Where My Heart Lies

InuYasha watched Kagome. After returning to the den, he had laid her on the bed she had made for him. She had been out cold since the clearing. He wasn't overly concerned. It seemed she was over-exhausted, not hurt, and so he didn't bother her while she slept. Instead, he started packing up. They would leave and return to the village when she woke.

"What the hell happened back there? Kagome's never had those kinds of powers before." InuYasha mused while he worked. He remembered Kagome telling him about training for barriers with Kaede, but she hadn't perfected them yet. And why had her eyes changed? That wasn't normal for a human... not that he knew of. InuYasha's thoughts were interrupted as he heard a groan from the corner.

"Where are we? What happened?" Kagome sat up pressed a hand to her forehead. "Ugh, my head. Did I use your incantation while you were standing over me or something? It feels like my head was crushed."

"I would think you have a headache. You blasted Merona straight to hell. Don't you remember?"

Kagome stared at him, then at her hands. She remembered. Sort of. Merona was coming through the barrier. She was trying to get more power and the pain was overwhelming. Then it stopped. After that, everything was... fuzzy. She closed her eyes and shook her head to clear it. When she opened them again, InuYasha held a container of water in front of her.

"Here." Kagome took the glass and drank deeply. He was being so... nice. When was InuYasha nice? Sure, he had been concerned and had become a bit more gentle towards her during the years, but normally if she complained and wasn't seriously hurt, he told her to get over it. What changed?

"Can you get up? I was getting things packed up, but we'll leave when you're ready."

She eyed him suspiciously. "What are you up to?"

InuYasha tensed.

"Nothing! Jeez, you bitch and complain that I'm not nice enough, but when I try to be nice you bitch and complain more. Feh! Women." He turned his back to her. Kagome relaxed. This InuYasha she could deal with. Feeling her hand on his shoulder, InuYasha turned his head toward her again. Kagome smiled the same smile she did at the clearing.

"Thank you."

InuYasha's angry countenance was wiped away. Grabbing her hand he pulled her up with him as he stood. Kagome's head swam and she started to fall, InuYasha caught her by the elbow and held her close. Resting her head against he collar bone, Kagome paused. He was hugging her? Without thinking, Kagome hugged him back. What was wrong?

InuYasha held on. Kagome was changing. He could sense it. She still smelled the same, acted the same, sure. But... there was something different, and he couldn't tell if it was good or bad.

"Uh, InuYasha?"

Breaking the embrace, InuYasha turned from her, but not before she could see the faint blush on his cheeks. Blushing? Kagome mentally sighed One of these days, I'm actually going to understand that boy...

Clearing his throat, InuYasha tossed her bag to her.

"If you’re ok, we should head back to the village."

"Actually, I think it's too late. I mean, it was late afternoon when Merona showed up. How long has it been since...then?" Kagome halted, seeing InuYasha stiffen only slightly as she mentioned the incident. What had happened? She still wasn't sure, but she worried. Evidently, she had done something to unsettle InuYasha. If he hasn't told me, he's not sure himself. Resolving to ask Kaede about it when they returned, Kagome spoke up again.

"Maybe we could just stay here for the night and leave tomorrow. I... I'm still kinda tired."

She was surprised when InuYasha answered quickly. "OK. We'll rest here."

Kagome sat down in front of the fire. Surprise took her again, when InuYasha looked at her intently, asking,

"What else can you do with your powers aside from barriers and healing? Did Kaede train you much in defenses?"

"Ah,.. well no, we hadn't gotten that far, but I will ask to train harder when we return. But, there's not much else I can do." Taken aback at the question, Kagome focused on the pebbles at her feet. Should she tell InuYasha about her other abilities? He might freak out. Then again he mightn't.

"You're lying. I can tell when you do; you don't look at me when you lie."

Kagome snapped her head up, angry. "I did not lie!"

"Then you're not telling me everything."

At this accusation, Kagome dropped her head again. He was right; she couldn't lie worth a damn when it came to him. InuYasha dropped next to her, crossing his legs. Together they stared at the cold dead fire in front of them.

"After all this time, do you still not trust me? You know I would never hurt you with the information." InuYasha's voice carried a tone of hurt that struck Kagome's heart with guilt. She looked up at him, only to meet his expecting eyes. She took a deep breath. She could deny him nothing.

"It's not that I don't trust you. It's just that... this power," Kagome raised her hand, looking at the palm, "it scares me sometimes. The other things I've discovered are just tricks really, but ... InuYasha, I'm only human. Human's don't do this."

InuYasha's clawed hand slipped into hers and held it. He knew she was afraid. And she didn't remember what had happened. It was like when he turned youkai. Only he knew that he was capable of killing.

"It's ok. Your power is good. You control it."

Kagome sighed. Releasing his hand, she pointed to the medium sized logs well out of arms reach on the other side of the den.

"It's nothing big, but I'm getting stronger. Watch those logs."

Focusing her power into the beam of light she imagined, Kagome centered on five of the logs. Under her gaze, they lifted and smoothly glided to the fire pit, then dropped in neatly. Holding her right hand over the logs, palm down, Kagome bit her lip, conjuring was slightly harder than levitating. A blue light appeared under her hand. The logs immediately caught fire with a gentle but not too small flame. The newly created fire burned blue for a few seconds, reflecting onto the hanyou's and the mortal's faces, before turning to its normal shades.

"See? It's nothing really. They're only small tricks." Kagome smiled nervously, then twirled her finger in the air. "Woo hoo! I can get stuff without getting up, and I'm a human match."

InuYasha didn't answer for a moment. The act had been only small, but still... Kaede had been right. Kagome was strong. These went beyond an ordinary Miko's powers. Kikyou had been the strongest priestess he had ever known, or heard of and she couldn't do this. He didn't sense the same power from her that he had just now.

"Have you told Kaede yet?"

"No. I wanted to, but... "

"You should tell her. She'll help you get stronger, and gain better control." At Kagome's stunned look, InuYasha answered her unspoken question. "Kagome, these powers are not evil. Stop being such as wuss."

Kagome shifted, not used to InuYasha being so understanding. She needed something to break the tension. Grabbing her sweater that she had taken off earlier this morning, she whacked the unsuspecting InuYasha in the face with it.

"I am not a wuss! I think I've proven that more than once!"

InuYasha grabbed the sweater from her and held it at arms length, crinkling his nose. "Gods, have we been here that long? What did you do, wear this for a week without washing it? UGH!"

"You jerk! I take care of you, hunt for you, you bleed all over the place and you tell me my stuff smells?? Of course it does!"

InuYasha tossed it to the far side of the den with disgust. He watched her hand as he reached to hold it again. He loved holding her hand. He couldn't stop himself.

"Thank you. For being understanding, InuYasha"

Looking up at her, he saw she was watching him, her eyes wide and uncertain. He thought he saw something else there, but couldn't tell if it was because he wanted to see it, or if it was real. He also saw the fear she had of herself still lingering. The urge to hold her, kiss her and tell her it would be ok, that he would protect her like always rushed through him. He moved in, his body crying out for him to press his lips to hers. He risked a glance into her eyes and saw something that excited and unsettled him. A return of his feelings perhaps? He didn't want to risk it. He settled for holding her. Pulling her to him again, he wrapped one arm around her upper body; the other hand rested in what it had become its regular place, her hair. She was tense, the muscles under her shirt tight. It wasn't until she wrapped her own arms around his waist that they relaxed slightly.

Kagome rested her head on his shoulder. She hadn't been afraid of her powers before, but now... something had made InuYasha edgy about it. And the fact that she had blacked out during the episode scared her more. What's happening to me?

InuYasha pulled away again. It was late, they needed to leave tomorrow. Then they could talk to Kaede about the occurrence in the clearing.

"We should get some sleep. You take the bed. I'm fine now, and you really need it more than I do anyway."

"Ok." Kagome nodded and left her spot at the fire. Lying down, she pulled the blanket to her shoulders and turned so her back was facing InuYasha. Her heart twinged. InuYasha actions showed more tenderness than she had ever seen from him. And still, her mind questioned it, always telling her no matter how gentle the hanyou was to her, it was Kikyou that held his heart. A small tear slipped unseen down her face as she closed her eyes and forced herself to sleep.

InuYasha watched her until her chest rose and fell in the gentle rhythm of sleep. Two figures warred in his mind. Kagome's... and Kikyou's. His chest felt empty, his mind troubled. Kikyou had killed him, Kagome saved him. Kikyou hated him, but once had loved him. Kagome... he didn't know. She was always in his thoughts, but he could not bring himself to face his feelings for her. He was afraid. Afraid she wouldn't feel the same. Or if she did, that he would have to risk everything again. He closed his eyes, his face showing his weariness.

Damnit.

***** ***** ***** *****

Kagome wondered again how she would tell InuYasha about the well. She didn't regret her choice, but how would he feel? She knew it wouldn't be good. Despite his constant brashness, she knew InuYasha would take the loss of her seeing her family as his fault. She didn't want to cause him worry or guilt. On their final morning at the den, Kagome was cooking breakfast over their small fire. InuYasha was packing the bookbag. As both finished their tasks, they sat and ate.

"What are we going to tell the others?" This was something they had been discussing, but had yet to come to a conclusion for.

"I dunno,” came the half demon's gruff reply. Since they had started to pack up to leave, he had started to fall into his normal pattern of behavior. Kagome was fine with this, it was just his way. InuYasha grinned evilly. "We can always tell them that you thought there was a jewel shard and went after it by yourself and I saved you before some demon blew you to little bits."

"Or we can tell them you got angry about something and got attacked along the way. It's a bit more believable." came her curt reply. Reaching over to tug on his ear playfully, she smirked.

"And I don't need to be rescued all the time by puppy dogs, thank you!"

"Puppy? We'll see...” Rushing to her, InuYasha grabbed Kagome, still in the clothes from the night before, and carried her over his shoulder outside. Before she had the chance to 'sit' him, he found a fluffy snow drift and tossed her in. Kagome screamed and came up sputtering.

"You jerk! I could catch pneumonia! I..! You...!! AARRGGHH!!" Standing with her arms wrapped around her, she glared at InuYasha. He scooped her up again and brought her back inside.

"Puppies are very mischievous," InuYasha's voice was full of mirth, "besides, you and your whole body is too stubborn to get sick." Wrapping his haori around her, InuYasha briskly rubbed Kagome's body until she was warm and her skin was pinkish.

"Glad to hear you think you know my body so well." Kagome was clearly annoyed, but was no longer angry

"It's more like common knowledge."

"Oh shut up." InuYasha left so Kagome could change. She called over her shoulder as she pulled on a pair of jeans. “Could you at least go to the stream and get some fresh water? I'd like some tea so I can warm up from your snow dunk." InuYasha chuckled. I love his laugh, he should do it more often.

InuYasha left and headed to the stream, jug in hand. Kagome pulled a long sleeve pale pink pullover on, then a thick black padded vest. Poking her head out of the den entrance, she saw InuYasha was just bending over the bank of the river. She smiled to herself. Perfect...

"Oh, InuYasha?" she called.

"What?" came his reply, still not looking at her. If he had, he would have seen the gleam in her eyes.

"SIT BOY!"

***** ***** ***** *****

Kagome watched the stiff back of the still grumpy hanyou ahead of her. He hadn't taken his dunking too well. It didn't make it any better that she still giggled every now and then at the image of InuYasha standing knee deep in the river, soaked from head to toe.

"C'mon InuYasha! It was a joke, you threw me in a friggin snow bank! Lighten up!"

"Feh! It was cold. It was wet. And it took me a godsdamn hour to dry off!"

Kagome tried to suppress a giggle. "I said I was sorry!!"

InuYasha snorted air through his nose. "Yeah, and you look like your just brimming with sympathy!"

Since he wasn't going to walk with her anytime soon, Kagome turned her thoughts to more pressing manners. They were getting closed to the village. And the well. It troubled her that she was still unable to tell him. How can I tell him? He'll feel so guilty... Finding no solution for her dilemma, Kagome mentally shook herself. She would find a way... eventually. Until then, she could only think about it.

A face framed by silvery white hair appeared before hers, stopping her in her tracks. InuYasha looked at her uncertainly.

"What's wrong? Why are you so quiet? You look like your thinking about something."

Kagome gave him a small smile and slight shake of her head. "Mm, it's nothing... I was just thinking about how to explain what happened to Kaede. You'll probably need to be there to... fill in on some of the details

Now walking alongside her, InuYasha nodded. "Yeah, I'll let her know. Will you tell the others? About your powers. With more demons around, it might be better to keep it under wraps until you get a better handle on it."

"No, I have to tell them too, maybe not right away. I will talk to Kaede first. "

The village was coming into view. Kagome was thankful that they had avoided the well so far.

***** ***** ***** *****

Sango paced the floor. Miroku had gone to search for Kagome and InuYasha again, Shippo was with Kaede. The kitsune was fretting terribly over Kagome, and so the elder tried to take his mind off things by teaching him about some healing herbs, which he had become interested in lately. Sango was preparing to leave, but Kirara was curled up in a corner and refused to move!

All of them were worried about their two friends. Shippo and Sango had gone to Kagome's well to be there as soon as she arrived, only to find it had been sealed. At first they thought that Kagome had been trapped on the other side, and had run to find Miroku and Kaede. Upon returning with the others, they found Kagome's bike was gone, and Kaede confirmed that Kagome had been there recently, traces of her pale blue and white aura still present. Kaede tried to see either of the missing two's auras, but there was nothing. It had been a week, and there was still no sign. They had searched far, only to have the search stopped by the oncoming snowstorm. Today Miroku was searching the far side of the forest surrounding the village. (A/N: opposite of the well and where kag/inu are) All of them had sensed demon. The only consolation was that there was no blood in the immediate vicinity. Please... just come back alive.

Miroku arrived at the hut and peeked in.

"Nothing, no demon aura, no blood. Nothing."

Sango's eyes brimmed with tears. She couldn't lose her friends. Anger, her faithful emotion, welled inside her.

"We have to find them!"

Kirara rose from the corner she had been curled up in and sniffed the air. Excitedly, she ran out the door and headed for the God Tree.

"Kirara! Kirara! Wait!" Sango chased after the animal demon. Quickly, she called over her shoulder.
"Get Kaede and Shippo! She must smell them!"

Miroku sprinted off to get the other two, while Sango remained hot on the heels of cat demon.

Upon reaching the God Tree, Kirara stopped, and of all things, started to wag her tail back and forth. Sango stopped as she noticed why Kirara had been so eager to run.

"KAGOME! INUYASHA!" Overcome with relief and pure joy at seeing them safe, Sango dropped her weapon and flung into Kagome. She hugged her tightly, Kagome hugging back just as fiercely.

"What happened? Where were you? We went to the well and saw it -" Sango cut herself short as she saw the panic in Kagome's eyes. She doesn't want me to say...? Knowing there was something up, Sango corrected herself as InuYasha turned to find out why she stopped.

"..Uhh, your bike was gone, and Shippo smelled a demon ..." At that moment, Miroku arrived, with Kaede and Shippo following. Sango strode towards him and stayed by his side. While her back was turned to InuYasha, she tried to send signals to the three that Kagome did not want the well mentioned. Kaede and Shippo picked up on it. Miroku, unfortunately, did not.

"Kagome! Are you all right? What happened? We tried to find you at the well but - " The palm of Sango's hand graced Miroku's face with a resounding *CRACK*. All thoughts of the well swept from Miroku's mind. He whirled and faced her, for once, actually angry.

"Pardon me, but WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR??" He raised both hands. “See these? Look! Nowhere near you or your ass!!!"

Dropping his hands, he glared. Worry over Kagome and InuYasha had made him tense. Plus, being slapped when he didn't even do anything was completely different from when he deserved it. At least then the warmth of her cheek was still in his palm.

Sango looked at him coolly then at her hand. "You were considering it. I just thought it would be better to make sure you didn't at such a time as this." She stated.

"I...wasn't! You...never! How could you..!" Miroku sighed and raised a hand to his face. By now, Shippo had jumped to his shoulder and discreetly mentioned about the well. Women were a pain in the ass, no matter how good-looking. He scowled.

"Come, let us return to the village" Kaede finally spoke. "Ye can tell us what happened on the way."

Shippo blissfully lead the way and informed Kagome of what she had missed. Kaede watched the young girl. Something had happened. Kagome's aura looked different, more intense. And there was something between her and the hanyou. The two of them were unusually quiet. Kaede kept silent. They would tell her later.

***** ***** ***** ***** ******

From a distant castle, someone leaned over a stand. Atop it sat a wide bowl, filled with water. Through the pool, the creature watched the group. Focusing on the young girl with miko powers, the onlooking face grew pensive. Merona was unstable before her brother died. After she found out he had been killed by a mortal girl, she had become completely unhinged. She was a strong demon. She shouldn't have been that easy to kill. I wonder what else this girl is capable of. Mayhap I will test her again in time. A perverted smile eased its way onto the face, the malevolent eyes slitted. Maybe.....

*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^

A/N: another kinda quiet chapter... it was part of a larger chapter and I divided into 2 seperate ones for easier reading. ergo.. on to chapter 7! --->