In the Palm of her Hand by SunsetMiko

Date Night

Chapter 31 - Date Night

*Firefly* (Stella's Soundtrack Challenge 2)

Inuyasha was frustrated. Kagome had demanded that they head back to the well right after he'd changed direction to head east. She had an exam she simply had to be there for, so his plan to bring Kouga into the situation to break the couple apart was delayed. She'd been gone for three days and he was just about ready to go get her when she finally returned. His happiness at her arrival was quickly replaced with frustration, however, when she and Sesshoumaru walked away, heading into the forest.

Kagome smiled as Sesshoumaru held her hand, guiding her through the darkness towards the small waterfall he'd taken her to before. She wanted to see the youkai fish at night and he was happy to oblige her. She couldn't see a thing except the fireflies in the forest flitting around in the pitch black. The moon was nothing but a sliver in the sky, lending no light to the miko. Still, she walked without fear or worry. Sesshoumaru made sure she didn't trip over vines or tree roots, walking slowly, never releasing her hand as he spoke softly.

"This Sesshoumaru missed you while you were gone," he confessed.

"Did you? You know, I kind of missed you too," she replied with a smile. "So, what was it like the first time you saw me go through the well?"

"When I saw you jump into the well for the first time, I thought I had lost you. Watching Inuyasha allow you to jump into a dry well, likely to your death... I almost killed the boy but when I did not hear you hit the bottom I became curious. Once he left, I checked the well, only to find you gone. I even tried jumping in myself but nothing happened."

"Yeah, only Inuyasha and I can go through," she said with a nod.

Sesshoumaru looked ahead of them and slowed to a stop. "There is a log blocking our path. We will have to go over it." The taiyoukai turned so that he was in front of the miko and took her free hand with his own; shifting the blanket he was carrying to over his shoulder. "Come this way. Now step up. A little higher." He helped her place one foot on the log before instructing her to climb onto it. Then he helped her down, all without incident.

"Thank you," Kagome said softly. She couldn't believe how careful he was with her, making sure she didn't get hurt in the darkness.

*Psychedelic Parade* (Stella's Soundtrack Challenge 2)

Sesshoumaru nodded, only to realize she couldn't see him. "You are welcome. We are almost there. In fact, I can see the lights from here. They are directly in front of you. Can you see them?"

Kagome squinted, searching for lights, and after a moment she spotted them. "Just barely," she replied.

"Why is Inuyasha the only one besides you that can travel through the well?" the taiyoukai asked. In truth, he was jealous of the hanyou. He got to go to the future and meet her family, see what her life there is like, everything the taiyoukai himself wanted to do.

"I don't know. It's always been that way. Wow," she said as they stopped near the edge of the water. "It's like a laser light show at the planetarium."

"A what at the what?" he asked in confusion.

"Umm," Kagome hummed to herself. "It's like shooting stars or a meteor shower only with more colors. It's amazing. Thank you for bringing me here."

"Stand still. I am going to lay out the blanket." Kagome did as he asked, not moving an inch, as the taiyoukai laid out the blanket behind her, near the edge of the water. They weren't as close as they had been during their lunch date, however. The last thing Sesshoumaru wanted was for her to fall in. It wasn't worth the risk. He wasn't sure if he could revive her if the only thing left was bones. He helped the miko sit down on the blanket and he took his place beside her.

He couldn't believe the level of trust the miko had in him, to allow him to lead her through the forest in pitch darkness. He had expected her to be nervous the entire time, but instead she had been perfectly calm, trusting in him to get her there safely. Surely that had to mean they were making progress toward having a real relationship. He was certain that by now they were friends, but he hadn't tried to move past that. He ached to kiss her but he was afraid to move too quickly and push her away.

Feeling brave, Sesshoumaru reached over and took her hand once more. Their fingers entwined easily and he smiled a genuine smile, knowing that no one was around to see it and Kagome couldn't see anything other than the lights of the youkai fish in the water before them, zipping around quickly as they changed colors.

"I rather enjoy holding your hand," he admitted.

"Do you?"

"This Sesshoumaru does not get much physical contact," Sesshoumaru confessed.

"Oh," Kagome said softly. She squeezed his hand a little tighter and leaned to the side, resting her head on the taiyoukai's shoulder. "Well, we'll just have to fix that."