please move. Please fuck me.” She whispered.

Finally being back in control, Inuyasha pulled back and then pushed himself back in, earning a breathy mewl from the girl underneath him. He quickened the pace with each thrust until he was fucking her at a rhythm that had the both of them groaning.

“Yes! So good!” Kagome cried, her hands were gripping onto the sheets for better leverage as Inuyasha fucked her senselessly. He gripped her thighs and spread them open in order to watch where they were connected.

Inuyasha watched her tits bounce tantalizingly, and he bent down to pop a nipple in his mouth and sucked, the extra added sensations causing Kagome to cry out his name. The sounds that were coming out of her mouth are enough to make him cum on the spot and the way she moans out his name makes him feel powerful. She withered beneath him, getting her legs to spread even wider in order for him to fuck her even deeper. Inuyasha continued to slam into her at a delicious rhythm as he got her closer to another orgasm.

He pulled out of her quickly, already missing the feeling of her pussy as he flipped her over onto her hands and knees and slowly inserted himself back into her pussy.

“Oh yes!” She moaned as she arched her back and gripped onto the bed.

Inuyasha watched her ass jiggle from the intensity of his thrusts and he smacked her cheek and smirked at the cry of pleasure she let out. He did it again to the other cheek, making sure they were marked red with his handprints as he continued to thrust into her. Her juices were dripping down his balls as he fucked her, and it made him want to make her cum again.

“You look so good like this baby. You have such a cute little ass. All nice and red because of me.” He smacked one of her ass cheeks once again.

He leaned on her back and rubbed her clit at the pace of his thrusts while he kissed and sucked her neck. The tightrope in Kagome’s belly was going to snap in any second, and she was beginning to see white.

“I’m- cumming!” She stammered out, her body shaking from her third orgasm of the night.

Inuyasha kissed her back, keeping himself inserted inside her as her slick walls sucked in his cock with her orgasm. He wanted to make her cum one more time before he did, and he was determined to make it happen. As she began to relax, he gently pulled out of her and groaned at the loss of her warmth.

“How are ya feeling?” He asked her, lifting her from her position on all fours to having her sit on shaky legs.

“I feel so good, but how come you haven’t cum yet? I thought being your Christmas present meant you’d cum more.” Kagome pouted.

Inuyasha laid back on the bed and helped Kagome straddle his lap since her legs were so weak. “Baby, making you cum is the hottest fucking thing I can do for you. That’s why I haven’t cum yet.”

He aligned his cock with her wet hole and groaned as she slid herself into him. “And I want to feel you cum on me one more time.”

Kagome grabbed Inuyasha’s cheeks and pulled him in for a kiss as she began to ride his girthy cock. The slow and sensual riding is the perfect build-up along with their shared kiss. Inuyasha gripped her ass and helped her move above him, knowing that her legs did not have the strength to keep moving at the same pace.

Inuyasha leaned back and watched her bounce on his cock, her full and perfect tits bouncing with every move as she rolled her hips above him.

“God I could watch you do this all day.” He pinched her nipples and rolled him between his fingers as he watched her mouth open in a silent moan. The way her body moved and rolled as she fucked herself with his dick was mesmerizing. Kagome was a goddess, and Inuyasha was the lucky bastard who got to see her like this. With curves that he was lucky enough to bite and touch and lips he could kiss at any given time of the day, he knew he found the most beautiful girl in the entire world.

“Inuyasha” Kagome moaned beautifully, “Please make me cum again.”

Without an ounce of hesitation, Inuyasha gripped Kagome’s waist and pumped himself into her wet pussy. His thighs were soaked in her juices as he continued to thrust himself into her sopping hole, the lewd sounds coming from them forming a song with Kagome’s moans. He knew she was getting closer to her orgasm as her moans turned into high-pitched squeals, and as she gripped both of his shoulders in her attempt to not fall.

“Yes, yes, please, yes!” She gasped, “Mmmm fuck yes!” Her belly was on fire, and her toes were beginning to curl. She could feel everything and nothing at the same time as the fire ignited in her body and spread throughout.

“Cum for me. Need you to cum on me again.” Inuyasha chanted as he looked at her face.

“I’m gonna! Inu!” Kagome cried, her body shaking above him. He continued to thrust into her as she rode out her orgasm, the strong squeezing of her pussy finally sending him over the edge as he came into her. His cum filled her pussy and he shook underneath her, her name coming out of his lips in a pleasured moan.

As their chests heaved for air, Kagome moved strands of Inuyasha’s hair off of his face before leaning in to kiss him for a sweet and tender kiss. They stayed quiet for a little while as they sat in the comfortable silence of being in each other’s arms.

After catching his breath, Inuyasha leaned back in the headboard and grinned. “Damn babe, what a hell of a Christmas gift.”

Kagome blushed and shrugged her shoulders. “I know you get me like this almost every night, but I wanted an excuse to wear a red ribbon.”

“And now all I want is for you to wear nothing but a red ribbon around me.” He teased her.

“Babe!”

“Hey, you did this to yourself.” Inuyasha put his hands up in defense.

“Mmmm..” Kagome thought, “I’ll only do it if you also wear a red bow for me one day.” “A red bow? Where would you want me to put it?”

“Let’s think.” Kagome teased, “How about right here?” Kagome rolled her hips as they were still connected to each other, and the movement caused the half-demon to choke out a whimpered moan.

“I’ll wear a bow right now if you do that again.” He grinned.

Kagome giggled and kissed him eagerly, her hips already moving above him on their own accord. “Merry Christmas to me.”

He kissed her back lovingly and laughed, “Nah, Merry Christmas to us.”

[akitokihojo]

Untitled WIP - preview

“I’m sorry, are you…” Inuyasha couldn’t help the cheeky grin that formed, his tongue swiping over his teeth. “Are you saying I’m attractive?”

“No.” She lied. Horribly. There was very minimal effort put into it, really. “I’m saying I thought you were someone else for a moment and it threw me off kilter."

“Right. Because, how many people do you know with dog ears on their head?”

Kagome let out a cheap scoff. “Like, I was even looking at your ears.”

They both stopped. Kagome realized what she’d said and her expression blanked. Those words had just come out of her mouth. Where had her shame gone for that moment? Where was the little voice in her head that advised, “hm, maybe don’t say that”? One minute, she was terrified to talk to him, the next she was admitting how alluring his body was. Apparently, there was no in between for her. Maybe that’s what she should have been worried about all along.

Though his smile only grew wider after the initial shock of her statement wore off, Inuyasha could feel his flush dangerously ignite. He’d been flustered only a few times before in his life, and it really took a lot to make him as speechless as he was, but this heat he felt now was creeping down his neck and over his chest. He was glad there wasn’t a mirror in front of him, because if he knew he looked as red as he felt, he’d be out the window pretty fucking quickly. This wasn’t the first time Kagome had let it slip that she found him handsome. In the eleventh grade, she’d forced him to go to the junior prom with her, and he nearly had a meltdown from the way she’d stared at him. Being the lightweight that she was, after a sip of some strong shit one of their friends had snuck in, she’d commented on how good he looked while taking the opportunity to fix the tie he’d loosened. He’d had to hold his breath to maintain composure, and it barely worked to prevent his inward scream of pining agony.

[classysassy9791]

A Christmas Story

December 1, 2015 - Current

It's been a while since I've done one of these Fic Backs, and with the holiday season, I figured it'd be nice to give a little homage to a story that is filled with tough emotions that can come up during the holidays, Christmas cheer, romance, and friendship that spans during the most wonderful season of all.

Starts out on a winter day in which Inuyasha and Kagome enjoy a playful snowball fight, and is currently at a point in which Kagome gives Inuyasha the idea of having children of his own some day.

Thank you to those who nominated it for Best Serial last year, and for those who look forward to this little holiday fic. I'm hoping to bring you more InuKag Christmas memories this year <3

Here's a little excerpt:

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.

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Kagome moved to catch another one, determined not to lose this particular game, but managed to bump into Inuyasha, sending her off-balance toward a patch of grass and careening backwards into the snow. As soon as she hit the ground, splayed out on her back, she laughed at the silliness of it all.

Her boyfriend towered over her, chuckling at her predicament. "You okay?" he asked, holding out a hand for her to take.

"Snow angels!" she simply responded with a laugh, beginning to move her arms back and forth in the snow.

He rolled his eyes at her childish behavior, but couldn't deny her infectious energy. He plopped down beside her in the snow-covered lawn and copied her action, waving his arms in the snow, watching as snowflakes fell from the sky, the soft glow of Christmas lights illuminating the town.

After a while, their laughter died down and they laid still. Inuyasha's arms remained outstretched as he watched his breath puff into the frigid air. The cold of the snow soaked through his clothes, but it felt good as the searing hot anger he felt less than an hour ago dissipated completely.

Kagome suddenly rolled over and tucked herself to his side, leaning over him with a smile. Her eyes were bright, shining from the lights of the tree, snow melting into her raven hair, her cheeks blushed prettily from the cold.

"You're beautiful, you know that?" Inuyasha murmured, reaching up and tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear affectionately. And he meant it, in more ways than one.

She tilted her head thoughtfully. "I've been told that once or twice," she teased, leaning down and giving him an Eskimo kiss.

He chuckled. "Let's head home, you goof."

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.

.

A Christmas Story can be found on FFN, AO3, and here on Tumblr

[inukag-archive]

Could you please provide a link to any InuKag Office AU and InuKag University/college AU stories? Thank you!!

Hi, anon! Thanks for the ask, you picked two popular settings for InuKag, so we decided to go for an even-split of Office and University/College AUs for this list. In addition, be sure to check out the authors mentioned for more Office/Uni fics; plenty tend to revisit these settings! We hope you find something you enjoy! Happy Reading ❤

[OFFICE]

Inukag Office AU (Series) by @dyaz-stories (M-E)

Inuyasha shares his office with someone he never sees because their schedules are very different, and it's completely fine by him. Until she starts complaining about his behavior by leaving sticky notes on the desk…

--

Two for the Show by @anisaanisa (E)

“You’re joking.” This couldn’t be real.

“I’m not,” she countered, locking the door behind her with a deafening click.

-

Inuyasha and Kagome discover the benefits of working together.

--

Underneath It All by @superpixie42 (E)

Like most corporate types, Inuyasha has a favorite after-work bar to go to. He likes the mood and the drinks, but what he likes most is the aerial silk performer whose skill and scent have captured his heart. But when a new girl at work turns out to be a horrible racist, will visiting his favorite hanyou friendly bar be enough to lift his spirits, or is there more happening backstage than he knows?

One part office fic, one part bar fic, mostly an overlong PWP.

--

Secret Santa by @splendentgoddess (E)

In a modern world where most youkai stick to the wilds, hanyou are stuck in the middle, forced to live in human society. Inuyasha has an okay job and okay coworkers, but he's lonely, until one year when the office Christmas party changes everything.

--

Challenge Accepted by @mustardyellowsunshine (E)

Grumpy and bent on retaliation, Kagome forwards Inuyasha a spam email offering to enlarge a certain part of his anatomy. He takes this as a personal challenge and decides to prove her very, very wrong.

--

Meant To Be by @jeremymarsh (M)

Kagome Higurashi has grown up in the family shrine with her grandfather, mother and little brother. All her life she thought she would graduate and get a fine job and become independent. However, when her mother suddenly dies, she has to come back home to be her brother's guardian and help her grandfather run the shrine. Her life is dull and she's tired of the draining job that allows her to pay for her brother's school tuition.

She finally has her chance when she got an interesting call from her best friend Sango.

--

Office Hours by @omgitscharlie (E)

When Inuyasha tells Kagome he needs to work overtime, Kagome decides to pop by her husband’s office for a surprise visit.

--

your flesh is so nice, let me take a bite by @doginabirdcage (E)

Kagome's taken a new job with the prolific Taisho law firm in Osaka to advance her budding career. Everything's going rather well until Toga's youngest son shows up for work.

--

Cheaters by @inunanna (T)

Everyone in the office knew Kagome and Inuyasha were having a not-so-secret affair. They weren't EXACTLY wrong…

--

A Forgotten Email by @petri808 (T)

Kagome Higurashi was hired as a secretary for a large company owned by the Taisho family. Things didn't start off on the right foot when she forgets to log out of her email on the boss' sons computer. Too bad for either of them, his father wasn't going to let his son treat his new secretary badly and made sure they'd get better acquainted.

--

[UNIVERSITY/COLLEGE]

Tell Me I'm Crazy by @witchygirl99 (M)

Basically, Kagome is really attractive and all he can claim for sure is that he's straddling the line between drunk and hung over at the base of a tree in which she thought he perished under. Inuyasha's never been one for good first impressions. OR: The fraternity AU no one asked for but got anyways.

--

Maybe, Probably by @coccinellesroses (T)

They've been best friends since they were kids, and somewhere along the way, they fell in love. However, neither of them have confessed these feelings to one another. They vowed to always put each other first, and to stick by each other's side no matter what.

With finals week two weeks away, Inuyasha's classmate asks him for help to study for their big test. The same classmate who happens to have a massive crush on him.

For the first time, Kagome deals a hand with jealousy.

--

InuKag Kendo Club (Series) by @fawn-eyed-girl (M-E)

Inuyasha is a renowned kendo coach, and Kagome is his team manager. They're attracted to each other, but Kagome is keeping a secret from him. What will happen when the secret accidentally comes out?

--

Tracing Happy Trails by @clearwillow (M)

Kagome’s a third year art major. She’s filled sketchbooks to the brim with everything she sees, so this figure drawing class should be a cakewalk. Maybe if the volunteer model wasn’t cute-as-sin, she wouldn’t feel like she was betraying the bookstore employee that she’s also secretly crushing on.

--

Adverse Effects by @fantastiqueparfait (M)

Kagome Higurashi has enough on her plate. All she wants is to complete her PhD in peace and start her career developing world-changing cures, but fate seems to have other plans. Unwillingly dragged into the dark side of the business world, Kagome is about to discover that monsters are real.

--

A Mélange of Inuyasha (Chapter 22: Muse) by @goshinote (T)

Inuyasha, a Film major, is in love with his best friend, Kagome, a Vocal Performance major. When he sees an opportunity to profess his feelings, he jumps at the chance.

--

Thirst Impressions. by @fandomobsessions016 (E)

He didn’t need to dress well to look like the sweetest sin the devil could create. He often opted for t-shirts or hoodies with well-worn jeans but on that terribly wonderful day, he was wearing sweatpants.

That’s right.

Sweatpants.

Loose, soft to the touch - she assumed - and unrestricted sweatpants.

Sweatpants that looked like they were just hanging off his hips in the most provocative way making her skin feel hot to the touch. Sweatpants that languidly fell around thighs she knew were well crafted because she’d seen him running around campus a few times and just knew he was an avid runner by how fluid his movements were. Sweatpants that did nothing to hide the delicious outline of his… well… his splendid endowment that swung so lusciously as he walked.

--

Remember the Moment by @mamabearcat (T)

They say it only takes ten seconds of courage to finally confess your love. But will Inuyasha finally be able to do this after his previous failed attempts? And will the outcome be what he expected?

--

Shameless by @starlingchildgazingatthestars (E)

Inuyasha Taisho's strong sense of smell comes at an uncomfortable cost: he can smell everyone's bedroom activities. But now in his 20's, he finally learned to deal with this annoying trait…. until Kagome Higurashi walked into his life… Title says it all.

--

Crime and Punishment Indeed by @elkonigin (T)

This is the story about how Kagome almost failed college because of the library.

--

Feel free to add your own recs in the comments or reblogs!

Check our Masterlist of previous lists to see which topics we've covered.

Send us an ask (here).

[inu-mothership]

Inu-Mothership Spotlight Saturday: Holiday Edition!

Hi everyone! We here at @inu-mothership are back with a series of very special fic rec lists, just in time for the holidays!

Over the next six weeks, we'll be posting a new list with a special theme. This week (Week 1), our theme is Snow, and we have 13 fics (listed below the cut) to recommend with this theme!

In the spirit of the Mothership, we have included a variety of ships. Ratings, and current status (complete or ongoing) are also listed parenthetically. We hope you find some new holiday classics to return to year after year ❄️

A Blizzard for Christmas (MirSan, InuKag; T; complete) by @heynikkiyousofine

I saw this little blog post about how a group of customers and employees were snowed at a local IKEA and immediately came up with this little fic for it. Enjoy my beautiful people! 💕

Can Inuyasha Come Out and Play? (InuKag; G; complete) by @neutronstarchild

When an 8 year old Kagome Higurashi sees a boy with doggie ears and golden eyes through the window of Ms. Izayoi's house, she knows she must do something. Doesn't Ms. Izayoi know that everyone, whether they have demonic heritage or not, deserves to play out in the snow?

A Fateful Encounter (TogIza; T; complete) by @sapphirestarxx

Fleeing an unwanted betrothal, Izayoi gets caught in a snowstorm. On the verge of freezing, she encounters someone who saves her and offers her all the choices she's never had before.

Fire and Ice (MirSan; E; complete) by Anonymous

After a snowstorm traps them in a cave for the night, Miroku has an idea to help pass the time. Sango makes him work for it, or tries to.

The Gift of Dreaming (KikSan; NR; complete) by Commoner (Ao3)

Sango is just having the worst day. Miroku kissed another woman, a demon kicked her butt, and a snow storm trapped she and the last person she ever wanted to interact with in a cabin. How could it get any worse? The person she's trapped with is very attractive.

If You’re Lonely, Make Me (SessKag; G; complete) by @elevenharbor

Kagome dreams of the near-impossible each time it snows.

It’s All Downhill from Here (MirSan; T; complete) by @violetasteria

Two interns are sent on a one day trip to tour a hotel for a company event, but when they get snowed in, Miroku and Sango find themselves stuck in very close quarters.

New Year (SessKag; M; complete) by @sereia1313

Kagome is fully prepared to spend New Year's Eve alone, but fate has other plans.

Reflections in the Snow (InuKag; T; complete) by @ruddcatha

Inuyasha stands amidst the first falling snow, reflecting on memories of winter and the person who taught him to love. 

Silly, Naughty, and Obnoxious Wanderers (InuKagMor; T; complete) by @alannada

Secret-Santa 2021!

Giftee: kaorimizunya

Prompt: I love so much to see InuKag with Moroha playing with snow!

Snowblind (InuKik; G; complete) by @sonjajade

Their situation seems so dire, yet a certain hanyou refuses to let it get his miko down.

A Snowy Walk Home (InuKag; T; complete) by @curlybookwriter0294

Inuyasha truly does not want to admit it...he was cold very cold and he's also stubborn and doesn't want to accept help from his girlfriend Kagome. He doesn't need her help. He was fine. He's a demon! Well, human right now and he doesn't need her big red puffy coat that looks so warm. Will he finally accept it and stop being stubborn?

Touch (InuKag; G; complete) by @serial-doubters-club/hakomorebi (Ao3)

Inuyasha shows up unexpectedly in Kagome's time. Neither of them could anticipate what they would experience for the first time on a cold winters night. Written for InuKag Fluff Week 2021 (Day 4: Touch).

Winter Snow (InuKag; T; complete) by@lavendertwilight89

Kagome reflects back about her first year in the feudal era with her mate. Inuyasha has a surprise.

[petri808]

Secret Santa fic for @fawn-eyed-girl enemies to lovers trope. Happy Holidays :)

Helping others was something Kagome Higurashi really enjoyed doing on her time off. There were so many people in need in their city with its large homeless population, it was an easy decision to join a local organization that did things for them. From food drives to holiday meals, they’d visit shelters, or scouted the back alleyways looking for anyone that was struggling. Especially the children, oh those broke her heart and fueled her desire to do what she could year after year. Of course, there were dangers when going into the seedier areas because they weren’t just full of homeless people. Drug users, thieves, gamblers, prostitution. Most steered clear of people like Kagome, but on occasion her pepper spray came into use.

On a summers night as she made her rounds near a bar, two drunkards with a loss of inhibition saw a pretty young woman and decided she’d make for a great way to end their evening festivities. Kagome tried to be nice at first, noting the heavy stench of liquor on their breaths. It wasn’t the first time she’d dealt with men like this. But talking was getting nowhere and before she could pull out the pepper spray from her pocket, one of them grabbed her from behind. If it had just been one man she could have fought back, but not two. Kagome screamed for help, praying that someone from the bar would hear her.

“Stop being such a bitch!” the man who held her growled as she fought fiercely in his hold.

The second male grabbed her face and squeezed her cheeks to silence her screaming. “Behave or this’ll only get worse.”

At that moment, a flash of white ripped the man facing her away and her eyes widened as the guy is flung against the building 10 feet away. Next, the one holding her suddenly let go and took off running, but he doesn’t get far and is tossed through the air into the darkness of the night. Kagome stood there frozen, heart racing, just watching her white-haired savior. She’d never seen him before in the area and assumed he must have been a bar patron.

“Are, you okay?” The white-haired male questioned Kagome.

“Yes. T-Thank you, sir.”

“Good, but what kind of stupid woman are you to be in this kind of area late at night alone?! You got a death wish?! If I hadn’t heard ya screamin’, they would’a made you their bitch!”

Kagome was taken aback by this strangers outburst. He wasn’t wrong, but did he have to be an asshole about it? “I’m not stupid okay!” She crossed her arms, “I’m here doing something important.”

“Keh! Picking up idiots at the bar? You don’t look like a pro.”

“Cause I’m not a pro! I help homeless people. And what do you do sir? Bouncer at the bar cause you have no education?”

“For your information I’m a thief. You know, like Robin Hood.”

“Pfft, I doubt that. You’re a common criminal who’s just as bad as the other nasty elements I deal with, so get off your high horse in berating me and look in a mirror!”

“Look wench,” the man towered over Kagome. “Criminal or not I coulda just let them kidnap you!”

But unafraid, Kagome stood on the balls of her feet and glared right back. “And I said thank you!”

The man seemed shocked by her attitude because he stepped back while still pointing a finger angrily. “J-Just, stop being so reckless!”

He then literally jumped away, scaling the building next to them. Well, at least it was over. Kagome huffed and let out a long sigh. Good riddance! Sure, she was happy to be okay but geez, he was so mean! She hoped to never see him again!

Over the course of the next two years, her wish never came true. Which confused Kagome. Before their first encounter, she’d never seen him in the area, but after, she couldn’t go a month without running into the guy. So, after six months had passed, she’d had a friend in the police department search their records to see if this stranger had a record. Kagome never got the man’s name, but his appearance was very distinctive. Long white hair and dog ears perched atop his head. Sure, enough he was in their system. Inuyasha Taisho. Mostly petty theft, nothing major, a few fights, but often ruled defensive. Okay so he didn’t start fights, but he ended them. Even more curious is who Inuyasha’s parents were. Kagome expected to learn he had grown up in a poor area or something that lead him into thievery, but it turned out the family was wealthy.

The rest of their encounters weren’t as explosive as the first one had been, but still as irritating as ever. Someone would start to harass Kagome and Inuyasha would scare them off. He’d snap at her for being reckless, then jump away as she screamed at his fleeting back. In a few strange incidences, Kagome suspected he was nearby because she’d hear footsteps following behind her and suddenly, they would disappear. She didn’t know if he was following her or had stopped someone else from doing so, but the alleyway would always be empty when she turned around.

Don’t get her wrong, she appreciated his protection. But what had she done to illicit it in the first place? Kagome suspected Inuyasha stole things out of boredom, so was watching her his new line of amusement? And fine, since he’d never done anything to hurt her, she could tolerate his knight in white armor routine if he wasn’t such an asshole when he spoke to her!

It was maybe around the first year mark that Kagome had noticed a change in some of the activities. The amount of people bothering her had slowed, left mostly to the more foolish elements who were hell bent on trouble. Certain crowds fully stayed clear of her, especially organized elements like gangs. She wondered if word was traveling through the underground to leave her alone or face his consequences. Kagome had to admit the thought brought a flutter to her chest. Because okay, he was an ornery asshole, but he must have a heart to protect a woman... not to mention he wasn’t exactly ugly. Quite the opposite in fact...

“Yeah Sango, I just got here,” Kagome balanced the phone on her shoulder as she turned her car off. “I’m gonna unload the gifts for the kids Christmas party. Oh... okay, see you soon.”

She clicked off her phone and got out of her car, popping open her trunk before pocketing the phone. There was a lot to do before the small holiday dinner they had prepared at the community center for homeless families in the area. Gifts for the children, food, a Santa Claus was coming, tables to set up, games and decorations. As she leaned into her trunk to grab gifts, Kagome ran down her to-do list in her head.

“Don’t move.”

A chill runs down her spine at the deep voice right behind her and something poking into her back. Kagome’s body stiffened up instantly as all the blood drained from her face.

“Don’t turn around, don’t make any sudden movements if you wanna live.” The hard object pressed deeper into her side. It was cold like the muzzle of a gun. “I know money is kept in the office to pay vendors, so you’re gonna get it for me,” the male voice instructed.

Kagome whimpered. “Okay, I’ll get you whatever you want, just please d-don’t hurt me.”

The man forced her away from her car towards the building, keeping constant pressure to remind her he could fire off his weapon at any time. This was the first time since the night she’d met Inuyasha that Kagome had felt true fear. So many things were running through her mind, her family, friends… What if this man killed her and left her for dead and the children saw it? Those kids had it hard enough. They don’t need to be traumatized further. All she could do was pray in her head to be spared.

She fumbled with the keys to open up the side door, but Kagome’s hands were shaking so badly, she drops them. “S-sorry!”

“Stupid bitch!”

“I’m sorry!” Kagome cried out and braced for some kind of backlash, but instead is greeted with the most demonic sounding growl she’d ever heard. In seconds, she’s knocked to the ground, pushed out of the way as white hair flies past her vision. It was Inuyasha fighting with the robber! She scrambled away, pressing herself against the building as the two men battled on the ground. Inuyasha was trying to wrestle the gun away and strike at the same time. But unlike the other attacks, this stranger was much, much stronger. She covered her ears to the growls and curses, the sounds of her own screams ringing in her ears but couldn’t tear her eyes away.

Until a loud boom, followed by a flash of light made Kagome’s scream cut off. She instantly shielded herself in reaction and all noise was replaced by a buzzing sound. The gun had gone off! Inuyasha let out a guttural roar at the impact, but it didn’t stop him, only made him ten times angrier. She watched in a mixture of horror and intrigue as his eyes turned red and purple markings appeared on his cheeks. He slashed deep into the strange males chest and abdomen, once... twice... not to stop but to kill. At the third raising of his arm, Kagome cried out, snapping Inuyasha back to reality. He stopped, hand raised, staring down at the man who was semi-conscious, and fatally injured without immediate medical treatment.

Kagome stumbled and rushed over to Inuyasha, ripping her jacket off in the meantime. “Oh, my god you’ve been shot!” Tears are clouded her vision and her hands shook, but she pressed her jacket against the wound in his stomach. “Keep the pressure,” she instructed while pulling her phone out. “I need to call 911, y-you need to get to a hospital.”

“Tch, don’t worry about me. I’ll live.”

His nonchalant response made her stop what she was doing and sent Kagome to such a level of anger, it took Inuyasha completely by surprise. The tears that clouded her vision now freely poured down as she rapidly punched his shoulder as hard as she could. “You asshole! You asshole! You asshole!! You’re not invincible! You just got shot because of me! Why?! Why would you go this far to protect me?!”

More sounds appeared around them. A car, running footsteps. Her friend Sango’s voice, talking, yelling about hurry and emergency. But all Kagome and Inuyasha could do was stare at each other oblivious to it, he wide-eyed, and her crying and shrieking.

“Tell me!” Kagome beat his chest one last time before slumping from exhaustion. “Why do you keep protecting me?”

Inuyasha turned his head away in embarrassment, cheeks the color of a tomato and ears pinned down. He mumbled, “Because I like you,” then braced himself to be cussed out and/or completely rejected.

What he gets in return is a snorting laughter from the woman who quickly grabbed his face and kissed him hard on the lips.

“You dumbass!” Kagome snapped at him through smiling tears. “All you had to do was talk nice to me and ask me out!”

“I’m not good with women, and besides I didn’t think you’d like a guy like me.”

Kagome is moved to the side when the EMT and police arrived to treat Inuyasha, but it doesn’t halt the conversation. “Well, you will need to behave yourself if you wanna go out with me, but that doesn’t mean I won’t give you a chance.”

Inuyashas ears perked back up. “You’re serious?!”

Kagome smiled. “I believe that everyone deserves a second chance, why else do you think I do the things I do?”

“So, when I get out of the hospital, can I take you out for dinner?”

“It’s a date.”

[mukwooyoung]

Mistletoe

@akitokihojo and I decided to do a Christmas thing. SO, here is Inuyasha’s POV! 

I hope everyone here is ready for some confused and pining Inu.  If you want to read Kagome’s POV, it can be found over on Angie’s blog! (also shoutout to Angie for fixing mistakes you’re a blessing farewell)

Inuyasha

Putting up the Christmas tree shouldn’t have been as hard as Miroku was making it out to be. Inuyasha's job was to hold the tree up straight, and Miroku's was to put it into the base. Sounds easy enough, right? Wrong. Miroku was clearly struggling, and Inuyasha was growing annoyed. His ear flickered toward where Kagome and Sango sat, the young woman beside his best friend laughing and pouring herself a glass of wine, obviously watching their scuffle and finding it a little too humorous.

Miroku had the idea to bring a group of friends off to his uncle’s cabin in the middle of nowhere for their Winter holidays; a semi-creepy shack in the woods sort of setting, if you will. Inuyasha was never one for much holiday festivity, but he figured getting away for a few days wouldn't hurt. When his coworker first brought up the proposal for his Christmas venture, he was, of course, iffy. He had promised, at least for the weekend, no more set ups, no more schemes, and there would be more than just the usual four of them, ultimately getting Inuyasha on board with the plan. Low and behold, Miroku had successfully dragged them all off to a remote cabin in the middle of the mountainous nowhere they were now settled in, a place where most horror movies may or may not take place, and it was just the four of them. The snow that had been falling was surprisingly keeping his mood lifted, even as he was with the one person he couldn’t keep off his mind no matter how hard he tried. Kagome Higurashi. 

He first met Kagome when his traitor of a best friend, Sango, decided to set him up on a date. A blind date. She invited him to a restaurant for dinner, and who was he to ever turn down his friend? He showed up, not surprised in the least to see Miroku sitting next to Sango, but was definitely startled when he saw the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes on sitting across from the couple. It didn’t take long after getting there to put two-and-two together and see what was going on. While the girl was gorgeous, that thought immediately became irrelevant considering the irritation displayed on both of their faces, and Inuyasha absolutely minded Sango throwing him into a blind date. The last date Sango set him up on had turned into a total disaster, and he swore to never let her do it again. But, this Kagome girl had a hell of a mouth on her that she put on full display when their friends' intentions became loud and clear, and it did something to his heart that he did not and still doesn’t fully understand. He couldn’t very well let his best friend and the guy she’s dating know that he may sort of be attracted to this girl now, could he? That would make it too easy for them, and he'd be damned if he gave them that courtesy after the shit they'd pulled. He and Kagome had made an unspoken agreement then; they could never like each other. 

Miroku and Sango had eventually become more subtle in their attempts to get the two together, but anyone could tell that they wouldn’t be backing off anytime soon. All he and Kagome had to do were show that they are just friends and nothing more, hopefully convincing them in the long run. Inuyasha will be the first to admit he’s not the easiest person to get along with. It made hanging out with new people awkward at times, but Kagome seemed to fill in the gaps he couldn't and made it feel surprisingly easy. Even enjoyable. She wouldn’t force conversation, and seemed to understand that silence was actually okay between people. 

“There. Your damn tree is up. Now make yourselves useful and decorate the thing.” He huffed, wiping away the pine bristles from his shirt. 

Sango let out a high-pitched screech and Inuyasha pinned his ears back along his head to briefly block it out. She rushed over to the bag of decorations they bought, and emptied one out onto the carpet. Kagome joined her, sliding her feet across the wooden floor and turning up the Christmas music on her way. He knows he shouldn’t find the way she slides across the floor like that as cute as he does. He shouldn’t be thinking like that in general. At least not with the infamous couple in the room. He swears Sango could read his every thought sometimes, and he does not need her knowing how attracted to Kagome he actually is. 

“The tree is hardly straight.” 

Yeah, okay, that’s his fault.

“It’s as straight as it’s gonna get.” Miroku replied, propping his hands on his hips. 

“You guy’s are going to help decorate, right?” Sango asked, letting the lights dangle from her fingers. 

“Fat chance!” Inuyasha snorted, falling onto the loveseat behind Kagome, catching a small whiff of the sweet perfume she always wore. “We did the hard part.”

“What a scrooge.” Sango quickly shot a sneer in his direction. 

“You don’t want them decorating the tree, Sango.” Kagome started as she helped wrap the lights around. “They’d somehow manage to make it ugly.” 

“Rude.” Miroku tossed an empty water bottle towards Kagome, barely hitting her. She giggled, kicking it away, and carried on decorating with Sango. Using the hearth of the fireplace as leverage, Kagome balanced on her tiptoes to reach towards the top of the tree to place the lights, her lack of height hindering her attempts.

“Alright, move over.” He said, reaching for the wire in her hand. He looked down at her, waiting for her to hand it over. Kagome’s eyes met his, and he heard a feeble catch of breath, almost distracting him from what he came over to do. He brushed the back of her hand with his fingers, gently pushing her out of the way,  “I –uh…I can get it.”

He’ll pretend he didn’t notice the way her cheeks flushed as she thanked him and moved aside. 

Sango made her way around the tree after stringing her lights, looking over at Kagome and then back at him with a smile. “What was that?”

Inuyasha grunted, “What was what?”

“That?” She pointed between him and Kagome, “That was a moment.”

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, setting the lights at the top of the tree and sending a twisted stare toward his friend. She and Miroku were always looking for something. Anytime Kagome and he did anything, one of them chalks it up to be something else. Kagome wasn’t tall enough to reach, he saw the struggle, he _helped, _and this is the thanks he gets. 

“It wasn’t a moment. I was helping her, and also you. You're welcome.” He reached for another ornament, passing it off to Sango before picking up one of his own, “There is absolutely nothing going on between Kagome and I.”

“I'm not blind, Inuyasha.” 

“Neither am I.” He glanced to Sango, raising an eyebrow. “Didn’t you say there would be more people here?” 

“Did I say that?” 

“Yeah, I'm pretty sure you did.” 

Sango hummed, tapping a finger against her chin before shrugging. “Guess we forgot to invite them. Oops.” 

“Sango.” 

“Hm?” 

“You did it again, didn’t you?” 

“Possibly.” 

Inuyasha growled, turning away from his friend. “You’re the fucking worst.” 

Sango was notorious for meddling in his life; more specifically, his love life. The one and only time Inuyasha had let her set him up on a blind date was with a girl named Kikyo, and it was a mistake he refused to relive. It was the single worst date he had ever been on. Sango had talked Kikyo up, made her sound like the best person in the world, and like she’d be perfect for him. Downfall: she failed to mention to Kikyo that he was a half demon. Granted, that part isn't entirely Sango's fault; she never really thinks anything of his demonic status. Never has. Kikyo, though, had her own set of preferences and made it clear that she never planned on dating one. Yet, there she was. Sitting across from him at the table, a grimace marring her face the entire time. They hardly spoke a word throughout the almost-laughable, painfully awkward evening, and it was the date that showed him Sango could not be trusted in any department regarding romance.

“You’re thinking about Kikyo, aren’t you?” Sango’s voice had taken on that dangerous tone that he was all too familiar with. How did she always know what he was thinking? 

“Not technically. I was thinking about how you set me up with her and how awful that turned out to be.” 

Sango huffed, “It wasn’t that bad.”

“You weren’t there.” 

“That’s irrelevant now,” Sango waved her hand dismissively. "What you should be concentrating on is that you and Kagome would actually be good together. She’s really a good person, Inuyasha.”

Kagome is everything he isn’t. She’s outgoing, compassionate, and feisty. She doesn’t hesitate to speak her mind, and that’s something Inuyasha will never admit to liking aloud. He, on the other hand, has always been more of a loner. Sango has been his friend since they were kids, and no matter how many times she tried, their small group never expanded. Inuyasha had met Miroku at the elementary school they both teach at and the guy just stuck around, despite Inuyasha’s attitude towards him wanting to date his best friend, or his attitude towards him in general. It’s because of Miroku that Inuyasha and Sango met Kagome in the first place, so the guy can’t be all that bad if Kagome's been his best friend for years.

“I know she’s a good person.” Inuyasha said quietly, staring down at the ornament he was holding. “What if she turns out like Kikyo?” 

“Don’t say that. Kagome is the nicest person I have ever met. I learned my lesson after Kikyo, and if I didn’t think Kagome was good for you, I honestly wouldn’t even try. Miroku wouldn’t try. We just want you both to be happy.”

“So, what are you planning?” 

Sango gasped, feigning offense. “Me? Planning something? Never.” Inuyasha gave her an unamused look and she sighed defeatedly. “Alright, Miroku plans to have us leave you two alone together tomorrow.” 

“What? Sango! You can’t do that!” 

A shout from Miroku and the sound of a bottle hitting the counter caught their attention as they looked over, both raising an eyebrow at their friends in the kitchen.

“Just some friendly banter. Nothing to worry about. Turns out I’m smarter than Kagome.” Miroku beamed, grinning their way.

“Yeah, okay.” Sango snorted, turning her attention to the ornament in her hand. 

“Sango.” Inuyasha hissed, taking the glittery, green orb from her grasp as soon as Miroku and Kagome absorbed themselves in their conversation once more. “You can’t leave us alone tomorrow.” 

“I’ve been working on that ornament for forever, give it back.” 

“Stop avoiding the subject.” 

Inuyasha handed the ornament over to her, watching as she hooked it and reached for the tree. She side glanced him, avoiding full eye contact, before sighing. “We’re literally just going to be leaving you two for an hour at the most. It won’t be that bad. You've been alone with her, right?”

“Not often, but yeah.”

“Then you'll be fine.” 

“Sango, you really shouldn’t -“ 

“Miroku!” Sango called, cutting their argument off at the knees, and rushing over to the island where Miroku and Kagome stood, taking a hold of his arm and pulling him to the open area behind the couches. “I love this song, babe. Dance with me?”

Inuyasha watched his friend as she wrapped her arms around Miroku’s neck. Miroku isn’t a bad guy, really. If he was, Inuyasha would have put up more of a fight when Sango mentioned she was interested. He trusts him with Sango, and he knows Miroku will always take care of her. As long as Sango is happy, that’s all that matters. 

He pulled his phone out of his back pocket, choosing to scroll through his neglected notifications. He didn’t have much; a text from Sesshomaru telling him to babysit Rin when his trip was over, a couple emails from coworkers; nothing of importance. He scrolled through old alerts he chose to keep, anything to keep himself busy so he wouldn’t have to watch the couple, and anything to keep his mind off the conversation he'd just had with Sango. 

Kagome walked over and Inuyasha watched her as she picked up some ornaments, turning to the tree to place them. “Is Christmas your favorite holiday?” He asked, locking his phone and sliding it back into his pocket. 

Her brown eyes met his while she answered, “Yeah. Ever since I was a kid.” She looked away from him and to the tree. He only felt a little disappointed by that. “Is it yours?” 

“Feh. I don’t have a favorite holiday. They’re all cheesy.” He took a few steps back to lean against the bricks that makeup the fireplace. 

“Oh, come on. Not one?” 

“Anything that gets me out of work, I guess.” 

“So, almost all of them.” She giggled. 

Why does he like the sound so much? 

His attention wandered over to the couple dancing. Seeing his best friend, someone he considers a sister, groped is something he definitely hated seeing. And he really, really did not need to hear her giggling like that.

He groaned, grabbing the nearest couch cushion and chucking it at his friends with plenty of force, “Knock it off! That’s disgusting!”

“Get a room, you say?” 

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. “No one said that.” 

“We can take a hint. Come on, Sango!” Miroku pulled his girlfriend down the hall and towards the master bedroom before slamming the door shut. 

Inuyasha frowned, still staring down the hall. He was thankful that Kagome had made the move to turn up the music before shifting her attention to clean up the cabin. He could help her, should help her; it held the potential to keep his mind from Miroku defiling his best friend. Instead, he chose to go outside and get some much needed air. 

He walked down the front porch, heading a little ways out into the snow and sticking his hands in his front pockets. A part of him knows he shouldn’t be so annoyed by the couple running off like that, but the other, less rational part of him will always be protective of Sango. He grew up with her, always looked out for her, and that’s not something that's going to stop just because they’re well into their adult years. It probably should, though. Sango has Miroku, and he knows Miroku would do anything to keep her safe. 

The sound of the cabin door opening had him turning around, seeing Kagome walking out with a jacket clutched in her hands. “What are you doing out here? It’s freezing.” She was slowly stepping down the front porch so as not to fall, wearing only a beanie to keep her ears warm and the light sweater she’d been donning all day. 

Inuyasha made his way back towards the porch, the snow crunching under his feet. He didn’t miss the way she was fighting off the cold. 

“I could ask you the same thing.” She smiled, hugging herself a little tighter, “I wanted to make sure you were okay, and bring you your jacket.”

Inuyasha could kiss her with how close they stood, and how quickly her lips had turned a darker shade of pink from the engulfing chill in the air, attracting almost all of his attention. If he wasn’t already fighting off the feelings he has for her, and if he knew she might feel the same, his self control might not exist. 

“I’ve got demon blood. I’m fine. You, on the other hand..” Inuyasha took the jacket that she was offering to him, wrapping it around her shoulders, “Should be inside.” 

He adjusted the coat that nearly swallowed her, meeting her gaze as he held it shut to keep some of the warmth in. He watched as snow fell, catching onto her dark hair. She tilted her head upwards, letting the snow land against her face. Inuyasha stared at her, taking in how peaceful she looked. He’d never seen anyone more gorgeous. 

“It’s so beautiful.” She whispered, grinning happily. 

The cliche move would have been to quietly mention _"_yeah, you are," but he bit his tongue. Literally. Fighting off the impulse that surprisingly came to mind. Inuyasha took a small step back from her just as he could feel his face grow hot. 

“Here, your coat.”

He shook his head, looking away from Kagome so she wouldn't pick up on anything. He could only hope he was nothing like Sango who never missed a beat. “Keep it.”

“No really, I just wanted to bring it out to you.” He could feel her eyes lingering on him, almost as if she were studying him as she fell quiet for a moment. “Didn’t uh… Didn’t..” Inuyasha glanced down at her, cocking an eyebrow skeptically as he waited. “Didn’t want you getting sick on Christmas.” 

“I don’t think I’m the one we should be worrying about.” He smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. “You’re shivering, Kagome. Get inside.”

Kagome removed the jacket from her shoulders, giving a slow nod and biting her lip, his stomach responding with a rush of fluttered heat. He really shouldn’t like that as much as he does. He took the coat, their fingers brushing, and Kagome smiled up at him before turning and heading back towards the cabin. 

Inuyasha had been awake since around six that morning. Initially, he had woken up at five on the dot, but refused to face the day yet, managing to get at least forty-five minutes of more sleep. It’s his vacation damn it, his internal alarm shouldn't even be activated. He accepted his awakened state when his body refused to cooperate any further, staying in bed and opting to scroll through his phone. Anything sounded better than getting up at the crack of dawn. Inuyasha had thought ahead to bring his briefcase to stay on top of grading, but he was too lazy to lug himself out from under the thick comforter, the heavy snow and frost along his open-curtain window giving him further motivation to stay put. 

After hours of mindless social media that he hardly ever checked on, and occasional staring at the flat ceiling while listening to the creaks of the cabin as it settled against the wind, Inuyasha reluctantly slid the blankets off him and peeled himself from the mattress, heading to the opened suitcase on the opposite side of the room to shift through the messily-packed clothes. Soft footsteps lightly patted against the wood flooring from a room down the hall, and he pulled the thick, black sweater over his white undershirt a little hastier than intended, throwing his long, white hair into his signature ponytail to keep it as neat as possible and out of his face. Miroku and Sango were probably still in bed from what he could hear, or couldn't in this case, and he couldn't help but want to use the opportunity to be alone with Kagome without coercion or prying glances from the manipulative couple.

The squeak from a door opening caught his ear, and he paid close attention to the footsteps sliding down the hall and passing his room, the familiar and fresh scent of Kagome's vanilla body spray wafting through the cracks of his sealed doorway. He opened his door silently, following her path out into the living room, not missing the way she hadn’t seemed to notice him coming. 

“Morning.” He brushed passed her on the way to the kitchen. “Coffee?” 

“Yes, please.” She paused a small moment, and he assumed she had returned her attention back to her phone. “Uh, it’s snowing.” 

“It’s been snowing.” He remarked. Was this Kagome’s version of small talk? Inuyasha scooped coffee grounds into the filter, not knowing in the least if he was preparing the right amount.

“Right. No, I meant harder. A lot harder. Looks like we’re in for a bit of a storm.” Kagome walked passed him in the kitchen, heading towards the fridge and pulling out the three creamers they had ridiculously purchased on their group trip to the grocery store on their way up. 

“That’ll be fun. Money down that Miroku complains about it all day.”

Kagome laughed, and Inuyasha noticed how simple everything felt around her. When there was no pushing or shoving to get them in a room together, it was clear to see that it had the potential to almost be enjoyable. If he had to endure Miroku’s bitching all day as a compromise to avoid the planned scheme, he’d willingly accept it.

“Well good morning, you two.” Miroku greeted, leaning against the framing of the kitchen. “Just like I left you. Did you two even sleep, or…”

“Ah, geez. Would you shut up?” He tossed the filter into its respected spot in the machine, hitting the brew button and shooting a glare over to Miroku as he leaned against the counter. 

“Different clothes though, hm…” Miroku rubbed at his chin, looking over the two of them. “Slightly disappointing.” 

“Well, this got uncomfortable quickly. Guess I’ll be going.” Kagome walked by him in an attempt to escape the kitchen, but Miroku stopped her before she could get very far. 

“Okay, I’m sorry! I’ll be good. Nothing else. Hi.” He kissed her cheek, placing her back in her spot next to the counter. He reached into the cupboard, taking out four mugs and setting them out for everyone. “Chris Pine’s looking sharp over there.”

This was a joke, right? Did he just kiss her? Isn’t he dating Sango? Wasn’t he the one trying to set them up together? What would possess him to kiss Kagome like that? Who the hell was Chris Pine?

“Wh- you named the tree?” Kagome didn’t sound as muddled as he clearly felt, but she’d also been putting up with Miroku for years. Maybe she’d built up some sort of resilience to his dumb ass antics.

“Even trees need names, Kagome.”

“What a nerd. Go finish decorating it.” She joked, taking the purple mug from Miroku’s hand. 

“Okay guys, what are we doing today?” Sango joined, calling out to them over her shoulder and rubbing her hands together, the universal sign for being cold, heading over to the thermostat to turn the temperature up. 

“Nothing.” Inuyasha said, enunciating the two syllables as if proving a point, shooting his best friend an arrogant grin. “Didn’t you look outside, Sango?” 

“It’s just a little snow.” She waved him off and pulled her fingers into her sweater sleeves. “Let’s go sledding!”

“What? No! There’s a weather advisory, dummy! You can hardly see ten feet in front of you.”

“That’ll pass!” She dismissed, walking to the island beside Kagome and claiming an old-looking, ceramic mug.

“Actually, it’s only supposed to get worse.” Kagome stated.

“Thus the advisory.” Inuyasha rubbed in, pouring himself a piping hot cup of coffee before evacuating the crowded kitchen.

“What? No way! I didn’t know this.” Miroku whined, his shoulders slumping dramatically.

“Yup. Too bad.” Kagome shrugged. “Looks like we’ll all be staying in today. I brought some board games we could play!” 

“And you called me a nerd.” Miroku murmured, looking away from Kagome and sliding over to get some coffee. 

“Alright, I’m calling it!” Miroku announced, “It was Miss Scarlet, in the library, with the revolver!” 

“Wrong.” Inuyasha objected, not bothering to look away from the essay he was reading as he lounged on the loveseat behind Sango, his fist propping his chin up while he attempted to ignore his friends playing Clue. Miroku snatched the yellow envelope from the center of the game board, opening the flap and taking the cards out. 

“You chose not to play, so you stay out of th- son of a bitch!” 

“Wrong?” Kagome asked, feigning sympathy. 

“Shut up.” Miroku rolled his eyes, returning the cards to the envelope before dropping it back to its place on the board. The girls began laughing at his expense, Kagome falling back from their makeshift table as her giggling grew harder. He stood, stomping his way to the kitchen, “It’s not even that funny!”

“Yes it is! You were so smug!” Sango laughed, “Oh, don’t be mad!” She stood, using the edge of the loveseat to regain some balance, rushing to the kitchen to chase after Miroku, and disappearing behind the couch and out of Inuyasha’s view. Kagome gave another small giggle, his ear unconsciously flicking in her direction. 

Inuyasha felt Kagome’s eyes on him as he flipped the page of the essay he was reading, hearing her scoot a little closer in his direction as he pretended he didn’t notice, continuing on to read the sloppily-written paragraph.

“Can I ask you a question?” Her voice was soft. Curious. Inuyasha glanced at her from around the paper he was holding, slightly raising an eyebrow in response. “Your ears… they-“

“What about them?” Inuyasha questioned. He knows he came off defensive,** **mostly unintentionally of course, but he was never too fond of his demonic traits being brought up in conversation; casual or not.

“Well - and I hope you don’t mind my asking - but can you hear things that are far off?” 

“Yeah, I guess. Why?” He lowered the essay, his brows furrowing in skepticism. 

“Is that why they do that flicking thing?”

“Shit!”  Miroku coughed, choking on his drink as he fought back a fit of laughter. Inuyasha jolted upright, watching his coworker fan his face with his hands before covering his own mouth, shutting his eyes tight and seemingly blinking back tears, his face a deep shade of unbridled crimson.

“Are you-“ 

“Crap, that burns! I can’t! Oh my god, I gotta go! Time to go!” Miroku dropped his can of soda on the counter, hastily making his way down the hall while he attempted to hold off disgusting, sputtering sounds. Kagome and Inuyasha both looked to Sango over the loveseat, who held a hand to her mouth as she tried to come off as laid-back as possible. 

“What the hell was that?” Inuyasha asked, stabbing his friend with a glare.

“Oh, he shot soda out of his nose. Totally normal.” Sango shrugged, pressing her lips together. “I should go check on him.”

“The fuck, you should! Stop being weird!” He demanded. 

“Weird? Who’s weird? Don’t you have homework to grade? Mind your business.” Sango disappeared down the hall, slamming the bedroom door shut behind her. 

“And to answer your question, my ears don’t do any flicking thing.” He directed at Kagome, his justifiable annoyance furthering the heat in his blood. 

Kagome swallowed her reply, thankfully. Flicking thing! Inuyasha has full control over his ears, he would be the first to notice if they were moving. The question itself was innocent, sure. It was more Miroku and Sango’s reaction that got to him. What was their fucking deal? Miroku, especially. The guy was getting weirder and weirder the more time he seemed to spend around him. Who the fuck over the age of ten shoots soda out of their nose?

“Flicking thing.” He grumbled, turning his attention back to the essay in hand. 

The room fell quiet. Peaceful, even. The only noise being Kagome’s fingers tapping against the screen of her phone and the howl of the wind blowing outside. Inuyasha enjoyed the silence, even relished in it, finding it difficult to focus on the work in front of him anymore. It was nice until Miroku returned, causing Inuyasha to almost cringe.

“Alright, guys, we’re headed out.” Miroku announced.

“What?” Kagome shot her attention over the sofa behind her.

“Gotta go to the store. Need anything?” Miroku smiled annoyingly. 

“Miroku, no!”

“Sango, here’s your coat.”

“Don’t ignore me! I’m serious! Will you just give up already?” Kagome was climbing over the sofa, stumbling slightly as her feet hit the ground one at a time, darting over to Miroku like a fucking leopard. 

Inuyasha was stunned as he watched Kagome go after her friend. Someone should probably stop her. He should probably stop her, but he couldn’t even bring himself to look away? He had a gut feeling from the beginning that Kagome could handle herself, and right now the girl looked about ready to throw hands, confirming his hunch. Just the sight of it made his mouth go agape. He’d never seen anything more attractive. 

“Woah! Crap, you’re fast.” Miroku backed up quickly, bracing his hands to stop Kagome. 

“Why are you being so stupid?!” Kagome demanded, her temper seething.

“Wait, what’s going on?” Inuyasha stood from the loveseat, his papers falling to the floor in his rush, finally feeling like it was time to do something.

“Sango, get in the car!” Miroku shouted, tossing his keys over everyone’s head. 

“Got ‘em! See you out there!” Sango shouted, ducking her head as she ran out into the snow. 

“Inuyasha, they’re doing the thing! They’re gonna do the thing again!” Kagome seemed semi-frantic, like a child tattling on another.

“Are you fucking kidding me? You’re still going through with it?” Inuyasha groaned. How did he somehow end up with the two most conniving, meddling people in his life? One was certainly enough from the get-go.

“It’s nothing to worry about!” Miroku shifted his weight from one foot to the other, shifting his dark eyes between the two of them. “There’s no reason for all of us to go! We’re literally just doing a beer run. Nothing else. Maybe some brownie mix. Kagome, you love brownies!” 

“Don’t try to butter me up, Miroku!” She yelled, jabbing his chest. 

“I can get butter, too.” Miroku innocently shrugged, nodding vigorously.

“Dead.” Kagome said gruffly. Even Inuyasha took a step back from how dangerous she seemed. 

“What?” 

“You’re dead to me. I warned you.”

Oh, yikes. Who knew Kagome could be so terrifying? Inuyasha made a bolded, highlighted, three-time-underlined mental note to not get on her bad side.

“Okay, no! You’re doing that scary thing!” Miroku seemed justifiably hesitant to touch her. “Let’s talk.” 

“You really want to have a conversation right now?” 

“Absolutely not, but I’m pretty sure I have to if I want to make it out alive.” Miroku grabbed her hand, taking Kagome down the hall and slamming a door shut behind them. 

What just happened? He knew what their friends were planning, but god damn, he didn’t think Kagome would be this furious about having to be alone with him. Sure, he’s not thrilled about dealing with yet another set up, but he’s not about to go out and kill Sango over it. He is, however, going to have a nice, little chat with her. Inuyasha slipped his phone out of his front pocket, hitting Sango’s contact, the ringtone stopping all too quickly as she answered.

“Inuyasha, hear me out!”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” He asked as if it were a new question. She had hightailed it out of there when he previously asked, so the repeat was fair.

“We’re just giving you two some alone time.” She defended. Yeah, he knew that much. “You two should spend this hour getting to know each other better.”

“If we wanted that, we would take the initiative ourselves. We don’t need you and Miroku pushing us together like we’re a couple of high schoolers.” He took a deep breath, glancing down the dim hall to make sure Miroku and Kagome weren’t coming. “Why Kagome? What’s so special about her?” 

Sango paused, the swallow in her throat loud enough for his ears to pick up. “I think you know the answer to that.” When Inuyasha didn’t respond, she let out a ragged sigh. “Look, Kagome is good for you, I know it. I feel it in my bones, Inuyasha. This isn’t going to be anything like Kikyo, because Kagome isn’t anything like Kikyo. You can’t be scared that every girl you meet will turn out like that.” 

“I-I’m not -“ Inuyasha sputtered.

“Don’t try and lie to me. I know you. And you know I would never purposely set you up to be hurt. Kagome is a genuinely good person. She’s never given you a reason to doubt her, so don’t! She doesn’t care that you’re a half demon. In fact, I’m pretty sure she likes it!” 

Likes that he’s a half demon? That has to be the first time he’s ever heard something like that. Sango’s told him plenty of times that him being a half demon shouldn’t stop him from making friends; that it shouldn’t keep him from letting people in, but it contradicted the entirety of his childhood. Inuyasha grew up with a half brother, a full-blooded demon, who mocked him for being what he was, and had him convinced that it’s almost impossible for a half demon such as he to have any real relationships, romantic or not. Sango being the exception.

“I highly doubt that.” 

“My god, you’re obtuse.” 

“Excuse me?” 

“Just try and get to know her some more. You like her, and you have the potential to actually enjoy your time with her. We’re literally going to be out of the house; the only person holding you back at this point is you. You can be mad at me all you want, Inuyasha, but I’m just being the supportive B.F.F. I’ve always been to you.”

Inuyasha opened his mouth to reply, a witty remark sharp on his tongue, but the sound of the bedroom door creaking opened stopped the words in his throat. He huffed, crossing around the furniture and falling back in his seat on the couch. “Whatever. Have fun ditching us, asshat.”

“Inuyasha, don’t-“ 

He hung up before she could finish, instant gratification filling him at the three, dull beeps she was receiving on her end of the line. Miroku walked over to the coat rack, the same, annoying smile from before raising his cheeks again, grabbing his beanie and waving goodbye before walking out the door. Kagome followed close behind, locking the door aggressively and sighing out. 

She glanced over her shoulder at him, and he gave her a moment to say something. Anything. Kagome gave him a small smile instead, scrunching her nose as she made her way over to the larger couch, allowing her body to sink into the cushions. 

“So, the plans in motion, huh?” He leaned forward, resting his forearms on his thighs to get the answer he already knew. 

“Looks like it.” 

“What did he tell you was gonna happen this time around?” He groaned. He found Miroku had a more detailed way of thinking than Sango; a more expansive imagination, if you will. Sango hadn’t exactly given any details on what she expected to go down since this was her boyfriend’s idea in the first place. 

“That they’ve got the ambience perfectly set for us and so long as we roll with it, we’ll be in love by the end of the holiday.” He felt his face flush, shifting his sights to anything else in the room that wouldn’t notice his sudden embarrassment. 

“How stupid.” He shifted uncomfortably, looking around the room, making sure to keep his eyes off her. One of those, I-can’t-see-you-so-you-can’t-see-me things. Those work, right?

“Don’t worry,” She began, standing from her spot and heading towards the decorations next to the tree. “They’re a cliché mess.”

“What?” Inuyasha asked, not knowing what she was getting at in the least.

“Are you kidding me? Christmas in the cabin, a set mood, two people alone while it snows outside… This is a hallmark movie in the works! Ten bucks says the power goes out later.” Kagome giggled, picking up the decorating where they had left off the night before. She glanced over her shoulder and winked at him. “Just don’t fall in love with me, and we’ll make it out of this holiday alive.” 

Did she just.. Don’t fall in love? What a joke. That wouldn’t be hard considering he’s a master at avoiding feelings. Inuyasha rolled his eyes, the heat in his face never faulting as he crossed his arms over his chest and looked at anything but Kagome. “I don’t plan on it.” 

Inuyasha picked the mess of papers up from the area rug, deciding it better to focus on that as opposed to the girl before him. He took one last, lingering look at her as she continued to decorate the tree before tearing his golden eyes away and giving his undivided attention to the essay he had yet to finish grading. His eyes skimmed over the fictional story about wolves, and one glance at the name in the corner told him he shouldn’t have been surprised. He read over the same passage multiple times, trying to keep his concentration glued to the essay and not Kagome, finding the task to be more difficult than he’d anticipated. He tapped the pen against his thigh repeatedly, a tick of his that annoyed Miroku, reading through, yet again, for any mistakes. 

The sound of Kagome sauntering his way pulled away the remainder of his attention, his gaze shifting upwards to the star in her hand, then to the smile on her face. “Would you like to do the honors?” 

“The star?” He asked. 

“Mhm.”

“Can’t reach, huh?” Inuyasha bit back the snicker. He hated that he loved how short she was.

“Nope.” Her smile never diminished, an unbridled warmth spreading throughout his torso.

He shook his head, no longer holding back his laugh. Sitting the paper down in the pile next to the armrest, Inuyasha rose to stand, holding his clawed hand out to take the star. Kagome happily handed it to him, closely following him to the tree. 

“You’ve gotta plug the…” She instructed, and his eyes landed on the end of the lights she was referring to. He connected the chord to the star’s extension wire before firmly setting it on the branch. “Yeah, like that.” She let out a squeak of delight that really shouldn’t have been as cute as it was to him. The Douglas Fir lit up with multiple colors, glowing and sparkling and reeking of that Christmas joy people always vomited. “Ta daaa!” She held her arms out beside her, much like that Will Smith meme his students laugh at every time, her face beaming almost as brightly as the tree.

Inuyasha grinned, trying to keep his eyes on the Christmas tree but unable to fully keep his attention off of her. “You’re pretty good at this.” 

“You helped.” She slid over to stand next to him, admiring their work gleefully. 

“Hardly.” Inuyasha dismissed.

“I saw you last night. Plus, the star just now. We can’t have a Christmas tree without a topper.” Kagome looked up to him, her shoulder brushing gently against his bicep, his eyes locking on her deep brown ones, all thoughts in his head briefly becoming a haze of fog.

Pulling himself out of his reverie, he chuckled lightly, finding it almost unbelievable how easily he could become so captivated like a lovesick puppy. What was this girl doing to him? Inuyasha stepped back to his original seat and picked up the paper he had set down while Kagome went about cleaning the mess. He could hear her placing the ornament boxes back into their bags, putting them in a corner of the room. He really needed to focus on these essays; he has to give them back to his students when they returned from break. Final drafts were to be written immediately. But, how the hell was he supposed to concentrate when he’s alone with the girl he found himself wanting more and more by the minute, but couldn’t fucking have? 

Kagome sat down on the couch neighboring the loveseat he claimed, the heightening storm outside almost blocking out her throaty sigh. “Homework?” 

He peeked up at her, nodding his head. “Essays.” 

“Are they hard to grade?” She asked, her body inching closer to his in interest.

“Oh, uh… not really.”

“Can I help?”

Inuyasha can only think of one person who has ever offered to help him grade. Miroku. The two would often correct papers and exams together, helping each other out when one finished early, the assistance being fully welcomed when their classes of thirty-plus students become overwhelming during test season. The difference between this situation and past ones being, Miroku’s also a teacher. Kagome is not. At least, that he knows of. He hadn’t heard much, or anything, about her profession, trying to pick up clues when Miroku lamented about her “good qualities.” Inuyasha figured there was no harm in letting her have a go at it. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to correct spelling and punctuation; literally anyone could grade these papers. 

“Uh, sure.” He shrugged, taking the stack of papers and placing it on the small side table between them. “I had them write short, creative stories before winter break since there was a gap between testing and vacations. We’re working on their grammar and use of adjectives.” 

Kagome took the short story from the top of the stack. “So, what am I looking for?”

“Basically anything that stands out. I try to let them do their own thing with projects like these; no rules or restrictions other than consistency, so you’ll probably see a thing or two about unicorns and mermaids from the girls. I’ve been showing them different ways to describe the picture they’re painting for us. Simple enough. So far, from what I’ve read, these aren’t half bad. Let the kids have their go at things without someone looking over their shoulders every step of the way, and they can really surprise you.” Inuyasha explained.

“You sound like a really good teacher.” 

“Nah. I just do enough to get the job done.” He shrugged dismissively. “Miroku calls it lazy teaching.”

“What’s lazy about it? You gave them lessons preparing them, you gave them instruction on what to do, and you’re sitting here grading these on vacation. From my point of view, which may be worthless considering I’m no teacher, I think you’re doing plenty.” 

It’s not everyday people tell him he’s a good teacher, and even though she hasn’t witnessed first hand what his teaching style entails, it still felt good to hear. Her opinion isn’t worthless in the least, but he wouldn’t tell her that. 

Inuyasha cleared his throat, tapping the pen against his leg as he felt his nerves rising. “So, uh, just look for your basic grammatical errors, spelling errors, and correct anything that doesn’t make sense. If you’ve got any questions, just ask.” 

Inuyasha watched Kagome for an instant, soaking in the sight of her as she read over the assignment she held in between her thin fingers before turning his eyes to the paper he was supposed to be working on. There was something peaceful about it. Homey, even. It’s relaxing to be able to just sit in quiet and grade papers with someone. Her. It’s much better than the forced conversation he was worried was going to happen, but he should have known better by now. It’s Kagome, and she doesn’t force anything. She doesn’t have to. Everything came so naturally with her.

The feel of her fingers delicately brushing against his arm pulled him out of his untrained thoughts, and he glanced over to her wiggling digits. Kagome pointed towards the red pen in his right hand, and he handed it over as soon as he got the hint, watching her uncap it to make a correction before tapping the pen against her lip. He needed to look away immediately to stifle the unmitigated and stupid-as-all-hell craving to kiss her. 

They went on like that for a while, passing the pen back and forth to correct mistakes. The stack had a good dent in it when the lights started flickering, causing him to look around the room as the power died out and came back. Kagome stood, walking around the armchair closest to the window and looking out. 

“Jesus, it’s a blizzard out there!” Inuyasha approached from behind her to see for himself, watching the snow whip around crazily. 

“Do you think Miroku and Sango are okay? They’ve been gone for a long time.” 

“Who cares? They’re the ones that wanted to meddle.” Inuyasha sneered, rolling his eyes.

“Inuyasha!” She shut the curtains, turning on her heel and frowning at him accusingly. 

“What? I’m sure they’re fine! Why even worry about them?” He easily disregarded.

“It’s dangerous.” She stated, “What if they get lost because they can’t see the road? Or, worse, are in an accident because of it?” 

“Let’s be real, Kagome, there’s no way they were on their way back. Chances are they stopped to see a movie or something.” 

“What if they didn’t?” Kagome challenged.

“Then there’s nothing we can do about it!” 

Sango had assured him before that it would only be about an hour they’d be alone, though he didn’t exactly believe her. Especially since she’s with Miroku, who seems significantly more adamant on getting he and Kagome together. He one-hundred percent believes that the two are fine. Even if something has happened to the couple, he knows Sango works well under pressure. Miroku may panic, sure, but she wouldn’t. 

The electricity went out once more, and the two were left standing in the darkened room, the ongoing silence becoming worse as the hum from the vents died out, the creaks and howls from the wind growing louder. They stood there, waiting for the power to return like a couple of idiots until Inuyasha’s agitation increased, a rumble biting through his throat.

“Fucking great!”

“It’s not that bad, Inuyasha.” 

“Yeah? Can you see?” He didn’t even try to swallow the sass in his tone.

“Actually, yes. It’s not completely dark yet, so let’s just hurry and find the candles okay?” Kagome walked passed him, appearing as a shadow in the lifeless lighting as she held her arms out to help guide her way towards the kitchen. He heard her open some of the drawers, things rustling and sliding about, like she knew exactly what she was looking for, dropping something against the counter in an achieved manner. “Where’s that light-ow!” 

He tried not to laugh, honestly. semi-tried, at least. Kind of. In the end, he couldn’t stop the snort of air that left his lips as he pictured Kagome’s abundant confidence dwindling because she stubbed her damn toe since she couldn’t fucking see. Her eyes were like daggers, even from across the room, but the glare was more than worth it. 

“I’m sorry, what was that?” 

“Lighter.” She huffed. “I’m pretty sure it was on the mantle of the fireplace last night.”

“Yup.” He took a few steps back, reaching towards the mantle and dragging his fingers along it until they bumped the plastic object he seeked. “Heads up.” He tossed the lighter in her general direction, the loud crack signaling that it hit the hard flooring. 

“Inuyash-ah!” 

“Oh, yikes. Do you mean to tell me you can’t actually see?”

“Inuyasha, I swear to god.” Kagome threatened. He knew he shouldn’t be egging her on, his previous glimpse at her bad side enough to bait him away, but he couldn’t help it.

“Relax.” He droned teasingly. “I didn’t get you.”

“You could have! I don’t see why you couldn’t have walked it over to me.”

“Because I don’t want to take a chance of stubbing my toe. Duh.” He’d shrug if he knew she would see it.

Kagome groaned as she picked up the long-stemmed lighter, illuminating a small area around her by holding the small flame to the candles. She lit a few of them, an insignificant glow hovering above the surface of the counter. 

“Awesome. Three candles. I can see everything perfectly.” He said flatly, folding his arms over his chest. 

“Hey, here’s an idea: instead of being a sarcastic punk, how about you shut up and get the fire going.” The bite in her tone was evident and clear, and Inuyasha found that he liked her attitude a little too much. 

“You have the lighter?” He asked more than stated. 

“Then I guess you should just shut up.” She remarked. He watched her as she pulled more candles out, lighting them one by one, the yellow lighting becoming more prominent in front of her frame. Kagome slowly became easier to see, the soft glow and flickering shadows reflecting along her face. Inuyasha stood there, stunned. He’s far from blind, he knows Kagome’s gorgeous, but right now she was positively mesmerizing. He didn’t want to look away. There could be a crowd around him, people talking to him, shouting even, pulling and tugging at him, and his eyes would still stay glued to her. She shuffled over, carefully placing a few candles on the hearth before turning to him, taking out the long-stemmed lighter that she’d tucked into her back pocket, holding it out to him. It took him a moment to shake himself out of his reverie, noting the arch in her eyebrow and her solid demeanor as he removed the item from her hand. “Now will you light a fire?”

“Yeah, whatever.” Inuyasha grabbed a few logs from the pile next to the fireplace, setting them up on the metal stand inside. He took a few sheets from a newspaper next to the wood that would be used as kindling, balling up its pages as Kagome called out to her phones Siri. He brought the small flame to the edge of the paper, letting it catch before gently setting it against the rest of the kindling. 

Kagome fell onto the couch as Inuyasha took the tea lights from the hearth, moving them to the mantle. “Any word from them?”

“Nope,” Kagome sighed, a woosh sound coming from her phone as she sent a message. “Nothing. I really hope they’re -“

The familiar sound of Miroku’s text tone went off, catching their attention. Kagome turned, both of their eyes landing on the lit up phone sitting on the table in the doorway. She howled a dramatic whimper, turning back in her seat and shrinking down. 

“Of course.” 

“Do you think that was part of the plan?” Inuyasha sat in the armchair next to the tree, stretching his legs out to rest on the ottoman. 

“Why would anyone intentionally leave their phone behind?” Kagome asked.

“Considering the bind we’re in, the notion fits. We’ve been alone for hours, we’re snowed in, and the power’s out. They’re impossible to get ahold of - meaning no interruptions, candles and firelight set the mood, and you’ll probably get cold soon so I’ll have to hold you to keep warm because they’ve most likely hidden every blanket in the house.”

“Not even half of that was part of their plan.” She blinked, the bewilderment in her eyes growing clearer as the fire caught and grew.

“Are you kidding? This whole evening was probably a play-by-play of everything they imagined.” Inuyasha mentioned matter-of-factly.

“Yes, because last I checked, Miroku and Sango have become such a power couple that, so long as they’re together, they can literally control the weather. Look out, world! Hurricane MirSan is on the loose!” Kagome flailed her arms in front of her startlingly.

“What - what is that? MirSan?” Inuyasha forced himself to seem unamused. She’s not funny.

“It’s their ship name.” She said. “Also, I would just like to mention, fire equals warmth. I could sit by it if I get cold. Also, Sango probably has her phone, so I’ll just text her.”

Inuyasha didn’t respond, looking toward the fire as it ate at the log, the incessant popping drowning out all other noise in the room. He watched as the flames danced around while Kagome texted their friend. It only took a few minutes before she got a reply, and that was enough to reassure him that they were safe somewhere. 

Kagome set her phone down after the notification dings ended, rising from her seat and heading towards the kitchen. “They’re okay. They’re in a restaurant waiting the storm out. Looks like the power outage is throughout most of town.”

“Told you they were fine.” 

“It didn’t hurt to check. Dinner?” She offered, spreading the tea lights out around the kitchen. 

“How do you plan on cooking?” Inuyasha asked.

“It’s a gas stove. All I need is the lighter.” She pulled out some groceries, a few vegetables poking out of thin, plastic bags, and set them on the counter. Inuyasha got up, grabbing the lighter from where he’d left it on the mantle and traveled into the kitchen, offering it over to her. She smiled, taking it from him and sliding it into her pocket. 

“What can you even make in a blackout?”

“Almost anything, really. I’ll whip up some chicken, sauté some vegetables, and make some rice on the side. How does that sound?”

Delicious, really. 

“I don’t think they have a rice cooker here, Kagome.” He mentioned, opening one of the cabinets and peeking in. 

“No, but we have plenty of other cookware here, and you can make rice in a pot.” Kagome opened the large cabinet on the island, pulling out a skillet and a small pot with its lid. “My mom never had a rice cooker growing up, so we always made it this way. It’s not too different.” 

Inuyasha watched her lay everything out neatly so she’d be able to see it. If his phone wasn’t already at thirteen percent before the blackout, he’d be holding the built-in flashlight up to help out. She poured the rice into the measuring cup before turning the stove on, using the lighter to get a small flame going. He watched her move around expertly, almost with no thought to what she was doing. It looked like it was second nature to her. It was interesting gathering the rhythm she had going. He almost felt like he was in her way until she pulled a huge ass knife from a nearby drawer. 

“Woah, no! It’s way too dark to go cutting shit! You’ll lose a finger!” Inuyasha made to take the knife from her, but Kagome stepped back, putting the blade behind her and out of his reach. 

“Would you relax? I’m a professional. I know how to cut a bell pepper without getting my finger in the mix.” She stated, mindlessly brushing him off.

“A professional at cutting vegetables?” He asked, unamused. 

“A professional chef. I literally do this for a living.” 

Inuyasha relaxed. She literally did know what she was doing. It wasn’t often that people said that and were actually able to back it up. “You’re a chef?” 

“I sure am.” Kagome grinned, making her way around him and back to the cutting board. It made sense now why she moved so effortlessly and comfortably around the kitchen. He took her queue to light the other burner as she brought over the skillet, melting some butter and allowing the meat to cook, stepping back and closely observing the way she worked as she started cutting the vegetables. She may be a professional, but that doesn’t mean accidents never happen. Especially in a dim-lit room. It was natural, in this case, to be a little worried that she’d slip up and cut herself. 

His eyes stayed on her as she moved about the kitchen, taking the lightly-browned chicken from the skillet and placing them aside on a plate. She melted some more butter in the pan, mixing in the vegetables. 

“Okay,” She began, her voice coming out high-pitched. “How about we play a game.”

“A game?” Inuyasha lifted himself to sit on the counter. 

“Yeah! A question game.” She pushed the vegetables around in the pan. “We’re gonna be stuck in the cabin for a while. Our best friends, A.K.A. our only mutual ties to one another, are out. How about we get to know each other while we have the chance?”

Sango did tell him to get to know Kagome, and there was a good chance of hell to pay if he didn’t at least try. Kagome was literally presenting the opportunity on a silver platter, and quite frankly, the risk wasn’t worth it.

“I guess. You start.” 

Kagome added the chicken back to the pan, messing with the heat. He couldn’t tell you what kind of seasonings she put in, but it smelled good. She hummed to herself as she thought, passing by him and opening the fridge to pull out the opened bottle of wine from last night. 

“Go for a hike or stay in and watch Netflix?” She asked, pulling two glasses down and pouring the red liquid into both.

“Hike. You?” He took the offered glass.

“You can’t just ask me the same questions every time!” Kagome shot, shaking her head.

“Ugh, okay. Fine. Wine or beer?” 

Kagome lifted her glass in answer, taking a quick sip. “Wine, of course. Cats or dogs?” 

“Excuse me?” 

“Sorry,” She laughed, the sound causing his ear to twitch pleasantly. He’s not about to admit to her that he likes cats when he’s got dog demon blood. He’d be a walking contradiction, like those fucking Starburst commercials. “Never mind that one! New question: have you ever been on a cruise?”

“No, and I’ve never been interested in going on one.” Inuyasha wrinkled his nose, taking a big sip of his drink. Kagome only nodded, heading back to the stove to give her attention to the food cooking. 

“Your turn.”

“Okay, have you and Miroku ever been a thing?” He challenged. 

Kagome nearly choked on her wine, holding the glass as she spewed it back in. He flinched back, unexpecting the response he got. “What?!”

Inuyasha laughed, waiting for her to say something more. She noticeably shuddered, the disgust twisting at her lips, and he urged her to answer with a raise of his brow. 

“Was that a serious question? Of course I’ve never been with Miroku!” Kagome said a little too loudly.

“You say that like being with Miroku is a bad thing.”

“Well, yeah! It is for me!” Her tone was getting higher and higher.

“Why?”

“Nope, my turn.” She cut him off at the knees, stealing her game back as she adjusted the heat on the vegetables and removed the lid from the rice. She took a fork from the drawer, stirring the rice around a bit before replacing the top. “You ever been with Sango?”

“I thought we weren’t supposed to ask the same questions!” Inuyasha mocked, jumping from the counter and heading towards the fireplace. He picked up the fire iron, poking at the burning logs to keep them going. 

“We aren’t. At no point did I ask if you dated Miroku, did I?” She teased.

“Loopholes.” He grunted, shaking his head and sitting in the armchair. He leaned back, eyeing her as she got comfortable against the marble counter closest to the stove. “No, I’ve never dated Sango. Never even considered it. She’s the closest thing to a sibling that I’ve got.” 

“Wait, I thought I heard Sango mention you had an older brother.” She said, turning the burners off and opening the cabinets to get down two plates. 

“Half brother and the only good thing that came from him was my niece. Now answer my earlier question.”

Kagome portioned their food on the plates in front of her, not bothering to look at him as she answered. “Miroku and I have been strictly platonic since day one and that’s how it’ll always be. Plus, I’m not into that whole rat tail thing he has going on.” Kagome giggled. 

“You’re honestly telling me that at no point in the recent years have you two been attracted to one another? B.S.. I don’t buy it.” Inuyasha shook his head confidently, casually taking a sip of the overly-sweet wine. Maybe she wasn’t lying. Maybe she never thought of Miroku as anything more than a friend, but if he’s learned anything about his coworker, it’s that the guy wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to hit on a good looking woman, and Inuyasha had a feeling that Kagome wasn’t a late bloomer.

“No, seriously, we’ve never looked at each other that way.” She defended boldly. 

“Really? Because you guys seemed awfully comfortable with each other earlier.” He could argue about this for days.

“When?”

“The kiss. This morning.”

“What, the kiss on the cheek? The super simple, meaningless, friendly peck on the cheek I got?” 

“It could have meant something else.” He waved off.

“Yeah, but it didn’t. Why do you even care so much? You sound like you’re jealous of something.” Kagome baited. 

“N-no! Obviously, I’m not! It just… I don’t know, it seemed like maybe there was something more there!” Inuyasha wanted to put a halt to that thought immediately, ignoring the heat in his cheeks. Him? Jealous? Fat chance. He was just looking out for Sango, plain and simple. He didn’t give a rats ass if Kagome and Miroku had ever been involved before. He did and he didn’t. He did. Fuck, he did. He really fucking did.

“Believe me, there isn’t! He’s my best friend, Inuyasha. And he would never hurt Sango like that.”

He looked away from her, staring back at the fire, watching as the wood charred and broke apart, the flames dancing around languidly. He crossed his arms over his chest, tensing his jaw. He was maybe a little jealous this morning, but he refused to admit it to anyone other than himself. The bigger part of him, or so he thought, had wanted to make sure that Miroku wouldn’t hurt Sango. He’s making excuses to himself, and he knows it. Kagome chuckled at something and he consciously felt his ear flick in her direction. 

Inuyasha had noticed after Kagome had taken it upon herself to point it out, like a hyperawareness, that one, or even both, of his ears would sometimes twitch for no good reason at all. He hadn’t been able to place why it happened before, but at this point, he has a pretty strong hunch. There’s not much noise inside the cabin; the crackling of the fire, the occasional whistle of the wind against the windows, the creaking floors when they walk. Aside from that, and their conversations with all they entailed, it was mostly quiet. The only sound he could think of, the only sound of all of the aforementioned that he remotely enjoyed, that would have a strong enough affect on him to cause a twinge in his own, sensitive ears had to be Kagome’s laugh. Typically, Inuyasha was perfectly capable of liking things in secret. He’d appreciate whatever it was, keep the news to himself, and move on with his life. With Kagome, it was like an entirely different story. He had minor feelings for the girl, and people can apparently see it written all over his face like a damn billboard. He found something about her endearing, and Sango calls him out every fucking time they have a “moment.” He appreciates the sounds of her joy, and his _ears, _a part of his own body, betrays him with zero remorse. So much for total control over the appendages.

Maybe Sango was right- surprise, surprise. Kagome has never seemed put off by his half demon traits. She was the kind of girl to accept anybody and everybody with open arms. The girl is an actual saint. But, just because she doesn’t hate that he’s a half demon, doesn’t mean she likes _him, _per se. A part of Inuyasha would like to believe that she does. The side of him that’s hopelessly falling for her more and more with each giggle, poorly-told joke, and sassy remark. He’s not one to willingly set himself up to be hurt, though. He won’t allow himself to get his hopes up that a girl like Kagome could like someone like him. 

Kagome laughed to herself again, and he felt the same ear twitch in response. Son of a bitch. No. Nope. What the hell is she even laughing at? 

He shifted, pulling his phone out of his back pocket and unlocking it. He needed to distract himself, to keep himself busy and not focused on the girl in the kitchen. He opened his message thread with Sesshomaru, realizing he never replied, typing a simple “_sure” _as slowly as one could pop in the four letters.

Kagome cleared her throat, running the sink water briefly. “Okay, dinner’s ready!” She announced, clearing off the island countertop. “It’d probably be easier to eat over here.” 

Inuyasha stood, slipping his phone back into his pocket as he made his way over to the island. He thanked her quietly as she slid a plate to him, opening a drawer and pulling out some knives, carefully handing him one. 

“More wine?” He asked, taking the bottle from the counter and filling his cup halfway.

“Please.” Inuyasha poured what was left of the wine into her glass, before finally turning to his plate to start eating. “So, whose turn was it? Mine?” 

“Oh, yeah.” 

“Okay, um…” Kagome took a bite of chicken, thinking up a question and clicking her tongue when she had one. “What’s your brothers name?”

“Douchebag.” 

“What?” She laughed. Oh fuck.

“That’s what I call him.” He shrugged as nonchalantly as possible. “Most other people know him as Sesshomaru, though. What are your hobbies?” 

“Binge watching shows on Netflix and playing with my cat.” Kagome said.

Inuyasha snorted as he finished his bite of food, reflexively shooting the back of his hand to his mouth to try and cover his chortle. “No wonder Miroku wanted to set you up with someone.” 

“Shut up!” Kagome grabbed an untouched candle from the package nearby, throwing it at him without an ounce of hesitation. He blocked it easily with his shoulder and laughed. “I do not need help getting a boyfriend, just so you know! He just hates everyone I date!” 

“Awe, it’s so nice knowing Miroku approves of me.” He said, holding a hand to his sternum and feigning delight.

“Mhm, still haven’t figured out why.” She said sarcastically. 

“Rude ass.” Inuyasha snorted again.

“Okay, speaking of exes, what’s your story? Have you had awful ones and Sango’s just decided to take the lead in your love life, or what?” 

Inuyasha finished his dinner, the aftertaste of Kagome’s cooking just as good as the meal itself. He made his way over to the sink, gently dropping his dishes in. “Not really. None of my exes actually led to anything special. Sango just thinks you’re nice…” 

“I do have my moments.” Kagome agreed, the humor heavy in her voice.

“I would fully appreciate it if she stayed out of my love life though, lack thereof or not.” He mentioned, strongly wishing the notion would travel through Kagome’s ears and somehow reach Sango’s.

“Why does that sound like she’s done something wrong?” 

“Because she has.” Inuyasha turned the water on, rinsing his plate off and finding the sponge, but Kagome got his attention before he did anything more, softly swatting his arm to gesture that she would take care of it later.

“And…?” She squeezed by him, setting her plate in the sink and letting the cold water run over it. 

“And it was the worst blind date in existence. It would have never happened if she didn’t set me up, and I’m not looking to relive it. What’s your favorite food?” Inuyasha asked, keeping the game flowing.

“Pasta.” She picked up her glass of wine as they moved to the living room, making herself comfortable on the sofa, folding her legs beneath her. “May I ask what happened, or is it too bold of me?”

“Pretty bold of you, but I guess there’s really no harm.” He sat at the other end of the couch after prodding at the fire again, the jostling of the cushions from his plop down hardly affecting the girl at the opposite side. “She set me up with this chick that has a thing against demons, and considering I’m half… well, you can imagine how the night went.” 

Kagome’s jaw dropped, a gasp leaving her lips. “No way!” 

He chuckled and nodded, her reply more dramatic than he expected.

“Well then, I definitely don’t blame you for not trusting her sense of judgement.” She confirmed.

“What about you? What has Miroku done to make you skeptical of his?” Inuyasha asked, genuinely curious to see how much worse their mutual friend could get.

“Nothing, actually. He’s never done this before. I had settled on the idea that he was just over protective of me and therefore would never like a guy I introduced him to, you know? Like, the whole no-one-will-ever-be-good-enough-for-you thing. Then, suddenly, he’s head over heels about the idea of you and I going out. I don’t get it.” She raised the glass to her lips, taking a languid sip.

“Maybe there’s nothing to get.” Inuyasha said, his eyes gazing over at her. There was a small lick of disappointment in his chest, but he pushed it away. It wouldn’t do him any good to focus on it at the moment. Or ever. “I’m sure he has his dumb reasons, but if you aren’t interested then you aren’t interested. Just leave it alone. He’ll give up eventually.” 

“It’s not that I’m not interested. I’m just curious about his sudden change of heart.” Kagome mentioned carelessly. The words didn’t take long to sink in, bringing him into an extremely alert state. Did she literally just say that after almost punching Miroku’s lights out not even a few hours ago when they were about to be left alone?

“You… W-wait, you are interested?” His mind was racing a mile a minute, turning to face her as he waited impatiently for a response. This could be a mistake, he was well aware of that. People say things and give off the wrong messages all the time.

“Hm?” Kagome’s face resembled something similar to a lenticular image, transitioning through a few expressions ranging from calm, to confused, to aware, to absolute terror.

Inuyasha stared at her. Waiting for her to fucking say something. Her lips parted, and he immediately braced himself for the confirmation or the denial. 

“Whose turn was it? Mine? What’s your nieces name?” Her voice cracked slightly as she tried not to appear flustered, clearly giving her best effort to throw him off track with their stupid question game.

“Rin. Kagome, are you serious?” Inuyasha dove right back in. There was no denial.

“Please elaborate.” Kagome straightened in her seat, her body noticeably tensing from unease.

“Do you - I mean… J-Just, go back to what you said earlier. Did you mean that, or…?”

Her cheeks managed to show a dark shade of crimson, and it looked like she wasn’t going to try diverting anymore, her attempts feeble as they were. He wanted her to admit it. God damn, Inuyasha wanted to hear her say she liked him. If there was even a small chance for him, he wanted to know. Now.

“Yes.”

“Yes, what?”

“You’re really gonna make me say it?” Kagome radiated embarrassment, but there was no way he would back down now.

“Kagome.” Inuyasha said firmly.

“Ugh- Inuyasha! Yes, I have feelings for you! I got roped in god knows how long ago, and I kept up the facade I had going because I thought that was the right thing to do! Miroku and Sango treated this like a game! We couldn’t very well let them win; we would never hear the end of it! This isn’t altogether my fault thought, I want that to be noted! I mean, look at you!” She gestured to his entire body and he blinked in surprise, mouth open slightly at her admission. “Oh my god, no. That came out wrong… what I meant was, I can’t really explain what I feel when I see you, but it’s… nice. I mean, I can, but I’d really rather not because I’ll start rambling and that’s just a whole different side of me that no one should have to deal with.” 

“You’re already rambling.” Inuyasha stated, keeping his tone steady as he tried to absorb everything, hoping he wasn’t coming off as anxious as she clearly was.

“Believe it or not, it gets worse.” She mumbled, gently bobbing her head from side to side in admittance. “Look, we can drop it. We never have to talk about this again if you don’t want to. We’ll mind our business like we normally do and move on with our lives. Miroku promised me that after Christmas they wouldn’t push us on each other anymore, so we don’t have anything to worry about.” 

Inuyasha didn’t respond immediately, watching as she sucked her bottom lip between her teeth, biting down on the plump skin. His head was spinning uncontrollably, his heart racing as if he’d just ran a marathon. Kagome likes him. How much time was appropriate to take in order to process what he had just heard? Not much, apparently, because Kagome was walking away from him by the time he was able to sigh out a stable breath.

“Wai- Kagome, where are you going?”

She didn’t answer. Kagome kept her pace around the couches and towards the hall, Inuyasha just barely managing to reach her arm before she disappeared into the darkened area. He pulled her back to him, and she bashfully turned to face him. There was no way in hell Inuyasha was about to let her walk away before he had a chance to say anything back. 

“What, were you just gonna hide in your room for the rest of the night?” 

“Not exactly.” Kagome gave a measly shrug of one shoulder.

“Then why did you leave? I didn’t get to say anything.”

“I didn’t think you would!”

“You threw a lot at me, Kagome! I needed a minute to take it all in!”

“Ugh, we really don’t have to talk about this!” He could feel her try to get her arm free, though her efforts were weak.

“Did I say that’s what I wanted?!” Inuyasha pulled her closer, her face completely shadowed from view, his broad body blocking all light that could reach from the fire, the sweaters over their frames grazing against one another’s as their chests rose and fell from their breaths. He kept his tone low and steady, “Give me a fucking moment to wrap my mind around a girl like you liking a guy like me.”

Inuyasha released his grip on her arm, allowing his hand to slide down and hold onto her small wrist. Kagome still held some tension in her muscles, their bodies so close together Inuyasha could feel it for himself. The language in her bones confirmed everything she said to him, and more. She was just as afraid of rejection as he was.

“I haven’t been able to keep my eyes off you since the day we met, Kagome, and after hearing all that, I don’t give a shit if they win.” He admitted, his feet inching him closer.

Inuyasha curved his hand around the soft skin of her jaw, over her ear, and threaded his fingers through her silky, dark hair. He didn’t need to see her in order to know that his words did something for her, and that’s all he found himself wanting to do over and over. Kagome’s happiness had somehow become his own. She glanced up above him, and his eyes followed her trail, landing on the green mistletoe hanging from the beam. 

“Of course.” He commented, not sounding surprised in the least. Kagome bit her lip, her hands grazing up his sides, fingers clutching to the black cotton adorning his torso, pulling his attention back to her. He dipped down without a second thought, succumbing to the overwhelming urge to take her, the fingers in her hair gripping tenderly as he slowly tilted her head back to welcome him in. 

“One more set up won’t hurt.” She whispered against his lips, her warm breath drawing an approving rumble from his chest. His kiss starting slow, needy, and deep, evolving into something fierce and all too satisfying. He didn’t know how badly he’d wanted, needed, Kagome until now, and he fucking had her. Maybe Christmas wasn’t all that bad after all. Both his hands hooked under the crook of her jaw, holding her to him, their chests pressed tightly to one another’s, her hands undeniably pulling him closer and closer as he felt a heat that rivaled the fire’s beyond the hearth. 

Inuyasha couldn’t suppress the snicker he let out against her lips. Sure, they lost their game of defiance to their meddling friends, but honestly, who was the real winner here?