Sacrificial Hanyou ~

"Do you have any...threes?" Inuyasha asked hesitantly. Smirking, Kagome replied with, "Go fish." "Damn." Drawing another card from the stack, the temporarily human hanyou glanced towards the faintly brightening night sky of the eastern horizon. There was only the slightest hint of dawn; sunup was still a ways off. Grumbling to himself, he tossed another stick into their campfire before scrutinizing the newest card in his hand. It had been agreed over a week earlier that Kagome could go home for an important test that had taken place yesterday, the day before the day of the new moon. Inuyasha hated being out and about during his time of weakness, anyway, so for once the hanyou hadn't resisted, agreeing that they could all use a couple of days to recuperate. The original plan had been for Kagome to come back the following morning after her test, because she had promised long ago to always be there for him during his human night, but that they would then all enjoy the extra evening relaxing at Kaede's before heading back out on the road again the next day. That had been the plan until a traveler, frantic and rambling, had stumbled into their village begging for help. Inuyasha tried to tell himself he had agreed with Sango and Miroku's desire to assist the man's village with their youkai troubles because there was a possibility that Naraku was involved, but the fact of the matter was that he knew he was just getting soft, thanks to Kagome's influence; he knew deep down that he had agreed to help the innocent village for the simple sake that they were an innocent village. Hopefully it would turn out that there was a lead to Naraku, but if so that would merely be an added bonus. He'd also known that if the situation were dire enough that Kagome would agree to miss her test in the face of innocent people's lives being at stake, which was why he hadn't gone into her time to tell her. He knew how important her finals were, at least to her, so he hated the thought of causing her to miss one of them if it wasn't truly necessary. From the man's description of the attacking youkai, Sango and Miroku had both felt confident that it was something the two of them could handle on their own, and so in the face of the man's desperate plea that time was of the essence, the taijiya and houshi had decided to go on ahead. The man had been traveling for over three days, and they could get back to his village much faster by air, so Shippou had also gone with them to function as a ride for the lanky villager while Sango and Miroku followed his lead upon Kirara. Inuyasha had allowed Kagome her night of peace with her family, but he had returned for her bright and early at dawn the following morning, that morning, the day of the new moon, so that they could at least get a head start on catching up with their friends. Kagome had been torn between being angry with him for not coming to fetch her earlier, if the situation were truly serious enough that they should have gone with the others, and grateful that he had allowed her

to take her test if it was not. She'd relaxed a bit once he'd relayed the traveler's description of the attacking youkai, some normal, standard-issue oni that was desecrating their crops more than it was slaughtering the villagers themselves. It was something that their friends could handle on their own. Following after the others was slower going than he would have liked it to be for two reasons; Kirara's scent-trail was a day old, and the winds had shifted. Her trail in the air had been completely wiped clean, though fortunately the nekomata had thought to leave him a more physical trail that he could follow instead as a backup, as she'd deliberately shed some of her fur throughout their flight to coat the ground. Her scent was faint, but it did litter the treetops very delicately. In addition to that aid, he also already knew the general direction in which they'd traveled, having watched them leave the day before, and he also knew how long it had taken the man to get to their village on foot, which gave him an idea of the distance involved. All in all the hanyou had a pretty good idea of where they were headed and should be able to meet up with the others without difficulty...tomorrow. Once it'd gotten too close to nightfall for comfort Inuyasha had abandoned his tracking in pursuit of finding a suitable place to make camp for the night. There was a small village not all that far away from their current position, but without Miroku's charm or money Inuyasha hadn't wanted to risk seeing how the villagers would react to a strangely dressed woman and a man of demonic heritage showing up alone just the two of them, seeking a room for the night. Sure, they could have waited until after sunset to approach the village so that nobody would suspect he was part youkai, but they still didn't have any money, and even if they did, Inuyasha hated the idea of how strange village men might look at Kagome in her outfit without having his powers to protect her. Nobody dared make a move on her when he was at full strength, able to scare most men off with merely a look, but under the circumstances, he had figured that even without the others around to offer extra support in the event of a youkai attack, it was still safer for the two of them out in the woods than in a foreign village. It had never been just the two of them during his human night before, just he and Kagome, and the thought had made him more than a little nervous, though for foolish reasons that he'd tried desperately to ignore while praying she hadn't noticed his flustered state of mind once the sun had gone down. He wasn't really that worried over their security. They were close enough to the village that its proximity alone would probably keep most youkai at bay, and if not, Kagome was a pretty good shot with her arrows those days so he had confidence that she could handle whatever little crawlies might be out looking for a meal. No, he wasn't too worried that it wasn't safe for the two of them alone in the woods. But what if she wanted to...talk, while they were alone? That thought had damn near terrified him. He'd never been more relieved to see her deck of playing cards. "Do you have any twos?" Kagome asked him then. "Damn it..." he grumbled good-naturedly again, handing over his duce of spades. Kagome squealed playfully, doing a little happy dance in her place sitting across from him as she took his card and tossed it down to the ground along with one of her own.

Sure, the miko could think of a lot more...productive...things to do while waiting out the moonless night. Part of her had desperately wanted to take advantage of what was almost assuredly going to be their one and only human night alone together just the two of them to have a heartfelt conversation, but she also hadn't wanted to make Inuyasha feel uncomfortable. Things were so...complicated right now. If he'd wanted to open up to her he would have done so; she'd given him a couple of knowing looks throughout the night which he'd turned away from with a shy blush on his cheeks, so she knew he knew she'd be willing to talk if he was. She figured he probably appreciated the fact that she hadn't pushed it. Her eyes hadn't been demanding, saying 'spill your guts now' ...her eyes had been gentle, assuring him, 'I'm here for you when you're ready'. Kikyou's death had been so hard on him. It had been hard on her, too...she truly had wanted to save Kikyou and she felt horrible that she'd failed, but Kagome knew that Inuyasha believed with all his heart that the failure was his own, and nobody else's. She only hoped thatBoorish laughter in the distance quickly pulled both of them out of their respective thoughts as Inuyasha silently cursed his useless senses while Kagome frantically tried to douse their campfire. It sounded like at least half a dozen men, loud and crude and possibly drunk men, were wandering through the woods much too close for comfort, and they were getting louder. "Did you see the look on that wench's face?" one of them asked through his laughter, which caused his companions to laugh with him. "We should be able to get a handsome sum for this lot." another one of them said. "Bandits." Inuyasha whispered to Kagome in a nervous tone as he helped the miko pack up their belongings, hoping to duck out of sight. The men weren't traveling alone, though. The sudden, vicious barking of a dog had Kagome and Inuyasha freezing where they stood, staring across at each other. The men's laughter immediately ceased as they started shouting, running after their dog, saying things like "This way!" and "Hurry up men!" A moment later spots of torchlight could be seen approaching their position through the trees. "Crap." Inuyasha swore, drawing Tessaiga while Kagome notched an arrow. They wouldn't be able to hide, so with flight no longer an option fight was all they had left. The men burst into their clearing mere seconds after Kagome had readied her weapon, and taking in the sight before them, they laughed and hooted joyfully while the man who held the dog's rope tossed the mutt a scrap of meat from his vest. "Good boy Seeker." the dirty man praised with a chuckle in his voice. "My my, and just what do we have here?" a slightly better dressed man, clearly their leader, said in a condescending manner as his five companions formed a circle around the small clearing, preventing Inuyasha and Kagome from even contemplating making a run for it.

Glancing towards the eastern horizon Inuyasha mentally swore at the sun taking its damn sweet time, the dark blue sky possessing only the tiniest hint of sunlight in that direction. The sky overhead was a rich, deep velvet blue and no longer black, and all but the brightest of stars could no longer be seen, but sunrise was still too far away for his liking. The bandits were a scary looking group, six large men all with a sword of some type on their hip, not to mention the dog that was glaring at them hungrily. Inuyasha wondered if it could sense that he was part canine, not that he supposed it really mattered. Two of the men were holding torches, while the other two lackeys were carrying large sacks no doubt full of stolen goods. It would seem the men were fresh from a predawn raid, and by the looks on their faces they were still high from the rush, eager for more. It was clear which village they must have hit, since there was only one within the immediate area, though Inuyasha didn't know whether or not to feel relieved that they had not been present at the village for the raid itself. It would probably have been easier for he and Kagome to slip away during the madness. Now the bandits had them cornered, just the two of them, while feeling drunk off their recent victory, and probably from some sake, too. That wasn't good. One thing he'd learned years ago, though, was to never let your enemy smell your fear. If they cowered and begged to be left alone the bandits would move in on them without hesitation. "We don't want any trouble." Inuyasha said then in a stern voice, knowing that six against two were crappy odds, especially since Tessaiga was dull and rusty in its dormant state and he knew that Kagome wouldn't feel comfortable taking human life with her arrows. Still, he had confidence that the miko wouldn't cower; she'd developed quite a thick skin over the last several months when it came to facing down their enemies. "Just keep on going along your way and we'll pretend we never saw anything." he added then, as if it was his mercy that he was going to let them go without a fight. "Pretty big talk for a boy and a whore." the leader sneered, causing Kagome to gasp and narrow her eyes angrily while the others laughed. Inuyasha bristled. He would pay for that. But still, if he could keep the man taunting them, slinging insults and attempting to instill fear, any kind of stalling was better than nothing. Glancing towards the east again he prayed for the sun to hurry the hell up. This is really bad... Kagome thought to herself, knowing enough to hold her tongue in the face of the greasy men all leering at her hungrily. She felt her skin crawl under the heat of their gaze, but she didn't take her eyes off of them, scanning her vision evenly back and forth so that nobody could get the drop on her. Taking Inuyasha's lead, Kagome kept her bow taught, as he stood his ground with Tessaiga drawn and at the ready. If they could maintain their stalemate until sunrise then all would be well, the miko knew, though she couldn't shake the nasty feeling of dread that was growing steadily stronger in the pit of her stomach. Something was about to happen; she could feel it.

"Tell you what..." the leader spoke up then, the quality of his voice causing the hairs to rise on the back of Inuyasha's neck. "You give us a go with the girl, and we'll let you both live." he bargained with a chuckle that had the other five men all laughing as well, some of them licking their lips in excitement. Okay, that's it... Inuyasha thought, his eyes narrowing dangerously. Even if they had demanded their possessions, even including Kagome's backpack that held dangerous things like books from the future, that he would have agreed to because he would have just gone after them and retrieved their stuff a few minutes later once he got his powers back. But that? "Lay one finger on her and you're a dead man." "Oh ho!" the leader laughed, hand on his belly. Then in the blink of an eye the hand on his belly shifted lower, drawing the sword at this side. Aiming it at Inuyasha he said, "You're in no position to issue threats, boy." Nodding towards his men they all moved forward at once. Gasping in surprise, Kagome did her best to fight off their attackers, letting her arrow fly on instinct without thought to the fact that these men were human. Of course, her spiritual powers did not rise against them, and a normal arrow was only fatal for a mortal man if the shot itself had been deadly. She got the man holding onto the dog's rope in the shoulder, causing him to curse and release his hold on the rope. The two men who had been holding their loot bags dropped their bounty to gang up on Inuyasha while one of the two with torches tossed his torch to the other while he joined their leader in securing Kagome. Inuyasha fought against the two men's swords the best he could with Tessaiga, receiving a few cuts and scrapes but nothing serious as he remained on the defensive, blocking or evading their more deadly strikes. It was clear, though, that their swordsmanship was more advanced than his own, plus he was also distracted by what was happening to his companion. The dog charged as she reached for another arrow, biting Kagome's left lower leg through her sock, causing her to cry out and collapse to the ground. Kicking with her right foot she got the dog hard in the throat, pushing it back with a loud yelp. Aiming her arrow and firing at the dog, she missed. It would have charged again but a command from its handler had it holding back. "Kago- !" Inuyasha started to shout before suddenly getting hit in the back of the neck with the blunt end of a katana, hard. The man could have decapitated him if he'd wanted to, but apparently these bandits at least attempted to keep their hands free of blood, or at least some of them did. Not that he planned on returning the favor. Disoriented, he tried to swing around with Tessaiga and skewer whoever was standing behind him, but a boot to his back had him going down, and the next thing he knew there was a man standing on him with another man's sword at his throat. He couldn't move. The leader dropped down to his knees and grabbed at Kagome's face as the girl sat on her ass in the dirt, gripping her chin and turning her face roughly from side to side while purring, "My my...you sure are a feisty little thing, aren't you?" while his companion stood over her and held her down, pressing hard on her shoulders so that she couldn't stand up.

The leader reached his hand up Kagome's skirt, but shouting "Don't you touch me!" she swung her bow and smacked him hard against the side of his face, earning herself a harsh slap from her other captor as the man at her shoulders released one of them to slap her hard across her cheek. As her head spun the man kneeling before her took her bow and tossed it aside while the man at her back roughly yanked her quiver of arrows down her arms. "We'll be taking these." he said, tossing them towards his companion holding the two torches. "Let her go you fucker!" Inuyasha swore from his place across from them. These men were so dead once he got his powers back. "Correction, I'll fuck her, and then let her go." the leader joked, the promise in his eyes causing Kagome's blood to run cold. He really was going to rape her. Reaching up and grabbing her throat, he smirked at Kagome's terrified face. "Oh relax, onna, don't pretend like it's your first time." he cooed, reaching his other hand up her skirt again. "Why else would a wench where a kimono so short but to advertise?" he chuckled. Tears stung the back of her eyes at his words and actions, and she couldn't look Inuyasha's way. Even worse than the idea of her pending rape was the fact that Inuyasha would bear witness, not out of humiliation for having an audience but because she knew he was going to be far more damaged afterwards than her. Feeling the man brush his dirty fingers against her panties she cringed, instinctively trying to tighten her legs closed. Then he rose to his feet, and for half a second Kagome thought that by some miracle she'd been spared, until he started unfastening his pants while the man at her shoulders yanked her up onto her knees. "How's about a little appetizer before the main course?" the leader laughed, exposing his erection. Kagome wanted to throw up. Inuyasha panicked, renewing his struggles. "No, don't you dare touch her! No! Kagome!" "Kagome, huh?" the man asked with a smirk, glancing over his shoulder at the prone hanyou for a moment before turning his gaze back to the girl. "Pretty name...I'll moan it for you when I cum." "Please don't..." Kagome begged pitifully, glancing at the man's cock for a second before turning away. I'll bite it off... she thought vaguely at first, before deciding against trying anything like that. It would be better to do whatever was necessary to survive. Everything else they could recover

from with time, getting murdered they couldn't come back from. She had to keep them alive, no matter what. As the sky got light enough to see by without the aid of their torches, the man holding the two torches dropped them down into the remains of the pair's campfire, joining the party by coming forward to help his partner hold Kagome in place, while the man who had been wounded watched from the sidelines with greedy eyes. "Give it to her good, boss, for me." he said with conviction, gripping his shoulder with blood oozing down between his fingers. "All right, you ready girlie?" he asked her as if he really cared. "You're gonna suck me off until I'm nice and wet and then I'm gonna fuck you dry. Please me and I'll let you and your friend both live. Try anything and I'll cut your throat." To emphasize his point, he handed his sword off to reach for the dagger he carried in his robes, pointing it at her neck. "Understand?" With silent tears streaming down her face she somehow managed to meet the man's eyes as she nodded her understanding. "No! Don't you dare! Kagome, no!" "Silence!" the man holding his sword to Inuyasha's throat hissed, kicking him in the side of his face. "Would you rather we just kill you both and be done with it?" Doing his best to glance up into the sky from his position forced on his belly in the dirt, Inuyasha realized that sunrise wasn't that far off any more. If they could just stay alive a little while longer then they could get out of this. The men probably planned on killing them afterwards anyway, but even if they didn't, they would all die for what they had done. But still...even though they only needed to stall for a short while longer, needing to stay alive just a few more minutes until he transformed, he could not allow Kagome to do what the man was demanding of her. I failed to protect Kikyou, I will not fail to protect Kagome. Not in this. She'll never forgive me...and even if she does, I'll never forgive myself. "Use me instead!" he shouted suddenly, effectively stilling the man who was just about to shove his erect cock in Kagome's mouth. Standing back from the miko a little bit, he glanced over his shoulder and asked with a chuckle, "Did I hear you right, boy?" "You just wanna get off, right?" Inuyasha asked back with a vicious bite to his voice. "Then use me. Trust me, she ain't no good." The men all laughed at that last part, and Kagome cringed, not from the insult that had clearly been a lie only uttered in a last ditch effort to save her honor, but from what Inuyasha was proposing in its entirety.

"Inuyasha..." she started to protest quietly, but one glare from the hanyou-turned-human stilled her tongue. He would not argue with her on this. It was his duty to protect her from every kind of torture or torment, and if he couldn't endure something like this on her behalf when he was right there and physically able to take the brunt of it for her then what good was he? How could he call himself her protector if he was just going to sit back and watch such a desecration take place? Reading Inuyasha's intentions loud and clear in his eyes, the leader of the bandit gang smirked, leaving his schlong on full display as he walked away from Kagome completely and headed over to where Inuyasha was pinned. "Very well, you've got a pretty face, or at least you did before my men had at you." Laughing, he nodded his head at the guy who'd kicked Inuyasha in the face and then at the man keeping him pressed down with a boot in the center of his back. "Pick him up." he instructed, and both men moved to obey, grabbing Inuyasha by his upper arms and forcing him up onto his knees. They weren't holding him as tightly as the two men holding a struggling Kagome across the way, but then again, Inuyasha had no intention of struggling. "Let's see if that mouth of yours is as hot as your temper." the leader chuckled, shoving his dick in Inuyasha's face. "Suck." Kagome winced at the command, and for a split second their eyes met. Inuyasha's gaze was full of remorse, but as Kagome studied his expression, she knew...she knew this was for her, that he was sacrificing himself for her sake. She knew how he felt because in that moment she wanted to do the same thing, for him, to take the abuse of the bandit herself in order to spare him the humiliation, but she wouldn't raise her voice in protest. That would undermine everything Inuyasha had just accomplished. Offering her companion the faintest of nods, she told him silently with her eyes that she understood, and that she was eternally grateful. Dragging his eyes away from Kagome's, unable to face her in his moment of shame, Inuyasha sneered hatefully up at the smug grin on the bandit's mouth, though he quickly obeyed before the man changed his mind, opening his own lips and allowing the man's disgusting phallus to slip inside. He tasted vile, and as the man fisted his hand in his hair and started thrusting, Inuyasha distracted himself by fantasizing about how many different ways he could kill him. For half a second he wished he had Sesshoumaru's sword, Tenseiga, so that he would be able to kill the man, slowly, bring him back to life, and then kill him again in a different way. Watching the act taking place across from her was like staring at a car crash; it was horrible and gruesome and disgusting and she couldn't tear her eyes away from it. She felt sick to her stomach, though not because she was disgusted with Inuyasha himself because of this, but merely from what the men were forcing him to do. Yet, at the same time, the tiniest part of her felt grateful that he had saved her from that same fate. How horrible a person did that make her, that some part of her, however small, was glad that it was Inuyasha and not herself? But it wasn't right! It shouldn't be either of them! And something told her this wasn't going to end with just a

blowjob, either. The man had had additional plans for herself, after all, and Inuyasha knew that, too. As if on cue, the bandit leader pulled back in that moment, moaning loudly as he yanked Inuyasha's head away from his dick by his hair. "Whoa...you're good at this. A little too good." His men chuckled. "Maybe I was wrong about which one of you is the whore." he snickered, earning more laughter from the others. Inuyasha didn't say anything, merely glaring. Nodding at his men, one of them reached down and started untying Inuyasha's hakama. The hanyou visibly stiffened, his jaw tight, but he made no move to stop him. "No!" Kagome shouted suddenly, unable to stop herself as she renewed her struggling. "Inuyasha, fight back!" "I agree..." the leader chuckled, glancing Kagome's way over his shoulder for a second, sending her a playful wink that had her shuddering as badly as if she'd been caught in Naraku's spider web. "Normally, it is much more fun when they fight back." the man continued, fisting Inuyasha's hair again and forcing him to look up into his eyes. "But you don't really want this, do you boy?" He clicked his tongue. "No, of course you don't. Your shame is all I need." Taking his dagger, he ran it through Inuyasha's obi, cutting open the fire-rat suikan that was just as weak and fragile as he was until sunrise, Tessaiga's scabbard clanking to the ground as the jacket fell open. Slicing through his kosode next, he spread the robes open, cutting away Inuyasha's fundoshi as his hakama fell to his knees, exposing his naked front to everyone present. Kagome tried to avert her eyes out of respect, but at the same time she couldn't tear her gaze away from whatever the man was going to do to Inuyasha. She didn't know if her friend felt that much worse about it all knowing that she was watching, but she just couldn't help herself. She was in no way aroused by what was happening, but she felt like she had to watch as some sort of security to know that Inuyasha was at least still alive. If she looked away, if she ignored what was happening, she feared the man might get rougher with Inuyasha, that he might lose interest and slit his throat or something. As of that moment he was getting off on the fact that Inuyasha was humiliated by his actions, and that humiliation was fueled greatly in part by her presence. He wanted to push the hanyou to see how far he'd go in order to save her. Kagome's hypothesis was immediately proven true when she did look away, for a brief moment, merely trying to count in her head to regain a small measure of composure, and one of the men holding her immediately shook her, roughly ordering, "Don't you dare look away. Watch. Watch how much your man loves you. What he'll do for you. Don't you feel special, girlie?" "You better watch, Kagome..." the leader added immediately afterward, purring almost seductively as he finished with, "If I think I'm losing your interest I'll make him scream to get your attention."

Biting her lip to keep from saying anything, Kagome once again raised her eyes to meet Inuyasha's gaze, her silent tears shouting a thousand apologies, for everything. Under the circumstances, neither Kagome nor Inuyasha bothered getting flustered by the lackey's observation and assessment of the hanyou's feelings for her. Even for somebody as thickheaded as Inuyasha, he knew that his feelings for Kagome had to be obvious to the miko by that point, by this sacrifice, even though he also knew that by agreeing to participate in this act of depravity she would most likely never want to have anything to do with him...like that. Still, it didn't matter. Even as the men holding him in place shifted their stances while their leader moved around towards his backside, even as he was forced down onto his hands and knees, even as he felt the man behind him kneel, his dampened cock probing around his rear entrance, Inuyasha knew he would make the same sacrifice time and time again, without hesitation. For Kagome... he told himself, just as the man at his backside plowed forward, tearing through his virgin flesh and eliciting an unwanted cry of pain from his lips as his rapist buried himself fully within his body in one single thrust. Kagome stopped breathing for a moment at the sound, her eyes pinched shut though that couldn't stop the unending tears streaming down her cheeks. But in his current position the leader was looking right at her and quickly demanded, "Open your eyes, bitch!" She had no choice but to obey. "Mmm...you feel better than I thought you would, boy. I'm glad you talked me into this." the man chuckled then, causing his followers to laugh as well while the man on the sidelines began to not-so-discreetly reach for the bulge in his own pants. Retracting his hips, the leader pushed forward once more, causing Inuyasha to wince slightly though he refused to give him the satisfaction of crying out loud a second time. Inuyasha had endured a lot of pain in his life, and he knew that if he could survive having his brother's hand shoved through his gut and getting injected with poison that he could easily survive this. His physical injuries would heal up in a matter of hours once he got his youkai powers back. The only thing that made this moment as unbearable as it was was the fact that he knew Kagome was watching. She had to watch, he understood that; he knew she would look away if she'd been given the choice. In fact she did keep looking away, which was why they had to keep ordering her to look. At least, he assumed Kagome had had her eyes closed in order for the man to demand that she open them. He honestly didn't know for sure because his eyes were also closed; especially knowing that Kagome was watching what was happening to him there was simply no way he could look at her at the moment. In fact, he wasn't sure how easily he'd be able to look at her even after it was all over with, but he'd worry about that after he'd gotten his powers back and slaughtered these assholes. It was sick that he could find anything to be grateful for in that moment, aside from the fact that he'd saved Kagome from this same fate, of course, but a tiny part of Inuyasha was also grateful that at least nobody was demanding that he open his eyes. Pulling back out only to push back in again, his passageway slickened with blood, the man did not care if Inuyasha was looking at Kagome as he kept his own eyes locked on the girl's. She averted her gaze from his own a few times, glancing down to the man below him, but quickly a grimace would appear on her face and she'd raise her eyes back up to meet his own again with a renewed glare hardened by the promise of revenge. He merely laughed. What could either of them possibly do in retribution? If they had truly been more powerful than he and his men, then

his group would not have gotten the upper hand in their momentary battle. The time for proving who was stronger had already come and gone, and now, he was enjoying the spoils of victory. He was thoroughly enjoying the spoils of victory. "Damn...you're so good at this." he purred, removing one of his hands from Inuyasha's hips to run it underneath his robes across his back, almost in a loving gesture that had the hanyouturned-human stiffening uncomfortably. Of course, his entire body tensing in discomfort also caused his inner muscles to clamp down that much tighter around the intruding appendage within his male opening, and the man behind him hissed in pleasure at the feel of it. "If you weren't so fucking tight I would swear you must have done this before." the man added then, and mentally cursing, Inuyasha really wished he would stop talking and just cum already. It fucking hurt! Not that he couldn't take it, though pain in his human form was always much harder to tolerate than when he had his youkai blood running through his veins. Inuyasha desperately tried to ignore the 'sexual' aspect of what was happening and focused on the simple fact that an enemy had bested him; he was presently captured and enduring physical injury that he would ultimately heal from, and he would deliver far worse than he was currently getting so in the end he would be victorious and his temporary suffering was irrelevant. Plus he had saved Kagome, and that made any kind of torture worthwhile. He was just glad that the monster behind him wasn't really lusting after him like that freak Jakotsu had been back during their ordeal with the Band of Seven. No, the only thing the man was getting off on with rutting him like a bitch was the knowledge of his humiliation because of it. That was something Inuyasha couldn't help while he temporarily had his human emotions, but hopefully that feeling would go away once he got his powers back, healing along with his physical injuries. What was there to be ashamed of, really? So his body was getting rammed through with something and he was bleeding...not like that had never happened before. The what and where were a little different, but that was a minor technicality. All of his denial and remedial logic came to a screeching halt as the man behind him pulled back so far he was almost completely out before slamming back home, his phallus brushing up against something that had Inuyasha gasping not in pain, but in unexpected, unexplainable, and unwanted pleasure. What...was...that...? He didn't have enough time to wrap his mind around what had happened before the man at his back, somehow sensing his reaction, immediately started laughing, taking advantage of the situation to deepen his humiliation to all new and previously unimagined levels. "Liked that, didn't ya, boy?" he chuckled. "You're more of a slut than your whore over there, aren't ya? Let's see if you like this." Rearing back, he slammed forward again, making sure to hit his victim at the same angle.

That time it was Kagome who gasped, as she quickly realized what was happening based on the expression on Inuyasha's face. He'd opened his eyes, a mere physical reaction to the sudden sensations washing through him, and in no time hanyou and miko locked gazes, though the former quickly looked away, his face turning as red as the tattered suikan hanging loosely off his form. It's not...it's not supposed to feel good! Inuyasha thought in panic. In fact it did still hurt, a lot, but there was no denying the underhanded way in which his body started craving it when the man within him hit something buried inside at just the right angle. Heat started pooling within his belly that had nothing to do with the burning tears in his flesh. Inuyasha's eyes widened in disbelief as he felt his own penis start to harden, appalled and confused by his body's reactions. He wasn't enjoying what was happening to him! At least...not really! How could his body betray him at a time like this? Nobody had ever given his body that kind of a reaction before except for... Kagome! he quickly thought in panic, locking eyes with hers once more. He couldn't discern if the disgust in her gaze was for the man behind him and what he was doing, or for himself and his reaction to it. The man in question picked that moment to start laughing again, though even as Inuyasha believed the sound should shrivel away whatever random stray flash of heat had started to grow within him, it did not. The man's laughter didn't egg his body's desires on any further, either, but he could not deny the way more and more pleasure began mixing with the pain he was feeling as the man behind him continued his steady pace. He felt like weeping, though he refused to make matters any worse by showing tears. His entire body stiffened in panic as he felt the hand that had been uncomfortably rubbing his back move down and around his hip, reaching for something nobody had ever touched besides himself. "You really do like this!" the man taunted knowingly, instructing with a look cast toward his two grinning goons still holding Inuyasha's arms to keep him from moving to lift him back up in that moment, bringing Inuyasha back up onto his knees instead of forward on his hands and knees together, his back arching to accommodate his inability to fully straighten with the man behind him currently lodged deep within his body. The shift in angle caused the man still buried deeply within him to press up even harder against his prostate, though the main purpose for the shift in position had been to bring the hanyou's erection into Kagome's line of sight. It was win/win for the bandit leader, relishing in the sound of his prisoner's uncontrollable gasp of pleasure as he wrapped his hand around his cock moments before whispering in his ear, "Look at her, she's disgusted by you. Sacrificing yourself for her honor is one thing, and quite noble I might add, but you weren't supposed to enjoy it." Inuyasha's heart plummeted at his captor's words, even as the man started roughly yanking on his cock, causing a new mixture of pleasure and pain to wash through his body.

"After I'm done with you, boy, I'm just gonna slit your throat and take her anyway. Whatever did you hope to prove?" the man taunted then, his whispered words like a thousand daggers in his heart. Suddenly, Inuyasha no longer hoped his captor would hurry it up. This had to last until sunrise, no matter what. Hating himself, he deliberately let out a gasp of pleasure, hoping it would keep the man interested that much longer. "Look how much the whore likes it!" one of the men holding Kagome laughed in observation then, their leader's whispered words having been quiet and solely for himself so that nobody else had heard his taunting of how he would still take Kagome, or how much she was disgusted by this act. Kagome... Suddenly, instead of looking away, Inuyasha was the one who couldn't tear his eyes away from his friend; he couldn't look away from her look of disgust, knowing that she hated him, and knowing that he deserved it. The man was right, after all. Sacrificing himself for her sake was all fine and good, but what sick, perverted, depraved animal actually enjoyed being abused in such a way? Everyone who'd ever called him a freak of nature had been telling the truth. It was all Inuyasha could do to remember where he was and what had led up to his current predicament, once again glancing towards the eastern horizon in an attempt at judging how much longer it would take for the sun to rise. The sky overhead was a much lighter blue, though presently there was no bright beacon of light at the center of the orange horizon. It would be a couple more minutes then, at least. A couple more minutes these bastards had to live. As awful as he felt for discovering this new level of filth that had been buried away deep inside of himself, he wouldn't let his self-loathing prevent him from exacting his revenge. Even more so, he owed these men their deaths for revealing something about himself he would have greatly preferred never knowing. And he couldn't even live out his indignity in quiet shame because Kagome was right there across from him witnessing every moment, catching every flash of pleasure that danced across his face, hearing every moan that escaped his lips either with or without permission. The man at his back wasn't even moving any more, holding still, holding him flush against his hips and pressing his stiffness hard up against whatever it was inside his body that made him feel like an uke bitch begging for more. He both wanted to demand that the man release his cock and tell him to stroke him even faster, but he could say neither as he closed his eyes and panted, counting the seconds until his youkai blood came back to him. "Cum for me, boy. I want to feel how tight you get." the man taunted in his ear, nearly a whisper, and Inuyasha shuddered, though thankfully not in pleasure. If the gods had any mercy at all, then he would regain his youkai blood before the bastard successfully made him cum. He could feel his orgasm approaching, slowly. Every jolt of pain pushed it back away, burying it further down below, and for that he was grateful. At least it wasn't the pain itself that had turned him on. But every rush of pleasure issued forth by his rapist's hand was bringing his release that much closer to the surface. He did not want his first release by another's hand to forever belong to this man!

Suddenly, he felt it, not the immense pleasure and humiliation of an orgasm but the unparalleled relief of his youkai blood rushing to life, his body pulsing with the thrum of youki as sunlight danced across the sky. It was clear from Kagome's expression that she felt it also, even before his physical appearance started to change, and the look of relief mixed with love she shot him in that moment caught him by surprise but fueled his desire for revenge. Yes, he couldn't forget that these animals had had their sights on Kagome, first. Everything he had endured, they had originally intended to do to her. She might be disgusted with him for what had ended up happening, for the discovery that he was so perverted he made Miroku look like a saint in comparison, but that discovery had been an accident, a side effect of wanting to protect her. She would still be grateful for what he had endured on her behalf, and perhaps even pity him more than loath his nature from discovering he liked it, so long as she believed the truth that he had never lied with a man before and had possessed no knowledge of having those types of feelings. Even if she could never look past him being a freak to again enjoy the same friendship they had once shared, the most important thing was that Kagome was safe. A mental image of his own design of Kagome in his place, naked and bloody and impaled on their captor's cock, was all it took to shove any worries regarding his own well-being to the furthest, darkest corner of his mind. The man at his back was shocked out of his power-drunk stupor when an unnatural, inhuman roar the likes of which would make any man's worst nightmare seem like his wedding night in comparison suddenly ripped from his victim's throat, his two lackeys holding Inuyasha's arms immediately releasing their hostage and scurrying back as his demonic aura pulsed so strongly that even they as normal men with no holy powers could feel it. Immediately his transformation consumed him, and the bandit leader actually screamed as the curtain of hair fluttering in the unnatural breeze before him shifted from black to white. He tried to separate himself from his captive, tried to run, but Inuyasha tightened his buttock muscles in that moment, keeping his rapist right where he was. Misguided but loyal, the other men didn't scatter to save their own hides as they stood waiting on the sidelines with their weapons held in shaky grasps, hoping for some miracle that would enable them to save their leader's life. The stench of fear was a welcomed perfume in the air. Time seemed to stand still for a few agonizingly long seconds as Inuyasha knelt on the ground with his head down, his bangs shielding his eyes from view, though Kagome wasn't worried that he had actually gone full-youkai in his anger because as he clenched and unclenched his fists she took note that his claws were their appropriate length. She diligently ignored the sight of his gradually deflating erection, or at least tried to, refusing to feel either aroused or embarrassed at the sight of his naked flesh. Now wasn't the time. As the two men holding her both released her to draw their swords, she held perfectly still, figuring it would be best not to move from her last known position should Inuyasha be calculating his best course of action. Finally, as if some cosmic force had pushed a giant 'play' button, time started moving again. Snarling, Inuyasha slammed his head backward into the face of his rapist, and then releasing his buttock muscles he dived forward into a summersault, shedding his loosened robes and pants along the way. They would only get in the way in their current state and he didn't have time to fix them. Coming out of his roll he quickly spun around and before the leader even had time to think about refastening his own pants he swiped with his claws and cleanly severed the man's

dick, earning a horrible, blood curdling scream that activated the other five men's suppressed instinct for self-preservation. Forgoing reaching for Tessaiga since he knew it would be useless anyway, Inuyasha relished in using his hands, though he did show the other goons a small measure of mercy in making their slaughter relatively quick. Quickly slashing through the chests of the two men that had held him in place during his rape, he spun around at Kagome's cry to look out in time to see one of her arrows coming at him, void of power and fired by the bandit that Kagome had shot earlier, her bow held in shaking hands. He caught the arrow effortlessly and would have snapped it for added flair except he knew he shouldn't recklessly spoil one of their own weapons merely for show. Tossing the projectile aside he growled, and leaping through the air he slashed down with his claws, not even needing to make physical contact as blades of youki came flying from his fingertips, ripping the man to shreds, his dog proving its loyalty by growling a curse at Inuyasha before attempting and failing to save its master's life, getting itself torn to bits as well in the process. The bow from Mt. Azusa remained unharmed in the attack, its own natural spiritual powers somehow protecting it from his blades of youki, so that it dropped to the ground undamaged out of the dead man's grasp. The two men who had held Kagome captive had taken off in opposite directions at the sight, but it didn't take him long to catch up with each of them, dropping them each with a single slash of his claws, and then he was back, slowly approaching the leader who was writhing on the ground in agony as a large pool of blood grew around his mutilated groin. Looking up at the naked hanyou from his spot on the ground with eyes wide in fear, he managed to rasp out, "Please...have mercy." Inuyasha chuckled darkly. Looking down over himself, he made deliberate gesture to his naked form, reminding the bandit that his current state of dress, or lack there of, was his own doing. Inuyasha was no longer aroused, and an eye for an eye was definitely not on his agenda, but it was clear from his expression that he would relish in his rapist's death. "Mercy?" he asked after a moment, raising an eyebrow. "Do you even know the meaning of the word? Mercy is what I was going to show a gang of thugs by letting them get away with their crime unpunished. If you had left Kagome and I alone, I would have kept my word to forget about your pack, I wouldn't have come after you on behalf of the village you'd plundered." The bandit gulped, feeling lightheaded. "Mercy is what I showed your companions, killing them quickly. You, I should just let bleed to death." Kagome looked away, unable to stomach the sight before her, though she wouldn't criticize Inuyasha for his handling of the situation. Under the circumstances, and especially considering the time period they were in, she supposed justice really had been served. She couldn't help thinking back on the time he had brutally murdered a group of bandits begging for mercy while transformed into his full-youkai state, and how they had all yelled at him to not do it, and how guilty he'd felt afterwards... Kagome wouldn't let him feel guilty about it this time, and she

wouldn't tell him to stop. She was surprised, though, when she heard Inuyasha sigh, a sound of defeat that was so curious she couldn't help looking back towards the carnage before her. "But unlike you, I'm not a completely heartless monster..." Inuyasha added then, picking up the bandit's fallen dagger and handing it down to the man. "You'll get no mercy from me, but here's your one chance to earn penance in Hell." He then picked up the man's sword, knowing that Tessaiga would refuse to cut into human flesh if it weren't in an immediate need to protect somebody else. Holding the katana at the ready, he waited, and with his eyes opening even wider in recognition, the bandit quickly realized that Inuyasha meant for him to take his own life with the dagger, seppuku style. Kagome cringed and looked away again, unable to watch even as she realized that Inuyasha had shown the man mercy, after all. A part of her was relieved. Inuyasha remained motionless, but he didn't have long to wait for his answer, as the man bleeding at his feet quickly snarled, and with a fairly impressive roar for a human, used every last ounce of strength he possessed to lunge towards the hanyou, aiming to plunge his dagger deep in Inuyasha's unprotected belly. The inu-hanyou easily sidestepped the bandit's thrust, and spinning around, he brought the katana down and cleanly severed the man's head from his body. Sighing again, as if knowing all along the man was going to pull something like that, he dropped the sword and moved to retrieve his own weapon and clothing. Kagome averted her eyes out of courtesy as Inuyasha slowly, haphazardly wrapped his robes around himself, since they had yet to repair themselves, before then reaching for and loosely fastening his hakama. His body hadn't fully repaired itself, either, and he knew he'd be feeling it for a while still. They needed to move on, though, further away from the village that had been attacked during the night. Supposing a search party had been sent out after the bandits, the last thing Inuyasha wanted was for them to be associated with the bastards' remains. Remaining silent, Inuyasha cast Kagome only the occasional glance as he went about gathering up the last of their belongings, including his tattered fundoshi, shoving everything messily inside her bag to be organized later. Once her backpack was packed, he slung it over his own shoulder, handing her her bow and arrows with a quiet, "Here." after slipping the sheathed Tessaiga through the side of his hakama. Rising shakily to her feet, still in shock over everything that'd happened in the last twenty minutes, Kagome momentarily reached for Inuyasha after accepting her weapon, intent on examining the damage to his face, but when the hanyou flinched slightly she quickly yanked her hand back as if burned, realizing that of course he wouldn't feel comfortable receiving her touch at the moment. "Lead the way." she murmured quietly then, falling into step behind him as he led them deeper into the woods.

Of course she wouldn't want to touch me... Inuyasha thought in misery, not consciously realizing it had been his own slight hesitation that had caused her to retract her hand. It wasn't that he didn't want her touch, it was that he didn't deserve it; he knew she would try to make him feel better, treating his wounds, giving him medicine, but a bastard like him deserved to feel every ounce of pain coursing through his body. They walked for what seemed like hours, his pace slower than normal and with a noticeable limp. Every time he glanced Kagome's way he cringed again at the sight of her swollen cheek, not to mention her blood soaked stocking. Kagome was walking with a limp, too, and it was the knowledge that she had wounds that needed treating that'd had him sniffing out a source of clean water. Finally arriving at a small stream, he dropped her bag from his shoulder and murmured quietly, "You better have a look at that bite." Silently nodding her understanding, Kagome came forward to the edge of the water, removing her shoe and sock. She grimaced at what she saw...the dog had gotten her good. Though it wasn't the worst injury she'd ever sustained since she'd first started coming to the Feudal era and she knew she'd be all right without immediate medical attention. At least she was fairly certain the dog hadn't had rabies; it hadn't been a wild animal after all but the bandits' pet. Though that didn't mean she wouldn't get the vaccine, just in case. But Kagome would worry about asking to go home later, right now she had much bigger concerns. Removing a small washcloth from her bag, she dipped it in the cool water and ran it along her bloody leg; it didn't look so bad once she had all the blood washed away, just a few deep puncture wounds which she quickly disinfected with iodine, grimacing all the while. Sure, it stung, but what stung even worse was the way her companion remained silent throughout the entire procedure. Was he just going to pretend that nothing had happened? Was she? Catching out of the corner of her eye the way he scooped up a few handfuls of water, sloshing it around in his mouth before spitting, she grimaced, deciding to give him a moment longer to cool down as she continued to tend to her leg. Inuyasha sniffed her way as she applied the disinfectant, his nose twitching a mile a minute as his ears swiveled in her direction at the sound of her hiss of discomfort, but he offered no words of consolation as Kagome then slowly, meticulously went about bandaging up her leg before pulling on a clean sock from her backpack. Finally, the miko could take no more of his silent treatment, glancing his way with glistening eyes as she quietly asked, "Are you...okay?" "Feh..." he grumbled, turning away for a moment. "I'm a lot tougher than you weak humans." he stated without emotion. So...we're back to 'that' Inuyasha, are we? Kagome thought in despair, praying that the last few months of progress her friend had managed to make within himself and his general outlook on life had not been permanently erased by what those monsters had done to him.

"It's okay to be weak, sometimes." she stated carefully, allowing him to twist her words to be in reference to herself if he wasn't ready to hear such things. As he once again turned to look her way, though, she knew with tremendous relief that her Inuyasha was still in there at the look in his eyes, his gaze softening ever so slightly as he reached a hand towards her swollen cheek, though much like herself back at camp, he quickly yanked his hand away before making contact. Remembering the injury to her face, which had started to feel numb in comparison to the throbbing in her leg, Kagome quickly took advantage of the situation to ask quietly, "Can you...can you help me with my face?" Meeting his eyes and noting his gulp of nervousness, she held up her medicine and added, "Since I can't really see what I'm doing..." She hoped he would temporarily forget about the pocket mirror she carried in her bag. Nodding mutely, Inuyasha took the iodine from Kagome's hand, setting it down since her face didn't need it. That bastard at least hadn't broken the skin. Taking the washcloth from her next, he grimaced at the scent of her blood as he washed it off in the stream until it was white again, reminding himself over and over that she would have been hurt a lot worse if it weren't for his sacrifice. He was amazed that she was willing to let him touch her, but secretly felt grateful for the small gesture. He knew she had a mirror and could tend to her facial injuries herself. Perhaps their friendship wasn't totally ruined, after all. Sometimes Kagome's heart's too big for her own good... he thought, carefully bringing the cool rag to her swollen cheek, his breath catching in his throat as she closed her eyes and tilted her face into his touch. If she could look past what had happened on that cursed morning then so would he; it was a miracle that she wasn't disgusted by his touch and he knew he only had her forgiving nature to thank for it. It surely had bothered her, he'd seen the look in her eyes himself, but she must have decided not to throw away their friendship because of it, deciding to forgive him his perversion since the bottom line was still that he had protected her. "You have nothing to feel ashamed of." she murmured suddenly as if reading his mind, her words quickly pulling him out of his revere as he yanked his hand away, causing her to almost lose her balance for a moment as she'd leaned her weight fully against him. "Feh, like you would know." "I don't know..." she admitted quickly, drawing his attention as he gazed her way again with scrutinizing eyes. "I don't know what it's like to endure such a thing, and I would have, if it weren't for you. I...I don't-" "Kagome..." he interrupted softly, acceptance in his gaze. "You don't have to think about it. It's my job to protect you. That's all there is to it."

Kagome wanted to be strong for Inuyasha, she wanted to be there for him and let him cry on her shoulder if he needed it, but in that moment she was in no position to offer him the support he probably so desperately needed, because she was the one to lose it. His eyes widened in panic as tears quickly started forming in her pools of velvet chocolate, and the next thing Inuyasha knew, he was holding a shaking Kagome in his arms as she was the one to cry herself into hysteria. It had all just been too much for her to bear. The sound of her gut wrenching sobs tore at his heart, though he didn't know how to console her, so he just held her and let her cry. For several long minutes they stayed like that, with him sitting at a rather awkward angle by the riverbank, keeping all of his bodyweight shifted onto his right ass cheek as he let Kagome lean against him, running his hand up and down her back awkwardly in what he hoped the girl found to be a soothing manner. It turned out to be something they'd both desperately needed, each of them finding more comfort in the presence of the other than either of them were willing to admit. When Kagome finally pulled away she apologized quietly for losing it like that, but he quickly brushed off her concerns, telling her it was understandable, under the circumstances. "Inuyasha..." she started then, reaching forward and clasping one of his hands in both of her own. His eyes widened in surprise at the simple gesture though he didn't pull away from her touch. "I can never, ever thank you for what you did for me, taking such suffering in my place. I know how you felt...not during the act but leading up to it, your desire to take my place, because I felt the same way as soon as you became his target. I wanted so desperately to take your pain and make it my own." "That would have killed me inside far worse than what he did to me." Inuyasha admitted softly, and she nodded through her remaining tears. "I know...I knew that...I knew that if I tried to reverse what you'd done you'd never forgive yourself, or me for being so stupid." she added with a tiny hint of a chuckle that had him echoing the sound. "I know I've gotten us into some pretty bad situations before because of some mistake or another...at least this one can't be blamed on me." she added more as if talking to herself, needing to reassure herself of that fact. "Absolutely not." he stated with authority, startling her by the sudden conviction in his tone. "Nothing about what happened was your fault, Kagome. Always remember that." Closing her eyes and nodding silently, Kagome squeezed his hand, and then opening her reddened and tear-swollen eyes, the miko repeated cryptically, "And nothing about what happened to you was your fault." Tugging his hand out of her grasp, Inuyasha turned away, not wanting to think about it. "Inuyasha-" "Let it go, Kagome. What's done is done."

"No, I've got to say this." she argued, and her tone of conviction was enough of a surprise to have him glance her way again. "There's nothing wrong with you." she stated right away, earning herself a slightly widened gaze from the hanyou as he found himself caught completely off guard by her words. Kagome knew what had probably gone through his mind; any rape victim would probably start to question what was wrong with them if a part of them had started to enjoy what was happening, male rape victims even more so because of the added stigma of being gay, and couple that with the way he'd always felt like a freak and an outsider...she didn't need to be psychic to know what he was thinking and what she needed to make him understand. "What you experienced, that was a perfectly normal reaction." she began to explain, trying desperately to use terms the fifteenth-century hanyou would understand. She couldn't get too sciencey and psychological or his lack of knowledge on the subject would only make him feel frustrated and stupid. "You can't be blamed for what your body does on its own. We...we know more about how the body works in my time, Inuyasha, doctors know more and we understand things better. The body is full of different chemicals, like herbs, and you know how different herbs do different things, how one leaf can kill while another reduces fever? Different chemicals that are natural to our bodies affect the way our bodies work, too. Releasing different chemicals in the brain, that's what causes emotions, that's what makes people love or hate or...feel aroused." She blushed but didn't stop there. "You are not to blame for your body's reaction, I promise you. I'm not just telling you this to make you feel better. It's happened to other people, the cases have been documented, and in my time the victims are not shunned for what their bodies do while being attacked." From the seriousness of her gaze down to the firm set of her jaw, Inuyasha knew she was telling the truth, but she didn't know the whole story. His body hadn't just gotten aroused because of some 'herb' in his system that had been triggered by what that bastard had been doing. He'd enjoyed it, truly and fully. Well not fully, but he hadn't just gotten aroused for no reason, either. If his dick had just decided to get hard on its own, maybe that he could have forgiven, like waking up with a hard-on when he couldn't even remember having one of those types of dreams the night before. Maybe Kagome was right and sometimes the body really did do funny things like that for no outward reason, but not this time. "You don't get it..." he mumbled dejectedly then, meeting her gaze for half a second before looking away in self-disgust. "It felt good. Even before he touched...it...I...I started to like it." Kagome could tell that quiet confession had to have been the hardest thing he'd ever said in his entire life, to anyone, and she got the distinct impression that he thought she was about to gasp in revelation and scoot away from him in disgust. Instead, she reached for his hand a second time with one of her own while reaching up for his face with the other, gently turning his stunned gaze to meet her eyes as she told him quietly, "Yes, I know."

"Wha...what...?" he panted, panic starting to rise in his eyes. She quickly shushed him, scooting closer and moving both hands to his shoulders, locking her gaze with his own. "Inuyasha, listen to me very closely. There is something inside the male body that can trigger that type of pleasure if touched a certain way. That is why men who lie with other men can find enjoyment in being the uke, because this thing exists in the male body in all men. They are not freaks for feeling that type of pleasure, and neither are you. If you're truly curious I can read to you more about it from my medical book at a later time, but for right now I want you to understand one thing. It is no different that you started to find pleasure in what he was doing than if I would have remained his victim and started to find pleasure in it, myself. So I want you to think about this, and be honest. If, even as against my will as it was, I had felt pleasure even in the smallest amount from him raping me, would you have blamed me for that? Would you have held it against me and thought me a whore?" His eyes nearly popped out of his head at her comparison, his panic rising to all new heights though immediately for an entirely different reason. "No!" he nearly shouted, suddenly reaching up and wrapping his arms around her, pulling her back into his embrace. "No..." he repeated, calmer then, as her words fully sunk in. "No, if he had ra- a...attacked you...no, it wouldn't have been your fault if it had started to feel good. I don't know how bodies work like you do, but I would have tried to tell you it wasn't your fault." Visions flashed before his eyes, faceless women and faceless assailants. Throughout his years wandering the forests he'd stumbled upon all sorts of human depravities, and rape was no exception. Suddenly, the memories he'd suppressed as a disgusted and frightened child came back to him, of a woman sobbing and begging for mercy while a group of men taunted her, calling her a whore and accusing her of liking it as one of them raped her. He'd managed to scare the men off by growling loudly and knocking down a few nearby trees without showing himself, and after a few moments the woman, battered and bloody, had gathered up what was left of her clothing and run off in another direction. At the time he hadn't understood, though; he knew what a whore was and a whore wouldn't have been begging for them to stop, so why had they been calling her such a thing while doing what she obviously hadn't wanted them to do? The next time he'd come across a rape in the forest he'd been older and better understood what was happening; he'd chased those men off by pummeling them with stones from the treetops. But he had never really understood, not fully, until that very moment, how the rapists could laugh and taunt their victims about liking it. In some cases at least, and perhaps not fully but at least in part, it was actually true. The victim didn't like it, but maybe...just maybe...some small fraction of their body actually did, and feeling that...that unexpected and unwanted flash of pleasure amidst all the pain...Inuyasha couldn't speak for other rape victims, but it had been enough to bring his mind to a screeching halt. He'd immediately thought that something had to be wrong with him, that he was even more disgusting than people had accused him of being. What kind of sick bastard was he? But now Kagome was telling him that his reaction had been normal, and not his fault, and he desperately wanted to believe her...so he did. "Inside a man is something that feels good, like in a woman?" he asked her quietly as he pulled back from their embrace, more curious than offended by the analogy.

"Yes, sort of." she started to explain. "It's a gland that-" Already noticing his blank stare she quickly changed directions. "It's just part of the male body, part of how all your 'man' stuff works." It was his turn to gain reddened cheeks, hearing Kagome talk about male sexuality so casually, though he could tell the miko was doing her best to explain things without embarrassing him too badly. At least until she told him how it was even possible for a man to experience orgasm without stimulation to the penis during a procedure known as milking the prostate. Despite his embarrassment, though, he was actually relieved to learn that Kagome knew so much about such things, and he told her as much. After all, a woman from his time, a woman who didn't understand how the male body was built and about these stray chemicals and hormones that could do things to the flesh against a person's will, would most likely believe the same thing he had originally thought about himself, that he was a sick and perverted monster. "The only sick and perverted monsters from this ordeal are the ones you sent to Hell." Kagome assured him in that moment. His ears lowered a bit at the reminder, and he glanced down at his claws, but Kagome wouldn't let his mind wander down that dark road, either. "Don't." she added quickly at the obvious shift in his thoughts. "You're not a monster for anything that happened this morning, Inuyasha. Those men were the monsters, and we kill monsters. How can I rightfully value human life above youkai? How can killing evil youkai be all right but killing evil humans is wrong? If I were to make such a judgment that would be like stating a belief that human life is more important, that humans are more important, and I just can't do that. I've never held any kind of racism in my heart, I've never thought of youkai differently, and I won't start now. Humans can be good or evil, just the same as youkai, and we fight against evil. That's all there is to it." He smiled faintly at her words, grateful that she wasn't disgusted with him over his body's reaction to the bastard's touch or how he had exacted his revenge upon the return of his powers. The renewed scent of her tears caught him by surprise after all the progress he thought they were making, and quickly looking her way with growing concern, Inuyasha was at a loss when the miko hesitantly confessed, "If...if we're going to move on from this...then I also need t-to t-tell you..." With a quivering lip, Kagome lunged herself forward again, unable to meet his eyes as she buried her face in his chest, mumbling barely above his hearing level, "I-I...I did wish I could t-take your p-pain away, b-but...*sniffle* a p-part of me was also g-glad it w-wasn't me!" Sighing as he finally made out her stuttering, Inuyasha rested a hand on her back as she got into her second round of crying. Finally calming back down again after a moment, Inuyasha chuckled a bit, and gazing down at her while hooking a finger under her chin to tilt her eyes up to meet his own, Inuyasha assured his friend, "Hell, Kagome, I would be worried if a part of you hadn't felt relieved to be spared. That's only natural, and I'm the only one between the two of us not allowed to feel that way, ya got it?"

She chuckled a bit despite herself, getting his meaning. If their roles had in fact been reversed, not one single ounce of Inuyasha would have felt relief at merely watching while she endured the actual torment. Every fiber of his being would have, and had, desired to take her punishment for himself, in order to spare her; he was hardly going to criticize her for feeling relieved that he had done so. What was the point in rescuing somebody who didn't even want or care to be rescued? "We sure are a pair, aren't we?" Kagome murmured quietly after a moment, earning another chuckle from her companion. Pulling back after a few more silent minutes, the miko finally took that moment to examine the extent of Inuyasha's injuries, or at least the ones she could see. Though she hadn't actually looked in a mirror she imagined that her face didn't look near as bad as his did. True, his wounds were healing much faster than hers thanks to his youkai blood, but he had also been injured more severely than her in the first place. She'd seen it when he'd taken down the bandits completely naked; he had cuts and slashes all across his body from the sword fight. True, they would eventually heal on their own, but something told Kagome in that moment that her touch could prove healing for him in more ways than one, if he agreed to let her treat his wounds. "Inuyasha, will you...will you let me treat your injuries?" she asked him hesitantly. His eyes widened in panic. "Not those!" she quickly rushed out, cringing a little as he flinched. "I mean...I mean I will treat those injuries, if you want me to, and I promise I'd be professional about it, but I was talking about your face and the cuts on your body from their swords." He relaxed again just as quickly as he'd started to get nervous. "That isn't necessary." he told her reassuringly, believing she had offered only out of obligation. "I'll heal just fine on my own." A part of his mind immediately started screaming at him as soon as the words left his lips. A part of him, however remote, was desperately craving her touch, needing that final proof that she honestly wasn't disgusted by him or what had happened. But he was also apprehensive about letting her know something like that, and he knew if he allowed her to treat his wounds, even just his face, he wouldn't be able to hide how much the physical contact meant to him. He couldn't miss the way Kagome's face fell, though, as she muttered dejectedly, "Oh..." before adding, "I guess...I guess we should try to make camp, then, since we can't go to the others just yet." He cringed at the reminder that they were supposed to be on their way to meet their friends. He had complete confidence in Sango and Miroku's ability to handle that village's youkai problem on their own, though; if there was a genuine chance their friends' lives could truly be at stake then he would've rushed he and Kagome there even in their current condition, consequences be damned. Nobody else needed to know what'd happened aside from they had been attacked. But

considering he knew the situation wasn't really that dangerous, and Miroku and Sango knew he knew the situation wasn't that dangerous, a delay in their arrival could also theoretically be blamed on Kagome needing extra time in her time for her schoolwork. Hypothetically, if when he had went to retrieve her the previous morning she had in fact told him of another, surprise test she hadn't previously known about, and how she really needed to take that one too if at all possible, he really would have agreed to let her do it. If it was going to take a really long time he probably would have left her in her world to go track down the others and update them on the situation, but he definitely wouldn't have dragged Kagome away from a final exam if he didn't have to, if the situation in his time hadn't involved either Naraku or the Sacred Jewel. Perhaps they should just head back towards the well, then, and allow Kagome the chance to recover from her injuries in her world. That dog bite definitely needed to heal some before they got back to their steady marching across all of Japan. But as he shifted slightly in his position on the ground and a sudden jolt of pain traveled up through his insides, Inuyasha quickly changed his mind about immediately heading back to the well. The less black and blue Kagome looked by the time he returned her to her family, the better, and even though he was loath to admit it, he could use a little time to recover some, himself. "Making camp...sounds like a good idea." he finally agreed, wincing as he stood up before heading away from the stream some to clear a spot to make a campfire. Limping over to where he'd crouched back down, gathering rocks into a circle, Kagome started bringing him over a few handfuls of sticks for use as firewood. Yes, it hurt to walk, a little bit, but she was definitely the less injured between the two of them. "I am so sorry..." she apologized softly as she helped him start their fire with her matches, "For what you had to go through because of me." "Don't, Kagome..." His words were gentle, pleading. "Don't you dare blame yourself for what happened. I would gladly make the same sacrifice over and over again, to protect you." "Still..." she stated with conviction. "I am forever in your debt." He actually snorted. "Hardly. If I had failed to protect you, then I would be at your mercy." Reaching up before she could stop herself, Kagome rested her hand against his cheek, and much to her surprise he actually leaned into her touch, just the same as she had done with him over by the stream when he'd held the washcloth to her face. There was no mistaking that kind of gesture. Not only was she relieved that he actually found comfort in her touch, after all, since she hadn't been sure if that would be the case or if he'd feel disturbed by it instead, but she was also surprised that he had actually decided to show his comfort in her touch, having figured that even if he did want it he probably didn't want to show that desire, fearing it would make him look weak in her eyes. That was why he'd turned down her offer to treat his wounds, wasn't it?

Overwhelmed by feelings of love and gratitude for his sudden willingness to let her know without words how much she truly meant to him as he continued to rest his cheek in her hand, gazing her way affectionately, Kagome did something in that moment that neither of them had been expecting or could have possibly anticipated, she leaned forward and kissed him. His eyes widened in disbelief while hers widened in shock over what she'd just done, and she immediately started to pull away, fearing he would think her the monster, some kind of predator that preyed on the weak and vulnerable, or worse, that she had been aroused and attracted to him during his moment of torture, but he didn't let her get very far in her escape, quickly reaching forward and yanking her back into his embrace for the fourth time. "I...I can't believe you still...feel that way." he managed to mutter after a moment, as if her feelings for him had previously been common knowledge. Though, as she thought about it, the miko realized with a roll of her eyes that her feelings for him probably were common knowledge. She had always just refrained from saying anything out of respect. They'd had their moments, though, their 'almost' kisses in the past, and Kagome knew in that moment that if she were to be fully honest with herself, she knew of his feelings for her just as assuredly as he apparently knew of hers for him. "Always." she murmured then, seeing no reason to deny it and every reason not to. "Maybe..." he began after a moment, his eyes hopeful as he pulled back slightly to meet her gaze. "Maybe you should take a look at my wounds, after all...the ones from the fight." Nodding her understanding, Kagome retrieved her medical supplies and tenderly started to wipe away the residual dirt on his face from the man's boot. The swelling had gone down dramatically since the return of his youkai blood, though the flesh was clearly still tender. Applying a cooling patch to sooth the lingering ache away, she helped Inuyasha shrug out of his robes next so that she could treat the deeper of his sword injuries with her disinfectant before bandaging them. Her touch was gentle and thoughtful, and he found himself cherishing the sensation of her hands on his body. Especially after the way that bastard hand manhandled him, rubbing his hand up and down his back. Inuyasha shivered some at the disturbing memory, and Kagome started to pull away, thinking something she'd done had made him uncomfortable, but he quickly grabbed her hand and placed it back on his chest, on the wound she was presently bandaging. "Don't be afraid to touch me, your touch could never revolt me, no matter what the circumstance. It's not your hands on me that I don't like, it's the memory of his hands." he told her quietly, revealing more than he'd intended to as she took his words to the next obvious level, glancing down into his lap despite herself. He caught the way her eyes shifted lower at his words, and a deep red hue immediately rose to his cheeks. While he hadn't meant to imply anything sexual from his reassurance to her, he couldn't help allowing his mind to travel down the same path hers had obviously taken, reliving the memories he wanted to forget despite himself. He understood what she'd so desperately wanted to make sure he understood, that it wasn't his fault for feeling pleasure against his will when the man attacking him had done things to his body that were naturally pleasurable, but that didn't mean he didn't find the memories any less unsettling. While he hadn't known about the

thing inside of a man's ass that could give him pleasure, and he was relieved to learn that he wasn't a unique freak in that particular department, it was still disturbing nonetheless. There was no grand mystery behind the penis, after all. Even he knew it would feel good no matter who was touching it, but that hadn't been part of the agreement and the fact that the man had started touching him...there...he was just glad he had transformed back into his hanyou self before the bastard had managed to make him cum. As it was he already didn't think he'd ever be able to masturbate again without at least temporarily remembering this incident. How was he ever supposed to move on past this? "But still, if it's...if it's too soon for you, I understand, if you'd rather I leave you alone." Kagome spoke up softly after a moment, pulling him out of his thoughts to focus on what she was saying, on how she'd misunderstood his comment and the moment of silence that had come afterwards. "Like you always say, you don't need me to treat your wounds. I...I don't want to remind you of something so horrible, if you're not ready." "No, Kagome..." he told her with an almost desperate quality to his voice that had her eyes widening in shock a second time, as he raised his hand and held hers against his chest, not letting her release him. "Your touch isn't reminding me of his, and I don't want you to leave me alone. Your touch is the only thing that can make his go away." Kagome blinked in stunned silence at his unexpected confession. Honestly, she hadn't known what to expect, since there were so many different routes rape victims could possible take, depending upon the severity of the attack coupled by each individual person's own personal ability to deal and cope with stressful situations. Some rape victims could be traumatized for weeks, months, years after the attack. Sometimes they developed a fear for the gender or race of their attacker, preventing the healthy development of possible future relationships. Some other people, on the other hand, were more easily able to put the attacks behind them. Some people were just made of tougher stuff and were able to move on, recognizing the fact that the entire world was not to blame for the actions of one monster. Other people still, Kagome knew from her studies in psychology, would actually seek out physical reassurance from people they trusted either that they were not to blame for what had happened, or that they were not ruined because of it. Married women especially might immediately crave sexual intercourse with their husbands, for example, for the reassurance that their spouses were still attracted to them. Knowing that Inuyasha had always thought of himself as a freak, that he had always been amazed at the way she'd never thought of him differently and would openly touch him in small gestures like holding his hand, unafraid of his youkai blood or features, she could see how it easily made sense that he would seek that type of reassurance in that moment, needing to reaffirm within himself that she still didn't think of him as a freak or a monster; that she still loved him and wasn't going to let what had happened to him change how she felt about him. What surprised Kagome the most wasn't that Inuyasha felt that way deep down inside, but that he was openly admitting to those types of feelings on the surface. She had feared that he would clam up, that he would order her to not think about it at all, stating harshly at her first words of encouragement that 'nothing had happened' and that as a result it would forever remain an

impenetrable wall between them. She was honestly surprised that he hadn't thrown up an emotional brick wall between the two of them because of this, but she was also tremendously relieved that he hadn't. The old Inuyasha would definitely never have admitted to wanting her touch, of her hands on him erasing the horrible memory of his attacker's hands. She knew it was only because so much time had passed since they'd first met; he wasn't the same man he'd been when their mission had first started, and neither was she the same girl. They had grown so much closer to one another over the last few months, and considering they were alone, just the two of them - another factor that had enabled Inuyasha to be honest in that moment, able to tell her things he would have never dared reveal to anyone else - Kagome would not take advantage of his vulnerability for her own gain, but neither would she turn away his needs. "Whatever you want, Inuyasha, whatever you need, I'm here for you." "Just treat my wounds like you always do." he beseeched of her. "You've never let what kind of monster we'd been up against prevent you from wanting to heal me before." Nodding, she smiled his way softly and murmured a gentle, "All right." before reaching for her disinfectant and moving on to the next gash. She was meticulous in her work, and over the next few minutes neither of them said anything, as she worked her way around him. Moving towards his back, Kagome couldn't miss the way Inuyasha's posture stiffened when she began gently prodding him for possible internal injuries, remembering the nasty kick that had felled him, but biting her lip she remained silent, trying to go about it the same way she would have had he sustained his injuries during a normal battle. He had one pretty nasty cut on his back, so reaching for her disinfectant she began treating that wound, carefully kneeling behind him. She couldn't miss the way he jerked in pain for a second as he wiggled in his seat, trying to find the most comfortable position. "I wish there was something I could do for your other injuries..." Kagome murmured quietly, more to herself, though thankfully at that point he was no longer ashamed to discuss such things, so long as it was just the two of them in private. "No offense," he began, hoping to lighten the mood with a touch of humor, "But with the way that stuff of yours stings, I don't want it anywhere near my ass." he told her honestly with a hint of a chuckle. She raised her lips up in a half smile that he couldn't see for all of two seconds before frowning once more, appreciating that he was trying to lighten the mood though she couldn't help feeling the heaviness of the situation. "At least you should heal up just fine being half youkai, a human would need to go to the doctor for sure." Inuyasha was very glad he was half youkai, though for more reasons than merely his ability to heal up okay from that type of injury. He confessed to Kagome in that moment what the bandit had said to him near the end, how he'd said he was going to slit his throat and take her anyway after he was done with him. Despite how badly it'd hurt at first, and even despite his confusion and self-loathing when he hadn't understood why it'd started to feel good, or the humiliation of

that bastard's hand around his cock nearly bringing him to orgasm, Inuyasha hadn't been praying for his torment to end. Not in the direct sense, at least. He'd been praying for the sun to hurry the hell up, because he had wanted it to come to an end, but he had also been praying for the bandit to stay with him until sunrise. He had been terrified that he would finish up with him before he'd gotten his powers back. "I...I couldn't stop how good it was feeling, but I didn't have to moan as loud as I did at times." he confessed, part of him needing to assure Kagome that he hadn't been quite as lost to the feelings running through him as he knew he'd appeared to be. There was no sense in denying that a part of him had enjoyed it, she'd seen his erection after all, and there was no way the man jerking him hadn't felt good, but it was true that he'd started gasping and moaning on purpose a few times in a desperate last ditch effort to keep the bandit's interest, to keep him entertained. It'd been the only thing he could think of at the time, terrified that after everything was said and done that they would kill him before he got a chance to fight back if he didn't successfully stall them until sunrise. The bottom line had been protecting Kagome, no matter what. "Thank you..." she murmured quietly through a sniffle, though her tears didn't return full-force a third time. Inuyasha started to turn his head to look her way over his shoulder, intent on telling her 'You're welcome' with a hesitant grin, though his movement was stilled halfway through as another jolt of pain traveled up his rectum, causing him to wince and tilt his body sideways to shift his weight. "At least let me give you some pain killer." Kagome offered then, unable to stand the sight of him suffering though she knew there wasn't really anything she could do about it. "That...might not be a bad idea." Inuyasha admitted after a moment, a light dusting of pink on his cheeks. He was glad he felt close enough to Kagome to discuss such things, though even though he was willing to talk to her about it, it was still embarrassing! Swallowing the aspirin she gave him, he crinkled his nose as he handed her back her bottle of water, that man's vile taste still in his mouth. Catching the face he made, Kagome dug back through her backpack, her heart panging in her chest as she came across his torn fundoshi, though she quickly smiled as she found what she was looking for, handing Inuyasha one of Shippou's suckers. He blinked at the candy for a moment, surprised, though his eyes quickly widened in realization, and with the hue on his cheeks darkening to a deeper red, he mumbled a quiet thanks before opening the wrapper and popping the lime flavored sugar in his mouth. Kagome quickly got back to work on his back, finishing up the final touches on the bandage before gently rubbing the area that felt bruised. She couldn't miss the way his breathing hitched, his back stiffening again when she touched him in certain spots. "Does that hurt?" she asked with concern, lifting her hand away. "No..." he assured her quietly, mumbling, "He...he had been rubbing me there."

"Oh..." Kagome nearly pulled her hand away completely before remembering what Inuyasha had said about her touch making the bandit's go away. Figuring that he would tell her to stop if he wanted her to, Kagome carefully, gently, put her hand back on his lower back, rubbing him slowly in a soothing, massaging manner. He stiffened again but only for a moment before immediately relaxing under her touch, and smiling softly to herself, Kagome continued to massage Inuyasha's back in silence for the next few minutes, secretly relishing in the opportunity to touch him so intimately though hating the circumstances surrounding it. Inuyasha closed his eyes, sighing in bliss at the simple yet intimate feel of Kagome's small, soothing hands rubbing gentle circles on his lower back. She had never before touched him in such a manner, always limiting her touches to the minimum that was necessary to apply salve and bandages, though he knew that was primarily his own doing since he definitely wasn't what one would call a touchy-feely person. He couldn't help it. Before Kagome, nobody had ever wanted to touch him in a manner that wasn't meant to inflict pain and suffering. Sure, he'd since touched Sango or Miroku briefly from time to time. He'd actually carried Sango on his back when they'd first met her, and Miroku would slap his back or clasp his shoulder occasionally in a friendly, buddy-buddy kind of way, usually right before or after saying something perverted, but Kagome had started it all. It had been Kagome's natural acceptance of him, her complete and total lack of prejudice that had gotten the others to see him through her eyes, as a person no different from anyone else. Even Kikyou hadn't possessed that quality, liking him despite his youkai blood, finding solace in the fact that they were both freaks and alone in the world. Kagome didn't want to join his world of solitude, believing they could be 'alone together' in a world that didn't understand either one of them. She was a normal girl with friends and family, everybody liked her, and she wanted to invite him into her world of love and acceptance, allowing him to be welcomed by the people around him. She'd shown him that he wasn't as alone as he'd thought he was, taught him that it was okay to feel like he belonged, and he would forever be in her debt because of it. Sure, he had held Kikyou when she'd tripped and fallen into his arms that one time, but the miko had never initiated physical contact between the two of them, or at least not before being brought back to life. He didn't want to think ill of Kikyou, though, and it was true that he would forever hold a special place for her in his heart because she had been the first person after his mother to show him any manner of kindness whatsoever, but Kagome definitely took the cake when it came to treating him like a normal person. A person she loved. Thinking about how much he loved the woman sitting behind him, Inuyasha was startled out of his peaceful revere by the unexpected but instantly recognizable sensation of tingles traveling through his body and straight down to his groin. He moaned. "Kagome..." he spoke up, his voice slightly husky, though the miko was concerned his reaction was from pain. "Are you all right?" she asked him quickly, thinking she might have accidentally aggravated a bruised kidney or something.

"I think...I think those 'ke-me-kuls' of yours are having an effect on me..." he confessed. Curious, Kagome scooted around towards his front, intent on meeting him face to face, her eyes growing wide at the unexpected sight of his hakama tenting up in his lap. "I...uh...sorry..." Kagome stammered, unsure of what to say though it was obvious his reaction had been from her ministrations. She hadn't meant to have that kind of an effect on him. She was caught even more off guard by the way he smirked at her almost playfully before asking, "Why are you sorry? This is a perfectly normal, healthy reaction." "Well..." Damn, he had her there. "That's true." she admitted, smiling shyly for a moment before quickly getting serious once more. What the hell was wrong with her? "Though...after everything that's happened..." She was surprised by how quickly his face fell. "Of course...I...I knew that. Sorry." Now she was confused. "Wait, what?" Not saying anything more, Inuyasha turned away from her slightly, stubbornly ignoring the blush on his cheeks as well as the tent in his pants as he pulled out the sucker in his mouth for a moment and looked at it absently before popping it back in. Realization smacked Kagome upside the head harder than the bandit's slap from earlier. "Inuyasha, do you...do you want me to do something?" she asked hesitantly, sure she was right but also horribly embarrassed, not to mention conflicted in other ways. Part of her was actually a little thrilled at the idea, though she immediately felt guilty for that reaction. How could she find any enjoyment in this, under the circumstances? Still, a promise was a promise, regardless of her feelings on the matter. "I said I was here for you, whatever you needed," she reminded him quietly, "I meant it." He glanced her way but didn't say anything; she could see the hesitance in his gaze, the fear of rejection. Surely she would be disgusted with him if he asked of her what he wanted to ask, right? She sighed. Here she was afraid that actually wanting to do this for him made her a monster, and he was afraid to admit he wanted it for fear she would think him perverted. If they both remained too afraid to say or do anything then nothing would get accomplished. "If you want me to do something, Inuyasha, I'll do it. I'm not disgusted by you; I never have been, and I never will be. I...I love you, and the idea of you...like this...I've thought of it before." He turned back her way then, unmistakable love shining in his eyes.

"I...I've thought of it before, too. Now, though, I'm afraid I won't be able to get that bastard's touch out of my mind. Anytime I...uh...well, I don't want to be reminded of him." "Of course not." Kagome agreed easily. "You have my permission to think about me during...uh...that." she told him with a deep blush staining her cheeks. He actually chuckled a bit, the sound strangely humorless and with an obvious bite to it. "I've thought about you during that since before Shippou joined up with us." Her eyes widened in disbelief, and quickly her mind raced back to the time, very early on in their mission, when she'd caught him ogling her naked form in the river near Kaede's village. He'd said he was only after the jewel shard! Despite herself, though, Kagome only felt her cheeks getting warmer from embarrassment, she didn't feel angry to learn that he'd been fantasizing about her sexually. She probably would have, if she'd found out about it before, but not now. Not now that she'd gotten to know him as well as she did, not now that she'd fallen in love with him as deeply as she was. Now she was only turned on by the realization, flattered and aroused to know that he had had those types of thoughts about her, apparently for quite some time now. Sure, she could ruin the moment by saying something stupid like 'What about Kikyou?' but she wasn't that dumb. Besides, with Kikyou having finally passed on, peacefully and in a way that would enable Inuyasha to move on as well, knowing that his first love was no longer suffering, there was really no point in dwelling on the past. It was time to look towards the future. Inuyasha must have realized that too, finally getting bold enough to make his request straight out. "Look," he started, crunching off the last of his sucker before flicking the stick into the fire. "I know this is way outta line, and I'm not going to ask you to let me...well, the whole point of everything I went through this morning was to save your body, so I wouldn't want to be the one to defile it. But if you could...help me get that guy's touch out of my mind?" Kagome wanted to comment on his belief that lying with him would 'defile' her, but she quickly decided that that was a conversation for another day. As much as she wanted to be with him, she supposed that would be moving a little too quickly, all things considered. What he was actually asking of her, on the other hand, was something she was pretty sure she could handle...no pun intended. "I'm only hesitant because I don't want to push you into something you're not ready for." she assured him quietly in that moment. "But truly, only you can be the judge of that." she added. He snorted. "I wasn't ready for it this morning when he pushed me into it, so it's a little late to worry about that. I...I don't want that to be my only memory of...of being with another person." He felt like a

complete and total wuss, confessing to such a weakness, but there it was. He was practically begging her for some kind of sexual contact, something, anything that could take the place of his rape in his mind. Not exactly how he'd envisioned his first time with Kagome. He was such a bastard. He was pulled from his thoughts when she scooted around him until she was kneeling directly in front of him again. "It won't be..." she promised him then, leaning forward for a second, gentle kiss, which despite himself he eagerly returned, reaching up with one hand to rest it on her uninjured cheek. He might have been a bastard, but he was her bastard, and if she was actually willing to...well, he definitely wouldn't tell her no. His erection, which had started to deflate just a little bit, immediately roared back to life, and there was no way Kagome could ignore its presence with the way he was sitting topless on the ground, his pants tented at the crotch at full capacity since he currently wore no fundoshi to keep his excitement bound. Though he'd made it obvious what he wanted, she still hesitated for a moment longer, grateful that he clearly had no intention of forcing her. She had been the one to offer, though, that she would do for him whatever he wanted or needed, and even though she hadn't been thinking of something like this at the time of making that statement, she wouldn't leave him hanging in his time of need after giving him her word. Pulling back from their kiss, Kagome slowly, cautiously reached for the tie to his pants. It was hard to avoid the tent in his lap and her wrist brushed up against his erection as she worked on unfastening the knot holding his hakama in place. His breathing hitched slightly at the contact, but in a good way. Successfully untying the knot after a moment, Kagome folded down the front flap of his hakama, exposing his erection to her gaze. Unsure of what to do, specifically, she reached forward and wrapped her right hand around him, or as much of him as she could reach, considering she couldn't close her hand fully around his girth. Though she'd been trying not to study his naked form too closely during his abuse, she didn't remember this part of him being quite so...impressive. It looked like his fangs and nails weren't the only things that grew larger when he turned back into his hanyou form. Inuyasha moaned in both relief and joy at the feel of Kagome's hand touching him there, focusing on that sensation while not thinking about anything else. Cracking his eyes open, which he didn't even remember closing, he frowned a bit at the look of serious concentration on her face. He truly appreciated that she was willing to do something like this for him, but damn, he didn't want her to feel obligated. Not only did he not want to think about his attack, but he didn't want her thinking about it, either, as if this was just something that she needed to do for him to erase those horrible memories. Okay yeah, that was why he had asked this of her, but that didn't have to be the only reason. They loved each other, didn't they? He wanted her to think about this act that way, instead. He wanted her to enjoy it as much as he would, maybe even letting him return the favor, because they loved each other and wanted to be together. Thinking about it for a moment longer, he wanted to smack himself on the other side of his head when he realized he'd neglected to do something very, very important.

Pulling her out of her concentration by surprising her by wrapping his hand around her own, stilling her hesitant movements, he smiled her way gently when she raised her eyes up to meet his own, a questioning look on her face. "I...I just want you to know that I...I love you, too." he told her then, and her eyes widened for a moment before nearly closing all the way, her lids heavy and her gaze full of lust as she leaned forward to kiss him once more, thankfully tasting nothing but lime candy as she delved her tongue past the barrier of his lips. While Kagome had known of his feelings for her, she hadn't expected to hear him say it out loud. Even after her own confession from a few minutes prior, she hadn't felt insecure or depressed that he hadn't repeated her words. Inuyasha just wasn't that way, and she understood that. Actions spoke so much louder than words, after all. The fact that he had said them, though, meant more to her than she'd even realized it would. He would never tell her such a thing unless it were true, after all; he definitely wasn't the type of guy that would lie to a woman just to get what he wanted, especially since she was already going to pleasure him anyway. He had told her the words for her own benefit and peace of mind, she realized quickly, making the words themselves an action of sorts; he'd proven the strength of his love for her by managing to say the words that had clearly felt foreign on his tongue, knowing how desperately she had longed to hear them. She would show him how much she loved him in return. Pulling back from the kiss, panting and smiling, Kagome glanced down at where their hands were joined with a knowing smirk, and chuckling a bit, he released his grip of her, and she immediately rewarded him by moving her hand over him much more assuredly than she had been a few moments prior. He moaned loudly at the feel of it, his hips shifting slightly, though that movement immediately drew a hiss of pain past his lips, which temporarily snapped Kagome out of her trance. "Here, lie down..." she instructed softly, helping Inuyasha ease himself back onto the ground. Pulling his hakama fully off she folded up the article of clothing and placed it under his rear, like a pillow. He wiggled around for a moment trying to find the most comfortable position, but soon he was settled, and gazing his way with both love and passion dancing in her vision, Kagome immediately got back to work. Diligently ignoring the dried blood on his cheeks and scrotum, she moved her hand up and down his shaft with careful precision, fascinated by the feel of him; a steel rod wrapped in loose-fitting velvet. His skin rolled along his staff as she worked him, and she couldn't help noticing a few spots that looked a little raw when she pulled his skin taught on the down strokes, like an Indian burn. That bastard had been rough with him even in this, she'd seen it, but apparently Inuyasha hadn't been injured there severely enough for him to find what she was doing even remotely unpleasant, and for that she was grateful. That wasn't all she was grateful for, either, she thought with a smirk.

"I am so grateful..." the miko told him slowly, her eyes locked on his own, "...that you spared me from having to please him..." she continued, her lips curling up into a wicked grin that had his eyes growing wide in anticipation, "...so that you are now my first." she finished, turning her gaze away from his own as she shifted and quickly lowered her face over his crotch, engulfing his cock in her mouth. "Holy shit!" he cried out at the unexpected intensity of pleasure crashing through him, being enveloped in the smooth, wet heat of her mouth feeling far better than he could have ever possibly imagined. Now I'll just never be able to masturbate again because it won't feel as good as this... he thought with a chuckle, thinking that if that was going to be the worst of his problems then he really had nothing to complain about. Bandits? What bandits? he mused as his body sang. He had no idea where Kagome had learned how to do what she was doing, but she'd just said that he was her first so he knew he had no reason to be jealous. That she was willing to do something like that for him was more than a little mind blowing, he certainly hadn't expected that she'd do anything beyond the hand job, but he definitely wasn't going to complain if it was her desire to do this for him. Gripping the earth tightly at his sides with his claws, he concentrated on not blowing his load too quickly. Before, Inuyasha had desperately been trying to hold back his orgasm from an actual desire to not allow that bastard to make him feel such things, not to mention the fear that cumming before dawn could have meant his death and Kagome's rape if the bandit leader had decided that their game was over. Now, though, he just didn't want to cum yet because he didn't want the wonderful sensations traveling through him to end. Gripping the base of his staff firmly with her right hand, Kagome pumped him steadily while bobbing her head up and down over his tip, as far down as she could take him, lavishing him generously with swipes of her tongue. While it was true she'd never done such a thing before...hell, she'd never even kissed a boy until now...thanks to the marvels of the 21st century very few teenage girls in Tokyo were unfamiliar with such...adult...matters. While she was sure that practice made perfect and it was true she had no basis for comparison to really know if she was doing it right, judging by all of the noises Inuyasha was making she'd guess that she was doing a pretty decent job. Lodged away deep in the back of her mind was a nasty little voice that still wanted to make her feel conflicted over what she was doing; how could she take advantage of his vulnerability to basically molest him right after being raped because he's so confused and needy that he's mistaking physical love for emotional support, right? But there were a few things wrong with that assessment. One, she didn't believe that Inuyasha was the type to completely crumble in the face of any kind of trauma, emotional or otherwise. If he could survive all of the bullshit that he'd already had to deal with his entire life then she knew he would recover from this attack as well. Two, she hadn't talked him into anything; he'd gotten aroused and desired this of her all by himself, desperately craving this experience so that he could use the positive and pleasant memories as something to chase the bad memories away if and when they ever actually did resurface to haunt him. Okay so yeah, he had only asked for a hand job, but she somehow didn't think he minded her little surprise, which brought her to number three. She wasn't taking

advantage of his vulnerability for her own gain...she did love him and she wanted to be with him, both emotionally and physically. She didn't just find him attractive and want him for his body, like some heartless prick who would take advantage of a bad break up to sleep with the girl he wanted to bang on the rebound. She had every intention of going the long haul for him, of being there for and with Inuyasha for years to come. Yes, it was true they were from two different worlds, but that was a minor technicality. She'd find a way to make it work; her heart wouldn't let her do otherwise. So try as it might, Kagome wouldn't let the voice in the back of her mind make her doubt herself, make her feel bad about what she was doing. Instead, she focused on the positive truths of the moment. She loved Inuyasha - truth. He loved her - truth. He had originally become aroused in this moment on accident, it wasn't planned or intentional - truth. He wanted her and what she was presently doing, not just because of that morning's attack, but because he had actually wanted her for quite some time now, fantasizing about her sexually whenever he pleasured himself over a span of several months - truth. That thought had her cheeks growing warm once more, though she wasn't about to stop what she was doing. Glancing his way for a moment, Kagome felt the rest of her body get warm at the look of absolute and total bliss on his face, his expression as he desperately jabbed his claws further down into the dirt to keep from losing it causing a few chemical reactions of her own. He must have sensed her eyes upon him because he glanced down the length of his body in that moment, and meeting her gaze their eyes locked. The intensity of his stare quickly had her arousal flaring to life at full force, tingles washing over and through her, and continuing to hold his gaze, she saw the way his nose started twitching, his eyes opening even wider before drifting halfway closed. "Kagome..." he moaned, panting heavily. "You smell good." She had a fairly good idea what he was referring to, feeling the dampness in her panties. She wasn't embarrassed. Pulling her mouth away from him, she continued to stroke the full length of his lubricated shaft with her hand. "For you." she told him huskily, grinning when he rewarded her words with another low moan, his eyes drifting fully closed for a moment as he unabashedly took in a long, deep breath through his nose. "I'm so glad those bastards didn't touch you." he commented with a sigh of relief, and since the bandits had in fact physically touched her, one even delivering a nasty slap across her face, it was only all too obvious what he was actually referring to. "So am I." she told him honestly, slowing down the rhythm of her strokes as one ultimate realization insisted upon making itself known to her. She wanted to be with him, fully. She'd thought it would be moving too fast after what had happened, but the truth was she'd wanted to be with him like that for a few months now, herself.

"There's only one man I want to give my virginity to, and it's most certainly not the leader of a gang of bandits." His ears swiveled forward at that, cautious optimism shining in his eyes as he once again met her gaze with his own. The motion of her hand came to a complete stop, then, though she didn't release her grip of him, meeting his hopeful gaze with an affirmative nod. "Kagome..." he voiced in wonder, daring to hope it could be true for a moment longer before finally shaking his head in denial. "I...I can't defile you like that." "And how would it be defiling me if I love you and want to be with you?" "You...you really mean that?" Smiling tenderly, she leaned over him and met his lips with her own for another gentle kiss. He could taste traces of himself on her tongue, but instead of finding the similar flavor disturbing it only fueled his arousal all the more, knowing he was with the woman he loved. Nothing else mattered. "There's one surefire way to protect my virginity for all time." she told him quietly when she pulled back from the kiss, and he licked his lips in anticipation of her next words, believing he knew where she was going. "Take it for yourself, and then nobody else can ever have it." she stated, and the fire in her gaze fueled the heat coursing through his own body. "If you really mean that, if you really want me, I...I want you too. More than anything." he told her honestly, reaching down to where her motionless hand still gripped him, gently prying her fingers open and her hand away from his cock. If she was truly proposing this, then the last thing he wanted was to ruin his chance by letting her finish him with her hand. He had been close, too, especially after that wonderful perfume of hers had started to tickle his nose, but thankfully she'd pulled her mouth away from him and slowed her hand not long after, allowing the rush in his blood to slow back down as well. He wanted his encounter with Kagome to last, so he was grateful that he could now feel his orgasm ducking back down underneath the surface. He would probably blow his load the second he joined with her, but at least it would be inside her. She wasn't fertile at the moment, thank the gods, so at least that wouldn't be an issue. Kami, he hadn't even been thinking about that when he'd done what he'd done to protect her from the bandits. He'd fought as hard as he had for her simply for her own sake, because he loved her. Thinking about how easily they had confessed their love to one another had a goofy smile climbing up the edges of his lips for a moment, before thoughts of pregnancy got him thinking a little more seriously once more. As much as he would have hated to tell her no, he knew that that was no time to allow either of them to do something so stupid, with the current intensity of their mission, their need to find and kill Naraku and purify the jewel once and for all. They couldn't bring a baby into that mess. Fortunately that wouldn't be an issue, this time, but he would have to

make sure that they stayed cautious; any future encounters - she was nuts if she thought he'd let them carry on as if nothing had changed after this - would have to be planned ahead of time and thought out. Kagome usually accused him of charging into matters without taking the time to think things through first, so he imagined she would be proud of him to learn what all he'd realized in that moment, although he also figured he could share it with her later; no need to spoil the moment with such sobering topics. He smirked then, getting his mind back into the present. "You're over dressed." he informed her with an edge of humor in his voice that had her smiling and laughing a bit. Kagome removed her shoes and socks first. Catching sight of her bandaged leg reminded him that they would definitely need to head back to the well after this, so that she could have the healers of her time take a proper look at that leg, though he was quickly distracted from that worry for the time being as her hands next moved up to her neck, untying and removing the red scarf that went around her collar before moving her fingers a bit lower, unfastening the buttons on her blouse. He watched her show in silence, his eyes glued to her fingers' every move as she worked her buttons loose, then suddenly her blouse was open and sliding down her arms, and his eyes widened in appreciation of the sight. Breathing heavily as she was, her chest was heaving, the top half of her breasts practically spilling out of that foreign looking thing she wore to keep them bound. He had to admit, he greatly preferred the female chest wrappings of her time to those from his. Instead of flattening her out and concealing her shape, the lacy contraptions from her world accentuated her curves beautifully. He had the sudden urge to reach forward and cup her breasts in his hands, so he did. Kagome hesitated when she saw Inuyasha sitting up, reaching out for her, but her concern was for his own well being, and when he didn't wince in pain at the maneuver she relaxed and let him grab her. "I'm glad you heal so fast." she commented playfully as he sat before her cross-legged, still as hard as a rock, playfully squeezing both breasts like a child playing with a new toy. "Me too." he smirked, his look turning more devilish as he added, "It means I can do this..." At those words he pushed Kagome back until she was the one lying on the ground, his naked body climbing on top of her partially clothed one. He was still sore, but the excruciating pain was long gone now, and he wasn't about to let a few lingering aches keep him from enjoying this moment to the fullest. The particular bra that Kagome was wearing was actually one that clipped in the front, between the cups, and he demonstrated his knowledge of that fact by reaching for the hook and unfastening it in that moment. The cups popped apart from each other, falling off to the sides, and Kagome gasped in mock annoyance as he gazed down at her with a lecherous waggle of his brows before lowering his head to take her right nipple into his mouth.

"Mmm...I'm not even going to ask when you spied on me taking that off before..." Kagome commented behind a pleased moan, figuring that by that point it was all water under the bridge. "Good, 'cause you'd have to be more specific." Inuyasha replied with a smirk in his voice as he pulled away from her right breast before shifting over to her left. Somewhere in the back of Kagome's mind she realized she should probably be miffed at him to learn that he'd spied on her getting undressed, apparently on multiple occasions, but for the life of her in that moment in time all she could think about was the feel of his tongue dancing across her over sensitized skin. She couldn't hide her reaction from Inuyasha's nose, and he paused in his work after a couple of minutes to inhale deeply, some suppressed instinct from his youkai side causing him to rumble deep in his chest in animalistic approval of her desire for him. The hanyou froze for a moment immediately after producing the unexpected sound, slightly embarrassed that he'd done it and afraid that Kagome would be disturbed by it, but sensing the reason behind his hesitation, the miko quickly reached for and cupped both sides of his face, forcing him to look her in the eye. "Don't." she told him lovingly. "Don't be afraid of who you are, or what I think of you. The only gift you can give me that is even greater than sharing your body with me in this moment, Inuyasha, is to allow yourself to be yourself, no matter what. I love you, your human half and your inu-youkai half, together. Don't ever forget that, or think that I would be bothered by something you do that isn't entirely human." "Ka...Kagome..." he murmured brokenly, unexpected tears stinging the back of his eyes. Every time he thought he couldn't love her any stronger than he already did, she kept on proving him wrong. "I..." He was at a loss for what to say, not that he needed to say anything at all. "I know." Kagome assured him gently, and in that moment he knew she understood him perfectly. Quickly deciding to rekindle the fire between them before too much emotional junk turned them both into blubbering idiots, Inuyasha ground his erection against Kagome's panty-covered core, amusement shining in his gaze as her eyes opened wide at the not-so-subtle reminder. Quickly picking up where they'd left off, he backed away from Kagome for a moment to allow her to sit up enough to slide her bra down her arms and completely off. She then reached down and opened the side zipper on her skirt for him before lying back down again, allowing Inuyasha the honor of physically pulling her skirt and panties free from her body, just as she had been the one to remove his hakama. Once the hanyou had her as naked as he was he didn't hesitate to explore her body to the fullest. While he'd seen her naked several times in the past, this was the first time she was actually allowing him to look, and there she was, all laid out for his viewing pleasure. Though of course, he planned on doing much more than just look. Starting back up at her breasts once more, Inuyasha slowly and teasingly kissed his way down her body, pausing for a moment when he reached his destination, gazing back up at her face to gauge her reaction. Kagome's eyes were pinched shut, but there wasn't even the faintest trace of fear or sadness in her scent, so he knew

she wasn't regretting her decision to be with him. Even if the thought had hypothetically tried to enter her mind, he wiped it clean the very instant his tongue touched her most intimate place, a deep gasp causing her chest to heave up at the foreign and completely wonderful sensation. Inuyasha didn't really know what he was doing, either, but just like Kagome he wasn't without his own source of knowledge on the subject, this time in the form of spying on couples out in the woods. He wasn't a voyeuristic pervert, or at least not with anyone other than Kagome, but as a younger child he would sometimes stare for a few minutes in confusion and curiosity, not understanding what he was seeing. Later, as an adult, once he realized what he'd stumbled upon he would always try to give the rendezvousing couple their privacy, but so while he had never really seen what a woman looked like up close down there, it wasn't hard to figure out what to do based on a combination of what he could recall witnessing in the past and Kagome's own reactions to the various things he tried. The miko certainly didn't seem to have any complaints, so he had to be doing something right. As she gasped and moaned his name, a raw, animalistic pride began building in Inuyasha's heart, to know that he was the one causing her that type of pleasure, that he was the only one to have ever done so, and another low rumble caught somewhere between a growl and a moan vibrated up through his chest in that moment. He didn't let the sound embarrass him that time, though, and immediately noticing the way Kagome's body flinched, in a good way, Inuyasha immediately got the wicked idea to growl deliberately, using the vibration to his advantage. "Oh kami!" Kagome cried, her hands flailing for a moment as she desperately sought something to grab onto before settling on tightening her fists at her sides. If she had claws like Inuyasha she would have jabbed her fingers into the earth like he had done. Smirking against her, he did it again, closing his lips around her swollen nub and rumbling deep in his throat. It wasn't hard to figure out that that little button was the source of Kagome's greatest pleasure when she moaned and jerked the way she did every time he touched it. Grabbing the backs of her thighs, he pushed her legs back and out of the way, spreading her open even further, and she made no effort to stop him, shaking her head side to side with broken versions of his name escaping her lips in breathy moans. Ceasing his attentions to her clit for a moment he delved his tongue as deeply within her core as it would go, relishing in her taste, in the fact that she was pure and had never been touched by another male in such a way, nor would she ever be because if he had his say in the matter she would be his and his alone for the rest of her life. Retracting his tongue, Inuyasha ran the flat of his tongue along her entire opening, flicking her clit along the way, and repeating the maneuver with increasing speed he was soon lapping at her like the dog he was, and she was loving every minute of it. "Oh kami..." she panted, "Inuya...ah!...yasha...Oh!" Flinching and jumping, Kagome couldn't stop her body from seizing, every swipe of his tongue sending raging electricity throughout her entire body. She felt like she was about to explode, and he must have felt it also because suddenly he pressed the tip of his tongue firmly against her clit and growled loudly while shaking his head rapidly from side to side. She literally screamed as her climax rushed through her, and though his ears flattened against his head instinctively at the noise he found it the most beautiful sound she had ever made. Maintaining his position until her

breathy moans begged him to stop, he pulled away from her then with a look on his face that was a bizarre combination of sated devotion and uncontrollable hunger. He was content, emotionally, to know that he had delivered so much pleasure to the woman he loved, to know that she loved him just as strongly and that she had wanted his touch in that way. But on the other hand, he wasn't satisfied at all with the demanding way his raging hard-on throbbed almost painfully, his body desperately crying out for its own release. Resisting the urge to reach for his cock in that moment was like resisting the urge to scratch at a violently itching bug bite, the skin of his penis tingling and crawling and begging to be touched. He was a junkie and she was his fix. Sweating and deliriously happy, Kagome's legs fell bonelessly somewhat back into place, although she was still exposing her most intimate body part to his view. She didn't care. When the miko languidly raised her head to glance down her body and up into Inuyasha's eyes she immediately recognized his state of agony, as he gazed down at her almost frozen as if he was trying to hold himself back for fear of freaking her out with his eagerness, and her eyes softened in that moment, her expression loving. The poor thing had been brought to the brink of orgasm to be left unsatisfied at the last moment twice within the span of only a few short hours, and even though he hadn't wanted it the first time, the second time he had chosen to put off his own pleasure solely for her sake, with the promise that in the end his pleasure would be even greater. She wouldn't make him wait any longer. "Come to me, love..." Kagome cooed then, raising her arms out towards him in a gesture of closeness. Smiling lovingly, Inuyasha immediately crawled back over her body, cherishing even the simplest sensation as her arms wrapped around him, holding him to her tenderly. His aching staff rested snugly against her slickened opening, and grinding himself back and forth a few times to tease both of them as well as coat himself with her juices, Inuyasha somehow managed to ignore the demands of his own body for a few moments longer as he gazed down into her eyes, memorizing her expression as he slowly reached down with one hand to align himself at her entrance. As much as he wanted to slam home, as badly as he wanted to be one with her, he wouldn't rush it, and not just because he knew being too reckless with their joining could cause Kagome unnecessary pain. He wanted to cherish the moment the two of them became one, he wanted to memorize every second of it. What that bastard had done to him that morning, that hadn't been sex; that had just been an assault. He had been attacked, plain and simple, injured by an enemy who'd gotten the drop on him. He wouldn't let that memory taint this one, this new memory of the very instant in time when his body and Kagome's joined together. He had overheard her use the expression 'make love' before when talking to Sango, and while the term had seemed foreign to him at first because of the simple way languages changed with time, he found in that moment that the expression from her world made perfect sense. Slowly, carefully, while watching her face for even the slightest hint of discomfort, Inuyasha began pressing his hips forward, hissing in pleasure so intense it almost bordered on pain as he literally had to press his way inside her insanely tight passage. She was so hot he mused that were he still human she would have burned him. Kagome held his gaze as she felt the man above her start to enter her body, grateful that he was going so slowly when it certainly hadn't been anything they'd discussed, though she imagined he knew from personal experience how it would pain her if he went too quickly. Immediately

deciding not to allow those types of thoughts to ruin the moment, Kagome concentrated on nothing but the unmistakable look of love shining down on her in Inuyasha's eyes as he studied her own expression for possible signs of discomfort. "Are you okay?" he asked her softly about halfway in. "More than okay." she assured him, surprising him by folding her legs back into the position they'd been in when he'd been holding her open by the backs of her thighs. The move opened her up to him even more, and his eyes rolled back in his head at the subtle yet very noticeable difference. "Kami, woman, do you have any idea how good this feels?" he whispered breathlessly. "I can imagine," she replied, "If it feels anything like finally finding the other half of your soul." Pinching his eyes closed, he bit his lower lip while sucking in a sharp breath as he pushed in the last few inches, her inner thighs cradling his hips as he finally settled within her as deep as he could possibly go. Then opening his eyes, he grinned down at her stupidly, before agreeing, "Yeah...it feels just like that." Inuyasha was afraid to move for a couple of reasons. One, he didn't want to risk hurting Kagome, although the girl didn't seem to be in too much pain since her hymen had thankfully been lost long ago. The tightness of her passage still betrayed the fact that she was definitely a virgin, or had been until that moment. He grinned lopsidedly at the thought. The other reason he was afraid to move was just because he didn't want their encounter to end, but sighing a little he knew that all good things had to come to an end, eventually. They couldn't just lie like that forever, after all; glancing sideways he caught sight of her bandaged leg and remembered that at some point he needed to get the girl back home to her time. He would let her tell her mother the news, both about her leg and...other things; hopefully Mrs. Higurashi wouldn't skin him alive. Keh, you know her mom is crazy about you... he told himself in that moment. "What are you thinking about?" Kagome asked innocently as he continued to hold still, seemingly gazing off into space. "Your mother." he answered before thinking, his eyes comically growing wide in panic. Oh shit, that could so get taken the wrong way! Seeing his panic Kagome only giggled, the sensation of her body tightening around his as a result quickly erasing the worry from his mind as he closed his eyes and moaned while rocking against her a little. "Mama's crazy about you..." she told him then, causing a new smirk to appear on his lips as she unknowingly repeated his thoughts. "If you're worried about how she will react to learning about us, don't be. I know Mama will give us her blessing." Kagome added.

"Kagome..." he murmured in awe, meeting her eyes. Inuyasha then proceeded to retract his hips before slow, very slowly, pushing his way back inside of her. The newness of the act was a little uncomfortable for the miko, but it wasn't painful since he was being so careful, and she definitely felt it when he rubbed up against her own special internal area that made sexual intercourse feel good. She wanted to feel that again. "You can go a little faster." she told him then, and he immediately complied by repeating the maneuver a bit faster than before. He built up his tempo gradually, but it didn't take too long before Inuyasha established a fairly steady rhythm, stopping for only a few short seconds every couple of minutes with a bunched up face to keep from losing it just yet. With her leg muscles starting to ache, Kagome decided to cheat with holding her legs up at that angle any longer by hooking them over Inuyasha's shoulders, and though the move surprised him for a second he immediately smirked down at her, and raising himself up onto his knees he grabbed her legs just above the ankle, careful of her dog bite. Retracting until he was almost all the way out of her he pushed back in much faster, and they both gasped at the sensation, Inuyasha's breathy sound followed by a garbled "Fuck..." As much as a part of him wanted their encounter to last forever he knew it couldn't, and he'd already lasted longer than he'd thought he would given the circumstances. He just couldn't resist the urge any longer; he hoped she would understand. "Kagome, I...I gotta cum." he confessed in that moment, pulling back and slamming home again before she even had a chance to respond, her would-be answer turning into another gasp of pleasure. "F-fuck..." he cursed, biting his lip as he tilted his head back, his eyes drifting closed as his whole body shook. That had been close. Leaning down, he released his grip on her shins, allowing his body to slide down her legs until her knees once again hooked over his shoulders, as he pressed her body almost in half, though the look on her face was anything but pained as her eyes locked onto his own. "Cum for me..." she whispered unexpectedly, and his eyes widened in surprise at the naughty command. He had never thought he'd hear dirty talk coming from his pure little miko, though granted she wasn't quite as pure as she'd previously been, though nothing could tarnish her soul in his eyes. Not even getting fucked by a hanyou. But as she stared him down in that moment, asking him to seek his release, her naughty little words excited him far more than he could have ever expected. Maybe purity was overrated. "Cum for me, Inuyasha." she repeated. "I want to feel you fill me with your seed."

"D-damn...wench, not that I'm complaining." he commented absently, causing the miko to giggle. It was ultimately her laughter that did him in, or more specifically the way her body tightened around him and vibrated as she laughed. "Argh!" he cried out, suddenly retracting his hips and thrusting back in over and over with short strokes in rapid succession, humping her like the dog he was. He felt his balls tighten, his release preparing to rush through him, and there was no holding back the tidal wave when the damn finally broke. Neither of them were expecting the sound that wrenched itself from his throat as his climax roared to life, a bizarre cross between a human shout and the yelp of a whipped dog, but it didn't bother the miko below him in the slightest as he felt her maneuver her legs down from his shoulders to hook them around his waist as her arms came up to wrap around his neck, holding him to her as his frantic humping finally came to a stop. He would have told her in that moment that he loved her, but the concept of how to form words had suddenly escaped him. Panting heavily, he collapsed after a moment, resting his face in the crook of her neck. Every so often he rocked his hips against her gently, lingering waves of pleasure still traveling through him. Finally it was Kagome who spoke first, as one of her hands moved up to gently massage a fuzzy ear. She could tell Inuyasha must have been exhausted by the way the furry appendage didn't even try to flick out of her grasp, as he just lied against her and let her fondle his ear without complaint. "That was wonderful." she murmured tenderly. "You have no fucking idea..." he breathed against her neck, still offering no protest to her treatment of his ears as her hand switched over to the other one. "Oh, I'm pretty sure I have some idea." she teased lovingly, and he chuckled against her as he recalled the way he'd pleasured her before hand, the sound of her voice screaming her own completion. "Yeah, I guess you do." Muscling up the strength to push himself up, off and out of Kagome, Inuyasha flopped bonelessly beside her, his softening penis leaving a sticky spot on his inner thigh where it landed. "Guess we should go get cleaned up." he mumbled, despite appearing as though he had no desire to move from that spot. Giggling in response, Kagome agreed, stating, "Yeah, I would hate for the others to find us like this." That got Inuyasha's attention. He had no real desire to keep the new level of his relationship with Kagome a secret from their friends, but that didn't mean he wanted the lecher to stumble upon the two of them butt naked. He'd never hear the end of it, not to mention he'd have to gouge

Miroku's eyes out for getting a look at Kagome. A possessive growl began bubbling up in his throat at the thought and he didn't try to fight it. Miroku was his friend, but nobody was allowed to see Kagome naked but himself. Well, okay, so she did bathe with Sango in the occasional hot spring, and sometimes when she got really sick or injured Kaede would have to change her clothing, but those times didn't count. No other man was allowed to see Kagome naked; he'd have to have a talk with Shippou about not bathing with the girls any more. It wasn't just his ego and jealousy talking, there were genuine canine-youkai possessive issues at play; he could feel them in his gut, his youkai instincts. He was just glad that Kouga had already given up so that that wouldn't be an issue. Kagome was his. The miko heard Inuyasha's soft growling, and figuring out the general direction of where his thoughts had traveled based on the last thing she'd said she giggled again before climbing to her feet. She might have thought that his animal possessiveness was kind of cute, only because it wasn't necessary since she definitely only had eyes for him, but despite finding his growling cute she honestly didn't want the others to find them like that. She had no idea how long it would take Miroku and Sango to slay that oni, but if they were finished with the task and had begun to wonder why they were behind schedule with the rendezvous, she could see them possibly trying to backtrack on Kirara to meet up with them in the woods. Making her way down toward the small stream where she'd cleaned her dog bite earlier, Kagome grabbed a washrag from her backpack and proceeded to clean herself up before putting her clothes back on. Inuyasha was right behind her, and accepting the second washrag that she handed him from her bag, he got himself fully cleaned up as well, including some dried blood from something he'd rather not think about, though as the thought drifted by for a moment Inuyasha was relieved to note that already he wasn't as traumatized by those memories as he had been earlier. The memories certainly weren't going anywhere, and the attack itself would still bother him for quite some time, simply because he hated how weak he was in his human form and how he hadn't been able to more properly protect the two of them from a few miserable bandits, but he was at least no longer bothered by the misguided belief that he was a sick and twisted freak for having found pleasure in the assault. There was also the fact that he had successfully protected Kagome from experiencing the same fate, and that was something to be proud of. Even in his human form he had protected her, even though it hadn't been in a way he would have preferred. But even as he thought about it in that moment, he knew without hesitation that were he ever faced with a similar scenario again, he would gladly endure whatever it took to protect Kagome; she was all that mattered. He also knew that ironically her thoughts were the exact opposite, that to her all that mattered was him, but smiling softly as he rang out her washrag before handing it back to her, Inuyasha knew that that was one of the reasons why he loved her so damn much. She loved him, and that notion was just about a miracle in his eyes. With both of them fully clothed and all ready to go with their belongings packed up and campfire put out, the more tender of Inuyasha's injuries having thankfully healed nearly all of the way by that point, the duo decided to finish heading to the village where their friends should be located, first, to at least meet up with them and assess the situation just on the off chance that the oni had turned out to be more than they could handle.

Arriving in the victimized village around mid-afternoon, they found Miroku and Sango assisting some locals with the beginning stages of cleanup, the oni a distant memory. Since Kagome's injuries didn't heal anywhere near as quickly as Inuyasha's her face was still bruised by the time they met up with the others, but she immediately brushed off their concerns, telling a highly edited version of the bandit attack that made it sound like they had just barely captured both her and Inuyasha and had been in the midst of trying to decide what to do with them when the sun had risen. Kagome had sworn to Inuyasha during the last leg of their journey together that she would keep it private, what had happened to him, and he was grateful to her for that. Kagome didn't mind the others finding out about her new relationship with Inuyasha, of course, but they didn't need to know exactly when they had decided to confess their feelings to one another, or why. So in order to avoid suspicion were it a sudden change that had seemingly happened over night, which in reality it was, they both agreed to play it slow and let the others see their growing closeness over the next few days and weeks. It was no secret that they were in love with each other, after all, so the only reaction they imagined they would get from their friends was something along the lines of 'it's about damn time'. Informing the others that Kagome needed to go back home to see the healers of her time because of the dog bite, because she wanted to get some kind of medication that didn't exist in their world, Sango and Miroku waved them off with the statement that they would stay there to help out for another day or two before heading back to Kaede's as well, since their journey was on hold for the time being anyway. Kagome and Inuyasha had both thought that Shippou would possibly decide to travel back with them, but they were relieved when he announced that he would stay with Sango and Miroku instead, the boy having made a few friends in the village that he wanted more time to play with since the taijiya and houshi would be staying there for a while longer. The hanyou and miko immediately took advantage of the bonus 'alone time' to discuss additional things that hadn't yet been addressed, as they raced back towards the well with Kagome on Inuyasha's back. One of the first subjects to come up was babies. She was indeed proud of him to learn that he had thought things through with regard to being unwilling to risk an accidental pregnancy. It turned out that Kagome was very aware of her cycle, having had that girlie romantic notion in the back of her mind for quite some time now that she never knew when she and Inuyasha might suddenly end up falling into each other's arms. It had been a silly thought, but one she'd desired strongly enough to learn how to pay attention to her cycle because she too had known that an unplanned pregnancy would be the last thing they needed while trying to find and battle Naraku for the sacred jewel, not to mention the fact that out there traveling in the middle of nowhere it behooved her to be aware of her cycle, anyway, for other obvious reasons. She'd known that they didn't have anything to worry about that particular morning, though Kagome also knew that the 'keeping track of your cycle' method of birth control wasn't fool proof, especially at her age, and since she and Inuyasha were sexually active now, she told him in that moment that she would discuss the idea with her mother of her taking another type of medication from her time. He was both amazed and relieved to learn that there was such a thing. "I mean, it's not like I never want kids..." he mumbled hesitantly, afraid Kagome might have drawn the wrong conclusion from just how relieved he was.

Smiling warmly, she reached up to tweak an ear while reassuring him, "I'm not ready yet, either, but one day I know nothing would make me happier." He grinned lopsidedly at the thought of little quarter-youkai brats running around. Leave it to Kagome. Who else would ever be willing to even contemplate the idea of bearing a hanyou's child? They were still safe that night, though, so upon finally deciding to stop and make camp for the night, it was no surprise to either of them when their clothing mysteriously started disappearing. Arriving in Kagome's time around mid-afternoon the following day, Kagome's mother was told an even less detailed version of the bandit attack. Her face had almost completely healed by that point, except for just the faintest lingering discoloration of a bruise around her eye, and so there was no cause for alarm or suspicion when Mrs. Higurashi took her daughter to the doctor for the dog bite. The wound had already begun to heal by that point and wasn't deemed serious enough for stitches, though Kagome did get the rabies vaccine, just in case, and she was as good as new only a couple of short hours later, though Inuyasha opted to let Kagome spend the next two days at home to rest and recuperate. The first opportunity Kagome had for some one on one girl talk with her mom she dropped the other bomb, and to the miko's utmost relief her mother actually grinned joyfully at the news. The elder Higurashi woman had already known for quite some time that her daughter and that magical boy from the past were destined for one another. She did also agree, though, that it was definitely the wrong time, for a few different reasons, to risk bringing a new baby into the world, and so she readily agreed to sign the permission needed for Kagome to go on birth control pills. Two days later it was business as usually for the inu-tachi, except of course for some very different relationship dynamics that our favorite couple didn't mind letting slip a little bit at a time. Inuyasha let it be known that he'd spent the two days with Kagome in her world, and although they didn't confirm anything, specifically, they also didn't deny anything when Miroku started teasing them. Eventually it came out into the open that they'd had an emotional heart to heart and confessed their love for one another, though Inuyasha still continued to dodge Miroku's questions when he asked the hanyou directly how far he and Kagome had gone physically. He was sure the truth would come out eventually, especially since he hadn't sworn Kagome to secrecy with regard to the next time she and Sango bathed together. The hanyou knew his miko would keep certain things private, and that was all that mattered to him. Leaving out the 'why' that had started it all, he didn't mind if she shared the intimate details of their time together with Sango during their private moments of girl talk, and he was sure that once the slayer knew she would tell Miroku, if not the details, then at least the fact that Kagome had confirmed they'd been intimate. In the mean time, though, it was fun watching Miroku get worked up over trying to get him to spill the truth.

~ Fin ~