The Sickness 2

Two years later, and InuYasha and Kagome, Sango and Miroku, and Shippou and Kirara were all alive and doing well. They all had grown immensely stronger, and InuYasha had actually developed a sense of what was right, and what was wrong, although he tried to hide it. He tried to minimize the affection he showed for Kagome in public, but it was obvious the two had grown closer, from their experience two years ago, and InuYasha almost dying on them.

They were currently walking through a village, and they were far from their home base, Kaede's village. The well that Kagome used to go to her time was a good 5 days away, if they were lucky. Six was a more accurate number. The last time Kagome was home was almost a month ago. It was sad to say, but Kagome didn't feel the need to run home anymore. It was obvious that she was so far behind in school that she should stop trying altogether, and she barely knew her friends anymore. She had gone home about three weeks ago, and she didn't even recognise her friends. One of them had gotten a hair cut, another had dyed their hair, and her other friend had gotten contacts, totally changing her face from the dissappearance of the glasses. Not only were the changes physical, they were also mental. They now had nothing in common, nothing to talk about. She sighed, her friends in her time mere memories. It was the here and now that really mattered to her. As for her mother and brother, they all knew that Kagome would have to leave the house eventually, she couldn't live with her parents forever. They just didn't expect her to go somewhere so far away, so remote. They couldn't call her, e-mail her, or fax her. She was totally cut off from the future, and she had to admit that she was loving the old lifestyle. Besides the constant demon slaying, there was so much peace here, that she just couldn't get back home. Kagome looked up at the boy at her side, and smiled at him, getting a mixed reaction. Part of him wanted to smile back at her, the other part wanted to glare at her and tell her to stop being such a cheerful person.

Instead, he said nothing, just looked away. Kagome knew what was going on, and didn't take offense to it.

Sango and Miroku were a few steps behind, and they walked together, shoulder to shoulder. Miroku had curbed the groping, and Sango had stopped the slapping. Miroku occaisionally felt the urge to grope, but he tried to suppress it. When it got too strong, and he copped a feel, Sango was only too happy to deliver the ritual slap. The whole group had gotten closer, and the stiff friendships between Sango and InuYasha, and Miroku and Kagome, they had been deepened, memories made, feelings hurt and apologies accepted. Sango's Hiraikotsu had recieved a tiny bit of modding, and now all the cutting edges of the bone had a deep inset sharp blade. The blades protruded about an inch out, and were razor sharp. Miroku's staff had stayed the same, and he still used sacred sutras. InuYasha's sword was still transforming, and occaisionally InuYasha would be surprised by an energy spike, a temporary raise in the swords power. Kagome had bought back a compound bow from her time, and she used it often, finding that it had way more power, accuracy, and durability. She could fold it up, for easy carrying, and it would take metal, or wooden bows. As well as the bow being different, her spiritual power had grown, and Miroku was getting nervous. Her power was overflowing her body, and whenever he was in close range to her, he often found it hard to have perverted thoughts. Any time he did, he would immediately get a stomach ache, until he moved away from the young girl. It was nothing though, for he would gladly sacrifice his perverted thoughts for the amazing healing powers she had. She could now direct her energy into small wounds, and they would heal quite quickly.

They had not had a single fight in days, and their skills were getting rusty, so they decided to go just outside the village, and pratice a bit. InuYasha, Sango, and Miroku had a three way battle, while Kagome played in the archery field, improving her accuracy all the while. She could faintly hear the laughter from InuYasha, the groans of frustration from Miroku, and the curses from Sango as InuYasha evaded all their weapons. But, on the other hand, Sango was too fast for InuYasha to hit with his big slow sword, and Miroku's staff easily guarded against the sword, letting Miroku sneak in a kick or two. InuYasha was always looking for ways to improve his speed and agility, but for now, he was stuck doing laps around the village, for his stamina. He couldn't think of a way to increase his agility. He figured that he was quick enough to dodge anything out there. Then Kouga came to mind, and he grimaced. The damn wolf was still alive, still had the shards, and had added another member to his clique. Ayame had been added to Ginta and Hakkaku, but InuYasha didn't mind. She helped him regulate Kouga's attempts to get Kagome. He actually admired her. Kouga was paying absolutely no attention to her, yet she was still faithful, still stayed with him, worried about him, fought by his side. He grinned to himself as he parried a blow from Miroku, and ducking as Sango's Hiraikotsu came spinning toward his head, metal blades removed, for safetys sake. He was actually really lucky to have someone like Kagome, and he really appreciated her. He laughed again, and raised his sword high above his head, bringing it down with all his strength, forcing Miroku to back up, or be sliced in two.

Suddenly, he saw Sango come into the side of his vision, and he saw her foot come up. Quickly, he took his left hand off his hilt, still making sure that Miroku didn't try anything while he was distracted with Sango. Using his left hand, he grabed her foot, and a look of surprise came over her face. He threw her away, and she landed on her back, knocking the wind out of her. Miroku tried to counter, and swept his staff under InuYasha's sword, attacking his legs. InuYasha jumped and slashed his sword down diagonally, from the top right to the bottom left, narrowly missing Miroku. Suddenly, out of nowhere, sutras came slicing through the air toward him. InuYasha knew how much Miroku's sutras hurt, and he desperately tried to block it with his sword. They latched onto the swords broad surface, and started to go to work. InuYasha's sword was still a demon blade,after all, and the sutras started working on the sword. InuYasha could feel the sutras burning right through the sword, down the hilt, and into his hands. He hurriedly dropped his sword, the palms of his hands already bright red. He held his hands up in front of him, ready for any attack Miroku could throw at him.

Then a burning pain in his back made him swing around. Sango was there with her katana drawn, grinning.

"I'm not out of it yet, InuYasha." She said. Miroku hurriedly swiped his staff along InuYasha's back, opening up another cut. InuYasha spun halfway around, so he could watch both of them. His head turned to Sango; she froze, katana raised. He looked to Miroku; Miroku stopped moving forward, his hand in his robes. Back to Sango, she had her katana raised slightly higher, and was a few steps closer. Miroku; hand almost withdrawn, staff at the ready. InuYasha knew he would have to judge this carefully. He saw Sango's muscles tensing beneath her tight slayer suit, and he knew. He glanced at Miroku, and saw his body trembling, anxious to attack. Then they both started toward him, and InuYasha waited. Sango's sword came slicing toward him, Miroku had thrown three sutras, and his staff was already whipping through the air, InuYasha his target. InuYasha gathered the strength in his legs, and jumped, leaning forward. He tucked his knees, knowing that the initial jump he did would make them aim upwards, thinking that he had jumped straight up. He spun around, front flipping, and slammed into the ground on his back, laughing as Sango's sword sliced through Miroku's shoulder and Miroku's sutras dissolved harmlessly on Sango. His staff, however, had been originally thrust at InuYasha, but now his staff had cut through Sango's side, ripping her uniform.

InuYasha pushed down on the ground beside his head, and whipped his legs up, then down toward the ground. The momentum flipped him back up onto his feet, and he pushed them both away.

"Good try, someday you two will get me." He said, smirking arrogantly. Sango withdrew her sword from Miroku, and examined him, then herself, the cut on her hip not that bad. Miroku picked up his staff, for he had dropped it, and they all walked back to the village, too tired and hurt to continue. Kagome could be seen, firing arrow after arrow, always practising, always improving. InuYasha called her name, and waved to her when she turned. They saw her gather up her stuff, and run toward them. InuYasha sheathed his sword as she ran into his arms, hugging him.

"Hey InuYasha!" She said. "How'd it go?" She asked.

InuYasha smirked. "I won, again." He said. Kagome looked at his hands as he gripped her hand, and she gasped as she noticed the burn marks. "Miroku got you, didn't he?" She asked. InuYasha shrugged. "Eh, sorta."

She giggled and carressed his hand softly. "I think I can take care of this." She said. They continued walking toward the village, getting to their rented hut a few minutes later. With the lack of demons around, Miroku was hesitant to try his 'Exorcism' to gain a free room in the nicest house in the village. He didn't want that act to wear too thin too quickly.

InuYasha sat down, and Kagome took a look at his hands. InuYasha didn't want to admit it, but he was absolutely in love with this girl who had left her family and friends behind, just for him. She was always caring, even when he was a total jackass, and he hated himself for it. And now, she was bent over his hands, touching them softly, a gentle smile on her face. She reached into her bag, and withdrew a moisturizer cream, knowing that the major part of taking medicine was that if you believed something would heal you, then it would. She told InuYasha that this was from her time, and would heal almost every type of burn. InuYasha, confused, asked her a question.

"I thought there were no demons in your time, Kagome?"

Kagome struggled to come up with an answer as she smoothed the cream into InuYasha's burnt hands.

"Well, we don't have demons, but we still do have monks, and lots of people that practise the ancient arts. The arts that you guys practise now, it'll be ancient in 500 years time." She said.

"Burns from spiritual power still does happen," She said, lying through her teeth. "So just concentrate on feeling it sink into your skin, and feel it heal." InuYasha stared at his hands for a second, and nodded. "I think something is happening..."

Kagome nodded. "Great!"

Sango knew what the stuff was, for they had been bathing in a hot spring, and had come across it, and Kagome had told her what it was. Sango smiled at Kagome, and said nothing about it.

"Umm, Kagome, you might wanna check his back, I think I cut him there, as well as Miroku." She said, somewhat apologetically. Kagome told InuYasha to take his shirt off, and he refused, saying he was fine.

"I said, take it off, you might have serious wounds on your back!" She said, getting angry. She wondered why he had to be difficult about stuff like this. Sometimes he was really cooperative, other times, he would fight with her on every detail until she was forced to use the word. She sighed as he gripped the folds of his haori firmly, refusing to take it off.

"Sssssssiiiiiiiiii..." The haori came off faster than that time they had made out in the hot spring. She blushed at the memory, and told him to turn around. She 'tsked' at the two cuts on his back, forming a crooked 'X'.

Kagome placed her hands on his back, feeling the blood coat her fingers. She would normally bandage him, but going from his waist to his chest, all around his body was a lot of bandage, and she didn't have that much. She closed her eyes, and immediately felt the power rising up inside her. She thought about the cuts on InuYasha's back, and imagined the power flowing from her to InuYasha, and the cuts sealing up. A few seconds later, she felt the cuts beneath her fingers fading. She kept going for a few seconds, just to make sure, before opening her eyes, cutting off the flow of power. She looked at the blood on her fingers, and briefly wondered how it could contain both a humans DNA and a demons DNA. It looked the same as all the other blood she had seen, and thought it was rediculous that InuYasha was slandered because of who he was and what was in his blood. She wiped her hands off, and asked Sango if she needed anything. Sango shook her head, saying that she had already taken care of the tiny cut on her hip. Kagome turned to Miroku, and innocently asked him if he needed anything. An evil grin came over his face, and he started taking off his robes.

"Wellll, now that you mention it, you could give me a--"KLUNK!!

Miroku dropped as Sango picked her shoulder armor piece up off the floor, where it had landed after colliding with Miroku's head. She shook her head, and turned to Kagome.

"He has an injured shoulder, but I'll take care of it, he might get some ideas with you, and try something." She said. "I don't mnd hitting the fool if he tries anything with me, so I'll take care of him." She said, dragging him away, into another room.

Kagome grinned, and nodded. "Okay Sango." She said. She looked around for InuYasha, and saw that he was sitting against the wall. She walked over, and sat beside him. She leaned on his shoulder, and InuYasha put his arm around her. They stayed like that for a few minutes, before InuYasha spoke.

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

Kagome looked at him. "Huh?"

"I mean, Naraku died two years ago, I thought you would leave when he was killed." He said. He looked at her, serious. "Are you ever going to leave?"

Kagome shook her head. "Naraku might be dead, but there's still all the demons with the rest of the Jewel Shards, we only have about half of them." She said.

"And after that, maybe we can finally settle down, and live here for awhile." She said. "Start up our own village. Whatever we do, our journey is far from over, InuYasha."

She hugged him tightly. "You don't have to worry about me leaving, ever." She said. Inside, InuYasha was immensely relieved. It was a question that had been weighing on his mind forever. And now she had just told him that she was never going to leave. He grinned, satisfied with her answer, and started wondering what the future held.

"Oh my God, why do you do these perverted things?" Sango asked softly, undoing Miroku's robes. She slid them down to his waist, and examined where her sword had pierced his skin. It wasn't too bad, for she had pulled the sword out the same way it had gone in, not slashing up, or down, cutting him to pieces. She grabbed a roll of bandage, and wrapped it up, keeping her eyes on the wound, and no where else. She knew that Miroku was probably planning something perverted, and she was ready to lash out at him. She looked up, to see what kind of expression he had, and she almost fell over. For once, he wasn't looking like he was planning something, or having bad thoughts. His eyes were calm, half closed as he looked down at her, and his face was serious. She blushed, and looked down, not wanting to see how his purple eyes shone in the light, or how cute he looked when he wasn't being a fool. She realized that her fingers were carressing his shoulder, for the wound was already wrapped, probably had been for a few minutes now. She pulled away, and turned around, not wanting him to see her face.

"Ah, Sango, what's wrong?" He said, leaning over her, his chin on her shoulder. She felt compelled to elbow him in that cute face of his, but he hadn't touched her yet, so she had no reason. She stayed facing forward, her head bowed, not wanting him to see the blush that decorated her cheeks, or the emotion in her eyes. She heard his robes rustling as he moved, and she figured that he was going to grope her, for he had a perfect opportunity. Instead, he tentatively put his arm around her shoulder. She froze, thinking that he would manage to 'slip' and get in a feel or two. But he didn't. Instead, he started whispering in her ear.

"Sango, just tell me you want me to stop messing around, and I will. I'll be yours, all yours to do with me as you will." He said, playfully. Sango's eyes widened, and she felt her face heating up again.

"Uh, um, no, that's alright, not right now, that wouldn't be any fun." She said. "Then I wouldn't have a reason to hit you." She said.

Miroku laughed, but inside, he was hurt, thinking that she had just turned him down. He cursed himself for screwing around, thinking that it was what had messed up his shot to be with Sango.

"I understand." He said, getting up.

"Thank you for taking care of my shoulder." He said, walking away. Sango wondered why he would just leave like that. And his voice. It was slightly different. Just a tiny bit more emotionless. She would have to ask Kagome about it later.

InuYasha kissed Kagome, and she giggled. InuYasha pushed her down on the floor, and kissed her throat, growling softly. Kagome moaned and kissed him on the mouth. She giggled as his hands sought out her hips, and she kissed him again. Just then, Miroku came out, and they immediately got up, moving apart. Miroku grinned lecherously.

"Oh no, don't let me inturrupt, just continue as if I wasn't even here." He said. InuYasha shook his head.

"Ah-no." He said. Kagome, really looking forward to it, sighed and placed her head on InuYasha's shoulder. He put his arm around her, and pulled her close to him. InuYasha started whispering in her ear, and Kagome nodded. They got up, and Kagome took his hand, walking out the door. Miroku knew where they were going. There was a hot spring not too far away, and they were probably headed there. A few minutes later, Sango came out, and sat down, staring at the tiny controlled fire that burned in the middle of the floor of the hut. Sango could feel Miroku watching her, and she knew that something was really different with him. She got up, and grabbed her katana, walking out the door, saying that she was going to take a bath. Miroku nodded, then remembered that Kagome and InuYasha had taken off. He didn't know for sure that that's where they were going, but he figured that he had better warn Sango anyway. He got up, and ran out the door, glancing around. Sango was nowhere to be found, and he sighed.

"Whatever..." He said, walking back inside. At least Sango would get to see some action, he thought wryly.

InuYasha led Kagome into the water, and kissed her deeply. They were both naked, and in the middle of the hot spring. InuYasha dived under the water, and opened his eyes. He kissed Kagome on the stomach, making her giggle. He grabbed her ankles, and pulled her underwater, kissing her. They stayed underneath for about twenty seconds, before they came up for breath. Kagome put her arms around her dog demon, and kissed him again, slowly this time, feeling his tongue slide past hers and into her mouth. She moaned, and ran her fingers through InuYasha's wet hair, feeling his hands slide down her back. She felt him grab her ass, and pull her into him. She could feel his erection against her thigh, and she blushed deeply as InuYasha leaned down to lick and suck on her breasts.

Sango walked through the forest, her mind on Miroku. She was starting to figure it out, without Kagome's help. She had a deep feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach. She was starting to think that Miroku had been asking her out, not just asking her if she wanted him to stop screwing around and groping every girl he saw. She had a feeling that she had just turned down the one boy that she had wanted to ask her out. She groaned, and stepped over a bush, coming into a clearing. She paused as she saw two figures in the middle of the hot spring, and she gasped when she saw that it was InuYasha and Kagome. She hurriedly dived behind a tree, and hit the ground, crawling toward the edge. She knew that she shouldn't be spying, that she was as bad as Miroku, but she couldn't help it. He face rapidly went red as she spotted a few things she shouldn't.

"Oh my," She said. "He is big!"

A few moans reached her ears, and she could feel her arousal increasing.

"I wonder what that feels like..."

She continued to watch the pair, Kagome's pants and little screams clearly audible. A few minutes later, Sango's eyes widened.

"I didn't know you could do it like that!!"

She watched, face bright red, as she learned stuff that she didn't know about before. She watched until they orgasmed, then, as they started kissing and cuddling, she forgot her bath, and decided to head back. She crept away, heading back to the village, her mind filled with what she had just saw. Once she got back, she sat down in a corner, unable to forget what she had just winessed. She shook her head, wishing that she had someone to love her like that. She blushed again as her eyes landed on MIroku, who was leaning against the opposite wall, head bowed in thought. Sango finally shook her head clean of the dirty thoughts and things she had seen, making a mental note to ask Kagome about it later. Her arousal had faded, but it wasn't easy. Every time she thought about InuYasha and Kagome, her arousal returned, and her body craved to be touched like Kagome was by InuYasha. She was totally jealous of Kagome right now, but she wasn't the kind to ruin a friendship over something like jealousy. Kagome was still her friend, even though she had a cute, affectionate lover, and she didn't.

A half hour later, InuYasha and Kagome were back, and they both looked happy, tired, and satisfied. Sango wanted to get Kagome by herself and ask her some questions, but Kagome was nestled deeply in InuYasha's arms. Soon they were both asleep, and Sango sighed. Tomorrow then, she would get some answers to her questions about Miroku, and about Kagome's relationship with InuYasha. She looked at InuYasha, sleeping peacefully, and the memory of what he was doing to Kagome back at the hot spring flashed through her mind, making her blush deeply. Then she groaned. Was she going to do this every time she looked at InuYasha?

She laid down, and tried to sleep. Tomorrow she would have some answers.

The next day...

"Kagome!" Sango said, waving at her friend as she stepped out of the hut. Kagome turned, and InuYasha stopped, waiting for her. Sango hesitated, then walked up to Kagome.

"Can I talk you for a minute?" She asked. Kagome nodded. "Sure." She said. She told InuYasha that she would be right back, and left him sitting on the path, as she walked off with Sango. They walked down over to the hut, and sat on the steps, InuYasha about forty feet away.

"Umm, I've...sorta got a problem..." Sango said, looking down at her feet. Kagome sat a bit closer to the demon slayer. "What is it?" She asked gently. Sango looked off into the distance, trying to put her thoughts into words.

"Umm, I think that Miroku might have asked me out, and I think I might have said no." She said. Kagome was confused. "You think??" She asked. "What did he say, then what did you say?"

Sango told her.

Kagome shook her head. "Yeah, that sounds about right, damn." She said. She looked at Sango. "That's why Miroku was acting weird the last little while." She said. She put her hand on Sango's shoulder. "You gotta go apologize to him, Sango." She said.

Sango looked at her.

"Okay, I'll try to find a way to approach the subject." She said.

Kagome shook her head. "No, not try. You will." She said.

Sango nodded, wanting her to forget about it. Then she remembered her other question.

"Umm, I have one other question." She said softly. Kagome wondered what it could be this time. "Yeah?" She asked, afraid to hear the question.

Sango looked around, then raised her head to see InuYasha laying on his back, staring up at the sky. Sango got up, and pulled Kagome away, even further.

She stopped behind another house, out of the range of InuYasha's hearing and sight. Sango could feel her face heating up as she prepared to ask her question.

"Uh, what kind of relationship do you have with InuYasha?" She blurted out, before she could chicken out. Not expecting that kind of question, Kagome was caught off guard.

"InuYasha? Oh, well, I like him and all..." She said. Sango grinned despite herself. "What you two were doing at that hot spring tells me that you are a bit beyond the word 'like'." She said. Kagome froze.

"Uh, you seen that, huh?" She said, her face heating up. No longer able to look her friend in the eye, she looked at the ground. "What were you doing, spying on us?" She asked defensively, trying to change the subject. Sango shook her head.

"Nope, I was going to take a bath, but then I found you two having a bit of fun." She said. Kagome groaned. "Oh God, wait until I tell InuYasha what you were doing." Kagome said, grinning evilly. "He will go crazy on you. Besides," She said. "It was a hell of a lot more than 'a bit of fun'." She said. "It was a whole lotta fun."

Sango, not hearing her friends last sentance, started to go pale.

"NO, you can't tell him, I can barely look at him as it is without thinking of that, imagine if he knew, everything would be awkward!" She said. Kagome grinned.

"Alright, I won't tell him, don't worry about it." She said.

A few seconds passed between them in silence.

"He's nice, eh?" Kagome asked. Sango nodded.

"Oh yeah..." She said, deep in thought. Her head came up, and her face flushed as she realized what she said. "I mean! Damn! Sorry!" She said. Kagome laughed.

"Ha! You were checking him out the whole time you were watching!" Kagome said. "Wait till I tell him that!"

Sango clutched her friends arm. "NO! Don't! Please!" She said. "I swear, I wasn't!" Kagome nodded.

"Mhmm, I believe you." She said, sarcastically. She watched Sango sweat for a few minutes, before putting her arm around her.

"Don't worry about it, Sango, I won't tell him, nothing will happen, It's all good." She said.

"Tell me what?" A voice asked. They looked up, in the direction of the voice, and saw InuYasha sitting on top of the roof. Sango yelped and hid behind Kagome, who shrugged.

"Sango was watching us make out." She said. Sango gasped, and started pounding on Kagome's back.

"You liar, you said you wouldn't tell him!!"

Kagome looked over her shoulder at her. "Yeah, but that's before he heard us." She said. "And if I didn't tell him, he would hound us day and night until we told him." She said. Sango didn't take her eyes off her feet. She knew that InuYasha was probably really pissed off right now. A few minutes of silence passed. She was still crouched behind Kagome, and she could feel InuYasha's eyes upon her.

Finally, InuYasha started laughing. Surprised, Sango looked up at him. InuYasha shook his head.

"So? Who cares? What a big, dangerous secret!" He said. "If that's how she gets off, then who gives a damn?" He said. "Come on, stop screwing around, we gotta get to the next village before sunset tonight." He said. "It's already almost noon."

InuYasha jumped off the roof, probably to go find Miroku. Sango felt the strength dissappear from her legs, and she fell down onto her bum. She didn't bother getting up. She felt horrible. First, she turned down Miroku, then she accidentally saw InuYasha and Kagome, then she tries to get some advice, then InuYasha finds out, and instead of being mad, he dismisses it. She felt the tears running down her cheeks. She knew what would probably happen next.

InuYasha would probably stop talking to her, and their relationship was getting along just fine. He would probably think she was just a pervert who got her kicks watching people make out. Then he would go and tell Miroku, and she would have no hope of getting him.

Kagome helped her friend up. Sango let herself be helped up, feeling like telling Kagome off. But she knew the she didn't need to lose a good friend on top of everything else.

"Sango, I know what you're thinking, and it won't happen." She said. "InuYasha isn't like that, he won't tell Miroku, InuYasha knows that it was probably just an accident, and besides, that's private information, he respects your privacy enough to not tell eveyone he sees." She said. "He's changed a lot from the moody dog demon he once was, and even back then, he would know better." Kagome said. Sango knew this was all true, and knew that she shouldn't have doubted InuYasha. She figured that she could go find him, and talk to him.

She walked back to the groups hut, and went inside, waiting for InuYasha to return. She didn't have to wait long.

InuYasha jumped through the trees, thinking that Kagome had consoled Sango by now. He grinned as he thought of Kagome saying that Sango had saw them make out. He didn't care. He had spoken the truth. If she wanted to, she could watch all she wanted, it didn't affect him. But he knew deep down what had gone on. He wasn't so out of it that his sharp ears couldn't hear her stumble over the branches and then hit the ground after she had seen them. His nose wasn't so weak that he couldn't smell her unique scent as soon as she walked into the forest clearing, or when her scent had changed due to her arousal. They oughta give him more credit, he thought. He did have some advantages to being half-demon. He smiled again, heading toward the village.

It was still fun to tease Sango, she was like the little sister he never had. He would always take care of her, and the rest of his group, for sure, but Sango had managed to worn her way deeper into his heart than any of his companions. Except Kagome, his lover. But Sango, he could talk to about anything, she had been through it all.

He could talk weapons and tactics all day to her, and she would understand, and enjoy the conversation. He could talk to her about various demons, and their weak points, and have her respond intelligently. And for the very rare days his defense was down, he could talk to her about his mother, and have her respond about her brother, and what it was like to live as a family, before Naraku got to them. Kohaku was still missing, two years after Naraku's defeat. He obviously wasn't under Naraku's spell anymore, so he must have just started travelling, doing his own thing. InuYasha felt for her. After hunting down Naraku for so long, she was deprived of the revenge she had seeked, instead running as InuYasha headed for the battlefield alone. She had quickly forgiven him, just glad that Naraku was dead. Then, after that, another two years went by, and not a sign of Kohaku.

But Sango was strong, and wouldn't take no pity. So instead of pitying her, he admired her. And he became her best male friend. Or so she said. He still remembered the night Sango had almost given up. It was a year and a half ago, six or seven months after the killing of Naraku. Sango had been searching desperately for Kohaku, day after day, eating little, worried sick. InuYasha would often hear her wake up in the middle of the night, crying and calling his name. InuYasha, out of respect, pretended to be asleep. After she got under contol, she would go out, probably to look for him, and wouldn't return till dawn. She kept doing this, for a month, before she finally collapsed.

Kagome was in her time, and Miroku was out hunting for some women, and Sango just passed out. InuYasha found out later that she hadn't slept in three and a half days, and hadn't eaten much at all. InuYasha remembered catching her as her body gave out. So he stayed with her. Miroku had gotten lucky, and hadn't come home that night. So when InuYasha got tired, he laid down beside her, not even thinking anything about it, and it had started his whole friendship. Sango had awoken during the night, and InuYasha, sleeping light, had woken up too. He remembered throwing wood on the dwindling fire, and asking if she was alright. She had said yes, and thanked him for taking care of her. He was still stupid back then, and had gotten embarrassed. He told her that he wouldn't have had to take care of her if she wasn't so stupid, and starving herself. She had said nothing, and had gotten up. Still dizzy, she started to fall, and InuYasha leapt up, scared that she would hit her head and pass out again. He caught her, and called her an idiot.

He had taken her over to the wall, and had leaned against it, pulling her into his lap. He told her that no matter how much she struggled, he wasn't going to let go until she got some food into her, and a bit of water. Sango, not feeling hungry and still worried over Kohaku, had refused to eat. She had taken little sips from a water bottle she had gotten from Kagome, but that was it. True to his word, InuYasha had put his arms around her waist, and hadn't let go. Sango had struggled a bit at the start, but her strength was quickly gone. She had stopped a few minutes later, and just laid on InuYasha's chest. After a while, she started talking, not even knowing if InuYasha was listening. She couldn't see his face, so she didn't even know if he was awake. She continued talking, about Kohaku, how she had been looking for him all those nights she had left, about how she felt, and what it was like when they were all a family. When she had finished, she had sat in his lap for a few minutes, thinking that he was probably asleep. She was surprised when he said, 'Is that all?' in that ironic, sarcastic tone of his. He had actually cared, and stayed up to listen to her. She realized that she had been talking for almost four hours, and it was starting to get light out. With everything off her chest, she turned as much as she could in InuYasha's arms, and smiled at him.

"I think I'm ready to eat something now, InuYasha." She said, and InuYasha had let her go. They had made some breakfast, and ate it together, side by side. After breakfast, Sango was tired from being up half the night, talking. She had given InuYasha an awkward hug, whispered her thanks in his ear, and had crawled under the blankets to sleep for another six hours.

InuYasha burst out of the forest, and headed for the hut, intent on talking to Sango. He opened the door, and she looked up at him, from where she was sitting against the wall. InuYasha walked over, and sat beside her, a foot away. Sango opened her mouth to apologize, and InuYasha shook his head.

"Don't wanna hear any 'sorry's or 'I didn't mean it'." He said. Sango closed her mouth, and smiled. However soft he had gotten with Kagome, he was still rough around the edges with her. And that was okay. She started to speak again.

"You probably already know what happened, so I'm not even going to try." She said. "But, can you tell me something?"

InuYasha nodded. "What?"

"Do you think I have a chance with Miroku?" She asked. InuYasha laughed harshly. At first, Sango was insulted, until she heard his next words.

"Have a chance with him? More like, does Miroku have a chance with you?" He asked. "He better start hoping hard that you like him, or he will never get you. You could have him if you wanted Sango, just go for it." He said. He wasn't the touchy-feely type, so he put an edge of annoyance into his voice.

"Just go ask him, or he'll be taken by some random whore off the streets." He said, dismissing the issue. Sango smiled at him.

"You've grown a lot, InuYasha, this arrogant, annoyed response is way better than what I would have got two years ago." She said. InuYasha looked away.

"Yeah, just don't go making this feelings stuff a habit to talk about." He said.

Sango nodded. "Alright." She said. A few seconds of silence passed between them. "So..."

InuYasha looked at her. "What?"

"Your absolutely sure that you understand that I wasn't peeking on you on purpose, right?"

InuYasha groaned. "Yes, I don't care, I know it was an accident, can we drop it?" He asked. Sango nodded, happy with the answer she got.

"Yeah, it's dropped." She said.

InuYasha nodded. "Thank you." He said. Another spell of silence, then InuYasha spoke up.

"So...how much did you see, exactly?"

Sango grinned. "Oh, who wanted to drop it?" She asked. Then she turned serious, and felt the blush heating up her cheeks and the back of her neck.

"Enough." She said. "I saw enough." InuYasha blushed, and looked away. "Oh."

"Yeah."

More silence.

"Anyway, let's go, we absolutely have to make it to the next village on time, before dark." He said, standing up. Sango, confused for a minute, thought about what was in the next village, then realised it.

"Okay." She said. "Let's find Kagome and Miroku, and get to the next village double time." She said.

Kagome sat down beside Miroku, and sighed, dipping her feet in the cool water of the stream that ran by. They were in the forest and Kagome figured that she had better find out what was wrong with Miroku, and quick, because they had to leave soon. She looked sideways at Miroku, and saw him playing with the beads on his wrist, that concealed his Wind Tunnel.

"Hey, what's been wrong with you lately?" Kagome asked. "You been feeling sick, or something?"

Miroku sighed. "No, not sick." He said, and would not give up any more information than that.

Kagome groaned and figured that she would have to bring it up.

"Is it that thing with Sango?" She asked, boldly. Miroku's eyes widened, and he looked at her.

"What would make you say something like that?" He asked. Then he caught himself. "What thing are you referring to, Lady Kagome?"

Kagome shrugged, dipping her fingers into the cool water.

"Oh, nothing, just a little thing where you asked her if she wanted you to stay devoted, and she gave you a less than satisfactory answer." She said. "That thing."

Miroku, at a loss for words, merely shrugged in response.

Kagome looked at him. "You know she didn't mean it the way it sounded." She said. "Right now, she's talking to InuYasha, trying to find a way to repair what she's done." She said. "Help her out, say you understand, then ask her again, in clearer tones. No more joking, 'I'll be all yours for you to do with me as you will' and stuff. Just come out and say it, I want to be yours, and she'll fold like a deck of cards." Kagome said. She checked her watch, then stood up. She shook her feet, letting the warm summer air dry them a bit, and then slipped into her socks. She slapped Miroku on the shoulder as she walked away.

"Think about it!" She called, over her shoulder. "It'll make her the happiest girl in the world."

InuYasha helped Sango up, and let go off her hand. He looked out the door, and saw Kagome walking toward them. He silently hoped that she was successful in rousing Miroku. She smiled at him, and hugged him. InuYasha asked her how it was, and Kagome looked at Sango.

"Mmm, touchy." She said. "Chance he might not." She looked at InuYasha, refusing to say anymore in front of Sango. InuYasha nodded, understanding her.

"Okay, let's get the hell outta here!" He said, seeing Miroku heading toward them from the forest where Kagome had appeared moments ago. Sango, having no clue as to what they were talking about, shrugged, glancing at the monk. She was too slow, and didn't look away fast enough as he looked toward her. Their eyes met, and Sango was about to look away, when Miroku smiled at her. She blinked, and looked at him again, wondering if she had imagined it. He had already turned away though, and she sighed.

They made good time, and walked into the village just a few minutes before the sun was due to set. The said sun cast golden rays out over the group as they walked down the middle of the village, their shadows stretching out far behind them. InuYasha was relieved that they had made the deadline, and he became more relaxed as they wandered through the village, checking weapons stores and getting food. The warriors of the village walked about, swords ready, and InuYasha decided that this would be a good place to spend the night as a human. At least his friends would be protected. They eventually found a place to stay, and they lugged all the stuff they had bought into the well built house. The sliding rice-paper doors could be slid back into the walls, allowing for the whole house to be one big room, or slid across, to divide the house into into four rooms.

InuYasha and Kagome agreed that they would share one, and Sango and Miroku weren't on the best of terms, so they would have separate rooms. Not that she would share with him anyway, Sango thought, making up her bed. She had bought a few more tiny silver razor sharp blades, loving them as a last defense. They had saved her more than once, and if the enemy wasn't close, then they could be thrown. They flew very well, and were perfectly balanced, double cutting edged knives. The biggest one she had bought was about six inches long, and the smallest was about an inch and a half. She sat down on her makeshift bed of blankets and cloth, and started making a holster for all the new blades. It had to work with her slayer uniform, so she was designing a series of simple knife holders. She would have four of the smallest blades in a holder around her left ankle, flush against the skin, and the 3 medium sized blades would go on the right side thigh, the holster holding the blades just under the tiny hilt. The large six inch blade would slide into a combat knife holder that Kagome had given her. It would be positioned around her waist, with the knife horizontal across her back. She had quick access to all the blades, and was very skilled in using them.

Miroku wondered how he could get to Sango and ask her out again. She was staying silent and locked up in her room, the screen drawn tightly across the dividing line. Miroku sighed, and continued cleaning his staff. It was full of fingerprints, dried blood, dirt, and it had lost it's shine. He wiped it off with a damp rag, and inspected it for cracks. Finding none, he took an oiled cloth, and started rubbing the handle, over and over again until it shone brightly. He then moved up, and concentrated on the rings and head of the staff, making sure to get every part. After that was done, he set it against a wall to dry, so the oil would soak into the staff, and not stay on the surface, making it slip out of his hands whenever he tried to attack.

InuYasha and Kagome were waiting. Outside, the sun was just dissappearing over the tops of the mountains, and darkness was beginning to fall, covering everything in it's enveloping mist. A few minutes later, the sun was gone, and streaks of black appeared at the roots of InuYasha's hair, racing downward toward the tips. His puppy ears shrunk back into his head, and human ears formed, just below where the puppy ears were. His fangs shrunk, and his eyes changed from gold to violet. His nails shrunk, and Kagome stared at him, facinated by the changes that seemed to flow smoothly from one object to another, or some things appearing out of nothing, like his human ears. Kagome sat by his side, and asked him if he was going to stay up all night. InuYasha clutched his useless rusty old Tetsusuigua, and nodded.

"The only thing for me to do is wait, until morning comes again, and I get my strength back." He said. Kagome put her hand on his chest.

"Power isn't everything, InuYasha." She said. InuYasha looked at her, then looked around.

"Wanna know the real reason I can't wait until I turn back?" He asked, in a whisper. Kagome nodded. "Why?"

InuYasha grinned. "Because I can use my nose to tell me when you're aroused, then I can POUNCE!" He yelled, jumping on her and pinning her down. Kagome blushed and giggled.

"Well," She said slyly. "You don't need your nose tonight. Just ask real nice, and maybe I'll give up some information." She said, staring up at her temporarily black-haired, puppy dog earless, fangless lover.

InuYasha leaned down, and kissed her on the mouth.

"Hmm, I see." He said, stroking her stomach. He kissed her throat, and licked her ear.

"Aroused yet?" He asked, his hands traversing over her body. She actually was, but she tried not to show it.

"Mmm, not really." She said. "Your kinda boring me." She said. InuYasha tried to growl, purely on reflex, but it came out as a deep rumbling sound in his throat, making Kagome giggle.

"Maybe if you went a bit lower with those hands of yours..." She hinted, sliding her hands around his neck and kissing him.

InuYasha complied, and earned a loud moan. After she moaned, she covered her mouth, and looked around, hoping that Miroku and Sango didn't hear it. InuYasha gently pried her hand away, and kissed her.

"Who cares how much noise you make?" He asked. "The louder you scream, the better I'm doing." He said. Kagome laughed.

"Oh really?" She said. "Well, then, make me scream, InuYasha." She said, kissing him again.

End of Chapter 1.