A/N: By god and all things chocolate I wanted to give up so badly with this one guys. Like just...just...it wouldn't friggin be written! It was like some sort of demon had possessed me so that at night, at ungodly hours of the morning, I would get all excited and inspired to write, and then once I sat down at the computer someone came in with a broom and swept my mind clean. I was like "whut? Was I gonna write or...?" and it was soooo frustrating!

Anyway, here is, once again, an update. I love this story quite a bit, and all of your support continues to inspire me to continue with the updates and the chapters and new scenes-like, you don't even know. I should build you guys a shrine or something.

Also, I want to name you guys. Every other author has some cutesy way of referring to their readers and I WANT. So...? Suggestions? Minions are used to much already, I contemplated calling you my "lovelies" but I felt that lacked the proper amount of badass flair and/or the sarcastically clever wit that I tend to attempt. I'm sort of thinking of calling you all my hoard. I like the thought of possessing some unnumbered treasure and guarding it with all the ferociousness of a fire-breathing dragon (can I get an "d", can a get a "w", can I get an "e", "e", "b"! What does that spell? DWEEB!) but I dunno...sort of sounds like I want to possess you. Which I do. But. I have a feeling Abe would disapprove. ANYWAY! LEAVE YOUR SUGGESTIONS IN A REVIEW OR SOMETHING. YOUR QUEEN COMMANDS YOU!

SNEAK PEEK as usual down at the bottom.

Enjoy!

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I Dub Thee Married-Have Fun with the Complications

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Kagome watched Touga from the shadows of her hideout, his eyes turned into steady flints of gold as he scrutinized the rather large village before them. His hair had been pulled back into a knot at the back of his skull, wrapped in nondescript tan cloth and tied securely with leather. A brown bandana was tied over his scalp, hiding his hairline and pulled taught over the tips of his pointed ears. His fine silk clothing had been abandoned and instead wore peasant's attire. A stiff, scratchy kimono the color of mud that had to itch was tucked into faded navy hakama. The pants stopped mid shin, allowing for hard work in the fields and dirty feet. The geta on his feet were cheap, and she had a feeling that if his skin wasn't as thick as it was, he'd be getting splinters.

"Stay here," He said quietly, a comforting hand sliding from her shoulder to cup her face before leaving, his fingers briefly trailing along the line of her jaw. She fought the butterflies that rose at the action, instead nodding and settling more comfortably in the shadow of the tree. His woven straw coat rustled as he rose to his feet, and after he placed the wide brimmed straw hat on his head, he looked like any other farmer, albeit a tall one, that passed through—if he kept his head down that is. Kagome had no doubt that as soon as he showed his face they'd be bombarded with village women hoping to catch his golden eyed gaze. She fought down a brief rush of jealousy at the thought, tucking up her legs and rubbing at her ankle.

She'd been practically comatose after she had been rescued from the cave. She would have been up and about much sooner, but as soon as she had opened her eyes Inuyasha had shoved some medicine down her throat—a concoction from Jinenji, apparently—and then it was all she could do to wake up and accept meals before passing out again. The medication had worked wonders though. In two weeks her broken ankle was nothing more than a rather sore bruise, and her shoulder only tweaked a little if she put too much strain on it.

She watched Touga's back slowly become smaller as he approached the village easily, checking to see if there was any form of Naraku lurking about in any way, and sighed.

Once she had fully regained her cognitive abilities, the very first thing she noticed was Touga's changed attitude towards her. He was…obsessively protective, barely letting her stand by herself before he was at her side. It was strange because before he was content with the distance between them, and besides a few instances, he respected her strength and independence. He kept his cool whenever he saw danger rush at her. With a huff, she folded her arms and put her back solidly against the tree behind her. Obviously, that thinking had changed.

And Inuyasha had let him be protective. Her best friend in the whole world was pretty much possessive about who got to take care of her. She'd long ago accepted that it was just a demon thing, and dog demon thing at that, but something about his restraint was entirely too suspicious. There was a deal between father and son, and it had to do with her, she just knew it.

Of course, it's not like Touga's sudden intensity wasn't warranted. She fingered her chest lightly, the weight of a curse upon her breast. She'd been asleep when it happened, so she didn't remember the pain, but her friends had been adamant that she'd completely stopped breathing and had started jerking and twitching in agony. All she knew was that when she woke up…there was this pressure on her chest. And since then it hadn't let up. It felt like there was something constantly pressing against her skin. The one time she had gathered enough courage to look at thing, it had been like staring into a black hole, something that sucked up even light.

She shivered lightly at the memory, hunching protectively over her knees. It would figure that Naraku would curse her; it wasn't enough that he was trying to kill all of them, now he had to be creative about it. And then there was the fact that it was a death curse and it had a deadline.

Kagome abruptly shook off the thought, refusing to dwell on such dark musings. She didn't like being reminded that her days were numbered so clearly, and she didn't want to think about how many days she had left because the truth was that she didn't know. Death curses didn't come with the date you were supposed to die stamped across them, so they had no way of knowing when Naraku had planned on her passing on in some brutal fashion. They only knew that it was sooner rather than later since he wasn't playing games anymore. He legitimately wanted her gone.

Her friends had been worried, and as scared as she was, she worried for them too. If Naraku was taking measures to speed up their drawn out battle against each other, it meant that he had a plan in mind. And Naraku with a plan never boded well.

Twisting so that the village was in her sight once again, Kagome squinted her eyes and tried to catch a glimpse of Touga. They'd been traveling undercover for the past week, split off from the rest of the group in hopes of maintaining a level of secrecy from the spider. Touga was certain that if the bastard caught wind of where they were going, he'd do everything in his power to stop them, and even though Kagome had the vain hope that he'd just ignore them, there was a reason he'd targeted Kagome specifically.

She'd proven she was a threat. And Naraku took care of his threats with a precision and accuracy that trapped them with no place to go but the afterlife. One way or another, he was sure to end up with her corpse. The fact that Touga had a loophole to the curse would likely infuriate Naraku to a frothing mess.

As it was though, she had to thank her lucky stars that Touga even knew of a loophole.

"The Witch," Kagome murmured to the trees around her, turning away from the village and sinking deep into her thoughts. He hadn't said much about this mysterious woman, citing that she was the reason he kept ending up with deadly, cursed objects. The biggest one was So'unga, but apparently his past had been peppered liberally with other sinister objects in need of being controlled if not destroyed. His friendship with this witch had spanned centuries, and while he was strangely tight lipped about her, he had assured her that she knew her way around death curses. He could get her to break it.

The only problem was that this witch lived very, very, far away. As in Iwate prefecture far, and their starting point had only been a weeks journey from the well, which was situated in modern day Tokyo. Geography hadn't changed in five hundred years, and Kagome knew that they'd be on the road for two to three months. It would probably take much longer if she had been traveling with humans, but Touga had promised that the second they were in sparsely populated areas, it would be safe enough for him to change into his true form and they could gallop across miles at a time.

For now though, they were forced to disguise themselves for fear of Naraku sighting them. She hoped that their efforts weren't in vain and that the vile spider actually didn't have a clue where they were, prayed for it, but that didn't stop the doubts that clung to her. There was something startling about knowing that you had a set number of days before you died—it made you paranoid and depressed.

Touga, sweet Touga, had done everything he could to distract her from the curse painting her chest like a fat dollop of ink. The seriousness of the situation was never far from his mind, and his eyes were sharp and aware of every detail, but he joked with her. Teased her. Made her blush to the roots of her hair just to keep her mind occupied with something other than her impending demise.

He did everything he could to keep her comfortable, even though they were traveling as peasants, and he made sure to display his strength at every chance he got. He did it to remind her that she was safe with him. He was strong. He was fast. He would protect her and get her through this and she believed him. She knew that they'd get through this. They had to.

She had to.

Sighing gustily, she let herself relax, comforted by thought of having such a strong pillar to lean against. She was scared out of her mind right now. Every aspect of her life—when she would return to the well, who the witch was, what was Naraku going to do, what would her friends do, where Kikyo was—was a complete mystery. She was traveling cross-country to a mysterious woman who would attempt to break a death curse haunting her, and while they were galloping across the nation Naraku was still scheming, the bastard.

And then there was the fact that Touga still had a hunk of jewel imbedded in his chest. She couldn't be the only being in the world that could sense that little tidbit of power. The Inutaisho was practically a walking supernova, and while it made for a handy GPS tracker, that didn't mean that other people weren't going to track them using the same methods.

There were a million reasons for her to worry and the stress was lining her shoulders, neck, and upper back, coiling the muscles into tangles that no amount of stretching was going to relieve. But despite how miserable she felt, she was happy that the dog general was with her. He was completely reliable.

Yet again, she twisted so she could peer at the spattering of houses that marked the beginnings of the village, and tried to find her traveling companion. They'd done a fairly good job on his disguise, and honestly Kagome thought that the only reason that she was ever able to spot him was his height and that distinct aura that said don't touch like nothing else could.

With her mind so occupied, she only registered another's presence when it literally appeared right in front of her face.

"It's sa—"

"EEAAHH!"Kagome shrieked, scrambling to her side and throwing out her hand in defense. The kimono she wore was more restrictive than she was used to though, and while her move was meant to propel her to her feet, instead she did a rather awkward imitation of a seizure, jolted three times, slipped on the leaf strewn ground, and ended up sprawled on her back. She realized it was Touga about the same time that she had power in her hand, and she dismissed the gentle pink glow with a bone deep relief.

Touga, though, was howling.

"Touga!" She cautioned the shaking form, his bellows dropping him to his knees. His hand was up covering his eyes, and his other was madly gesturing to her. "You—and—rabbit," More laughter. Her heart was still hammering from the scare. Like freaking geeze! Even Inuyasha wasn't that quiet! And how had she missed his approach in the first place? She was a priestess dammit and was a good one at that—aura sensing was supposed to be natural, not to mention the jewel!

She swatted at him, dislodging his hat and using it to beat him. She was trying very hard to cloak her embarrassment. Honestly! How on earth was she supposed to prove to Touga that she was capable of defending herself if she went and acted like that? She'd made the perfect image of a damsel in distress, and a klutzy, jumpy one at that. He only fell over to his side, casually plucking the hat from her hands and throwing it some distance away, his hand falling away to reveal eyes dancing with laughter. Kagome flushed a little, but fought it valiantly. He had a really nice smile, she knew, but seeing it in his eyes was even better.

When some time passed and he just continued to laugh, Kagome dropped to her knees and became severely unimpressed. "Okay it was a little funny, but not that funny."

"Yes, it was," Touga wheezed, gripping her waist with his hands and using her to pull himself up. His big hands slid from her waist to the bones of her hips, his head dipping to rest next to hers.

She twitched a little, only a little, and tried to remain calm. He was still faintly chuckling and she felt his hot breath come out in gusts just under her ear. The fine baby hairs at the back of her neck stood ramrod straight and suddenly her mouth felt sticky. She swallowed.

"We are not finished, little bird," he promised.

He'd almost kissed her that night. Hell she'd almost kissed him. And suddenly she was just a little too aware of his proximity. The way his hands felt, big and masculine on her hips, burning through her simple clothes. The fine scratch of stubble with his face so close to her own, scraping along her skin. This close, she could smell the salt on his skin, and his warmth was seeping into her. It didn't help that his shirt was gaping more than usual, and without the armor blocking her way, she had an unobstructed view.

He pulled back suddenly, still grinning like a fool and Kagome averted her gaze quickly to meet his own. She didn't want him to catch her ogling. His eyes drifted to somewhere on her head, though, and he let loose another laugh that melted her insides. There was a tug on her hair, and then pinched between two clawed fingers was a leaf that had woven itself in the strands. It was slightly brown, and crinkling from the coming cold that signified the winter, a little pitiful looking but still pretty. He twirled it lazily before tossing it to the ground, his eyes tracking its fluttering progress.

And Kagome kept her eyes trained on his smiling lips.

I want to kiss you.

"Kagome?"

"H-how was the village?" Kagome asked far too quickly and far too shrilly, bolting to her feet and hiding behind the guise of brushing down her clothes and searching for other leaves. She knew she was red, could feel the heat burn her cheeks and ears, but she couldn't help her thoughts.

Touga was handsome. Handsome and masculine and interested in her. Usually he was the one to make the moves, and she liked that. She liked the feeling of being dominated without being smothered, liked the way that he took charge of a situation and forced her to look at him. For the longest time she didn't really know what to do about his advances, feigning obliviousness in most cases to escape embarrassment. She was a relationship rookie and she was terrified that she'd blunder he way through and make a fool out of herself. After having him hold her in such a high regard she didn't want to disappoint him.

What she hadn't counted on was her hormones. She'd gotten used to his advances. Sort of. She'd let him say what he wanted, let him push the boundaries and take liberties that she'd never offered anyone else, and in return she'd stutter and blush and lightly, ever so lightly, flirt back with him.

Lord she didn't know what she was doing. But she was curious and he was willing and it was so tempting, dipping her toes into those waters. She was an adult now—maybe not in her world but after going through the feudal era? She was a new woman. And adults were adult enough to acknowledge things, and Kagome was woman enough to not only notice the sexual tension charging the air around them like a nebula, but to also start thinking naughty thoughts about reciprocating that tension.

Like she said: she hadn't counted on her hormones. He was doing his damndest to seduce her (she wasn't oblivious) and it was working, but now she was wondering what would happen if she tried to seduce him. Of course, she didn't really know how to go about something like that, and there was still enough of a virgin in her that curiosity aside she still had that genuine "omigod-wtf-how-do-I-deal" feeling tagging along with such thoughts.

And then something like this happened. Things where she saw him when he wasn't looking, when he was just doing something that made her heart warm with affection, and then an urge came over her that she was hard pressed to ignore. The only thing that stopped her was fear. If she did kiss him, would they take it too far? She wasn't ready for all out sex, or anything even remotely close to it. The only thing she thought she could manage was a make-out session, but how do you take that step casually? And then there was the fact that Touga wasn't human, happened to have two women already in his past, and also managed to die. Would kissing him basically mean they were engaged? And how did demon culture factor in to everything, anyway?

And then there was the whole issue with Izayoi. Kagome didn't think that…well she didn't think that Touga was in a state of mourning anymore, though she had no idea how that was accomplished. But if his whole-hearted approach to her had said anything, then he was well and ready to dive into the dating pool once again. She thinks? Maybe? What if Kagome was just a fling?

Too many thoughts, too many questions, so she did what she usually did and shut them all up, shoving them somewhere in her head to pull out later and examine when she caught her breath. The only issue now was that she had other demons to battle. There wasn't exactly anything cheerful to think about lately, and her current situations, all their situations, were rather grim. Which was why she was happy for distractions. Rather unfortunately, (or fortunately?) Touga's version of "distraction" was actually blatant, shameless seduction.

Which brought her right back to stuttering like an idiot, and then once his back was turned, she'd notice something about him that made her want to do something stupid. She'd see the broad lines of his shoulders and suddenly she wanted to jump on his back, fling her arms around his neck, and surprise him. Another one, which she almost did actually do, was the inexplicable urge to bite the very tip of his ear. She wanted to braid his hair too. And kiss the hollow his throat, right there above his collar bones.

It made her blush seven different shades of cherry, but it was better than thinking about the other stuff. At least thinking about jumping Touga's bones was sorting the jumbled thoughts in her head. All the depressing stuff was depressing mostly because she couldn't do a damned thing about it.

"I think we'll get a treat tonight, actually," Touga said, bringing Kagome out of her rapid thoughts and back to the present. He'd risen to his feet as well, towering over her as he turned his eyes speculatively towards the encampment of humans. "There's an inn not too far from the village entrance, so we'll be able to bathe." There was obvious relief in his voice, and Kagome could understand why.

Traveling in the feudal era as she was, she'd gotten used to forgoing her cleanliness, sometimes traveling a good four days without a bath. In fact the only reason why her group tended to bathe more regularly than the average human was because they were always fighting demons, ergo, they usually ended up with some demon insides spattered all over them. If it weren't for that, Kagome was sure she'd be going weeks at a time without washing her hair. The very thought made her shiver!

She didn't know how Touga was holding up with that nose of his—she knew she must stink—so hearing that they'd be able to get clean again was a welcome relief. Banishing the last of her naughty thoughts, she bent to pick up the straw hat that had been flung away in their little episode, and gave it back to Touga. The dog general took it with thanks, placing it on his head and grumbling all the while. "Can't wait to let my hair down," he complained mildly, scowling into nothing.

Kagome had to agree. Her own hair was in its usual ponytail, but it itched and she had that achiness that came with having your hair up for too long.

She brushed herself down one again, this time for real, and straightened the lines of her simple kimono from her scare. She wrinkled her nose down at the dark purple cloth, sparsely decorated with flower design around the hem and breathed deep, her ribcage straining against the pale green obi. She'd never cared much for formal attire besides her priestess clothing, even in the modern era. Sure, dressing up had been nice and made her feel pretty, and back at the shrine it was totally fine with all the festivals and stuff, but in the past it was different.

It was just so damn restrictive.

She'd had to shorten her strides to deal with the amount of length the kimono afforded her, and the stiffness of the material had done well to prevent her from relaxing. The obi had outright refused to be bent into a more flexible state, taking away her luxury of lounging. Her back was getting all achy from keeping it straight for so long.

At least it wasn't summer. She didn't even want to think about what all these layers would mean in heat that could kill insects. The brief chills of wind that promised winter was coming were relief to her confined limbs.

As the two of them set off towards the human settlement, Kagome thought mulishly that the only real bone she had to pick was the fact that they'd had to leave her backpack behind. It was far too noticeable for undercover work, and when their lives could depend on how well they blended in, Touga was adamant that she simply adapt to regular human customs of the age, abandoning any and all extra baggage.

Which meant no underwear. While it was spectacularly freeing not to have a bra digging into the underside of her breasts, the increased ventilation between her legs was startlingly discomfiting. That and no shampoo. The time traveler mourned her modern commodities, thinking longingly of her cherry blossom scented soaps, loofahs, and razors. She shivered with mild horror at the idea of armpit hair that would surely make an appearance, and nothing compared to the absolutely mortifying reality of her period without tampons and pads.

She didn't even know what women of this age did to deal with that particular feminine problem. The stress of figuring it out before Aunt Flow came along was immense, and the absolute last thing that she wanted to do was to involve Touga in it. She'd gotten used to the idea that Inuyasha could smell when both she and Sango were experiencing what the women of this era referred to as their "red flower" or the "arrival of the honorable moon", but that didn't mean that it wasn't awkward as hell. Though Inuyasha did an absolutely stunning job at simply ignoring what both women were sure was an unbearable stench, even going so far as being sensitive to their need for breaks and hot springs, she really didn't want to think about the same situation with Touga.

She knew it was inevitable. She knew that she couldn't magically stop her body from being her body. And she knew that, most probably, Touga would just ignore it.

But. It. Was. Going. To. Suck.

And even more so for her if she couldn't figure out how to rig together a makeshift pad or a tampon or something. She grumbled, mentally biting her nails, and could only thank her lucky stars that at least her under kimono was scarlet. He may be able to smell it, but at least the visual evidence would be invisible when it came to washing her clothing.

But as much as she dreaded these new problems, a large part of her was rather curious. Just how did girls deal with all these things? She highly doubted that geisha would walk around with unshaven legs and armpits—it was unthinkable to Kagome. She knew that razors were around and in well use since she saw many higher ranking men with clean faces.

It was these thoughts that led her to flicker her eyes over everything as they entered the large village. It was quite a bit bigger than the ones that she was used to, and while it didn't have a wall like the greater cities that she had yet to visit (strange considering how many years they'd been chasing Naraku) it was still of a rather good size. She imagined that there were quite a few inns to be had in this place, and the bustle around her from farmers and the more well off citizens dazzled her.

When she was in the group they had mostly avoided places like these on principle. They had stuck out far too much. Two holy people, two demons, and a woman with a giant boomerang on her back along with Inuyasha was just…not going to work.

But with her priestess attire nowhere in sight, and with Touga leading the way in his humble outfit, they blended in seamlessly.

"Kagome," Touga called, steering her back to his side after she had unknowingly drifted in the direction of her gaze. She corrected her step easily and grinned up at him. "Sorry." His eyes gleamed under the wide brim of his hat, and he offered her a toothy smile. "Someone wants to sight-see."

She shrugged and continued to look around. There were stalls set up in a way that reminded her of a flea market, sometimes even a blanket spread out to display wares. Things dazzled at her from one side of the street where the merchants loudly tried to draw in customers, from things like food to shiny bits of metal that made decorative hair pins. "I haven't been a village of this size for a while. We always stuck to back roads and avoided settlements."

Touga hummed. "I'll have to take you to an actual city someday," he commented, taking her by the elbow and tugging her down another street, expertly dodging around a rickshaw. "They're much cleaner, and offer some of the best entertainment."

"I've only seen paintings," Kagome mused. "There wasn't any sort of photographic technology so we only had paintings to rely on, and the style sometimes distorted what it might have looked like."

"So you have no idea what a large city would look like?" Touga sounded a little surprised. He'd thought that with all of the futures wondrous technology that they would have been able to see something as simple as their past cities. Kagome looked thoughtful. "They've recreated what the past looked like in movie sets," Touga nodded his head, having already thoroughly explored the idea of moving pictures. "But I imagine there are some things that have gotten lost over time. Like…hey, actually, how do you guys brush your teeth?"

Now that she didn't have her toothbrush, she'd like to know. Touga only shrugged. "I don't need to." Kagome gave him a flat look. "Are you telling me that your saliva cleans your teeth for you?"

He looked thoughtful, slowing his steps as he pondered the idea. He'd never bothered to figure out why his teeth had never decayed before, but now that Kagome was pointing it out, he didn't actually know. After a few moments, he frowned down at the beautiful woman, raised a brow, and offered an unsure, "Bacteria?"

She huffed, scratching the back of her neck, and then lowered her voice. "You demons get all the cool stuff. Clothes that don't get dirty, no terrible smelling body odor, great hair, cool eyes, and now you have a self operating dental regime."

He laughed at her disgruntled tone, leaning down to murmur in her ear. "I know very few demons who could incinerate beings into ash, little bird." He could tell by the way that she stiffened that she was resisting the temptation to rub where his breath had brushed against her skin. He reveled in her discomfort, knowing that his compliments were having an effect on her, and walked up to the inn that they would be staying at.

Kagome was still in the process of contemplating if violence was considered a turn on for demons, or at least some kind of weird foreplay, when two people came out of the inn and greeted them. "Ah," One of them said, a little apologetically. "I'm afraid that we don't have room for you two."

"Oh?" Touga tilted his head in a questioning manner. The other person nodded, and Kagome shook herself out of her musings to think that they were the innkeepers. "We have an influx of merchants and customers coming to trade, for the coming cold season, you see, and the inns are quickly filling up."

"You don't have a single room open?"

"Forgive the misunderstanding," the first one replied. "We have several single rooms open, but no joint rooms available for your companion. I'm sure you understand."

Kagome went through several different thought processes at once. The first was why they had to stay in a joint room. What was wrong with staying across the hall or something? But then she remembered that most unmarried women were strictly chaperoned and that being across the hall from one another might reflect badly on Touga. After rolling her eyes at ancient customs, she then wondered why no one assumed that they were a couple. It was the logical thing to think—a man and a woman traveling together—before she remembered that married women were usually identified with shortened kimono sleeves and demure colors, leaving their more brightly colored, eye catching ways behind them. They probably thought she was Touga's charge, or sister or something.

Brief irritation at their predicament followed, targeted at the strange societal norms of this time and their ridiculous regard for reputation, and then resignation swiftly took its place. Fine then, they'd just have to troop off to another inn and—

"Oh there's no need for worry," Touga was stating cheerfully. "This is my wife."

Kagome's brain abruptly ground to a halt.

Touga looked to her with an expression that was far too gleeful, a mischievous glimmer in his eyes that she could do little but to gape at. His attitude, however, betrayed nothing to the innkeepers, instead looking at her as if she was the crazy one.

Their audience turned their attention to her, clearly expecting her to confirm Touga's totally unexpected (outlandish, completely uncalled for, did she mention crazy) statement. Heart pounding a little in her chest, and very aware of the tomato red flush that was painted high on her cheeks, she turned her eyes downwards and constantly flickered them up to (a smiling the bastard) Touga, to the inn-keepers, and then back down to her feet as she stammered out her response. "Umm...y-yes," Why did she say yes?! "Touga isn't-is-my, my umm..."

Just because she could clinically examine the thought processes of the time didn't mean that she was prepared for someone to actually believe that they were married! Oh my god, did Touga even think about what that would mean if they were viewed as an actual couple? She'd have to share meals, which wasn't so bad, but they'd have to keep up appearances. That meant walking three steps behind him in public, and shit she'd have actually climb into bed with him!

Touga had to seriously try to contain the laughter that was trying desperately to break free, but as it was he couldn't help the wide, suppressed smile that stole over his lips at his little bird's dilemma. Her entire face and the tips of her exposed ears were bright pink.

Shit, shit, shit, shit, Kagome thought crudely. There was no way she could refute his statement. It would look awkward as hell, and then they'd have to come up with another story and go looking for another inn, where they would likely encounter the same problem. Mentally bracing herself, she figured that since she'd already instinctually agreed she'd go with the flow now, and chew him out later. She needed warning for stuff like this!

Still, even after agreeing to the plan, the words were hard to choke out. "He's uh...he's, well, he's m-my hu-hu- husband." She finally got out in squeak, although it sounded almost like a question at the end.

Grinning like a fool (an evil fool, Kagome thought), he swung his beaming gaze back to the inn-keepers, tugging Kagome over with a hand on her elbow. She tripped a little, unused to the unnaturally small steps that the demure, pretty kimono was forcing her to take. She stumbled into his side, and being so much taller than her, he took advantage and draped his arm across her back and held her to him. "You see?" he implored of the two people standing before them, on the porch of their establishment. "We're married. Newlyweds, actually. Sharing the single room you have left won't be an issue at all," he said genially, and the two inn-keepers looked to each other and nodded, beckoning them inside, not about to turn away paying customers.

Oh, gawd, Kagome thought desperately, completely flustered. She couldn't believe that Touga had just done that! Without any warning, or prior planning too! Face bright red, she looked up to Touga once their host's backs were turned, intending to give him a piece of her mind in a hissed, whispered breath that no one else would be able to hear.

But her mouth abruptly closed at the familiar gleam in his eyes, and her blush increased ten-fold. It would figure, she would think later, that he wouldn't stop the whole Seduce Kagome Plan even on the road and with the threat of death hanging between them. If anything, Touga was single minded in his focus.

As it was, she only twitched a little. It was the same gleam that he had when she'd walked in on him changing. The same sneaky, heated gleam that he had leveled her with when he realized that she had been the Peeping Tom. They'd had to change into their disguises, and while he had procured fresh clothing from Myoga, his spares were still disgustingly wealthy. She had walked in the same direction as him unknowingly and caught him shucking his shirt, and untying his pants. She'd been rooted to the spot, and as she watched the play of light along his liquid muscles for however long, he had abruptly turned around and looked right at her.

In hindsight, he probably knew she had been there the entire time. She hadn't been exactly stealthy in her approach, and her intake of air at the sight of him undressing hadn't been subtle either. And, embarrassingly, she had the suspicion that the only reason he had turned around and looked so damn smug was because he could smell…smell how…well, she'd been aroused.

I practically fainted when I saw him undress, she railed in her mind. How the hell am I going to spend the night with him!?

Scowling up at the back of his neck, willing the hairs there to rise like he so often did to her, she had no way of knowing the grin that was stretching his mouth. A grin that was less of a smile and more of a baring of teeth.

As they were led down the hall they passed the baths, and after Touga's assurance that he would collect her and escort her back to their room after she was done, Kagome made her escape. The innkeepers had promised that her clothes would be washed while she cleaned herself, and that a yukata would be waiting for her to change into. So safe in the knowledge that she wasn't going to have to bolt down the hall naked, she ducked under the cloth hangings and into the bath.

There was a sectioned off area where she shed her clothing, tossing the ribbon that held up her hair into the basket as an afterthought, and grabbed one of the small rags that they offered. Several women looked up at her when she stepped down into the bathing area, but most of them went back to their business after a quick once over.

Kagome had long gotten over her shyness. Traveling like nomads with her little group for almost four years had practically killed her modesty—one too many times when Inuyasha had come charging to the rescue when she'd so much as squeaked might have had something to do with it as well. Still though, she felt a momentary embarrassment of her naked flesh in front of so many women before determinedly ignoring it and snagging an open stool.

She…hadn't used a bath like this before. Of course she and her friends had visited traditional baths, but those had running faucets and an array of soaps. The baths here contained buckets, a trough where water was contained and that you filled your own bucket with, and no sort of soaps in sight. Quickly looking around, she noticed several women pouring sand into their buckets by the basin, and others were gathering around another water basin, this one seemingly exclusively for their hair.

After a moment of deliberation, she picked up an abandoned bucket, noticing the wet sand sludge stuck at the bottom, and went to fill her bucket, adding a little more sand for good measure. She dipped her fingers into the water on her way back to the stool and frowned at the temperature. It was pretty cold.

Sitting back down on her stool, she dunked her rag into the water, and as she scanned the room, she realized why there weren't even ancient versions of soap.

It seemed that her ancestors were cleaned by way of abrasion. She wrinkled her nose at the prospect before scooping up some sand into the rag and slapped it onto her arm. The granules scrapped against her skin as she began to move the rag, and after a few more glances that this is what she was supposed to do, she did it more confidently. The sand left her skin pink and raw, far too sensitive to shifts in the air or the brush of her hair, so she pinned up the black mass with a hair stick that was just lying around. She assumed the inn must provide them because other women were similarly plucking them from the wooden ground.

Sure of her movements, Kagome let her mind wander. Their new circumstance was forcing her to pull thing she'd rather have stuffed away up and examine them under the microscope. Now that she and Touga were going to be playing the part of man and wife—because she knew Touga and if there was anything she'd learned it was that he was a tactician; every move had more than one bonus and playing the married couple was sure to get them out of sticky situations. He'd probably been planning to spring this on her all along—they would have to share a bed. Touga was honorable and she knew that he wouldn't touch her if she didn't want to be touched, but that was the whole problem. Kagome bit her lip and smiled a bit shakily. Touga knew how to seduce someone, because Kagome almost wanted him to touch her. She was still afraid enough to not do something stupid, but it was undeniable.

She was still a little angry at him for that whole thing. Now that they were shoved into this situation, she had no doubt that honorable or no, Touga was going to press the advantage. Which begged her own question: was she going to retaliate? She had a serious hunch that if she started to play his game then there wasn't going to be any sort of backing out. No chickens. No do-overs. Hell she felt that she already was in the game. If this whole seduction thing was a board game, Touga had been rolling the dice again and again while she stared on in fascinated, blushing, horror.

The thought made her prickle a little. She didn't like being the damsel. Actually she hated it. She'd worked hard to become independent and trained with her weapons, worked hard at inserting herself into her group so that she was part of the fighting unit. The idea that she'd just sort of sat there and blushed kind of irked her, especially since it was true. She was a grown ass woman! She should act like one!

So how to analyze this? How far did she want to go, exactly?

Was she just in it for the sex?

Kagome openly snorted at that thought. No, she was too emotionally invested in Touga himself to just be in it for carnal pleasures, and she'd like to think that it was the same for him. She'd saved the man's life, after all, and then he'd gone and saved hers. They'd had this whole sexual tension going on ever since he'd been brought back from the dead, and while some part of her screamed happily at the idea of acting on all the dirty things she'd been imagining, how much more did she want? More than just sex? More than just a casual relationship?

Kagome's eyes went a little distant, her motions slowing down as she dug into that thought. The answer was…yes. Yes, she wanted more than just sex. And yeah, she wanted more than just a casual relationship. It was obvious, at least to her, that Touga wasn't treating this as something to be trifled with. By human standards, that is. She had no idea what a demon would consider a casual relationship. But…she knew that Touga respected her too much to treat her as a fling. I mean…she had saved his life. Surely that warranted some sort of points in her favor, as far as her quality went.

The thought sent a thrill through her. That's right, Touga respected her. He wouldn't be sending all these messages if he weren't serious, right? So…so that meant that they had a chance for…for more. Like, they could actually be an item. A couple. Maybe even one day, if it progressed nicely, they could even fall in love.

Kagome abruptly shook the thought from her mind. Too fast, too fast, just focus on the little pieces.

By the time she'd gotten back to reality her skin resembled a lobster's, and she had gotten her back as well as one could hope. Kagome then delicately scrubbed her face and rinsed herself off. Following the example of the others she emptied her bucket, sand and all, and went and filled it at the other basin. This one had a slightly sour scent to it, and was cloudy. She half remembered some trivia from ages ago when her friend Yuka mentioned that women cleaned their hair with fermented rice water, back before the wondrous age of shampoo and the like.

It would make sense that the inn would offer it, since they must go through quite a bit of rice providing meals for their guests.

Now that she knew what the milky substance was, she didn't feel too apprehensive about putting it into her precious hair. Apparently it was supposed to be really good for it anyways. Seeing as how her stool was now occupied, Kagome just sat on her knees and removed the hair pin, letting her inky hair pool into the bucket. She washed it as well as she could, considering the circumstances, digging her nails deep into her tresses and scraping along her scalp. She had no idea how well it was going to clean, and she had to admit she wasn't fond of the smell, as subtle as it was.

So...how to go about this? She felt like Touga had done move after move after move, and all she'd done was sit and stagnate. Now that she'd fully realized her wants, and now that she could clearly see the potential between them, not to mention the hope that had ignited in her chest, what was she going to do? How exactly does one go about reciprocating a demon's advances? How did she seduce the seducer?

She wanted to come off as sexy, for sure, but she didn't quite know how to do that. She'd danced in front of her mirror at the house, but those instances had been few and far between. Most of the years that teen girls start exploring their sexuality was spent literally fighting for her life. Where other girls had spent time perfecting poses for pictures, she'd been fighting off poison. Where other girls had learned to do their hair and slant there eye just right, she'd been escaping from burning buildings. She'd been kidnapped, beaten, nearly drowned, and criss-crossed with faint scars.

How the hell did someone like her learn to be sexy of all things? And furthermore, what kind of sexy was she? Yuka was pretty headstrong, preferring to be upfront and rather in your face about her wants. She'd seen her friend work heels. Eri was more of a flirtatious type, more cutesy with pink frills kind of girl. And Ayumi…actually, she had no clue about her friend, but if she had to guess she'd peg her as the "innocent type".

Kagome didn't think she fit the bill for any of those. She wasn't the headstrong, pull-a-man-by-his-tie girl, and neither was she flirtatious or innocent. She was too…too jaded for those to be honest.

She could see herself being subtle though. Little things, things that she knew she was doing that maybe he didn't always know that she was doing it purposely. She liked to be considered regal, maybe even a bit untouchable if she could manage that. Like…like a geisha. She'd always admired the cool, distant sensuality that geisha's pulled off, like stars in the night sky. Yeah…like a geisha. She could try and emulate a geisha couldn't she? Maybe? Wait. Weren't they in training since they were children?

Kagome suppressed a groan, taking her hair out of the bucket and trying to wring the most water out of it as she could. Okay, maybe not like a geisha. She could still try, but she didn't think being exactly like one of those cold beauties were in the cards for her. She was too much of a spit-fire, too rambunctious and curious for that. Caught in her dilemma, she twisted her hair back up into a bun and cast her eye towards the soak tub. It would be fantastic to ease herself into the heat, especially after a long days travel, but the bath was crowded and she was hungry.

But at the same time she didn't quite want to go back yet. She needed a game plan. So a little resigned to brush shoulders with strangers, Kagome made her way over to the steaming water and lowered herself in. The women kindly made room for her, and though she saw more than one eye her back and recoil in horror, she tried her best to ignore it.

Sango…Sango had said that it had scarred rather badly. She could feel the raised skin on her back when she touched it, but without the aid of a mirror she couldn't see the full damage. Removing the arrow had been a mess, and it had torn her flesh in a ragged starburst, as Sango had explained. Even Jinenji's medicine hadn't been enough to save her this fate, so she tried her best to ignore its existence. She idly fingered the scar on her front, where the arrow had entered, and forced her thoughts back to Touga.

She hoped that he wouldn't mind her scars. He was a warrior. He should know what someone risked when they chose that path.

And that brought her back to how she was supposed to seduce him. She could probably work this whole marriage predicament to her advantage, just like him. He would probably expect her to be in an embarrassed rage when she finally got back to the room. She could throw him, she was sure. She could…welcome the idea of being seen as a couple. It would catch him off balance for sure, and she inwardly cackled at catching the great Inutaisho unawares, but for this to work she'd need a logical explanation to go along with it.

She didn't have to go far to find her reasons. Being seen as husband and wife had many advantages. She now had an excuse to be close to Touga at all times, and sharing a room would give them the privacy they needed to discuss more prevalent, curse related issues and spider bastards without fear. It also would afford her some protection. If men thought she was taken they wouldn't approach her with their suites. Akitoki Hojo hadn't been the only man to declare his intention to marry her, and now she'd have a legitimate (sort of) reason to turn them down. No one would question a couple traveling together on the roads, either.

Kagome briefly wondered if her sudden courage to reciprocate with Touga had stemmed from the curse on her chest. Was the threat of death making her act…bolder?

She shook off the thoughts and let them roll out of her conscious. No, it was about time that she responded to Touga. She'd been dancing around him for ages now, and it wasn't fair. To either of them.

Speaking of the curse though, she mildly wondered why no one was screaming at it. Humans weren't particularly knowledgeable about the dark magic and demonic practices, but death curses were apparently universal. It made her wonder why no one was freaking out. Scanning the bath, she noticed that most of them were engaged in a heated debate about whether a man that had come into the inn was single or not, and paid her little mind. She decided that it would be better to leave now, before any of them realized what was on her and they panicked.

Rising from the bath water Kagome quickly made her escape, casually placing a hand on her chest to cover the mark as she bolted for the safety of the platform that would raise her to where the yukatas were set out and waiting. She snagged one and dressed quickly, grateful that the casual attire still cross high enough the mark was well hidden. She eyed the small stash of rags before shrugging and grabbing one to absorb the last of the moisture from her hair.

She'd had to use the yukata as a makeshift towel for her body, seeing as how the inn hadn't supplied any, and while she was slightly damp, she knew her hair would soak her if she didn't take care of it. Bending over she undid the pin and scrunched the strands with the cloth.

After a few minutes her hair was still damp, so she did it back up again and resigned herself to leaving it like that. She took a moment to compose herself, ordering her thoughts and calming herself down. She had a plan now, or rather the idea of one. Reciprocate. She could do that. She could show Touga that she was as interested in him as he was in her. Right?

Thinking of his towering frame, his gleaming golden eyes, and the power that came from him like a crouched tiger ready to spring made her flutter with nervousness. But still, she really, really liked Touga. Surely, somehow, she could translate those feelings into actions couldn't she?

Maybe she had jumped the gun a little, heading straight for seduction. She should probably start small, little things like…like holding hands or just…just…touching him more, she supposed. Skinmanship. Being comfortable with physical contact. At the moment she jumped whenever he so much as brushed passed her.

Kagome felt significantly calmer with this idea. Sure, her hormones were screaming but while her lust happily battled her logic, her brain was quite content to remind her that she wasn't ready to give up her v-card yet.

…Yet.

So yeah, she could increase their physical contact. That couldn't be that hard, could it? She'd just casually start touching him more—a pat on the shoulder here, maybe finally get her hands on his hair like she'd been wanting to, holding onto his arm when they walked. Nothing too obvious but not so painfully innocent that he wouldn't take notice.

Smiling, Kagome stepped out of the bathing area and into the hall.

Yeah. She could do that.

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A/N: So...whatcha think? Comment? Review? SPEAK TO ME! Anywho this chappy was inspired by reading hundreds, nay, thousands of other Inuyasha, Naruto, and pretty much any fanfics that always, ALWAYS, have the heroine a blushing little idiot. Not that I don't happen to love those things to pieces. I know. I have no shame. Put it on t-shirt and send it to me (no seriously, do that. I want one so that everyone who meets me can't say that all the dangers, side-effects, and potential hazards of becoming my friend weren't clearly labeled on the package.)

Back on subject. Focus. So yeah, I like to think that in the real world people tend to give equal contribution to a relationship, otherwise it tends to make like dynamite and blow up in your face. And also...to all the dudes out there...women have hormones, too. Don't think we don't think about doing the dirty every once in a while. We just happen to be crazy manipulative, smart, or sometimes neither but either way we end up a-tumbling between the sheets.

That being said-go Kagome! May our fine, perfectly human heroine face the terrors of sex for the first time! Willingly! With results! Huzzah!

And y'all seemed to enjoy the Sneak Peek, so I guess I'll be continuing them, won't I?

SNEAK PEEK:

"How much do you know of the Jewel of Four Souls?" Inuyasha said. His voice was hollow to match the listless, vapid emptiness behind his eyes, and as he spoke he lazily pierced every occupant of the room and pinned them with that gaze. His throat felt dry like paper under a hot sun, and his lungs burned with every shaky inhale. His breath rattling like small bones in a clay pot, and it seemed like every time he let go of that breath he hacked up something other than air. Blood was soaking his shirt, and he watched it pool onto the strange, perfectly white square tiles of Kagome's modern kitchen. The scarlet sludge was inching it's way through the grout, and for a second all he could think about were the red hexagons that scattered his brother's sleeves.

"Inuyasha..." Kagome's mother inched forward, but he stopped her with a look. "It will heal."

"But a hospital would-"

"Know I'm not human," he finished tiredly. He saw the others, the three human girls that Kagome called friends and one, totally unfamiliar boy, chew on that thought. The girls seemed to be going into some kind of shock, and the boy only swallowed thickly. He could tell they were all afraid of him, and who would be after his outburst? He'd snarled.

"But...but you were Kagome's boyfriend." Inuyasha looked to one of the girls, he couldn't remember her name, and kicked up one corner of his lips in a strange half smile. "I still don't get what that means, girl. I'm not Kagome's anything. But she's mine."

"Where is my granddaughter?" the old man croaked, his voice as hoarse as Inuyasha's. The half demon turned his gaze away from the girl, who seemed to be struggling to swallow the concept of demonic ownership and the social norms of pack life. He sighed, and then coughed up some blood. He ran his tongue over his teeth, cleaning them as best as he could. "You still haven't answered my question. How much do you know about that stupid jewel?"

"What does it matter?" Souta questioned. There was a fear in the boys eyes, like he might know what was happening. "Where's Kagome?"

"Fuck," Inuyasha muttered, leaning his head back against the counter that was supporting him. If he hadn't already been slumped across the floor, then he would have needed to find a seat. "She really didn't tell you anything, did she?"

Inuyasha wondered if it was wise to let them know the truth. Kagome had taken extreme pains to keep her family in the dark, and as far as he knew her friends were completely unaware of the nature of the well itself. Was it the right thing to do, letting them in on the secret? Letting them know about the jewel and Naraku and...and everything, really?

But he's already come this far, and if anything, as Kagome's pack master and her protector, the family deserved to know. The fact that other people were here didn't matter anymore. They'd already watched him haul his bleeding, busted up body through the door and stain a red trail to his current position. They already knew he wasn't what he seemed. Licking his lips, distantly and desperately wishing for water, Inuyasha opened his mouth and said the worst possible thing at the worst possible moment, true to his blunt, horribly simplified fashion.

"There's a chance," he whispered. "That Kagome won't be coming back."

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Review please! Oh! and IMPORTANT NOTICE: I have created a tumbr account and nothing would please more more if you would check it out and add a couple of things. I have a place where you can ask tons of questions, and another submissions link where you can upload fan art! Which I really, REALLY want! Like, a lot! So come and follow me! I'm under the name ruby-mmxiv :D Look forward to seeing you all! Love ya!

-Ruby