YAH!! Thanks so much to all who reviewed so far!

I was kinda worried if Kouga was believable, but I see you all seem to like him the way I portrayed him, so I feel much better about it. You guys are great and thanks for the support!

So to reward you, here's a couple more chapters for your reading pleasure.

This is where Inu starts to become more of my own character, and if you don't like it, I apologize. I just wanted a new angle to him, to show our dog boy as a bit more...vulnerable...maybe that's not the right word, but i think you'll know what I'm rambling about. I hope you're getting along with Faye. I usually do my best not to introduce OC characters, but I needed a strong female presence to balance out Shiori. Well, enough about that, here's the next chapter.

And yes, Kaede is the old Japanese woman I mention. You'll see more of her later.

And yes...I do love good coffee.

Ja ne!

~Sabichan~

I don't own Inu and Co.

'in italics' : character's thoughts

"in quoutations" : character speaking.

**I POV**

I fought the urge to pace back and forth again as I waited at the bus stop. I had come a few minutes early hoping to be able to talk to Kagome a little longer this time. But the stupid girl was no where to be seen. It was bad enough that I had accidentally lent one of my father's favorite possessions to a complete stranger-now I wasn't sure if she was actually coming back or if I would ever see her again. It was even worse that I couldn't decide which part bothered me the most.

"Stupid Girl....Stupid late smart mouthed little wench." I mumbled. I heard a low chuckle from behind me and I turned to see the same old woman from the day before watching me in amusement.

"What you old witch? You find something funny?"

She merely chuckled again, shaking her head, and looked away. I kicked at a piece of trash on the ground and turned my back to her.

`Why the hell am I so nervous?' I wondered briefly.

This was weird. I didn't like this uncertain feeling that clouded my thoughts. I kept fidgeting and I found myself starting to pace again.

`This is all Sango's fault. And Miroku's -Hell it's that whole damn family's fault. Putting all this pressure on me.'

The entire day at the restaurant had been hell. Miroku had been listening to everything I'd told Sango, including about how attractive Kagome was. That had sparked a huge uproar with the rest of the Houshi's, and they kept encouraging me to ask her out. Every chance they got, each one of them tried to give me a few words of advice.

Faye had told me to bring flowers to the stop the next morning. Miroku had told me to just grab her ass and see how she took it. Mushin's advice had been similar, just involved grabbing a different part of her body.

Even Sango's advice had seemed ludicrous-'write her a letter and give it to her, then hop on the bus to make a clean getaway?' What the hell would I write in the first place, and second....well what the hell would I say? `Hi, I'm Inuyasha, that smart ass jerk you met at the bus stop. Do you think I'm an asshole? If not, would you consider going out with me? Please check box below....Yes, No, or Get a fucking life?'

Surprisingly enough, the only advice I had actually considered taking was Shippo's.

`Bring her a cup of coffee in the morning.'

I had to admit, that kid had a pretty good idea there. Still, I wanted to be sure she even had any interest in me before I had to make any kind of effort or waste the ninety-eight cents-

"I am one cheap, lazy bastard" I muttered under my breath.

"You're also talking to yourself."

I whipped around and was met with a very welcome sight. Hiding the relief I felt inside, I put on an indifferent look.

"Well look who finally showed up. I thought you were lying to me yesterday."

"I was lying." She said smiling brightly.

"Huh?"

"Yeah the part where I said it was nice to meet ya? That was a lie."

"Now you're just trying to hurt me...I don't appreciate that." I replied smirking. I was really just trying to hide a smile. I took a moment to look her over now that it wasn't raining and she wasn't soaked to the bone. As if it were at all possible, she was even more beautiful. Her hair still gave off that bluish glow in the sunlight, and her warm chocolate brown eyes were lit with amusement. I'd never seen anyone look so...alive.

"Oh, poor baby...Well maybe this will cheer you up." She suddenly produced a styrofoam cup in her left hand.

"What's that?" I asked, eying it suspiciously.

"Coffee. You seemed so cranky yesterday morning, I thought you could use a good waking up."

I stared at her dumbly. `I have to start listening to the brat more often....'

I took it with a slight smile which she returned.

"Thanks."

"Well it's my thanks. You really saved my ass yesterday by lending me your umbrella. By the way..."

She turned around and fumbled through the huge backpack that she had set down on the bench. I noticed the old woman watching us intently out of the corner of her eye. Kagome turned back and handed me the umbrella. I had to fight the urge to drop to my knees in relief as I took it back from her.

"I almost forgot it this morning and had to run a block back home." She said as I took a small sip of the coffee. My eyes widened in surprise.

"Wow...this is really good."

"Oh, thanks, I made it." She said beaming with pride. "You should be flattered that I deemed you worthy of homemade coffee. I was gonna just get ya one of those ninety eight cent cups from the gas station."

I chuckled to myself. My lazy cheap ass had certainly managed to save face for me this time.

"So I guess that explains why you were late."

"Late? What did you set some kind of timeline for me?"

I mentally kicked myself. What the hell was I supposed to say back to that. I didn`t even know why I had thought she was late in the first place. I tried to stutter out a reply

"No, I just..."

She laughed melodically, cutting me off

"No you got me. I'm always ten minutes early for everything. I guess I must really give off that impression if you already caught on."

`Whew!'

"Yep, I'm pretty observant, almost psychic you might say." I said, bouncing back.

"Speaking of psychic...my new flamboyantly gay boss thinks he's psychic. But I mean he's got some scary talents. He knew it was me before I even opened the door to meet him for the first time...."

She began chatting away about her first day of school and work. And I mean, it's not that I wasn't paying attention to what she was saying. No, I was hanging on every word.

I was just so amazed at how at ease she was with me. She spoke as though we had known each other for years, not just the measly ten minutes we had spent together yesterday.

I was also amazed at how my nervousness had vanished. I just watched her ramble on about boring professors and how easy her new job was.

"Then I made another little bus stop friend last night. His name is Johnny and he's in love with my hair."

"Well I wish you two a happy life together." I said as I picked up a lock of her hair and pretended to shake hands with it. She laughed and slapped my hand away. Then she glanced at my own hair with a curious look. I waited for her imminent question.

"Speaking of hair..."

"Yes it is natural." I answered before she could even ask. I got that a <i>lot</i>...

She glared at me playfully for a moment. Then sighed and shook her head as she took the cup of coffee from my hand.

"Why is every one but me graced with such foresight..." She took a long sip before handing it back to me. I watched her thoughtfully, again blown away at the level of comfort she obviously already felt with me.

"You just weren't born under the right star."

"So how does one go about having silver hair at your age? Or are you just very well aged? Wait, how old are you anyway?" She then picked up my a few strands of my own hair and examined them closely as I spoke.

"21. And it just runs in my family. My older brother, my dad, grandfather, so on. Just a weird family trait. Only the men though."

"Oh...Well I kinda like it. Makes you looked distinguished."

I stuck my nose in the air and raised my pinky as I took a dainty sip from the coffee cup.

"Distinguished is my middle name." I said looking back at her and winking.

She giggled at me and hit my arm playfully.

I glanced at my watch. Two minutes left before the bus came.

"So you didn't tell me how old you are." I asked, anxious to find out more before we had to part ways again.

"Nineteen... I'll be twenty in about three months. That should give you plenty of time to find me a birthday present."

"When did we become such good friends? And what makes you think you actually deserve one?"

"Oh but I do! I've been such a good girl, I really have!" She said in a high pitched valley girl voice, as she twirled a strand of her hair between her fingers. She had totally ignored my first question.

"You seem too eager...I think you're lying to me again." I said narrowing my eyes at her.

"I'll bring you coffee everyday I know I`ll see ya. Deal?"

"Depends? Will you be here tomorrow?" I asked crossing my fingers. It was a long shot, so needless to say I was shocked when she nodded her head.

"Yep. Same time."

"And the day after?" I noticed how my voice almost cracked.

"Same time."

"I'm beginning to see a trend here..." I muttered disbelievingly. She snapped her fingers.

"And right you are. I'll be here everyday at nine, Monday through Friday for the whole semester. I like having a routine, so I planned my class schedule this way."

I stared dumbly at her for the millionth time. But this time it wasn't because one of her quips had backed me into a corner. No, this time I was just more than a little freaked out.

You see, somehow, through some odd twist of time and space and probability, her schedule coincided with the exact same one I'd been living for the past five years.

"Hello?! Are you still in there?!" She asked tapping on my head, snapping me back to reality

"Huh?"

"You just zoned out on me there. I asked you, `what about you?'. Your brilliant reply, and I quote, was:"

She let her mouth drop open made a dumb face. I laughed , realizing how I must have looked. "Yes I think that's a fair impression." She said finally grinning.

"Yet another talent, very nice...Well, to answer your question and seal our deal," I quickly took her hand and shook it, "I'll be expecting a fresh cup of coffee every weekday morning for the next three months."

I gulped down the remainder of the coffee and tossed the cup into the nearby trashcan. When I turned back to here, she was giving me a dumb look of her own.

"Oh. wow isn't that a weird coincidence." She muttered softly.

"Yes a strange, but delicious one." I said rubbing my stomach and grinning as obnoxiously as I could. She moaned aloud, and rolled her eyes.

"Great, now I'm stuck with you every morning. I guess I really wasn't born under the right star."

"Oh it won't be so bad. It's not like you're not getting anything out of it. You get to spend some quality time with me-"

"And your ego...."

"Yes, him too, and then in three months, I'll bring you a cracked old vase from the thrift store over there for your present. And if you're really good, I'll stick a dead flower in it."

She glared at me but I could see the laughter behind her eyes. Then they widened in surprise.

"Wait, did you say thrift store?! Where?!"

She began to look around wildly, trying to find it.

"It's right there," I said and pointed across the street.

A look of pure happiness came over her face.

"I love Thrift stores, you don't even understand how much!"

"And I thought I was cheap..."

"I'm not cheap, I just love old things! They have so much background to them, like their own secret lives."

I looked at her for a moment. Then it hit me.

"You're a history major aren't you?"

She gave me that surprised look again.

"Yeah...How'd you know that?"

"My brother....you sound just like him. He was one." I couldn't hide the nostalgic tone in my voice.

"Where is he -"

"Bus is here." I interrupted her before she could finish her question.

After she followed my gaze to the street and the approaching bus, she, stepped over to shoulder the huge yellow bag. Groaning under it's weight, she turned back to me.

"Well I guess I'll see ya tomorrow Inuyasha." She said smiling brightly

"Bye. Don't be late, or our deal is off."

Still smiling, she flipped me off as she stepped on the bus. I returned it as I walked to my bus that was pulling in behind hers.

**At the Fukai Mori**

"I'll tell ya, but only if you make me a promise first."

"Of course, Inu! Anything!" Her extra sweet smile was making me nervous. But I knew she was just being playful. Nevertheless, I needed her to seriously agree to what I was about to ask of her.

"You have to swear to me Faye, that you will not breathe a word of this to my mother. I mean not a single word! And you have to make sure no one else does either. I'm gonna talk to them later, but you first."

She blinked, looking a little confused. I glanced away, a bit bashful, then asked again

"Please, Faye, I don't ask you for much. I just want you to promise this one thing."

Her expression softened and she took my hand in hers.

"Inuyasha Shingetsu I promise upon pain of death that I will not tell you mother about your girlfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend!" I countered, my face feeling a bit flushed. She giggled for a second then replied.

"Fine, I swear I won't tell her about Kagome period."

"Thank you Faye." I felt a wave of relief wash over me. I prayed to the Gods she wouldn't ask me why. But Faye had a way of understanding things, and it seemed that her curiosity to find out what happened this morning was greater than my reasoning.

"So?!" She clasped her hands together excitedly.

"Yeah, she was there, just like she said."

"What'd she say, what'd you talk about? Did you bring her flowers like I told you to?"

"Hey, calm down! No, I didn't."

"Inu! I told you to, she would have liked them!"

"Can I finish?" She nodded and I continued. "Actually she brought me something. A cup of coffee. Really, really good coffee...Um...and then we just kinda talked. She's nineteen, twenty in a few months. And...well it turns out....she's gonna be at the stop every morning at the...same time."

I saw her eyes widen and I knew she was just as shocked as I had been.

"Yeah, some fucking luck, huh?"

"So...do you like her?" I turned red again at her sudden question. I turned away and shrugged. "You just answered my question you know." I shrugged again. She cupped my cheek and led my eyes back to meet hers.

"I was only asking Inu. I won't keep badgering you about it, I know you feel a little awkward about this as it is. Just...don't be afraid to ask for some advice from time to time, from any of us. We just want to see you happy."

I wanted nothing more than to sink into the ground just then. Sure, she meant well, but I knew the Houshi's too well to ask for any help. It would be my undoing. I quickly changed the subject, trying to tamp down the uncomfortable feelings going through me.

"I got this back, too."

I set the umbrella down on the counter. I could tell Faye was trying hard not to push at me, and just went with it.

"Oh, well that's good. Shiori would be very unhappy if she found out you lost Shoji's umbrella."

"My mother is always unhappy Faye. you know that."

I began to turn away before she could reply. But, as always, she caught me.

"Inuyasha, do not disrespect your mother! She's had a-"

"A hard time dealing with my father's `disappearance'. Yeah I know Faye, I live with it every damn day and every night. It's been eleven years! Why can't she just accept it?"

I had blown up this time. Every time I mentioned my mother's depression, Faye would come back with the same line. I was just so sick of hearing it. She looked at me thoughtfully for a moment, then turned her attention back to the menu she was re-writing.

"I know you've had it hard too, Inu. You act Mushin's age more often than he does. It hurt us to watch you grow up so fast, especially after Sesshomaru left. But you know what hurt the most, Inu?"

"What?" asked sighing, not really wanting to hear her reply.

She met my gaze with a look I'd never seen before.

"Having to watch you grow up without knowing what it`s like to love someone the way your mother loved your father. I'm certain you would better understand why it's so hard for her live without him. Everything she ever believed in was broken the day he vanished. You've never really loved someone Inuyasha. You don't know what it's like having that ripped away from you without any explanation, without any closure. It's an open wound that will never heal. I don't think your mother will ever get over it. And unfortunately, you've had to pay the price too."

She walked over to me and pulled me into a motherly embrace.

"You're so cold, Inuyasha and the worst part is you won't let anyone warm you up, not even me." she pulled back to look at my face and smoothed my hair.

"You know in the beginning, I hired Sango hoping that you two would fall for each other. Of course that backfired when my own son took to her. I guess I should have seen that coming. Inu....I hope you can understand why all of us were so surprised to hear about your new friend. You're a part of our family, and your love life-"

"lack of." I interjected.

"-your love life is a family matter. We only want you to be happy and to find someone to love, someone to spend your life with. You know, I don't want you to work for me forever."

I stood there for moment in complete shock. Her words had hit me hard. I had never given much thought to my own future. It had seemed like this would be my life- living with Mom and working for Faye. I had never thought of getting married or even going to college or even living on my own. I never thought about how my life would be if I actually met someone.

That whole day I spent in a daze. I couldn't stop thinking about what I had let myself become-I was no better than my mother. I had given up on life, too. `I'm 21 years old and I haven't lived a single day in my life for me.'

As I finished my shift at the restaurant, and made my way the six blocks to my second job at the Shikon Building, I barely noticed where I was going. It was a miracle I didn't get hit by a car or something. But even as I walked in the door, and wondered how I had even gotten there, it only proved yet another point to me. I was so engrossed in my routine of life, that I could've found my way to work with my eyes closed.

I actually wanted to cry.

The last time I had cried was when Sess had left. That was eight years ago.

I struggled to break out of my haze when I reached the second floor of the building. I walked to the back of the mailroom and punched in. Tying my hair back, I stepped onto the floor and took my place at the scanner.

This was another sad part of my life. Everyday after my shift with Faye, I would walk straight here to Naraku's largest office building. Then I'd waste another six hours of my life scanning random envelopes and sending them to the appropriate mail chute. What was in the envelopes-I have no idea. I just knew what to do with them and where they were supposed to go. I sighed and picked up an envelope. Easy or not, I did have a quota to meet before my shift was over.

Probably the worst part of the job was that I would go hours without hearing or seeing another living soul. It usually gave me time to think about things like what my father must have been like, or what Sess was doing, or even what lame line Miroku was feeding Sango or any female customer that happened to come through the door.

Today I was practically begging the Gods for some kind of distraction.

I waited two hours for any kind of response. Nothing but the sound of rustling paper and the beeping of the scanner. I began to actually look at the names on the envelopes, finally curious about what I was handling. They all looked like residential homes addresses and I saw no business names.

That's when I started thinking about Kagome. I can't describe the feeling that came over me when I finally began to think about this morning. It wasn't relief. No, it was something much stronger than that.

I kind of felt...giddy. Like a little kid.

She had looked so beautiful this morning. The way she had talked on and on about seemingly random things, the way she just opened up to me.

I began to wonder what her last name was. Where she lived. What her family was like. What her favorite color was. Where had she learned to make such good coffee?

My curiosity continued to plague me even on my way home, and late into the night.

Tbc…

ok, ok, crappy way to end a chapter, but did you really want a cliffy? Did you?

Oh....you did....well....i guess that changes everything doesn't it?

Anywho, hope you're beginning to understand Inu's way of thinking in this fic. Think of it like this: he's been asleep for eleven years, and Kagome comes and dumps a bucket of cold water over his head.

She's waking him up. And inadvertantly, she's changing his life for the better.

hope you liked.