I'm back on the horse! Let's see how long that lasts.

Disclaimer: I disclaim.

Soup for You

The coughing came first. Noisy, hacking, and liable to give any nearby listener a very graphic mental image. Inuyasha made several loud comments about scaring away Naraku with a cough like that; he was promptly "sit"-ed (sat?) on the spot.

Next came a nose that ran faster than a Shikon-flavored wolf demon. There were no tissues in Feudal Japan, and she didn't want to get Sango's handkerchief infected with her grossness, so Kagome's sleeves quickly became beyond disgusting. Even Inuyasha, who was not renown for his cleanliness, gave her glances like he felt a bit sick just looking at her.

The symptoms started appearing one day in spring, and in less than a week, Kagome woke up feeling like death warmed over. She couldn't breath through her nose to save her life. Her whole body ached like they'd just survived another battle against the forces of darkness and whatnot. She both was shivering and sweating. And her throat was killing her.

Sango and Miroku insisted they go back to Kaede's village, seeing as they were close enough anyway, and for once Inuyasha made no objections.

"I'm fine," Kagome protested, but it came out sounding more like "I'b fiiiii-uh."

The group (namely one sour half demon) paid her no mind and they arrived at the village in an hour, tops.

She scowled, but allowed Inuyasha to carry her to Kaede's house –– or so she thought. She closed her eyes for maybe a second, and before she knew it the half demon had her in his arms bridal style like she was some distressed damsel and they were jumping into that damned well. She wanted to scream the S-word at him, but her voice hadn't reached louder than a croak since three days ago.

One flash of light and step through time later, they stood in the 21st century, much to Kagome's annoyance. Her mother took one look at her and immediately put her in bed, where the miko lay trapped under a mountain of blankets, powerless to the forces of motherhood and cold compresses. She tried once again to protest, she really did, except she hadn't slept in her own bed (or any bed at all) in a number of weeks and maybe resting for an hour or two wouldn't be so bad...

When she woke up, the sun was setting. Kagome squinted at her open window, trying to remember how she'd ended up in her own time, when her door swung open and a tray of something steaming walked in.

Inuyasha was an odd enough sight in her room. A half demon, right out of Feudal Japan, standing amongst her posters and homework and old stuffed animals. Inuyasha standing with a tray of hot soup in her room was enough to make Kagome question is she was having a fever dream.

"You're definitely sick, wench, but you ain't dreaming," he scoffed when she expressed her worry out loud. She was tempted to "sit" him for about the hundredth time in a week, but didn't want the soup to stain the carpet.

"What do you want, except to insult me?" she grumbled, trying to shift her way into a sitting position.

"Your mother said you need to eat this and then take some medicine."

Kagome blushed and frowned, annoyed by the fuss over a simple cold and only mildly secretly thrilled that Inuyasha was bringing her soup. "I'm not hungry," she insisted. Her stomach chose that moment to grumble loudly about the lack of substantial food in as many weeks. She turned a darker color, not at all aided by her fever.

"I'm so sure." Inuyasha rolled his eyes and walked over to the bed. "Just eat it and get better already, stupid girl."

"I'm not stupid," she snapped, "and I told you, I'm not hungry."

"The hell you aren't! Like I didn't hear your stomach rumble. Demon hearing. Guess you are stupid."

"Shut up! You can't talk that way to me in my own house!"

"I'll talk whatever way I fuckin' want, Kagome, as long as you're being so stubborn."

She huffed angrily, falling back against her pillows. "Well isn't that the pot calling the kettle black," she barked.

"I have no idea what the fuck you're talking about," he replied. "Now eat your damn soup before I decide to."

"Go ahead, you dick!" she croaked as menacingly as she could. "I told you I don't want it!"

He gave this horrible scowl like he couldn't believe how difficult she was being. She wanted to laugh out loud –– how many times had he been a complete child with her? Or anyone and everyone else? –– but the overpowering cough that came when she tried to inhale made her decide against it. He lifted an eyebrow at this, as if, by her involuntary response, she was proving his point. At this point it wasn't even about the soup (which she was beginning to admit she actually wanted); it was about being right and winning.

Inuyasha sighed heavily. "Kagome..."

And normally she would have snapped at him again, but he was using that voice, the Serious Business voice that told everyone it was really time to shut up. That was the voice that was heard when Kikyou was around. That voice was actually scary. She froze.

"Can you just...let me take care of you? For once?" he muttered in The Voice.

She froze, and she melted. "Oh, Inuyasha, I ––"

And with barely a blink he was right in front of her and closerthanthis with the bowl of soup in hand. Before her eyes could widen appropriately he grabbed her jaw with one hand and tried to force a spoonful of steaming soup in. She thrashed and cawed and he somehow kept the soup in the bowl even when she kicked and swatted at him.

"Auuugh, you crazy bitch!" he yelped when she tried to bite his hand. "Just eat your soup!"

"I'll spit on you!" she attempted to scream, but with his hand squeezing her face it came out in mostly gibberish.

And then the soup came down.

It had cooled enough that is wasn't scalding, just uncomfortable, when the bowl overturned in the struggle and dumped over both of them and Kagome's bedsheets. On the other hand, this was the exact moment that Kagome's mother decided to come check on all the screaming that was coming from upstairs.

"Oh my."

This was how she found them, the sick miko in damp pajamas underneath an equally damp hanyou, their poses set like they'd been paused in the middle of an awkward wrestling match and both their faces lighting up like fireworks.

"This...looks bad," Kagome said (still under Inuyasha) to break the silence. Her mother nodded slowly. Inuyasha didn't move. "It's, uh...not what it looks like?" she tried again.

Moving about as quickly as molasses, the hanyou climbed off of her, not breaking eye contact with the woman in the doorway, until he sat next to her on the soaked sheets. "I was trying to help," he supplied almost shyly. "To get her to eat."

Her mother nodded again, then smiled politely and finally averted her eyes. "I supposed we'll be needing more soup then?"

This one has an actual argument in it! I was trying to write it so it sounded the least like he was assaulting her. The image is meant to look like little kids fighting, not something you have to go to court for. Probably massively OOC but here's to NOT GIVING A SHIT.

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Jax