His bare feet padded noisily against the grass as he lugged a cumbersome barrel over his shoulder.
The insides were filled to the brim with water, and as it sloshed back and forth, Inuyasha could feel the weight shifting from left to right.
His ears twitched as a familiar voice beckoned him.
"Inuyasha!"
He glanced back and silently regarded his companion by inclining his head.
"Do you have a moment?"
"What is it, Sango?" came his inquiry.
She shrugged, before sitting down and patting the patch of grass beside her.
"Nothing in particular. Come sit with me. The sun's very pleasant today."
Inuyasha quirked a brow, before setting his hoard down and acquiescing to Sango's request.
A comfortable silence reigned for several moments, before Sango lightly broke it.
"Where's Kagome today?"
"She's out helping the crone gather herbs."
"And Shippo's with her?"
"Keh. Got that right. The whelp hasn't been able to leave her alone since she finally came back," he snorted.
Smiling, Sango prodded him.
"That makes two of you, then."
A slight blush found its way onto Inuyasha's scowl.
"Well, so what? It's not a bad thing, right? Ain't I giving her some space right now?"
Sango blinked, before patting his back and gazing at him with something akin to awe.
"You've come a long way, Inuyasha."
"An' what's that supposed to mean?"
She laughed.
"I'm just agreeing with you that it isn't a bad thing. We've all-" she sucked in a deep breath. "We've all come a long way, haven't we?"
"Keh."
"To get to this point, to have settled in this village so serenely...we've all had our own share of troubles."
Sango was suddenly startled out of her reverie by Inuyasha's glare.
"Inuyasha?"
"Y'make it sound like we went through things separately."
"Um, I'm not sure what you're-"
"I'm sayin', Sango, the troubles you're talkin' about, they were mine too. And I'm sure it was true the other way around, and with Kagome and Miroku and the runt and everyone with each other."
He began mumbling, his face once again taking on a red hue.
"The pain an' the happiness...we shared them all. Kikyo finally put to rest, Miroku's wind tunnel, Kagome havin' to give up her other home, you an' Kohaku...we're all bound by somethin' deeper than anyone else is used to, so my troubles and your troubles and everything we've ever had, and whenever it really mattered, we've shared it. We're..."
Inuyasha turned away from Sango, his face a deeper crimson than his fire-rat robe.
"We're family."
Feeling a tug on his sleeve, Inuyasha turned back to witness Sango's smiling face.
He was, however, startled by the tears gathering in the corners of her eyes.
"S-Sango! Why are you- Er, I didn't mean t' upset you-"
He was caught off-guard when Sango wrapped her arms around him in a fierce hug.
"You're right," she whispered, tightening her hold on him. "No one can ask for a better friend than you, Inuyasha, but you're more than that. To Miroku, to Shippo, to me, you're so much more than that. You're...you're my brother. And nothing in the universe, much less our blood, can change that. Nothing can change what we went through together."
Inuyasha clumsily returned the embrace for all of a couple seconds, before it became too much for him and he gently pried her off.
"...Kagome's my entire life," he began gruffly. "I can say that now, even though it ain't becomin' a habit or anything, because we've all come so far. It's not the same thing, and you're sure as hell NOT gonna catch me sayin' this to Miroku, but I love you too. Though," he scratched his head. "I've never had a sister before, so I'm not sure what to make of it."
Eyes still watering, Sango chuckled.
"I love you as well, Inuyasha. Now come on," she said, stretching her legs as she stood. "The twins want to play with you again."
She couldn't help but snicker at his horrified expression.
"Wait, Sango, I, uh, forgot that Kagome actually asked me to-"
"Too late!" she hummed merrily, dragging him by his arm. "The twins are your family, too."
"Wait, I gotta pick up the barrel-!"
As Inuyasha's face soured, Sango contemplated their makeshift band of friends.
They've all lost their real families. Every single one of them. But the bond they've created has lasted because it was forged from fire and brimstone, and from the depths of strife and the brinks and thresholds between life and death, something intangible and enduring emerged.
Before she could even realize it, she'd lost and regained a family in one large fell swoop. As for what she had now...
She glanced back at the grumbling half-demon and thought of her husband, her children, her dearest friends who have sacrificed so much and never relented an inch along the way, stalwart at her side.
She would not give up what she had for the world.
Author's Note:
There are too few fics out there which depict the friendship between Inuyasha and Sango. They make for such badass comrades, and it's just nothing but pleasant, the way the two regard each other, in my opinion. That said, I feel like they're horrendously out of character here, especially Inuyasha, and I apologize if that seems to be the case. I haven't really got much of a knack writing him, I'm afraid. Also, I dunno, I just feel like this whole fic was just sorta rushed and churned out in clumsy fashion. Nonetheless, I wanted to get it out there. Hope it was at least an enjoyable read. Let me know your thoughts!
Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi owns Inuyasha, and I am but a humble lesser being who siphons her genius for my own devilish purposes.