As Inuyasha sets up their bed roll, Kagome sits against the wall, already dressed in her sleeping yukata.

"After all this time, this thing still amazes me," she says, the unsheathed Tetsusaiga in her hand. She gives the untransformed sword a few light swings. "But I never understood..."

"Never understood what?" the hanyou asks as he changes from his usual red ensemble to his sleeping clothes.

"Your father didn't leave the sword to Sesshomaru because he didn't have anyone to protect, but back then, he couldn't have known you'd have anyone to protect either."

"I think his original intention was for me to be able to protect my mother. I bet it never crossed his mind that she'd pass on while I was still so young..." His voice trails off.

"I'm sorry, Inuyasha. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories," she apologizes.

"It's okay. I know you didn't. Anyway, if you remember, I couldn't touch Tetsusaiga at first either. Even though my old man left it to me, it wasn't mine to wield until I declared I'd protect you."

"I do remember. 'You should shut up and let me protect you'." She laughs at her impersonation of her husband from all those years ago. To her surprise, Inuyasha even laughs a little.

"Yep. Sounds like me alright," he replies as he finishes dressing. He walks over to her and offers her his hands. In one hand she places his sword and in the other, she places her own smaller hand. He helps her from her place on the floor, pulling her body into his embrace; his now free hand rests about her waist."Tetsusaiga is pretty great back then Tetsusaiga knew my heart despite the fact that I wasn't ready to admit my feelings for you, not even to myself. " He leans down and kisses her forehead. "You've been important to me a long time, woman," he admits. His cheeks redden at his confession, but she does not mention it.

Standing on her toes, she presses her lips to his. She pulls back for only a second before returning her lips to his once more. The kiss lingers, filled with a hunger that was absent from the first. Her arms wrap around his neck. With a thump, he lets Tetsusaiga fall from his grasp, both of his hands now free to roam her body as he chooses. His hands move across her back, claws lightly grazing her skin through her garment,down her sides and over the gentle swell of her hips before paying a visit to her supple backside. He gives her rear a squeeze and lets his hands continue their journey south. Gripping the back of thighs, he lifts her up and her legs wrap around his waist. Her soft hands slide from around his neck and down to part his closed robes, moving the cloth keeping his skin from her wandering hands. His flesh warms at her touch. Breaking their kiss once more, she turns her focus to her own robe. Her nimble fingers make quick work of untying her obi and she lets the sash fall forgotten to the floor behind her. She allows him to set her on her feet long enough to let her finish removing her yukata and he makes quick work of removing his own before he takes her in his arms again; her body wraps around his once more. Her lips find his again, but only for a moment. Her mouth leaves his to kiss a path from his jaw, to his neck and down to his sculpted chest. His eyes shut tightly and his head falls back, intoxicated by the feel of her soft lips against his skin.

"Ka-Kagome,"he says huskily. "Maybe we shou-"

"Shh.." she interrupts, placing a finger to his lips. The look in her chocolate eyes is playful, yet filled with desire. "You should shut up and let me love you."

*la fin*