Hello! I am clearly not dead. This chapter has taken me ages to write and I hope it is okay. The story ground to a bit of a halt but I hopefully have found a bit of life yet in it. Let me know what you think. There will only be one further chapter to go!

As always I do not own Inuyasha or The Man with the Blue Guitar by Wallace Stevens

It could not be a mind, the wave
In which the watery grasses flow

And yet are fixed as a photograph,
The wind in which the dead leaves blow.

Here I inhale profounder strength
And as I am, I speak and move

And things are as I think they are
And say they are on the blue guitar

Kagome raised her legs high to be able to hobble through the snow beside an increasingly impatient Inuyasha.

"Damn it, woman." He huffed in exasperation, "you are slowing us down. Hurry up!"

"The...snow...is...deep...out...here." She panted beside him, nearly tripping as her boot got caught in the front of a drift.

He knelt down in the snow in front of her. "Jesus Christ, just hop on. It will be spring by the time we get there."

"Where are we going anyways?" Kagome asked as she gratefully hopped up on his back. She wound her arms tightly around his neck as her legs came up to hug his back in a familiar grip. His arms naturally came up to hold her legs. Kagome loved it when he held her like this with such ease. It made her feel small and protected. A warm feeling that had nothing to do with his body heat curled in her chest. Kagome pressed a quick kiss to his neck, just because she could.

Her kiss gave him pause before he responded. "You'll see when we get there."

"I had some plans for us this evening." Kagome huffed from his back. "I brought a nice bottle of wine and I thought we could try out and see how warm we could make these new polar fleece sheets I bought."

Inuyasha nearly tripped in the snow. "I'm going to drop you if you don't cut that out." He murmured. "Trust me. It'll be worth it."

Kagome continued to hang on to his back, becoming increasingly curious as the trek wore on. They were already fairly deep in the woods that surrounded Inuyasha's property and they did not appear to be stopping any time soon. Although it was quite chilly outside, Kagome felt more than comfortable being snuggled up to Inuyasha's perpetual warmth. She turned her head to look about at the snow covered conifers around her and enjoy the quiet of the forest. The only sound was the crunch of Inuyasha's steady footsteps through the clean white snow.

The sun was starting to set in the sky and the vague worry about being in the woods at night began to rise.

As if feeling her tension, Inuyasha told her, "We are almost there. Just another minute."

She nodded her head against his shoulder, trusting he would understand. One moment later he was loosening his grip on her legs to allow her to stand.

Standing beside him, Kagome peered around to see if there was anything special. All around her she saw tall spruce trees and an unblemished white ground. She turned to Inuyasha with a confused look.

He looked expectant, "Well? What do you think?" He prompted.

Kagome looked around in bewilderment. She thought hard for a moment before giving up. "What do I think of what?"

Inuyasha sighed and gestured towards the spruce before him. "The tree, stupid."

"The tree?" Kagome looked back at the tree to determine its significance. "It's very nice Inuyasha. You know, for a tree."

"How about as a Christmas tree?" he ventured.

Comprehension dawned on Kagome's face. "A Christmas tree!" Kagome clapped her mittened hands in delight. "Well now, let's take a closer look."

Inuyasha looked on with amusement as Kagome prowled around the tree several times, taking it from several angles. "You're right, Inuyasha." Kagome told him with a warm smile. "This tree is very handsome."

"Keh. Best tree in the whole damn forest." He bragged.

"You searched the whole forest?" Kagome asked, eyes wide.

"Of course." Seeing her incredulous look, Inuyasha became embarrassed. "Just because I know you would be all stupid and picky. I didn't want my toes to freeze off..."

She cut off his tirade with a sweet kiss. "Thank you Inuyasha. I love it."

She turned back to look at the tree. "But how are we going to chop it down? I didn't see an axe." She inspected his hands. "I didn't think your claws would be strong enough to chop a tree."

"They can too. Well, in a matter of speaking." He postured before turning towards the tree. "Iron Reaver Soul Stealer."

Suddenly yellow beams of light appeared in the air around where he had swiped and they proceeded to annihilate the base of the tall spruce in a flurry of woodchips. Inuyasha stood still and watched calmly as the tree fell away. Turning towards Kagome, he noticed the shocked expression on her face.

"Hey. Hey Kagome." He hurried towards her, worried expression on his face. "It's not that weird. Don't worry about it. I won't do it again."

Kagome turned from where the tree lay to face him. "That was..." she trailed off as Inuyasha winced. "...so cool!" She took his hand in hers and began inspecting his hands from all possible angles.

"Where does the energy come from? Could you always do that? How did you learn to do that?" She peppered him when he remained silent. Holding his hand in both of hers, she pouted at him. "Why didn't you tell me!"

He said did nothing for a moment but stare at her. He used his free arm to wrap around her and drag her in close, squeezing her as he buried his nose in her hair and took a deep breath. "You're really something, you know that?" He murmured in a low growl.

When they separated, their faces apart by only millimetres, Kagome gave him a mischievous smile when she whispered, "Do it again."

Kagome gratefully sank down onto the shopping mall bench with a relieved groan. Shopping bags in various festive shades littered the ground surrounding her and Sango's feet as the girls took a break from their hectic holiday shopping.

"Well, I'm just about finished getting my gifts." Sango mumbled wearily, pulling out a neat list from the pocket of her coat. "I just need to come up with a gift for Miroku."

"You are marrying the guy. I would say the thoughts about the honeymoon alone are enough of a gift." Kagome responded with a smile.

Sango snorted. "I think a whole week off from wedding planning would be what he would want from me. I've probably been driving him crazy." She let out a quiet sigh and tipped her head back on the bench. "Do you think a New Years wedding is too cheesy? I let him pick the date but now I'm worried that it's...tacky, you know?"

"Not at all, Sango. It will be, like a fresh start for both of you." Kagome enthused, "starting a new life in the new year. It is very symbolic."

"Well," Sango sighed and shrugged, "invitations are out now. I have been getting RSVPs daily in the mail. Do you think it was too much to ask people to buy more gifts so close to the holiday season?"

Kagome laughed lightly, "Sango, relax. Everyone is probably so excited about your wedding they don't mind the extra expense. I personally have been shopping around for the cheapest ball and chain for you to put on Miroku's ankle."

Sango laughed and gestured towards the pet store. "I did almost put a leash on the registry"

"I think the wallop you gave him after staring at that waitress on Saturday should be enough of a reminder, at least for awhile." Kagome reminded her with a reminencent smile.

Sango shrugged unapologetically and replied, "well at least you don't have to worry about Inuyasha straying. When that girl hit on him I thought his face was going to explode, he was so embarrassed."

Both women had a good laugh remembering Inuyasha bumbling through a pick up right in front of Kagome. In the end it had taken a possessive arm around his shoulders and a not-so-subtle hint from Kagome to get the girl to move on. She had been teasing him about it for days.

Once their laughter had settled, they began collecting their bags to resume their whirlwind trip around the mall.

"Speaking of Inuyasha, what are you getting him for Christmas? I haven't seen you pick anything out yet." Sango remarked, slightly distracted by the scent of the popcorn stand.

"We decided to exchange homemade gifts this year." Kagome replied. In truth, she had figured he would not be willing to go out to a mall to get her something so Kagome had suggested the idea. "I printed out a couple nice photos of us and I bought a kit at a craft store to make a little photo frame. There's not too much else I can think of getting him."

"Well I hope he likes the guitar case that Miroku picked out for that Blue Guitar." Sango worried, "I was worried it was too personal for someone else to pick out."

"I'm sure he trusts Miroku's eye." Kagome jovially replied, shuffling her bags from one hand to the other. "Miroku is used to buying these things. Besides, Kaede wouldn't have steered him wrong."

The two arrived at the entrance to the subway where they would be going separate ways. Kagome readied herself to say goodbye when she noticed Sango's hesitation.

"Did...did you and Inuyasha have plans for Christmas Day?" Sango asked quietly, fidgeting with her mittens.

"Not really." Kagome answered, curious at Sango's shyness. "We figured we'd visit you guys I guess. It's still a ways off afterall."

"Miroku...that is to say I would as well...we were wondering if you would join us for Christmas Dinner?" Sango asked quietly.

"Oh Sango, of course!" Kagome responded enthusiastically, wrapping her free arm around Sango's shoulders while her bags jostled against her side. "Although, only if Mirokus is making the turkey."

Sango laughed a relieved laugh. "And if he wasn't...?" She threatened teasingly before turning serious. "Miroku and I look at you and Inuyasha as...well...as our family in the city and we would like to spend the time together, you know?"

Touched, Kagome leaned in to turn her embrace into a hug. "We wouldn't miss Christmas dinner for the world."

Kagome slid her feet out of her confining high heel boots to stretch them against the carpeted floor beneath the table. She and Inuyasha had spent the day in the city's biggest mall, trying to power through their last remaining Christmas shopping on a week day to avoid the busier weekend rush. Having completed their list for the day, the pair were hidden away in the top floor of a large department store where there was a little-used cafeteria. It was primarily meant for employees to have lunch or dinner, but it was a huge space that was largely empty and Kagome knew Inuyasha preferred the quieter places in the city. It actually also had one of the best views of the ice skating rink in front of city hall, surrounded in Christmas lights with a gigantic Christmas tree, making it one of her favorite retreats during the holiday season.

The pair sat in silence, each sipping leisurely from their cafeteria-issue coffee mugs and staring out the window to the scene below. Kagome watched with interest as a mother led her child around the rink in slow, careful gliding motions. A woman bedecked in a figure skating costume whizzed past them, her skates with the wooden bottoms catching Kagome's eye and clearly distinguishing her from the struggling tourists around her.

She turned to point out the figure to Inuyasha, but when she looked up her eyes caught his reflected stare that was already watching her. She expected him to blush and look away after having been caught staring, but instead he kept his warm gaze on her face, his lips slanting to form a smirk.

"You love it here." He stated plainly, turning from her reflection to face the girl head on. "In this city, I mean."

"It is my hometown, you know." Kagome replied. "I think everyone has a special spot in their heart for where they come from."

"Keh, maybe some people." Inuyasha scowled in to his mug. "There ain't no love lost between me and my godforsaken hometown."

Kagome slid her hand into his grasp and gave it a squeeze of understanding. "Where is this hometown of yours anyways? How did you end up in the city?"

He adjusted his grip on her hand so they rested more comfortably together. His gaze returned to the window but she could tell he was seeing things that were miles away.

"My hometown...it's a couple hours from here I guess. South, you know. Small enough that everyone knew everyone's business. Or at least they thought they did." He scowled into the night. "It's not like I was hugely popular before, but as long as we stayed out of everyone's way, people were happy to leave me and my mother alone. But after she died..."

Kagome stroked the back of his hand with her thumb, trying to draw him back from the heavy silence that hovered around him. "It turns out her family owned a bit of property just far enough out of the city for it not to be suburban. Yet, I guess. The subdivisions grow closer every year. She...left me everything in the will. I sold the other house and then moved to this one." He shrugged, taking a sip of his coffee. "Life in the city is easier. Usually if you keep your head down, people stay out of your business."

She gave his head a playful tug. "Your attitude didn't work on me." She reminded him in a teasing tone. "I'm pretty sure I shoved my way into your business."

"That's because you're stupid." He replied, the gruffness of his words softened by his hand coming up to cup the side of her face. "Stupid enough to get mixed up with the likes of me."

She allowed her face to be coaxed across the table into a brief kiss by his guiding hand. Smiling at him as she returned to her seat, she replied with a gentle laugh, "oh yes. Don't I feel like a fool right now. Sitting and having a coffee with the man I love, watching a beautiful scene at Christmas time. I really am so hard done by." She finished the statement with a melodramatic swoon.

"See? Like I said, you love it here. You should plan to stay." Inuyasha responded.

"Plan to stay?" Kagome queried, a dent in her brow in confusion. "Was I leaving?"

"Yeah, you were." He reminded her.

"Oh yeah, when you were ignoring me and I didn't have a good reason to stick around. Sure, I was planning to get away from it all." Kagome shrugged. "Things are different now."

"I'm just saying you should think about staying. You know, permanently." He said, his gaze now intensely fixated on her face.

"Permanently?" Kagome parroted, her eyes growing wide in surprise. True she hadn't made any short term plans to leave the city, but could she really commit to staying here from now on?

Abruptly realising how short sighted she was being about planning her future, Kagome looked down to the table to fiddle with her empty cup on its saucer. In truth she had been moving from task to task, not really thinking about the big picture of her life. Was this her place to land?

Seeing she was done her coffee, Inuyasha stood and stretched before grabbing both their cups and returning them to the dish disposal area. Take a cue from his movements, Kagome reshod her feet in her boots and started gathering up their bags. When he returned they shuffled their bags between them so each held a few and they could still hold hands. Together they started the long escalator ride down to the subway station.

"You...haven't thought about it?" He asked with hesitation, looking away from her to seem to browse at the store items sliding past them in their descent.

"I am so happy right now." She admitted, snuggling closer to his side, "I hadn't really started thinking about the future. Things have been pretty chaotic."

He rested his chin on her head and she felt him nod in understanding. "Well, I think about the future."He told her quietly. "I think about it a lot."

They separated to carefully disembark the escalator they were on to switch to the next. Inuyasha paused and looked out at the floor they were on, staring at the multiple luminous display cases of jewelry.

He turned to her with soulful eyes, saying as much as they were hiding. "Maybe you should start thinking too."

Sango took a sip from her wine before reclaiming her paintbrush, tongue sticking out as she tried to emulate the latest step in the painting she and Kagome were attempting to recreate at the trendy bar's Paint Night. "Miroku is really looking forward to Christmas this year." She said in a distracted tone, her hand gracefully streaking paint across the canvas. "Every night this week has been a different side dish he wants to try."

"Lucky you!" Kagome said with a grin, looking away from her painting to smile at her friend. "Well, I guess it is dinner for all of us, so lucky us! Honestly, who knew he was such a good cook?"

"It's definitely a perk." Sango said with a satisfied smile.

"Just a perk? " Kagome asked with a laugh. "I would have dated him for his creme brule."

"Well I'm marrying him for some of his other...skills. You know, ones outside the kitchen?" She trailed off while waggling her eyebrows suggestively, her attempted at lechery tempered by the slight blush on her cheeks.

Kagome laughed again and nudged her with her elbow in the ribs. "Stop, you're making me jealous."

Sango rolled her eyes, returning her focus to her painting, though if she wanted to do a good job she should probably slow down on the wine. "Please, as if you and Inuyasha have eyes for anyone else. After watching you fight for so long, it's pretty cute to watch you moon over each other."

"We don't moon over each other." She replied with a pout. Thinking about the conversation they had the other day, Kagome's thoughts sobered a bit. At the time she had been too flustered thinking about her own future that she had been unable to read between the lines about what Inuyasha was talking about it. Now, through the retrospectoscope, she was wishing she had been more astute to pin him down when he was in a chatty mood. She had tried to bring up the future again since their talk and he had promptly shut her down in every direction.

"Oh no. What has he done now?" Sango drawled, looking at her friend's face. When Kagome raised a brow in question, Sango explained. "You got that pursed lip look that you get whenever Inuyasha's done something stupid. What happened?"

Kagome shook her head. "This time it wasn't Inuyasha being stupid. It was me." She gave her friend a rueful smile. "Sango, what am I going to do?"

"Well hopefully you are going to be more careful the next time you try to mix orange paint because yours is way too pink." She responded critically, "Other than that, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"What am I going to do...with my life?" Kagome asked, scouring her painting as if it had the answers. Well it had one answer, she definitely wasn't going to become an artist, but for the first time she looked ahead in to her future and she saw nothing. A blank space. Perhaps it has always been blank and she hadn't worried because she hadn't thought she would live to fill it.

Sango's brush paused mid-stroke and she turned to face her friend. Giving her a considering look, she shrugged then resumed her painting. "What you're doing right now. Living it."

"Look at me. Sure, I had to plan and work hard to become a lawyer." Sango appeared focused but her gaze was looking at something Kagome couldn't see. "But...all these other things. My brother, Miroku, and even you and your blue guitar. I couldn't plan for any of these things and they are what has really changed my life."

Sango set her brush in her water and gripped Kagome's free arm. "So don't stress about it. I know that things will work out if you just follow your heart." She looked surprised after she said it and then she laughed. "Wow, that's a weird thing for someone like me to say to someone like you."

Kagome laughed too. She let out a gusty sigh. "You're right. All I wanted from my life was to be happy and I am." She set down her brush to take a swig of her wine. "Although maybe in the future I will plan to just have wine without the painting. We really are hopeless at this."

The two looked at their paintings before looking back at the demonstration, for which they were now hopelessly behind.

Sango voiced her thoughts "Shoot. I missed how to do that complicated flower pattern. What am I going to do with that empty space now?"

Kagome shot her a grin. Picking up her brush, she began to paint freestyle on her canvas. "Take your own advice and follow your heart."

Walking out of the subway station, Kagome smiled and turned her face up to the unusually warm sun that illuminated the city street that day. She had ridden the subway out way further west than she had travelled before, following a lead on a store that specialized in demon goods. She had been hopeful it would give her some new ideas for a gift for Inuyasha.

She was quite surprised to see the enormous park across the street from where she stood. Certainly she had looked at the map and knew the park was there, but somehow the green square on the map hadn't prepared her for the enormity of the woods before her, right in the middle of the city.

Checking her watch and deciding she had time for a stroll, Kagome cut quickly across the street to enter the park. The bare branches allowed sunlight to filter in and guide her way down the paved pathways.

As she walked, Kagome observed that most if not all the people she was passing were demons, if not of mixed heritage. She had never really thought about how few she saw mingled amongst the downtown crowd, but here it was clear that she was in the minority. She paused at a playground and watched what appeared to be a passel of kids from daycare playing on a playground. The demon children whipped around the structure at dizzying speeds, hooting and hollering the way children should. A tired looking cat demon tried to warn them off the more dangerous parts, but her warnings were half-hearted at best.

So distracted with the lively banter, Kagome gave a start of surprise when a plastic ball nudged against her legs. She stared at it for a moment before scooping it up and looking for its owner. Kagome's eye caught a bashful looking young girl with purple eyes peaking out at her from beneath her silver bangs.

"Is this yours?" She knelt down and held the ball forward towards the young girl. "Here, you can have it back."

The girl continued to appear wary and stayed where she was.

"It's alright, Shiori." A little boy with red hair and a fox tail said proudly. "I'll get the ball back for you."

The small boy turned his attention towards Kagome. "Hi, I'm Shippo." He chirped happily as he approached her he took a deep breath. "Don't mind Shiori, she's just shy."

"I'm Kagome and I hope I didn't scare her. Here's your ball back." Kagome handed it off to him.

"Thanks!" He took a deep inhalation. "She's a bat half-demon so she doesn't have my sense of smell. If she didn't she wouldn't have been so nervous because you have the smell of a half-demon ALL over you."

Kagome brought her hands back to her chest, as if something private about her was suddenly out for examination. "You can smell what on me?"

"That you belong to a half-demon. A dog, I think." He continued cheerfully, cocking his head to the side in an adorable manner as he thought. "Why are you out here by yourself? I thought mates were always together, like my mom and dad."

"We're not..." She looked at his innocent face and didn't feel like explaining the whole situation to him. "...I'm trying to surprise him with a Christmas gift. I heard there is a store near here that has lots of interesting things for sale."

"Oh, sure. There is a whole bunch of shops on the east side of the park. My mom likes going there, even though it is super boring." The little boy rolled his eyes. "Well, your dog should be more careful. Letting your mate go out alone can be dangerous. Thanks again for our ball. Bye Kagome!"

With that he scampered off to rejoin the other demons playing, leaving Kagome alone with her thoughts. Deciding to explore this shopping area further, she redirected her course to head due east through the park.

As she walked, she thought about what Shippo had told her. Lifting her sweater to her nose, she took a deep breath, but couldn't smell anything besides her laundry soap. What did he mean she smelled like Inuyasha? She thought back to the conversation they had back when Inuyasha had stopped her from leaving. He had mentioned that his demon had spoke to him about her. That it wanted her. Did that make them...mates?

Kagome paused on the sidewalk, pressing her hand to her belly to quell the butterflies that erupted in her stomach. Though the term was new to her, the gravity of the relationship seemed obvious. Did that imply that she was to be with Inuyasha...as long as she lived? As in 'until death do us part?'

Gradually the trees became thinner and the sounds of the city came creeping back in. Cutting back across the street to the more populated side, Kagome looked down from the largely residential section to see the bright lights of storefronts just a few blocks south.

Sure, she knew she loved Inuyasha. Even when he was being miserable and mean she still loved him. But was it forever type of love? Though she couldn't be sure, she didn't think this whole mates thing allowed for divorce. That was a lot of pressure. What if she died? Could he remarry?

Kagome poked around the shops, her attention unable to be returned to the interesting bits and bobs. She had already pretty much decided on Inuyasha's gift anyways, so her trip had really been more out of interest than any desire to be productive. In one of the grocery shops she did pick up a few spices that were recommended to her for dog demons by a well-intentioned raccoon demon.

She now stood waiting for the streetcar to take her back to the more familiar parts of the city. A pair of adolescent-appearing demons were canoodling within the same windscreen as her, so Kagome kept her head down in thought until her car appeared.

Safely on the streetcar, she inspected her purchases again as she thought up what dish she would make for dinner. Hopefully it would be delicious enough to loosen the tongue of the one who ate it.

The old fashioned lights strung on the live Christmas Tree in Inuyasha's living room cast a warm glow over the young couple sifting through boxes of ornaments strewn about the floor. Kagome smiled as she lifted a popsicle stick ornament covered in glitter, glued together at odd angles, out of a small box that Inuyasha had dug out of a back room closet.

Standing gingerly, she picked her way over to the tree to give the ornament a place of honour, next to a baby photo of herself in a teddy bear frame and in between branches draped in a beaded garland.

They had left decorating the tree until Christmas Eve, a family tradition according to Inuyasha. Each had been somewhat unwilling to delve in to a box containing their family memories, so instead they traded boxes and were placing ornaments from each other's past up on the tree.

Inuyasha's box had been significantly smaller than Kagome's, so she was nearly at the bottom and he still had several boxes to go. She smiled, looking at this lovely classic tree that the two of them shared. With all the talk of families, it did feel like they were forming a family all on their own. Though she would admit to being too chicken to ask Inuyasha any further questions about mates or the future, she decided that for Christmas she had might as well just enjoy what she had now. And right now she had a half-demon who loved her.

She was brought out of her thoughts by a pair of arms wrapping around her from behind. Inuyasha rested his head on top of hers and looked at their tree. They were silent for the moment, just enjoying the peace and quiet.

"Oh my god!" Kagome squealed, lunging for an ornament on a lower branch. "Where did you find this one?" It was an embarrassing first grade photo of her, sans both her front teeth, standing covered in paint.

As Kagome picked her way around the tree, she noticed almost all the ornaments Inuyasha had put on the tree were ones with pictures of her. She mentioned as much to him.

"Feh. You said pick out the ones I liked the best." He motioned to the discards. "Don't see much point hanging photos of your brother on OUR tree."

Curious, Kagome wandered over to the discard box and looked through. Looking at the pictures of the younger versions of herself on the tree and the younger Kikyou still in the box, even she found them practically indistinguishable.

"I can't believe how well you can tell us apart." Kagome commented, holding two pictures in identical frames side by side.

"I don't even need smell to tell you apart." He boasted, hanging another picture of her higher on the tree. "Do you believe me now that I don't see Kikyou when I look at you?"

Looking at his strong back as he hung the ornament, Kagome paused to think about it. She really hadn't worried about it for a long time, especially after their confrontation. The issue seemed almost distant now, even though not that much time had passed.

He turned from the tree back towards her and smiled a gentle smile at her. Even when she thought of how much had changed between them in so little time, it lightened her heart.

Picking her way back to his side, she let him sweep her up in a warm kiss. She kept her head tipped up towards him, expecting a second kiss, but his attention was turned back up to the tree.

"All that's left is the angel." He commented, releasing her to turn her towards the angel from her family tree. "Did you want to put yours up?"

"No, I think yours is much nicer." She commented with a smile. She pulled the last item from Inuyasha's box, a golden foil angel with silver wings, long dark hair, and a pipe-cleaner halo. "Give me a boost?"

He picked her up around the waist and hoisted her up without effort to the top of the tree. She placed it gently on the top, making sure it was balanced before he set her back down. Never releasing his hold, the two resumed looking at the tree.

"Some days," he started, keeping his gaze fixed on the tree, "some days, I can't believe how lucky I am that you found me."

She turned in his arms to look up at him. His gaze stay fixed on the tree, but she could see the softness that laid in there, all for her. She gave him a quick hug around the middle before wiggling to be released.

"You haven't even seen your Christmas gift yet!" She sing-songed, running around to the back of the couch. She pulled out her small rectangular gift, wrapped neatly in paper with a crisp bow tied on top. Seat on the couch, she practically bounced with excitement, eager to give Inuyasha his gift.

He looked at her, still standing by the tree, and shook his head. "You want to do gifts today? It's Christmas Eve!" He grumbled at her, picking his mug up off the table and taking a sip of the spiked cider.

"But Inuyashaaa!" She intentionally whined. "We are going to be gone to Sango and Miroku's all day tomorrow! Let's open it tonight when it's just us!"

Grumbling about impatient wenches, Inuyasha trudged back to his room. Kagome set to work while he was gone, piling the boxes away in the corner behind the tree. She managed to snag a stray Santa hat from one of the boxes and placed it on her head. She also undid a few buttons on her cream cardigan to make the red bra she wore underneath more apparent. Kagome then carefully arranged herself on the couch to give him the best eyeful when he came back in the room.

Inuyasha came back carrying a small package wrapped in news paper. He paused at the threshold and said "If you are my present, I am happy to unwrap you now and you can have this in the morning."

Kagome batted her eyelashes at him. "This present first." She made a show of pushing the present across the couch with her chin tipped up to give him an good look at the cleavage. "You can open the rest later."

He eyed her for a minute before coming around to join her on the couch. She looked more carefully at the package in his hands. The box was very small, and for a crazy moment Kagome worried it might be jewellery, but she reminded herself that Inuyasha was very accepting of the idea that the gifts were something they had made themselves.

She watched as he moved her present for him around in his hands, weighing it and sniffing it to see if he could determine its exact contents. He gave it a light shake and it made a soft rattle noise.

"No guessing!" She chided with a laugh. "And no more shaking! I don't want you to break it!"

Seeing her smile as permission, he tore in to the paper with abandon. The festive wrap went everywhere until he was left with the picture frame in his hand. "Kagome..." he said, looking at the small frame.

Originally she had planned to get him a picture of the two of them, but then in her cleaning she had found this beautiful old picture of him and his mother. He was only a small boy, grinning up at his mother with a birthday hat askew on his head. She smiled gently back at him. Kagome had purchased a black frame and glued pieces of wood and odd guitar pieces she had found in Kikyou's guitar room after cleaning it out.

He looked at it for a few moments longer before turning to her and giving her a very small smile. "Keh. Good thing you didn't get me a picture of you. Wouldn't want to get nightmares."

She stuck her tongue out at him and plucked the frame out of his hands, taking it to arrange it on the table beside the couch. Satisfied with its positioning, Kagome reclaimed her spot beside him.

Inuyasha toyed with his gift in his hands. "I know it is supposed to be something we made, and I did technically make it."

Kagome's eyes widened in shock. What the heck could it be? As it rolled around in his hands it made a metallic clinking sound. Could it actually be jewelry?

"Here." He thrust the gift in to her hands and then withdrew to his side of the couch.

Kagome smiled at him in bemusement. "I'm sure I'll love it, no matter what it is." She reassured him as she searched for the seam in the paper.

Gently, she removed the paper for the box. The box itself turned out to be a repurposed matchbox. She gave it another shake and it answered with a metallic clink. Gazing at Inuyasha, he turned his face away with purpose towards the tree.

Kagome slid the sides of the box off the centre to reveal a very shiny key with a gold heart key chain.

"It's a key..." Inuyasha started to explain, looking embarrassed.

"...to your heart?" Kagome interrupted, looking at the gold heart key chain.

"To my house, actually." He finished wryly, looking nervous. " I cut it for you at the hardware store. Just in case, you know, you wanted to maybe leave some things here or come here from time to time, maybe, on your own. Or maybe stay here sometimes. Just, if you wanted to."

"Are you...asking me to move in with you?" Kagome looked incredulously at the key. Here when she thought she was the one piloting their relationship along, her Hanyou threw her for a loop.

"I know this place isn't as nice as Kikyou's...your apartment. And I guess it is pretty remote for you to be here by yourself. And maybe not as safe, come to think of it..." He reached for the key "okay, never mind, give it back."

"Stop trying to talk me out of it!" Kagome charged, standing up off the couch and stepping backwards out of his reach.

He lunged for her and she reached the key as far as she could behind her out of his reach. "Is that a yes?" He questioned, wrapping an arm around her waist to keep her stationary while he tried to catch her other arm. He caught her fist, which she tightened around the key itself so it was digging in to her palm, the key chain dangling out of her grasp.

Breathless, she looked up at him from her position in his arms. "Yes." She said simply.

He looked at her a moment in shock before sliding both his hands back in her hair to devour her mouth in a kiss. She reached around his waist to draw herself closer, stepping on tip toes to return the force of the kiss. While his one hand slid up to hold her head more comfortably, the other moved southward to caress the small of her back.

He withdrew from her kiss with a smile, then reached down to start unbuttoning her cardigan. "Even though it is Christmas eve, I'm pretty sure I still had another gift to unwrap."

Kagome set her wine down after a fulfilling sip, a smile immediately playing on her lips. Miroku's Christmas dinner had turned out to be a feast of epic proportions. Even though all four friend had finished eating, if you looked at the serving dishes it was as if they hadn't been touched. Although they hadn't had any issues finding room for that first bottle of wine, and were now well into polishing off their second.

Inuyasha sat to her left, arguing with Miroku about a trivia fact from his Christmas cracker, his golden crown sitting askew on his head. Sango cast her a look across the table and just rolled her eyes and shook her head. Kagome could only shrug in response before deciding to interrupt.

"Miroku," she interjected, drawing a scowl from Inuyasha, "I just wanted to thank you again for the delicious dinner! I couldn't eat another bite!"

"Not at all Kagome, it was my pleasure." Miroku replied with a smile. "Christmas dinner is meant to be shared."

"Besides," Sango added, standing to start collecting the plates. "He used it as an ample excuse to buy all kinds of cooking implements. Even though we are getting married in just under a week!"

"The roasting pan I had wasn't big enough for a turkey this size!" He responded, coming close to the pouting Sango. He put an arm around her waist, knowing her hands were occupied with the plates so she couldn't swat him away. "Just this morning you were complimenting me on how big it is. I know how important size is for pleasing you."

Sango turned red practically down to her toes. She used her hip to check him away and stormed off in to the kitchen, Miroku trailing after her.

Kagome giggled in her chair, overbalancing when she reached for her wine glass to the point where Inuyasha had to catch her. He set her back to rights on her chair and handed her the glass. "Enjoying yourself?" He asked gruffly, an amused expression on his face.

"Yes." She said brightly with a beaming smile. "Yes I am."

After casting a quick glance at the door to the kitchen, Inuyasha darted in for a quick kiss. With his hand still on her face he brushed his thumb across her cheek. "You're so beautiful." He murmured quietly, almost with reverence.

Kagome blinked in surprise at the unexpected compliment before leaning in to reward him with a kiss that lasted a little longer than was probably appropriate in your best friend's dining room. When they reluctantly pulled apart, she set to fussing with the crown on his head.

"There." Once she was satisfied with its position, she leaned back in her chair as if to admire him from afar. "Now you look handsome."

He growled and opened his mouth to reply but was interrupted by Mirkou and Sango reappearing, one touting a cake box and the other a pile of plates and forks.

"We almost forgot the dessert your brought, Kagome!" Sango exclaimed, her flushed face betraying that the delay in the kitchen was unlikely to be food related.

"What is it?" Miroku asked, setting the cake box down. Kagome quickly claimed it, drawing it to her seat and she began dismantling the box to preserve the surprise.

"It's a..." She paused for dramatic effect before lifting the cake out of the box. "Yule log! I haven't had one in years."

Kagome had picked out the most garish, over the top yule log cake she could find. It had Merry Christmas written on it in alternating red and green letters across the length of the log, the only blank space was saved for a plastic Santa sleigh and 9 plastic reindeer. One even had a red nose.

Expecting laughter or a smart comment from Inuyasha, Kagome was surprised when her reveal was only met with silence. Every member of the group stared at the cake with different expressions.

"My...my family used to eat one of those every year. Kohaku and I used to fight over who got to keep the Santa." Sango said quietly, a sad wistfulness on her face as she looked at the smiling Santa.

"I...used to look at those for sale at the grocery store and ask Mushin if we could have one." Miroku smiled wanly before looking away. "We never did."

"My...my mother used to bake a yule log." Inuyasha picked at his cutlery. "The...last year it was just a snack cake I bought at the store, but it still made her smile."

There was a heavy silence as all the members of the group looked at the cake and thought the thoughts they all tried to avoid this time of year.

Kagome broke the silence. "My family used to eat one every year too."Kagome set the jolly cake down and looked at her friends. "I haven't eaten one since they died. But this year is different. This year I am going to have a yule log and I'm going to share it with you. With my new family."

Sango gave her a watery smile. "Oh, Kagome."

"We have all experienced tragedy, but in some ways, it has also what has brought us all together." Kagome reached over and took Inuyasha's hand. "We have all been alone, but we have each other now."

"And we always will." Interrupted Miroku, who had taken Sango's hand and was stroking his finger over her engagement ring. The two shared a loving smile.

Kagome smiled, watching the display of their mutual adoration. Her attention was drawn towards a tug on her hand from Inuyasha.

He was staring at her intently. His grip on her hand seemed to tighten almost unconsciously as he whispered for only her to hear: "Always."