INSECURE

"Ugh, Inuyasha, stop being so mean! Why can't you just eat it? I made it especially for you guys and if you don't like it, what am I supposed to do? I spent all morning on it so you should at least try one-"

"No way," he shook his head. "There is no way I am eating one of those things. They look really weird and besides, it's just stupid to spend time on something like this when you could you bring ramen. It's easy to make, and a lot better tasting than your food."

Kagome shook with anger, fists balling at her sides in rage and Miroku and Sango cringed, with Shippo and Kirara hiding behind them. "Inuyasha, you jerk!" There were tears in her eyes, but whether they were from anger, hurt, or frustration (or all three), the gang couldn't tell.

"How am I a jerk?!" Inuyasha demanded. "I'm just telling you the truth!"

"I… I spent so much time on those lunches. I had to even redo the ones that didn't turn out as good. And you're saying that you prefer ramen?" She took a deep breath and everyone's eyes widened. "Sit, boy! Sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, sit, SIT, BOY!" she chanted.

The beads glowed much to a certain hanyou's dismay, and acted up, pulling him harshly to the ground, slamming him down over and over. But after the seventh 'sit,' something strange happened.

The beads began to shake a bit and became loose, before shattering in multiple directions (one even smacking Shippo on the forehead), knocking him down unconscious.

Kagome looked stunned, as did Inuyasha. But he snapped out of it first, and jumped out of the ditch he had created.

"Ha, in your face, wench! Now you can't control me with those annoying beads of subjugation anymore! How do you like that, huh?"

What happened next was even more surprising than the shattering of the rosary.

Kagome dropped down to her knees, as if not having heard anything Inuyasha just said, and began crawling, weaving her fingers through to grass slowly and carefully. She looked almost frantic and panic-struck, horrified even.

"Oi, Kagome, what are you doing?"

She mumbled something incoherent and continued her little search.

Inuyasha growled. "Wench, are you even listening to me?!"

"I find one!" she cried faintly. Her friends peered at her curiously.

In her hand, was one of the prayer beads, and it was sitting in her palm. Kagome closed her fingers around it, as well as the other hand, and clutched it to her chest, looking relieved. "I… I found one…"

Sango and Miroku exchanged worried glances. "Uh, Kagome, are you alright?" Sango asked.

"Mm, now I've just got to find about twenty more. Let's see-"

"Kagome, what are you doing? I don't want to fucking rosary around my head anymore! Why are you looking for them?" Inuyasha said. She looked up, surprised.

"You don't want them anymore? You sure?"

"Hell yeah. Do you know how much I suffered because of those? Made me feel like a chained dog- it was pathetic. It feels so good to be free again!"

Kagome nodded then stood up, but didn't let go of the bead she was holding. Instead she started making her way over to the well.

"Hey wench, where do you think you're going?"

"Home."

"Who says? Besides, now you can't go unless I tell you because you don't control me anymore-"

"Inuyasha? Don't come after me. Please? I need some time to myself right now."

Normally, Inuyasha would argue. But today, her voice was different. Not apologetically pleading or angry, but tired. It broke his heart. So he let her go.

Five hours later, Inuyasha was sitting at the foot of the Sacred Tree, arms behind his head.

"Inuyasha," Sango started,

"You should go see Kagome," Shippo finished.

He looked at them, irritated. "You heard what she said: don't come after me."

"Well, you'll have to sometime, right?" Miroku reasoned. "You've given her some time. Now bring her back."

"But I don't want-"

"This isn't just about you, Inuyasha," Miroku said, shaking his head and talking as if to a little child. "We miss Kagome, you know. We want to see her, too. So if you can't bring her back for yourself, bring her back for us."

Inuyasha snarled at his so called "friends" who did this to him everything he drove Kagome down the well, then rose. "Fine."

He opened the door to her house and walked into the kitchen, where he found Mrs. Higurashi making dinner. She smiled when she saw him.

"Hello, Inuyasha," she greeted cheerfully. "How are you today? Oh, did you get Kagome's special surprise she made for you and her other friends?"

"Yeah-"

"She tried her very best, too. My, she actually woke herself up at six even though she had stayed up all night last night studying for her tests. I told her I could make the lunches for her, but she insisted that she had to make them. Said she couldn't wait to see the looks on your faces!"

Inuyasha suddenly felt a horrible ache in his stomach, and it was guilt, listening to Mrs. Higurashi ramble on about how Kagome prepared the food so lovingly.

"I have to admit, Kagome's not the best of a cook since I've had no time to teach her, with her always running off down the well to see you, but she does try her best. Did you know she burnt her fingers three times?"

She burnt herself? Now he felt so bad he knew he would have to apologize. Damn Kagome and her clumsiness!

"… I think she really loves being your friend, Inuyasha- I can tell just by how excited she gets at the thought of being able to pack you a bento. Oh my, I talk too much… so how was it?" she asked lightly.

"Uh, um, I've got to go! Where's Kagome?"

Mrs. Higurashi blinked. "She's in her room, I think."

Inuyasha raced up the stairs.

"I spent all morning on it so you should at least try one!"

"I spent so much time on those lunches. I had to even redo the ones that didn't turn out as good."

"She actually woke herself up at six even though she had stayed up all night last night studying for her tests."

"Did you know she burnt her fingers three times?"

Did she really find it so important to make him those dishes? And if so, why? Why every single time?

Her door was closed, and he opened it slowly.

She was sitting at the foot of her bed, staring down at the bead.

Why is she still holding that thing? he wondered. "Kagome?"

She jumped. "Oh, Inuyasha! I didn't see you there… what are you doing?"

"Nothing, just… I wanted to, er, well, I wanted… I wanted to say sorry, alright? For making fun of your cooking and… stuff…"

Kagome stared at him for a few seconds, then nodded. "Alright, thank you, Inuyasha. I appreciate it."

Yet even though those were the words she said, her mood didn't seem any happier. And it made him crazy. I fucking apologized and she doesn't even care! What's wrong with her? "Kagome, why the hell are you so sad? Is it 'cause the rosary broke?"

"Inuyasha, it was really sweet of you to apologize, but don't force yourself. Look, I know my cooking's not amazing and I'm sorry. I'm sorry I can't make you a good lunch without making you angry with me, I'm sorry I can't be more like Kikyo, and I'm sorry I'm not the kind of girl you would want to be chained to, okay? I'm sorry! I'm really, really sorry, but there's nothing I can do!" Her voice had quickly risen to a tone of frustration and spoke like she was talking to herself. "I'm not perfect and I never will be, but I just really wanted to make you smile today! I wanted to see you smile, even just a little because I like seeing you happy but I did just the opposite. And I just felt so angry with myself and took it all out on you. I'm sorry for that, too. I'm sorry I didn't realize I was hurting you and making you feel like a dog. I'm sorry-"

"Shut up!" Inuyasha interrupted, sounding harsher than he had intended. Kagome looked stricken but shut her mouth, and he tried again. "What I mean is, why are you saying sorry for every freaking thing you do?"

Kagome smiled softly. "Inuyasha, that's who I am. But when I realized today that just being 'myself' and doing crazy stuff like I always do like making you lunches wouldn't allow me to get to the better side of you, I kind of lost it." She looked sheepish.

"But Kagome… all those things do get to the better side of me," he mumbled.

"What?"

"Well, I…. I…" Why was this so freaking hard? He said his next words super fast and turned away from her so she wouldn't see his flaming face. "I like you for who you are. For being just Kagome. Everything you do… yeah, it often annoys me, and yes, I do yell but in the end, they do make me happier in a way. As for smiling, well, I don't smile often, okay? It doesn't mean I'm angry at you. So just go back to normal and, uh, do whatever you always, er, do…" he finished lamely. "I mean, just stop fucking sulking already!"

Her eyes twinkled a bit. He had ended up saying something rude, but Kagome knew it was because he was trying to show that he had pride.

Inuyasha remembered the bead and stuck his hand out.

She cocked her head to the side.

"The bead," he explained.

"No!" she snapped. Then she composed herself. "I'm sorry, but do you mind if I keep it?"

He was curious. "Why?"

Her voice became soft. "Because it's the only part of you that Kikyo doesn't have. It's the only part of you that belongs to me."

"Hey, Inuyasha, what are you doing?" Kagome asked. It was night time in the feudal era three days after the "bento incident" and the rest were in Kaedae's hut, but Inuyasha was outside and Kagome wanted to see why.

"Nothing."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, wench."

Her eyebrow twitched but she managed to smile. "So is there anything you want to talk about?"

"No."

This was not going anywhere at this rate. But she knew she was just prying so she stood up. "Well, it looks like you want to be alone so I'll be going now but if you want to talk just say so, okay?"

"Whatever."

"Ugh, that's it! Why can't you see that I'm trying to be nice to you and help? Emotions are easier to deal with when you share them with other people and- wait, what's in your hands."

He shoved his hands into his haori sleeves. "Nothin'."

"Inuyasha, are those the… are those the prayer beads?"

"No, they're not the fucking beads so go back to the others." There was a slight sarcastic note in his voice.

"Inuyasha, you collected them… for me? … Thank you."

He plopped down on the grass. "It's nothing. So tell me what you meant the other day."

"Huh?"

"You know!" he snapped. "About the rosary being the only part of me you had or something weird like that."

Kagome laughed nervously. "Oh, that. Well… it's stupid, really, but I've got some sort of theory that as weird as it sounds, the rosary connects us in a unique way, like a bond. And that always made me feel happy. So I guess when the rosary broke, it was like our friendship did as well. Of course, that's not true, but because I got it so far in my head that the necklace was the only thing that made us friends, but now I know that it made our relationship worse, so-"

"You're so stupid, Kagome. Has anyone ever told you that?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Look, I'm practically spilling my heart to you, you jerk! I wanted to be closer to you, and I thought the beads did that! I wanted for you to love me, so I didn't try to put the beads back on you when you told me you hated them- why can't you be at least a little bit more considerate of my feelings? I love you, and you know it! Everyone knows it! You may be extremely dense, but I know that you're not as stupid as to not know it.

"I've accepted the fact that Kikyo will always hold a piece of your heart and I'm not going to feel bitter about it because I respect your relationship and love for her. And she knows she has a huge place in your heart and doesn't feel insecure. But I do, because…" she trailed off uncertainly. "Well, because, I've never felt like I could measure up to her. It's not that you don't care about me, because I can tell, and thank you Inuyasha, for allowing me to stay by your side. But next time, when I try to say something from my heart, don't call me stupid! It doesn't help my situation."

He sighed and with the hand that wasn't holding the beads, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her to him.

She looked surprised but soon relaxed into him. He was so warm, and… and everything about him, she loved. He was perfect in every single way. Okay, NOT perfect but he'd be boring if he was.

"You're stupid for thinking that the rosary was the only thing that bound us together. That's just an insult, Kagome."

"That's not, by any chance, a proclamation of love is it?" she teased.

Inuyasha's face flamed red.

He loved Kagome. Sometimes, he wasn't sure of it, but tonight he was. He didn't know what he'd do without out her anyway. She was his ray of sunshine. Kikyo was more like a moon, soothing, peaceful, beautiful, but hard to reach and oh-so cold. Kagome was… hot. (AN: not that way, guys!!! xP)

When she was angry, she blew her top but that was just a personality trait/flaw. She was bright, happy, energetic, and tons of other things. That was made Kagome his Kagome. But he'd be caught dead before saying that. Or maybe not, but it would be a while before he said anything ridiculously sappy like that.

So Kagome and Inuyasha, content, said nothing else but sat there in each other's arms, smiling. They both soon fell asleep, with Kagome's head resting against Inuyasha's chest, and his arms (which originally were holding her head) slid down to her waist.

Meanwhile, Sango, Miroku, Shippo, and Kirara were watching with huge eyes at them behind a bush.

They were surprised.

They had always known that Inuyasha, because of his rough childhood and because of his race, was insecure, but never considered Kagome being so. Everyone does have a weak spot, though, after all. They were just glad everything had turned out so beautifully.

"Aw, look that at that! They are so cute together," Sango said.

"Cute, but idiots. When will Inuyasha tell her he loves and her and ask her to bear his children-?"

"Miroku, you pervert!"

Kirara mewed in response, and Shippo shook his head as if he were the adult.

Sango and Miroku started arguing next.

"They're all idiots," Shippo stated.

Kirara nodded as if she had heard nothing wiser.

EPILOGUE

"Oh Inuyasha?" Kagome sang.

"What is it, wench?"

"Do you mind if I try something?" she asked, sliding closer to him in the hut. Everyone else was hunting for lunch, saying Kagome needed a rest from all the hard work she put into preparing their lunch last week.

Inuyasha flushed red when she slinked her arms behind his head and pulled her face close up to his. "W-what are you doing, Kagome?!"

She smiled and brought her lips up, but when they were only a mere inch away from his, she sank the rosary down his head.

He struggled with them. Not again!!!

"Kagome!" he yelled as she sat back, smirking. "That's playing dirty!"

"What can I say? Miroku's mind is contagious."

When he sat back as well, looking like a pouting child, she laughed to herself.

"But we could finish, you know," she said seductively, teasing him. She knew he was a sucker for this kind of stuff.

"Uh, Kagome?" he asked nervously as she towered over him.

THE END

AN: hope everyone liked it! I made this fanfic as a dedication to the finish of "Inuyasha: the Final Act." The last episode was simply f-ing amazing and I almost cried. I won't let any spoilers out despite the temptation, but you HAVE HAVE HAVE to watch it!

Anyone who hasn't watched the Final Act episodes, I have to be careful with the link, because they always get messed up, but i watched all 26 episodes (eng sub since dub didn't come out yet) at gogoanime . com (but take out all the spaces) I hope it works out!! ^^
One of my all-time favorite animes has finally come to an end, and I'm so happy it's a clean one, unlike how the makers left us hanging with episode 167 (or something like that).

BTW (to all my fans of IPSH): as a "thank-you" for 200 reviews, I'm posing another oneshot sometime this week or next week.

Please Review!

Love,

~Nyony's Echo