Chapter 6

Waking the next morning, I sat up and winced as I saw the witch lying next to me. I pulled on my robes, which had previously been discarded, and picked up my staff. I considered going to one of the near-by hot springs to bathe, but decided against it. The witch might wake up and take my absence as an opportunity to leave. I would not allow that. Sitting in front of the cave where Sango's clay body was lying, I turned so that I faced the tent where the witch was sleeping and waited. I let my mind wander a bit and I thought of everything. I thought about Inuyasha and Kagome, Shippo and Kaede. I wondered what Sango's first words would be and if she would be any different. I even thought about what I would tell Sango if she wondered what had happened. I didn't know how much Sango had been conscious enough to understand and I wasn't sure that the spell would leave Sango's memory intact.

Jumping slightly, I quietly watched the witch come out of her tent holding a large gray blanket and a blue necklace.

"Good morning, houshi." She smiled.

"Good morning."

"Still want to resurrect your girl?" The witch asked but I didn't answer. I simply raised an eyebrow. "Well, I always ask just to be sure. Very well. I'll finish my part of the bargain."

"Thank you." I smiled, getting to my feet.

"But before I begin the spell, you should know a few things. First of all, the spell isn't going to bring back her clothes, so I hope she's got a spare kimono to replace the one we burned. Until then, here's a blanket to cover her with." The witch shrugged, tossing the blanket at me. "And the other thing is that she's dead. So her soul has no reason to stay in her new body."

"Are you saying you can't do it?" I screamed, panic seizing me.

"No. I'm getting to my point! The point is that her soul will have to be tied to her new body with a spell necklace. Here." The witch said, tossing the necklace at me. "Make sure she wears it all the time. If it comes off for even a second, her soul will escape and all you'll have is a clay doll."

I nodded to show I understood and walked over to the cave. I entered and place the necklace around Sango's neck.

"All right." The witch sigh as she began to mumble a spell. Clutching the blanket I was still holding to my chest, I watched as Sango's clay replica began to glow. Taking out the pot of ashes, the witch sprinkled them over Sango's body and finished the spell.

When my eyes had recovered from the bright flash of light, I looked around and saw that the necromancer had all ready left. But Sango was lying where the clay doll had once been. Crawling over to her, I smiled. Sango looked just as she always had...... except that she was naked.

"Sango?" I whispered, shaking Sango's shoulder. I knelt next to her and place one hand on either side of Sango's head. "Sango, wake up."

"Uh......" Sango groaned, opening her eyes to look at me. "Houshi-sama?"

"I'm glad you're all right." I smiled. Sango moved to sit up and I backed away to allow her some space. That was when she noticed she wasn't wearing anything.

"HENTAI!" Sango screamed, slapping my across the face. Without turning my head from the direction she had slapped it, I held out the blanket and I heard Sango tie it around her shoulders in a makeshift robe. I heard her stand up and I finally moved my head to observe her departure. "Humph. I suppose somethings never change."

I watched her exit the cave and walk towards the village, muttering something along the lines of just-because-I-was-slightly-injured-by-a-youkai-didn't-mean- perverts-had-a-right-to-undress-me'. I smiled because she was right. Somethings would never change.

I had come to realize that, no matter what, I would always be Miroku, houshi-sama, pervert, comrade, secret lover and coward.