Disclaimer: I do hereby disclaim all rights and responsibilities for the characters in this bit of mischief... especially for the one who couldn't resist. A nod of recognition is bent towards Rumiko Takahashi for her creative prowess.

This drabble was originally posted to Live Journal on August 3, 2010.

Bait

Miroku smiled to himself. Kagome was gently trawling for some of Inuyasha's attention, but the hanyou was missing all her cues. It was all very sweet... and incredibly frustrating to watch. That's probably why he couldn't resist stepping in.

"L-lovely?" Kagome stammered, color rising in her cheeks.

"Undoubtedly," he assured. "Has no one ever told you?"

She stole a glance in Inuyasha's direction. "Hardly."

Miroku was a gifted angler—catching the eye, teasing the imagination, luring the unwary. He loved nothing better than hooking the interested, stringing along the eager, and reeling in the ready. True, his quarry sometimes slipped away, but he let them go with a wink and a smile. There were always more fish in the sea. "Then let me be your first!"

An unusually receptive Kagome peeped at him through long lashes. "Thanks!"

"The pleasure will be mine!" he boldly confided. She favored him with a shy smile, and Miroku couldn't believe his good fortune. Somehow, he'd gone straight from tease to hook, and she'd blitzed past stringing to ready. He was about to start reeling when a throat cleared.

"Oi, houshi."

"Hmm?" Miroku responded innocently.

"Get your own," Inuyasha growled.

"Ah." The monk watched in disappointment as the hanyou escorted Kagome away. So close. Then, she turned with a wink and a smile, and Miroku belatedly realized that in all the excitement, he'd lost sight of who was the fisher... and who was the fish. He chuckled and waved. Clever girl. I was just the bait!

End Note: This drabble was written for the Live Journal community iyfic(underscore)contest and their prompt for Week #220—Fishing. 250 words.