Disclaimer: I didn't get him for Christmas, after all.. But I'll always own his plushie. O.o; Anyways, no one but the agents and strippers are mine.

A/N: After reading a story my boyfriend wrote, I felt I had to write. He's such a great writer, and I look up to his ability in so many ways. I need to work on not rushing things quite as much, then maybe I can rank up there with him. We recently had our one-year anniversary, too! I love you, Daniel.

As for the fanfic.. Be prepared for some sappy moments, mixed in with some angst, though it didn't turn out as sad as I wanted it to.. -.-; I just kept getting distracted by MAD TV. -cough.-

Baby, I'm going to die tonight,

But as long as you know I love you, it'll be alright.

'Live everyday as your last', as they say,

And please tell me you love me one more time today.

Inu-Yasha looked down at the boy draped across his legs, sighing softly. Poor Souta had fainted upon seeing his hero back, and Inu-Yasha ended up sitting on the couch, the kid lying across his lap. Kirara sat beside Shippou on the floor, while Kagome poured some milk into a saucer for her. "This is great!" Shippou grinned ear-to-ear, glancing from Kirara, to the badge, hair tie, and collar on the table. Kagome put the saucer in front of Kirara, though her eyes were on the three slightly-glowing objects.

"Mmhmm.." she agreed, though her tone showed that she was distracted. Tomorrow, she would make her wish.. And she wouldn't get another chance. It had to fix everything..

"Kagome.. Something wrong?" Inu-Yasha looked at her with a calculating gaze, blinking. She turned slightly to look at him, shaking her head.

"No.. No, it's okay.. Just thinking about tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Oh, the wish, hm? What will you wish for..?" Kagome moved over to the couch, sitting beside Inu-Yasha and leaning against his side. He tilted his head against hers, looking down at the unconscious sibling in his lap. The wish would effect everyone; he knew it.

"I dunno.. I.. I don't want to think anymore tonight.." She closed her eyes as if to block out the world. All her contemplating about Agent Smith being Inu-Yasha or not had worn her out. She was so emotionally stressed that she couldn't help but want to break down and cry on the shoulder of the man she loved.

He was Inu-Yasha, right?

So, she should be happy.. She should be wanting to bond with him, to love him...

Yet she realized that Agent Smith haunted her memories more...

Kagome's eyes snapped open. Of course Inu-Yasha means more to me than him.. Seeing as they act exactly the same, except Agent Smith has more knowledge of the modern times.. she thought, stiffening.

"Kagome?" Inu-Yasha tilted his head to look at her face. The tender look caused her eyes to begin to water, though she blinked to keep it from becoming noticeable.

"N-nothing.." Kagome shook her head and sat up with her spine erect, losing physical contact with Inu-Yasha. He could sense the sadness in her, feel the stiffening. He worried that they were drifting apart and wondered if things would ever be the same between them. Did they need to talk about what would happen? He also wanted to talk about her stripping, but he assumed that after the wish would be made, that she would never do it again. Nor would he ever be in the body of another man with the same face.

Shippou and Kirara played on the floor, the television flickering in front of them, though the sound was muted. An herbal essences commercial flashed on the screen, which Kagome saw from the corner of her eye, and thanked the gods that Inu-Yasha could not hear the moans of the women on screen. Whether he would freak, or become aroused, she did not want to bother with it at the moment.

"Oi, Kagome.. Why do you seem so tense?" Inu-Yasha's voice snapped Kagome from her thoughts, and her eyes slowly focused back on his calculating gaze.

"Gomen ne, Inu-Yasha.. Just thinking." He blinked, though did not push the subject, instead only crossing his arms and letting out a trademark 'keh'. After another moment of silence, where he watched the rise and fall of Souta's chest, and his ears flicked towards the sounds of Shippou and Kirara, as well as Kagome's breathing, he felt the need to voice his thoughts.

"You seem.. more distant than usual." Kagome stiffened again, then sighed, turning tired eyes on his lively golden ones. Inu-Yasha realized just how much this was affecting the teenager. The bags under her eyes, the way her hair seemed so much thinner from her lack of food, the way her eyes had become so dull.. They were all reminders of the past. Of how much he had screwed up.

"Gomen.." Her lips twitched in a small smile. " I promise I won't be.. I'll make it all okay, somehow." Kagome slowly lifted her hand from her lap, sliding it down his arm, until it reached his hand. She then entwined her fingers gently with his, mindful of his claws, and leaned against him as he gently squeezed her hand.

'You always protected me.. And always made everything okay, now matter how bad the odds. This time, Inu-Yasha.. This time, I'll be the one to make it okay..'

-------------------------------------------

Agent Holmes had finally returned to herself, having tripped over the couch as Sango in rage, and landing on the badge. Agent Bates, on the other hand, fumed over his cup of coffee, muttering of the dangers of PMS. Of course, Agent Holmes heard this, which earned him another bump on his head, adding to his anger. Needless to say, breakfast in that apartment was very tense.

Agent Holmes finger combed her ponytail idly, while flipping through the latest paperwork, though not really paying attention to the words. They were not any closer to finding out the hide-out to the rapist gang, though they had ruled out several alleyways that were clear. Her mind was occupied with the team member before her, though, and how their relationship was interfering with her work. Work was supposed to come first; it paid the bills, bought her clothes, her jewelry.. The work was her life.

Was the stress of mixing work with play worth it?

"So, we meet Agent Smith at Erotic Pleasures to exchange information, ne?" The female agent kept her back to Agent Bates, every muscle tense. She could feel his eyes watching her, glaring holes into her spine. The only response she received was silence, but it mattered not, for she already knew the answer was yes. The question was merely in hopes to melt away a layer of ice between them.

Was she going to leave him today..? Was it just not worth it..? She seemed so confused about their relationship, confused on where they were going. For now, however, she was only going to focus on their case.

"C'mon.. We need to get our files together and go." She finally glanced back at him, only to find him unmoving. Slowly, his arm began to lower, until the chipped bottom of his glass coffee mug settled on the table before him. The tip of his tongue cleaned away the remnants of his morning brew, but his eyes were still fixed on his current lover. He just could not understand her.. One minute, she seems ready to let him in, to let him love her; the next, she's beating him senseless for what he considered nothing.

'Women..' He mentally sighed, then rubbed at his eyes with the heel of his hand, entertaining himself with the spots that appeared on the inside of his eyelids. As he heard his female companion move, he stopped for a moment, slowly lifting his eyes to look at her through his bangs. One hand held the paperwork in a folder tightly, wrinkling it around her fingers, and the other hand was clenched at her side.

"Must you be silent?!" Agent Holmes spun around, her eyes glimmering as she glared down at him. "I already told you, I don't remember doing it. I'm sorry, okay?! This is just too much! Too much!" On her heel, she spun once more, her goal being the front door. Instead, she found her wrist captured in his. Slowly, she glanced back at him, surprised that he was protesting her leaving.

"Don't be a fool." He simply stated, rubbing his thumb along the pulse in her wrist. Her head turned the rest of the way, her loose ponytail bouncing on her back with the movement.

"Wha.."

"I said, 'don't be a fool'. Don't worry about last night, but never think it's too much. It should never be." His eyes, which had been looking at the dark liquid in his mug before, slowly went over the form of her body, before locking with hers. "Your feelings aren't hard, so this shouldn't be. This isn't hard. Stop being like this and just open up."

Slowly, Agent Holmes's muscles went lax, her eyes widening and slowly watering. "Open up..?"

"Say it. Say the word 'love'."

She tried to pull back, raising her folder as if to strike him. "What makes you think--"

"I don't think, I know. I know because I love you."

"How can I belie-.."

"Open up." He released her wrist, looking up to her in a silent plea. She pulled back her arm, placing her hand in a loose fist over her heart, though her eyes never left his. How did she feel? Why did she feel her heart speeding up at that word..?

"I.. love you, too.." She whispered, the folder slipping from her fingers. The papers spilled out on the floor around her feet. Agent Bates only smiled, leaning back, and cocking his head to the side.

"Then, everything will be okay, love."

--------------------------------

Kagome stood in front of her mirror in her bedroom, wearing the slightly blood-stained school uniform she had worn her last day in Sengoku Jidai. The hair tie, collar, and badge sat on her dresser, the glow from the shikon kakera calming her frayed nerves. The wish? She still had not decided on what it would be. It would be the toughest decision she ever had to make.

'Tougher than sealing the well..?' The back of her mind taunted her. Kagome only tossed the memories aside and faked a smile in the mirror. It looked so hollow that it pained her to watch.

'Stop! I'll make it all okay! I'll fix everything!' She frantically thought, pleading for her mind to give her a rest on this day. At least she was past the blacking out...

Kagome opened the door to her closet, then pulled out a red bundle. It was, of course, the infamous fire-rat haori of Inu-Yasha. She could smell his forest scent, not the scent of cologne from Agent Smith-Inu, and it brought tears to her eyes again. He was the same hanyou.. He was..

He was...

She crushed the haori to her chest and dropped to her knees, the barriers wavering. 'Be strong..! It all ends today!' She bit her lip, choking back a rising sob. The Inu-Yasha she loved was gone.. He died five-hundred years ago in her mind, with the undead miko. That man... His scent was that of Axe, not the forest. His clothes were tighter than the loose hamaka she had grown to love so much. His hair was shampooed and brushed, making it look dangerously close to Sesshoumaru's. His skin was paler, his muscles smaller.. His ears didn't even twitch the same way. The sexy growl was not as deep..

Kagome slammed her fist into the carpet. What was she thinking?! She loved him no matter what form he was in! Had her pain really changed her emotions so drastically?

"I love you, Inu-Yasha.." She whispered to her empty room. It just wasn't the same.. He didn't watch her sleep from the tree outside her room, it just seemed like he was conflicted. Perhaps he knew what she had said to Agent Smith? Maybe he felt bad about his wish not pleasing her? Or did the past of not choosing Kikyou haunt him..?

On that thought, Kagome slowly picked herself off of the ground and glanced into the mirror again. A hollow shell with watery eyes. She could change that.. She could bring the life back into her eyes..

"Inu-Yasha!" She called out, aware that he was nearby, ready to go and make the wish. Sure enough, he peeked his head in through her door, an ear twitching lazily. "Come in here." Kagome commanded, dragging the rosary off of her dresser.

"What is it?" Inu-Yasha asked as he crossed the distance between them, naked from the waist up. Kagome only smiled softly and stepped close to him, draping the haori around his shoulders, before embracing him for a moment. Her arms slid into the haori, to wrap around his bare skin. He blinked for a moment, before wrapping his arms back around her, his hand resting lightly on her head, fingers threading into her hair. "Kagome.."

"Shh.." She looked up at him, her hollow eyes looking up into him. "Just close your eyes.." As he did so, she slowly brought her arm from around him, rosary in hand, and draped it over his head, until it hung around his neck. After placing a light kiss on his lips, she stepped away, to take in his image. The haori hanging from his form, giving him back his forest scent, the worn rosary dangling around his neck.. He seemed perfect, except for the subtle changes and the blue jeans he was wearing. Tentatively, she ran her tongue along her bottom lip, one, solemn word circling in her head.

"O-su-wa-ri.." She sounded out each syllable. His eyes shot open, his ear twitching in recognition of the word, a spilt-second before the rosary glowed with the power of her voice. Inu-Yasha was dragged to the ground by his neck, slamming face-first into the carpet. Kagome's lips twitched in a real smile, wanting to say the word again, but knowing he did nothing to deserve being subdued at the moment.

"Wha-...What the hell did I do?!" Inu-Yasha spat up at her, lifting his face from the plush carpet. At least it was soft.. Kagome looked at the familiar angry expression, mixed with confusion, and laughed softly, muffling it with the palm of her hand. Soon, the laughter escaped from her mouth, shaking her shoulders as she grinned. She had wanted one moment where it felt like things were normal. Just one moment.. And all it had taken was a word to get that moment.

"Sorry, Inu-Yasha.." She held a hand out for him, still grinning. He still seemed confused, but she only thought his expression was cute.

Maybe it would all be okay, after all...

"Remind me why I'm wearing this stuff again." Agent Smith raised an eyebrow at Kagome , leaning an elbow on the bartop. Once again at Erotic Pleasures, Kagome had placed the badge back on to meet with the two other agents, while Shippou and Kirara sat behind the counter. Kiki and Tsubii busied themselves serving drinks to other customers to give them time to themselves.

"Because I said to." Kagome stated, looking over at the haori and rosary Agent Smith adorned. Even the Tetsusaiga rested in his lap. In a pouch, under her shirt, was the hair tie and collar, glowing slightly with a pure power only she could see. It was almost time..

"We're here!" Agent Holmes and Agent Bates came into view, sitting down beside them at the bar. They both looked happier than normal, and even though Agent Bates's eyes strayed to the strippers a few times, Agent Holmes seemed oblivious.

"Good, good. So, what did you find?" Agent Smith asked, getting right to the point. He had heard of the wish from Kagome's talk with Shippou, and knew today would be the day. Therefore, today would be the last day he would have with Kagome. And Inu-Yasha be damned, he had developed feelings for her..

But were they his own, or Inu-Yasha's..?

He wasn't sure. All he knew was that he wanted to delay it.

"We seem to think their hideout must be around this area. The other alleys showed no signs of their type of work, nor any 'secret doors'." Agent Holmes explained, handing him the folder she had been thumbing through earlier in the morning. Kagome, eager to get the rest of the jewel together, leaned over the counter, then nudged Agent Smith in the ribs. They had discussed it; he was to ask them to take their badges off.

'Why is he hesitating?!' Kagome wondered, jabbing him sharper in the ribs. He winced slightly, glancing at her from the corner of his eye, then sighed.

"Hey, you guys.. Take off your badges. I want to see something."

"See what?" Agent Bates tilted his head to the side, blinking as he zoned back in from the world of skin and cleavage.

"Just do it. It's important." Agent Smith could feel dread going through him. The two agents shrugged, then complied, taking off their badges. Shortly after, they both blinked, becoming the Sengoku Jidai Sango and Miroku. Kagome took the badges from Agent Smith, and pulled the pouch from her shirt. She put them inside the pouch, then clenched her fist over it, squeezing and concentrating a moment. Her emotional problems may have caused her to neglect practicing her miko powers, but they had not deminished. Soon, she felt the round ball of the almost complete Shikon no Tama in her palm, only missing the last piece that rested on Agent Smith.

"Kagome-chan, we're back to this place?" Sango asked, blinking again, as she glanced around. Tsubii, with her excellent timing, just happened to bound up with some Irish beer, placing the mugs in front of the two.

"On the house! Glad to see you came back, after all." She grinned at Miroku's look, and the way Sango steamed.

"I don't believe we've met.." Sango muttered.

"Harsh." Kiki stated, coming up beside Tsubii. "Just because you can't keep your guy's eyes in line doesn't mean you don't know us."

"Sango-cha-... Err, Agent Holmes." Kagome stressed the agent name, giving Sango a sharp look. "Don't do mean jokes."

Sango only blinked, then nodded in understanding. "I'm sorry.. It's just the Houshi.. err.. him." She gestured to Miroku. "He doesn't know when to stop looking.. and.. heeey! Houshi-sama, no, she can't bare your child!"

Needless to say, the mug of Irish beer clunked him on the head, before being poured over him. Luckily, it didn't shatter, leaving him with only a major headache.

"Now, Agent Smith..." Kagome looked over at him with pleading eyes. He only stared straight ahead, into nothingness. He thought she would wish for Inu-Yasha back.. Would that mean that he and his other two agents, as well as her cat and the orphan, cease to exist? Would he die..? How would he say goodbye to the broken-hearted stripper that he had fallen for?

"I know. But.. What will you wish for?" Agent Smith turned his eyes to her without moving his head. "I want to know before I give it to you. What do you really desire, Kagome?" His back was rigid, in a haori covered in the blood of a man who's soul seemed to be clashing with his own.

"Desire.." Kagome seemed taken back, trying to think of what was really in her heart. "For things to be okay.."

"What does that mean? To wish that your friends and Inu-Yasha will be freed from us? To end our lives?" He turned his head to her, his hand slowly coming up to his badge. "Don't say it.. I know you'll only do it. But.. I'll do it for you. For you, I'll give up myself.. Kagome.." He gulped. "Goodb--"

Suddenly, the club door slammed open, causing a collection of female gasps. A group of haggard men stood in the doorway, tall, muscular, gruff... Most sported facial hair with bits of dirt in it, though all dressed in leather coats, black turtle necks, and faded blue jeans. Agent Smith was immediately on his guard.

It was the gang, at last, only this time they had their brains with them- the boss.

"Her!" One of them bellowed, pointing a chubby finger at Kagome. She paled, her hand still grasping the pouch around her neck. "She's the one that slapped brother and got the others arrested! She's the one that managed to escape the rape! Finish her off! Her agent protector, too!"

And just like that, they produced AK-47's and shotguns. Kagome's stomach bottomed out, her mind going blank and she stared like a deer caught in the headlights of an incoming eighteen-wheeler. Her mouth opened in a silent scream, barely aware of Tsubii and Kiki pulling out their own guns from beneath the bar. Miroku and Sango, oblivious to the fact that guns shot bullets at speeds high enough to easily kill them, sat there stupidly. Agent Smith shoved Kagome down just as the first shot was fired, barely missing it, and managing to roll with her behind the bar. Gunshots rang in her ears, the only thought going through her head being, 'I can't believe this is happening!'

Agent Smith pulled his gun from his holster, hearing the sounds of bystanders screaming, getting killed, while Tsubii and Kiki fired at will. Sango and Miroku had managed to make it over the bartop, wide-eyed at the dangers of the future. This was even worse than youkai! Ningens with that power to kill! Kami-sama help us all.

But.. Sango had managed to take a hit, her arm now freely bleeding with the gaping bullet hole. Her hand grasped her arm, not quite understanding what had happened to her arm. "H-houshi-sama.." She groaned to Miroku, as he rested his hands on her shoulders.

"Sango! Sango! Daijoubou ka?!" Miroku looked over at Kagome. "Kagome-sama, what's going on?! What are those things?"

Kagome didn't hear his question, however, for she was watching Agent Smith slowly begin to stand. "No.." she whispered, grabbing ahold of his pant leg. "You can't get up..!"

"I have to, Kagome. It's my job." Agent Smith jerked his leg from her hold, cocking his gun. A scream from his side registered that Kiki or Tsubii had gotten shot. "They have to be stopped."

"But.." Kagome protested, but it was too late...

The gang leader was looming over the counter, staring at her with a smirk, his gun raised. "Say goodnight, sweetheart." He muttered, aiming, as she froze. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion after that. Agent Smith lunging over her, the sound of gun fire, the splatter of blood..

They shot each other.

Agent Smith shot the gang leader, just as he shot him, aiming for her. Kagome's life was saved because of the man. And she was forced to watch in horror as his body landed on top of her, the blood quickly beginning to stain through the haori, to her school sailor-type shirt. "Agent Smith!" Kagome screamed out, shaking him by the shoulders, her eyes on the bullet hole in his chest. The blood poured out onto her, the rest of the world fading away, except for him dying. "No.. Why would you do that?"

His eyes seemed to try to focus on her for a moment. "Because.. I care.. and I don't want you to die.. Use your life and wish.." A thin trail of blood began to drip from the side of his lip. "Goodbye, Kagome.."

"Goodbye, Agent Smith.." Kagome whispered back, tears tracing down her cheeks as she slammed the Shikon no Tama against his badge..

And wished.

Everything spun by so fast, like rewinding a movie. Only she was in it. She could feel herself being pulled backwards, feel her head spinning, until she feared she would puke on the fathoms of time itself. The wish came from her heart, and she was content with knowing she had done the right thing..

Her body was pulled up, then out, and her eyes snapped open, the air rushing from her lungs in a huge gasp. Everything was dark, yet so eerily still. Fog brushed the tips of the trees in the forest, the familiar forest scent bringing her a sense of comfort. She then noticed her knee propped up on the hard, old wood of the well she had traveled through so many times before. Her eyes gazed into the depths, the darkness seeming infinite. What was she doing here again? She thought of the blood from Agent Smith.. The tears.. Why was she back here?

Then, she heard his voice. His voice calling out to her, telling her not to go. Part of her mind screamed for her to make the jump, to seal the well, but a heat in her hand caused her to wince.

There was the Shikon no Tama, glowing brightly. Her reflection in it seemed normal; no bags under her eyes, her hair was thick; her eyes still filled with life..

What was going on?

Slowly, it began to pixelate, then float in little orbs of light from her palm. 'He didn't leave you..' Her own voice sounded in her head, sounding tired. 'So, don't leave him..' Then, the light vanished.

A stick broke behind her, causing her to spin around, taking her knee from the well lip. Only then did she realize she was cut up from running through the forest, though the pain mattered not, for he was in front of her. Her breath hitched in her throat, as she watched his mouth open and close, before he was able to force out, "I didn't mean it, don't leave!"

She only smiled with tear-filled eyes, though the tears were out of happiness for the moment. She quickly crossed the distance between them, clinging to his body like a life-line. "It's okay, I know." Taking in the feel of him, knowing he was real, she sighed softly, contentedly, and rested her head against his chest.

If everything hurt too much, would you wish to forget them?

Kagome had pondered that question ever since she had sealed the well. She wanted to forget him, and she tried so hard, but it was impossible. She always found herself comparing others to him, thinking of his scent, his body.. And when she finally had the power to make that wish, she instead made the wish in her heart. A wish that would make everything okay. Tsubii and Kiki, as well as the innocent would still live, and the agents would still be okay. They would never meet, and that was for the best. Agent Smith could find someone else and be happy himself.

"Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere, Inu-Yasha.." Kagome smiled, her usual self, instead of a walking shell.

She wished to be back to the moment before she went through the well for the final time.

And the Shikon no Tama was purified.

Owari.

A/N: That's it! The end, no more! After over a year, I finally got my lazy ass to finish it. I know the ending was kinda WAFFy, but I couldn't help it. I planned on making an alternate ending to this, but I decided not to waste the time making another one where everyone got shot in detail and the wish got used by the gang to blow up the world. I just kinda wanted to get this all over with. I like angst endings, and I'm usually against happy endings, but oh well.. I did it for the reviewers that would've shot me without a nice Inu/Kag ending.

Oh well, it'll be okay. I'll see you on the next fic!

-Kaggerz.