Archive of Our Own ^beta

It was colder than Kagome was used to–but being from the modern era, just the warmth of the fire was sometimes not enough to keep her body from shivering. However, she was never uncomfortable for more than a moment, as Inuyasha was fairly attuned with how she felt.

With a groan, he sank down beside her and tossed another log on the fire before brushing his hands off on his hakama. Once Inuyasha felt they were clean, he draped his arm softly behind Kagome’s back and pulled her closer.

She hummed her approval and rested her head against his shoulder, nuzzling it as she let his body warm her up more than the fire had.

“How was your day?” Kagome asked, her voice soft, filled with the tranquility of her life that surrounded her.

“Busy. Had to help weatherproof some huts from the snow storm I’ve been scenting.”

“Is it going to be a bad one?” 

“Probably. The fact I can smell it this far off means it’s gonna be a big one.”

“Is our house ready?” Kagome turned and looked up at the ceiling, and then over to the windows that were boarded up for the winter.

“Yeah–when I built it, I tried to keep some of the things from your home in mind–like those open metal seat things that help the water collect in the garden instead of on the house–to save the wood.”

“You mean gutters,” Kagome giggled, grabbing Inuyasha’s cheeks and kissing the one facing her.

“Sure,” he scoffed, his face flushing slightly, but he didn’t pull away from her attention. “Those things.”

“You learned a lot from my era,” she praised.

“Keh, not as much as you learned here.” The compliment was sweet and familiar. Kagome had heard it once before; they had been still rather new traveling companions back then–just over a month and half together when they had seen Sesshomaru for the second time.

Inuyasha had been impressed by her courage and strength. Even more so just by the little details she remembered about the herbs Kaede had taught her. 

And then he had shoved her down the well–fearing for her safety–and chosen to confront the dangers of his world alone, without her by his side. Miroku had mentioned the struggle that Inuyasha had encountered afterwards–unable to find the strength to fight–his determination still aflame, but his power just…gone…

It came right back, though, when she returned. So every fight they had, every bump in the road they faced, every misunderstanding, Kagome tried to remember that his actions spoke louder than some of the words he chose to scream at her in anger.

To be fair, they did, and his soft words often murmured when it just them meant more than some of the dumb things they did. Back then, they were both a little more rash; Inuyasha was fierce, defensive, and rude, all to try and protect his broken heart from being alone for so long, for being betrayed by Kikyo, for being unwanted by…all.

And Kagome–Kagome came in and challenged him in–everything. Even when she wasn’t fair. Yes, Inuyasha hurt her when he kept going back to Kikyo and when he said things out of jealousy. But he also hadn’t earned half of the sits she gave him. He didn’t deserve some of the cruel things she had said about him in retort, nor did he deserve her mistrust.

Inuyasha was loyal to a fault, and was nothing but upfront about his feelings about her and about Kikyo. She wasn’t Kikyo’s replacement. But he also couldn’t forget about Kikyo.

To the rest of the world, fifty years had passed, but for Inuyasha, it had only been one day. In a month, he had grown to care about Kagome. But also within that time, Kagome was young and immature. Love had snuck up on her by the third month–and she hadn’t even realized until she thought she had to say goodbye for real.

That Inuyasha choosing Kikyo meant he wasn’t choosing her…

But that wasn’t what he meant at all.

Inuyasha had meant he wanted to protect Kkyo, and save her from her fate. It didn’t mean he… picked her. Inuyasha wanted to be with Kagome, and he confessed so himself. She made him feel lighter. She made him feel happier. She made him want to live. 

And not only that, but Kagome made Inuyasha feel like he finally had a place to belong.

But he wasn’t going to force her to stay, not when he felt like he was betraying her.

And so, Kagome knew the pain she would feel, but she also knew the pain Inuyasha would feel if she gave up because of her own insecurities. She knew she would never be in love the way she was with Inuyasha.

He’d been so different from her original image of whom she thought she’d love.

A charming prince.

Someone kind.

Someone gentle.

Someone who could use their words.

Someone who was the exact opposite of who Inuyasha was.

Only… that was the catch. Inuyasha was almost all of those things; he was just so guarded and so distrusting–it took time and near-death experiences in order for him to learn that Kagome wasn’t going to leave him. She would protect him, just as he protected her.

Now, being wrapped up in his red haori, curled against his strong body, three years later, Kagome would never come to regret her choices. No relationship was ever perfect, especially in the beginning stages. Hell, they could have even been classified as enemies when they first met, but Kagome wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. Even when he wasn’t the easiest to get along with.

But with time, persistence, and love, Inuyasha softened, just as she had. They got better at communicating. They got better at understanding. They got better at being patient. They got better at being jealous.

Okay, the last one was a lie. It was more like they learned to bite their tongue and remember that they cared about one another.

Kagome giggled, making Inuyasha turn towards her in confusion, and she waved him off. “What?” he grunted.

“Just thinking about us, really.”

“What ya mean by that?”

“How… young we were,” Kagome tried to hum, but ended up laughing again.

“Young??”

“Just how much we’ve grown and changed since we first met–we were so…”

“Stupid,” Inuyasha finished, pressing his nose into her hair, showing her how much he loved her scent, and how much he had missed it.

“Mhm; imagine if we were more open back then; you probably would have slept on my bed every night.”

“I miss that thing–it was soft–should have something like that for you here.”

“The futon you got with Miroku is just as good, Inuyasha.”

“You deserve more.”

“You have given me everything and then some.” Kagome soothed his warring and emotional heart, nuzzling her head under his chin and cuddling up further in his hold. “I’m happy here–everything I ever wanted is here. Family, friends, purpose? I had those things on the other side of the well, but they weren’t the ones I wanted–I wanted and needed you, Inuyasha. Please don’t say things like I need more. I have everything right here.”

To emphasize her point, Kagome finally crawled to close the small gap between them and placed herself on his lap, and pressed her body fully into his. She took his clawed hands, and wrapped one arm around her and held his other hand in her own. 

Inuyasha was her best friend.

Inuyasha was her family.

Inuyasha was her purpose.

Inuyasha was hers.

She hadn’t lied or exaggerated when Kagome claimed she had everything. They had a home; they had friends; they had jobs in and out of the village; they also had a found family, the best kind of family. And, even if they had had none of things, they still had each other.

“Keh. I got everything too,” Inuyasha mumbled into her hair, kissing her temple firmly and sweetly, making Kagome’s heart flutter and her eyes glisten. Everything was all she ever wanted to hear, and all she needed to have.