Dedicated to my band-buddy, Alicia, who turned 87. (Just kidding Alicia, we all know you're 65)

This is probably not an original idea, because who cold resist writing about that adorable little locket Kagome gives Inuyasha in the second movie? It's so cute!! And if you haven't seen the second movie, what are you waiting for, quick hurry go buy it!!

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, but a girl can always dream, huh?

The Missing Pendant

Kagome had never opted to give Inuyasha gifts. Every time that she would offer him some object, no matter how small or insignificant it was he would refuse to take it. She had long ago given up on trying to change him on that aspect, and really the only thing that came to mind that he did accept from her was ramen.

Not that ramen actually counted as a gift in her book, anyways.

The reason that Kagome was so intent on this was because she wanted him to possess something to remember her by if she ever left. But, seeing as he was too stubborn to consider her presents, it seemed that he wouldn't even care if she really did just go one day.

It wasn't as if he was particularly targeting her, Inuyasha had never taken items from any person. Maybe it was his pride that told him he didn't need other people's objects. Or maybe he just didn't want them. Either way, Kagome decided that on the topic of gifts, it was a closed matter, and she would have to think of some other way for him to have a reminder of her.

Fortunately for the young priestess, she had already secured a permanent place in the hanyou's heart and mind.

In fact, it was more likely for Inuyasha to go up to Sesshomaru and embrace him fondly than for him to ever forget her, even for a brief second.

The half demon looked up to the grey sky, his mood mirroring the somber color. Once again, he was forced to wait for Kagome to return from her era, and, as was customary, he chose to grumble about it.

"Damn girl thinks she can just take her sweet time coming back, huh?" he muttered under his breath. Casting his eyes towards the well longingly, Inuyasha leaned back into the rough bark of the sacred tree. He was high up in the frosty branches, and his red clothing vibrantly stood out from the bareness that seemed to accompany the leafless wood.

Snowflakes floated down onto his head and adorned his shoulders, but he appeared not to notice, or rather not care. His adorable fuzzy dog ears twitched as a frosty particle landed on them, and then flattened as he began to display signs of his annoyance.

It didn't look like Kagome was going to be back in the next hour or so.

His golden eyes narrowed at the cursed well again for what seemed to be the hundredth time.

He didn't see the point of her going back to her home. All she ever accomplished there were things that caused her to be angry and frustrated, why would she want to go back to that?

Like those stupid 'skool tests' and 'suspicious friends' that always seemed to be bothering her whenever she revisited the Feudal Era. And the miserable expression she tried so hard to hide from him only ate slowly at his heart.

If it was up to him and he didn't have the damned prayer beads attached to his neck, Inuyasha would've long ago drug her back to this side and made her stay here, away from her problems with the other world. He would protect her from her them by keeping her where she belonged, right beside him.

But then again, if he ever attempted that, as he had before, he would only be sat into a hole deeper than most valleys (he still had the crater to remind him of that plan gone wrong).

So here he was, stuck waiting like some pathetic puppy for his master to come back, and the sad part of it all was that he actually could not find it in him to leave without Kagome. He let out a growl of irritation and glowered at the snow in piles below him as if they were the ones to blame.

But, as his aggravation wore off, he fell into a deep silence, in which he sobered from his foul mood. Really, his annoyance with her visiting her home was to disguise his actual emotion. He was afraid that one day she would just snap. One day, she might decide to return to her time forever, and he would be stuck back here in his lonely forest, awaiting her arrival till the end of his days.

A breeze played with his silky strands, lifting them up to tickle his face. The shimmering silver beautifully contrasted with the white wonderland that surrounded his presence.

Almost instinctively Inuyasha reached for the item he always took out whenever her absence grew overbearing. Digging at the part in his haori, he withdrew his hand and in-between his claws he carefully grasped a delicate heart-shaped pendant.

The glow of the gold hue reflected perfectly in his own amber eyes and he turned it over thoughtfully in his hand, mindful of not scratching the metal. Grasping the delicate lid, he flipped it open so it revealed the inside, which consisted of two pictures.

One was of Kagome, her expression angry as she yelled some unknown words at him, and the other was him, also shouting retorts back to her. As usual, it brought a rare smile to his lips. Their fights were legendary, and consistently ended with him kissing the unforgiving ground or her storming off to sulk.

No matter how angry they were at each other, one of them always came around and forgave the other. This was primarily Kagome's job.

Flashing lights of blue shone brightly out of the well and Inuyasha's focus snapped directly to the source as a muffled yelp was sounded, and a young woman proceeded to heave her weight over the ledge of the wooden structure.

An immense relief lifted the pressure that had been building around his chest for days as he met the reassuring sight of her, and her scent was carried to him on the wind, one which relaxed his tense muscles and soothed his mind, beckoning him closer.

Stuffing the locket back into the safety of his shirt, in his haste Inuyasha failed to notice the small article slip through his hands and drop to the ground silently.

Coming up to Kagome with a false affront of indignation, Inuyasha snarled, "Why the hell are you so late?"

She glanced in his direction, expecting this already from his previous behavior and then frowned. "I just got out of school and had to change. Don't worry, I told you I would be back before the sun set, and here I am."

Straightening up, Kagome lifted her arms up and sighed contentedly, changing the subject as she did not want to pick a fight with Inuyasha. "Isn't it nice weather? All this snow is great!"

Inuyasha gave no hint that he had been thinking that too, opting to answer with a surly, "Why? All it does is slow our shard hunts down."

Kagome rolled her eyes playfully, determined not to have her enlightened mood be daunted by Inuyasha just because he decided that he didn't like the rolls of powdery layers that covered the dirt. "Oh come on," she tried to cheer him up, "at least we'll get some well needed rest, and even you won't be able to resist playing in the snow…"

"Feh. I'll tell you when I want to roll in the snow like some idiot dog. And besides, I don't need rest like you humans do."

Kagome pursed her lips. He was in one of his tempers again, that was all. Somehow, if he was feeling downcast for some reason, she could not for the life of her be in high spirits. Whatever his mood was, it always rubbed off onto her.

And today, it bothered her with his temperamental comebacks. Could he be cheerful for a day so that she could share that happiness with him?

A strong gust of northern wind swept over the clearing, chilling her down to the bone with its frosty bite. Even through her pant legs her skin sported goose-bumps and she shivered.

Inuyasha's sharp eyes caught this tiny movement and he scowled, saying harshly yet in his tone was a note of tenderness, "Damnit, what are you trying to do, catch a cold or what?" With this he removed his outer haori and laid it onto her shoulders.

Kagome felt her heart swell with this uncharacteristic gesture of kindness and she muttered softly, averting her eyes shyly, "Thank you…."

"Whatever," he snorted and cautious to not reveal the slight pink on his cheeks, he turned and strode off, expecting her to follow. She did after a moment and he grinned inwardly at the humorous way she looked right now in his baggy haori.

She brought his warm clothing closer as she snuggled into the folds, ignoring the funny way he was watching her, knowing full well how ridiculous she appeared right now.

A red blur bounded down the path towards them and pummeled head on into Kagome, almost knocking her over with the force of the collision if Inuyasha hadn't reached out and halted her plummet. "Shippo!" she exclaimed, a little disoriented from the surprise attack on her.

The little fox kitsune stared at her with his big, cerulean eyes and his bottom lip quivered. "I didn't scare you, did I Kagome?"

She melted at his puppy dog expression and softened her voice. "No, you just kind of surprised me, that's all."

Inuyasha snorted. He had distinctly sensed the change in her scent increase to a level of fear, but refrained from commenting due to the result he usually got was a big fat sit.

Kagome silenced him with a withering glare. Did he always have to be such a smart ass about everything? "Shippo, what are you doing wandering around in the cold? You might get sick."

Shippo grinned, his tiny fangs poking out in a childish manner. "'Cause I sensed you were here!" Crawling out of her arms he made himself comfortable on her shoulder.

Looking up to the mischievous fox kit Kagome smiled, impressed with Shippo's demon abilities. They almost already matched up to Inuyasha's…

Her attention drawn back to the disgruntled half demon, Kagome glanced to the said person out of the corner of her eye, and noticed the scowl firmly planted on his face. What she would do to coax a genuine smile out of him. He always seemed so rigid, untouchable like this. The only times he really opened up he would shut himself back in the moment after.

Sighing quietly, Kagome reminisced about those rare, and extremely precious memories. The days it almost seemed to her he could even care for her in a way other than just a friend, like she cared for him.

Sure, her mind answered to her daydreaming, and then you wake up. Frowning at her overly sarcastic thoughts, Kagome tried to force him out of her head, but to no use.

Miroku and Sango made their entrance at that exact point and it saved Kagome from being driven insane by her never-ending conscience of him.

After rolling his eyes indifferently at his companions, Inuyasha realized Kagome's scent was shifting again, and in a direction for the worst. Something was bothering her, and it frustrated him; not having the power to help her with her problems. Why would she ask him when she could go to Sango for advice or (god forbid) the pervert monk who, as lecherous as he was, still knew a thing or two about the world.

He felt his chest constrict at her inner turmoil and bit his lip anxiously, averting his gaze in a futile attempt to control his raging emotions.

Sango cheerfully greeted her friend and embraced her warmly. Kagome wisely chose not to hug Miroku, for fear he might take it as a chance to sneak in a free groping. "Kagome," Sango remembered back to something the elderly priestess had informed her of. "Kaede needs your assistance with one of the villagers. Apparently it's an illness, but what we don't know. Perhaps you might?"

Kagome agreed, mentally checking the list of diseases and symptoms that she had stored in the back of her mind. Walking off with Miroku and Sango (and a still hanging on Shippo), Kagome immediately noticed that Inuyasha was not following. "Inuyasha?" she questioned curiously, craning her neck so that she could see him.

"Feh. Don't wait for me, I'll be there later. It's not like I want to see some diseased guy." Inuyasha selected a random excuse, and the best one was having no interest in dying people. Without another explanation he leapt into the branches of a nearby tree and disappeared into the snow.

Kagome's expression softened, and releculantly she continued to walk to the village with Sango and Miroku.

Inuyasha settled down comfortably in the crook of a large, aged bough and sighed. Shaking the fallen snowflakes from his sensitive ears, he tilted his head back to lean it against the trunk exhaustedly.

The wind carried people's activities to him. In the distance, a man was humming a tune to himself, and not far away in another direction two women were loudly gossiping about an affair between a village couple.

His ears flattened miserably against his silver hair, fading from view. God, could he not have a damn moment without anyone talking?

Okay, he knew he was being unfair, sure they probably didn't realize they were ticking off a very short-tempered hanyou. He struggled to become relaxed, and eventually the tenseness in his muscles eased. Feh, maybe those villagers weren't so annoying after all…

Damn! Kagome is turning me into a wuss! He pouted mentally, and an image of a smiling Kagome filled his head, distracting him momentarily as she usually did. Snapping out of it and cursing the sudden ache in his chest, Inuyasha growled at having to resort to the necklace for the second time that day.

I swear…-, he started to think as his hand automatically reached for the small locket, but his eyes widened as his claws grasped air. Fumbling, Inuyasha opened the part in his haori more and to his horror found the trinket gone.

Shit, shit, shit! He swore and wildly glanced around, checking for a gleam of gold. It was nowhere to be seen, and it hadn't dropped to the ground below.

Swinging off the branch, Inuyasha scanned his sharp eyes over the ground, but found nothing.

Maybe he had lost it while jumping through the trees. It could've caught on a twig and snapped or…

The possibilities were endless and the locket had unexplainably vanished. I need to backtrack, he firmly commanded, and slowly made his careful way back, leaving no bush or stone unturned.

I need to find that necklace. It means the world to me… and not to mention the sit I will indefinitely receive if I tell her I lost her locket. He winced at the punishment yet to come and picked his pace up slightly. It couldn't have gone far…

Kagome carefully checked the man over, searching for symptoms of his illness. Kneeling down, she reached in her backpack for a handy thermometer she always brought with her, and gently ordered the villager to leave it under his tongue, which he obeyed.

She then proceeded to test his pulse, and looked at her watch, counting every heartbeat that pumped through his veins as she cautiously pressed her thumb into his wrist. Normal, that's good, she thought to herself.

The thermometer began to beep, frightening the poor sick man as he had no idea to why the strange contraption in his mouth was making such a racket. Kagome apologized, muttering, "Sorry," and slid the thermometer out of his mouth, reading it.

"Wow, you have a high fever," she finally said, "Your temperature is a hundred and three." Worry clouded her sympathetic face and she took a small bottle out of the pocket of her backpack.

"I'm sorry, but this disease can only be cured with time. I'm pretty sure it is the flu, but a mild case. You're lucky it's so small, you should've seen me when I had it." Kagome smiled brilliantly at the patient, coaxing a weak smile from him.

Two pills spilled into her hand and she grabbed the bowl of water, offering it to the villager. "Here," she reassured, "Swallow these two pills with this water, and the side effects will go down, I promise."

Sango and Miroku watched Kagome treating the sick person, both curious as to the advanced level of her time in medicine. The man, after doing as Kagome suggested, lay back down against the sheets and closed his weary eyes.

She sat for a second beside him, and then stood to her feet, swinging her bag over her back. Motioning for the doorway, Kagome added, "This is very contagious. I wouldn't stay here long."

She grinned as both Sango and Miroku hastily exited, then did so herself, glancing back once at the ill man before closing the flap over the doorway.

Kaede's hut was warm and comforting, and Kagome scooted as close to the fire as possible but back enough so that she wouldn't be burned. A shiver shot down her spine and she breathed deeply, outstretching her hands so that the flames could warm them.

"This weather is nice," she commented, "but it sure gets cold real fast."

Sango laughed at the girl's statement. "Of course, Kagome, that is why I prefer to stay indoors these days, instead of going out in the snow."

A playful sparkle illuminated Kagome's melting brown eyes and she allowed a smile to creep onto her features. Snow! "We should go out and play in the snow!" she suggested, and Shippo ran up, his face hopeful.

"Can we?" he begged, looking up to Kagome with his puppy dog expression.

"Sure," Kagome instantly replied, but then continued with a giggle, "but be prepared to be defeated in a snowball fight!"

Shippo grinned, exposing his tiny fangs. "No way, Kagome!"

The miko turned to Sango and Miroku. "You sure you guys don't want to come?"

Sango shook her head no, and shuddered. "How could you want to go outside? I would freeze!" She paused and smiled. "Besides, its better if I keep an eye on a certain monk-," here she whirled on an innocently meditating Miroku, "and his wandering hands. You go ahead."

Kagome slipped a jacket over her long sleeved shirt and ran outside, Shippo hot on her heels. Miroku let out a breath of frustration without opening his eyes. "Sango, why must you be so suspicious of me? I do nothing more than an occasional groping."

"Occasional isn't the word for it," Sango almost snarled, her expression dark and her honey-hue to her eyes piercing. Miroku cracked an eye open and whimpered at Sango's menacing look. It was going to be a long day.

"Catch me if you can, Shippo!" Kagome teased, dancing just out of the little kitsune's reach as he tried repeatedly to catch her.

"Aw, not fair Kagome you're faster than me!" Shippo pouted, but sprang after despite his grumbling as she ran off again, careful to keep in range of the hut.

As the fox kit raced to her as fast as his little legs could carry him, Kagome stooped down and scooped up a handful of icy snow, which she quickly fashioned into a ball.

Shippo was caught off guard as a snowball crashed into his chest, soaking his clothes. He squealed at the ice running down his kimono and began to quickly wipe off the snow from the front side. "Agghh!" he screeched.

Kagome was laughing so hard her sides were hurting. "Oh Shippo, are you cold?" she asked, faking innocence. Shippo shivered and wrapped his arms around his prone figure.

Walking over to the small fox, Kagome offered her arms to him and he willingly obliged, jumping into the safe haven and cuddling up to Kagome as she carried him back to the hut.

"Once you're all dry, then you can come back out, okay?" Kagome promised and he vigorously shook his head and disappeared under the flap.

Kagome took a step towards the entrance, but halted and glanced back to the snowy forest. It wouldn't hurt to go walking, just a little bit of exploring.

Her feet took a different route, heading instead to the line of trees. Inuyasha's in there somewhere, she thought, hopefully I'll meet up with him. Satisfied at this idea, Kagome trotted on, the snow pleasantly crunching underneath her shoes. A strong gust of wind whipped Kagome's long raven hair about, its tresses tickling her face. She absentmindedly tucked it behind her ear, her gaze solely focused on the trees as she watched for a flash of red to come bounding her way.

Before she even realized where she had been going, Kagome's line of vision was met with the majestic sight of the sacred tree. Even with its leaves shed, the thick, sturdy frame of its boughs gave it a presence over all the other trees

Hoping wistfully that her hanyou would be there, Kagome's heart dropped as she did not spot the surly Inuyasha. She exhaled slowly, a cloud forming with her breath.

Dismally Kagome started to walk away from the trunk of the sacred tree when she stepped on a metal object. Raising her foot, Kagome stared down at the object. The bright gold glint stood out vibrantly from the pure whiteness of the surrounding ground.

Kagome bent down and carefully picked it up; surprised that it was a locket. It's so beautiful, she thought, her eyes entranced by the sakura design engraved on the front. Turning it over in her palm, Kagome mused over the possibilities. Perhaps it was a lost gift of two lovers.

How sweet, she melted as she daydreamed about the guy gifting it to the girl, and whispering to her how much he loved her. She shook her head of the daydream, scolding herself, "You're a sucker for romance, aren't you, Kagome?"

Her eyelids closed as she wondered how it would be like if it was Inuyasha presenting this to her. Despite the obvious cold, a warm tingly feeling spread through her limbs. Sure, she reminded herself, like that will ever occur.

Gently Kagome undid the clasp and opened the necklace, revealing the pictures inside. What she saw almost caused her to drop the locket.

It was the picture of her and Inuyasha that one time at the picture booth. A smile was coaxed from her lips as she remembered how she and Inuyasha had been fighting yet again, and Souta had slipped some quarters in, resulting in a couple of angry pictures being taken.

Now, a shouting Inuyasha and Kagome glared up at her. Her mind was befuddled. How had this gotten here? She had given it to Inuyasha, and then expected him to go ahead and trash it. But that was about a year ago, it would've been long gone, or she would've noticed it before, having stood before the sacred tree many times.

It had to be in the last day or two or else the snow would've covered it.

A heartwarming idea formed in her mind, and she felt uncontrollable happiness bubble up within her. He kept it. I can't believe he kept it.

Her features brightened and she radiantly ran back to the hut, locket in hand. She had to find Inuyasha.

I can't believe I'm doing this, Inuyasha thought miserably. He stood right before the hut, deciding whether or not to go in. Everywhere he went there had been dead ends on the mystery of the locket, but as a last resort he had to ask his companions.

"Here goes nothing," he muttered under his breath and, nonchalant expression firmly in place, he strode into the room.

Two pairs of eyes rose to meet his. "Where have you been, Inuyasha?" Miroku asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Nowhere. Besides, it's none of your business." Inuyasha retorted coolly. He sat down and gave the appearance of being bored.

How was he supposed to bring up the subject? He couldn't just ask up front if they had seen a necklace that he had. Anyways, it was relieving that they had no clue about the locket Kagome had gifted him with. It was a secret only him and Kagome shared, and he preferred it that way.

Casually, Inuyasha suddenly questioned, "Hey, have any of you seen a necklace?"

Sango looked up from her work on her mask, surprised at his question. "A necklace?" she repeated.

"Yeah it was, er, Kaede's and it has spiritual abilities that she needs and…" Inuyasha cut off, knowing when to stop. Already, they seemed as if they didn't believe him.

"Spiritual abilities." Miroku echoed, his voice revealing slight amusement. Of course he knew Kaede possessed no such thing.

"Ummm, yeah."

Sango shook her head, deciding not to further provoke him into losing his temper. "Nope."

Miroku, however, was more hesitant and raised an eyebrow. "Why do you wish to help Lady Kaede? I don't recall you ever being so eager to do so in the past."

Inuyasha sweat dropped, desperately wracking his brain for an answer. "I just felt like it, okay?" he eventually growled annoyed and embarrassed by the pink tinge on his cheeks.

Feeling as if he had mortified him enough and that if he tried anymore his head would be beaten in, Miroku shrugged and also shook his head no.

Inuyasha jumped to his feet and fled from the hut. All that for nothing! God damn it, where could it be? Inuyasha didn't want to admit it was lost. It was one of the few things he treasured, aside from the fire rat robe he now wore.

A much more sobering realization came to him as he thought deeper about why this little locket meant so much to him. It was the only thing he would have left of her when she left.

His fangs glided out from his lip and he growled at this heart-wrenching prospect. How could he continue on with his life knowing that Kagome was alive somewhere without him? It had always seemed like they were supposed to be together… they were Inuyasha and Kagome, couldn't have one without the other.

She has to stay. Kagome wouldn't just leave me, she isn't like other people who just want to be rid of me.

His amber eyes were focused dead ahead of him, and his legs had a mind of their own. If his thoughts hadn't been plaguing his head, Inuyasha definitely would've noticed Kagome's scent which was not far away.

But seeing as he didn't, the girl ran by unnoticed, dodging trees and dashing madly to the hut.

Kagome reached the room within minutes and stood there panting as two sets of eyes again looked up, expecting to find a fuming half demon and pleasantly surprised to see Kagome standing there. She was out of breath, and her hair was flipped about her head, but she paid no attention to that.

"Have… you… seen…Inuyasha…" she managed to pant out.

Miroku gazed quizzically at the struggling miko. "He just left, why?"

Kagome groaned and dashed back outside into the cold, yelling a distant "Thanks!" to the dumbfounded pair in Kaede's hut.

"Hmmm. They seem busy." Sango idly commented, and glared at the hand crawling towards a particular area of her body. "You never learn do you?" she raised her voice to below a shout as Sango slammed her fist into the oncoming hand earning herself a howl of pain from Miroku.

"This is new," Miroku stated, inspecting his reddened hand. "Usually it's my cheek that takes the bashing."

"It will be if you don't stop," Sango threatened unmercifully before resuming her work.

Inuyasha dropped from the grey sky, landing in a crouch beside the well. Treading on the snow, he reached the sacred tree, his gaze roaming. This was the last place he had looked at it in. If it wasn't here, he didn't know what he would do.

After a couple of minutes and several rounds of the clearing, Inuyasha plopped down into the cold frost, defeated. He surrendered to the fact he would probably never retrieve the lost locket he had cherished for almost a year.

Slamming his head into the trunk as he leaned back, Inuyasha ignored the stinging and frowned. Closing his eyes, he sighed inwardly at his loss.

Soft footsteps approached him and he allowed an ear to swivel in that direction.

His senses kicked into overdrive as Kagome's beautiful scent engulfed his system. Opening his eyes he looked up and was surprised to see the girl standing uncertainly a few feet away, gazing at him with an unreadable expression that made him nervous.

"What?" he questioned, a little more harshly than he meant to.

Kagome's features softened and she walked over and sat down beside him, not meeting his burning gaze but opting to look out at the snow. "This weather is so cold, it's no wonder the villagers are coming down with sicknesses."

Inuyasha absentmindedly nodded his head, perplexed why Kagome was being so random.

She turned to him and smiled, still thinking of the necklace she now carried around her neck, hidden from view to him. "Where have you been all day?"

Cheeks tinged with a hint of red, Inuyasha averted his eyes to the trees. "Nowhere," he tried to excuse his absence, embarrassed that her locket meant so much to him to that he would spend all day searching for it.

Kagome continued to expectantly watch him, a soft smile prominent on her features.

He glanced over to her and relented slightly. Turning a brighter shade of red, he mumbled hastily, "Looking for something."

Her heart skipped a beat. So he had lost the necklace and couldn't find it. Her hand rose to the bump in her clothing where the locket was. Now it was her turn to look away as she asked, rather inaudibly, "Was it something important to you?"

If it hadn't been for his superb demon senses, he wouldn't have been able to hear her. As he watched her, she became more and more anxious, waiting for his answer. Well, it wouldn't hurt to tell her, if she didn't know what object he was talking about. "Yeah. I-It's something I really liked, and… am kinda used to having with me… I wish I had it back…"

Kagome bit her lip, her chocolate eyes shimmering. "Thank you, Inuyasha." You don't know how much that meant to me.

Inuyasha did a double take. "Huh?" he questioned, even more confused. Why in the seven hells was she thanking him?

She looked him straight in the eye, and his widened at the emotion overflowing in them. "Since it's so important to you, you might want it back, right?" Here she proceeded to pull the locket out from underneath her jacket and unclasp it, handing it to Inuyasha.

The small heart-shaped pendant twirled slowly on the chain, its shine reflecting onto the snow below.

Inuyasha almost died from humiliation. She had known all along? Silence enveloped the pair as Kagome's hand remained outstretched. Sympathizing with his mortification, she scooted closer and placed her hands around his neck.

He stared at wonder at their nearness, and forgot how to breathe. "Kagome…" he whispered and was about to lean down and kiss her when…

"Done!" she announced, proudly pulling back from her embrace and admiring her work of putting the locket back on around his neck. He glanced down at it. So that's why she had her arms around my neck… Disappointed, Inuyasha frowned.

Kagome, realizing why he was so glum all of a sudden, blushed and, reacting spontaneously with her burst of happiness that over-flowed in her heart, quickly reached up and pressed her lips to his.

Inuyasha was too shocked to respond by returning the kiss, but he wouldn't have had time anyways because Kagome, all too quickly for him, in his opinion, pulled away and, face doing a good impression of a ripe tomato, stood up.

"Ummm… I'll see you back at the hut," she said and walked away, half excited, and half embarrassed. Not being able to contain her curiosity at his response, Kagome tilted her head so that she could see the hanyou behind her.

His amber eyes were wide open, and his mouth was partly open, too. But as soon as she glanced back he closed his mouth and grinned at her, exposing his long fangs.

She, in turn, smiled back and resumed walking until she faded from his sight, a certain bounce to her step.

Inuyasha watched her leave, fireworks exploding in his head. Today was good, actually, damn great. He got his locket back and a kiss from Kagome.

His eyes dropped to the necklace laying there in full view over his crimson haori. Picking it up with his claws, he inspected it. Even though he had been so sullen over its loss, it wasn't because of the locket itself. He had been missing the constant presence of Kagome the pendant gave him. He didn't really need this necklace after all, he had Kagome.

Besides, he had a feeling that they were going to be around each other a lot more now…

That thought alone was enough to make his century.

How was that, Alicia? Up to your standards? Anyways, really hope you liked it and I'm going to be posting it tomorrow so you can always check it out when you want to. It makes you feel all warm and tingly inside when you have a fanfic dedicated to you, right?

Happy Belated Birthday and sorry this was so late!

And to my other reviewers, hope this fanfic is up to your standards too! (And if it isn't, then just put a cork in it and don't say anything, although CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is allowed…)

Your favorite authoress,

kikyohater