"And now, for my next act, it's time to play find the real Shippo!" Shippo blurted out. With a wave of his hand, the entire room was filled with identical copies of himself. Almost immediately, the children were scrambling around the room after them. Each time they caught one, the copy would vanish in a puff of smoke, a process of elimination that eventually would lead them to the real one.

Sango smiled as she watched her children scramble around after the copies, while silently praying they would avoid knocking over any furniture. Despite the hazards, Shippo's visit had turned into a godsend. Without him, keeping her children occupied on long nights such as this one, nights where they simply could not get to sleep before their father returned home, would have been a most difficult task. Of course there was something in it for Shippo as well, as he found a wonderful audience to test his fox magic on. There was no question his training at the fox demon academy had considerably improved his skill. Each time he returned, it seemed his illusions and transformations were more intricate and elaborate, now lasting a seemingly limitless duration.

The game was brought to a sudden halt as the twins found the real Shippo, pouncing on him while yelling triumphant victory cries even before all the copies had been dispersed. Sango beamed with pride at their sharp perception. "It won't be much longer now. Just a few more years." Only a few more years until they were ready to begin their training. Even with so much time still ahead, Sango still found herself constantly thinking of those days. The time when she could pass on her skills to the next generation and ensure the ways of her people would not vanish from the earth when she did.

Sighing heavily, Sango got up from her seat to put another log on the fire. Even watching the joyful sight of her children playing, she still found it hard to avoiding thinking of darker things, most notably the harsh winter facing the village. It had been yet another freezing winter day and even above all sounds of the house, she swore she could still hear the wind howling outside, like a constant threat itching to get in.

"It wasn't supposed to be like this", Sango thought to herself. All her life, her enemies had been obvious and tangible. Something that could be seen with the eyes engaged with a weapon. Now she faced a threat her experience and training had never prepared her for: A poor harvest, a crippling shortage of essential supplies, and a nation depleted by constant warfare among rival clans. With the looming threat of the coldest winter Sango had ever experienced in her lifetime, these conditions had all combined into a daily routine that wracked her with doubt about her uncertain future. A future where destitution and starvation was a serious possibility.

Yet even among all this there was a certain degree of irony. One could argue she and her companions were part of the problem. They had proven to be so effective at their jobs and they had effectively eliminated nearly all hostile demon activity in the local area, forcing them to travel far and wide in search of demon-slaying and exorism work. Now with the oncoming harsh winter and constantly clashing human armies, it was getting increasingly harder to find. Sango bitterly recalled her exchange with Miroku after his last trip.


"So how did your trip go?" Sango asked as soon as she released Miroku from her welcoming embrace. Even as she asked, she already feared the worst, seeing as he had not return with any apparent possessions.

"Not well, I'm afraid," Miroku replied. "Unfortunately the town decided they were not interested in my services."

"But why? You said they had been plagued by a demon spirit haunting on their fields. Why wouldn't they want you to help them get rid of it?"

Miroku seemed to tense up as he provided an explanation. "Yes that was indeed the case. Unfortunately, I had forgotten that in my youth, I had some prior transactions with that particular town. Transactions that it turns out they were unsatisfied with."

Sango's face quickly turned scarlet as she put together what this meant. "So in other words, you forgot about some con job you pulled off there many years ago that swindled them out of a small fortune. And when you returned now, they recognized you and chased you away with torches and pitch forks!"

"Well that's what it might seem like to someone who wasn't there. But I can assure you, my dear Sango, the truth is far more complex." said Miroku calmly.

"Really, how so?"

"I arrived during the day, so they didn't have torches. Also, not all of them had pitchforks. I think a few of them had spears..."


Needless to say that day had not been a particularly happy homecoming, though she couldn't help but laugh a bit at his attempts to defuse the situation. But that was weeks ago, and with the cold winter getting constantly worse since then, there was little to laugh about now. Miroku's current endeavor had taken him even farther away from home, and without Inuyasha to support him, as he had set out just days before the night of the new moon, which happened to be this very night. Once again fate seemed to be playing them a cruel hand, as all conditions of the outside world seemed to be conspiring against her and her budding family.

Still she had to cling to hope, hope that Miroku had found the work he was seeking. That he had found something, anything that would help them get by. To get through this horrible winter that had practically become an enemy in its own right. Having to explain to her twins and her son why they were cutting back on their meals was a prospect that had seemed unthinkable in the past, but now it truly was unknown what the future held. Sango and Miroku had even talked openly about the possibility of leaving the village in search of more prosperous places, though at this point the thought of giving up the village behind was simply out of the question. They simply couldn't bear the thought of leaving their old companions. The people who had become a second extended family to replace the ones they had lost.

Suddenly her thoughts were interrupted as she saw her front door slide open. And there, standing between her and the darkness outside, stood Miroku. He was blanketed in snow, a testament to the snowfall that had recently started falling outside, and he was still shivering slightly despite his best attempts to appear perfectly composed. But it did not matter. Suddenly nothing mattered at this moment. Only that Miroku was here. Within seconds of his arrival, before he could even utter a single word, Miroku found himself covered in his wife's embrace, and soon joined in by three smaller pairs of arms as well as his children also rushed in to greet him.

As he embraced his loving family, Miroku suddenly leaned down to whisper something in her ear. This was hardly a new phenomenon. The first thing out of the monk's mouth after returning from a mission would often be something lecherous, something he at least had the good sense to realize were not appropriate for his kids to hear. But this time was different. This time his words were far more simple..and dire:

"Time to arm up, Sango. We're heading out. Now."

Sango stumbled backwards a few steps and stared blankly at her husband, trying to take in what he said, and possibly receive further instructions, only to see Miroku turn his attention to his children as if nothing had happened. With a quick motion, he picked up the twins playfully and spun them around in the air, while their younger brother tugged at his legs and waited for his turn.

For a moment, Sango wondered if she hand't actually heard him say anything. That it was something she had simply dreamed up. But she soon came to her senses. No, it was real alright. Miroku simply wasn't going to make a scene in front of their kids, not even in the most dire of circumstances. Quickly Sango turned away and headed to a backroom to gear up, smiling as she did so. "Miroku's acts may be questionable at times, but his dedication to his family is beyond reproach."

Upon reaching the room, Sango pulled her Hiraikotsu off the wall mounts, grabbed her Wakizashi from a hidden cabinet, and immediately began donning her slayer outfit, all the while her mind racing about what she was preparing for. Had Miroku actually hit the big score? Had he found an assignment so profitable and urgent it required the two of them to dash out into the snow storm in the middle of the night? Or was it more dire? An incoming demon raid? Whatever force that would involve would have to be formidable indeed to be coming here in this whether.

"Formidable and ignorant." Sango bitterly thought to herself. "Any force powerful enough to brave this storm would be most disappointed in the meager spoils they would find here."

Putting her thoughts aside, Sango tried to focus on the task at hand. This was just going to be another mission. She had done plenty of these since her "return to duty" following her previous childbirth. No reason to get overly anxious because this was the first one that would involve a romp through the snow. Sango had just finished putting on her winter wear over her uniform and strapping on her Wakizashi when she heard Miroku enter behind her. "Trust me Sango," he stated calmly, "we should take more then that."

Without missing a beat, Sango turned to face her husband. "How much more?"

"Everything."

With that, Miroku removed a key from his robe and unlocked a storage cabinet that held Sango's poison vials and his most prized recent possessions: A set of European snaphance firearms. A reward from a Portuguese trader for clearing out a demon infestation from his merchant vessel, they were so valuable and irreplaceable that Miroku almost never took them out on missions except when they appeared to exceptionally challenging. If Miroku was going to bring them along this time, the threat they were facing might be quite formidable indeed.

"Alright Miroku, are you going to tell me what's going on? Where on earth are we going, and who is going to take care of the kids?"

"I was able to talk Shippo into it," Miroku replied as he strapped on a brace of pistols and covered them up with his robe. "I had to promise I would take him on our next demon hunt in return, but it doesn't matter, we've got the utmost important task at hand."

"So what of it? Did you get us a job with that's highly time-sensitive? Or are we fighting off some invading force?"

"Neither, I'm afraid," explained Miroku. "The trip was a dead-end. I couldn't find work anywhere. The only important thing was what I found on the way home. I saw fire in the distance as I was coming into town, and even from far away I could still hear the sounds of battle. Something's out there, Sango. Something with a very strong demonic aura. Whatever is going on out there, it's too close for us to ignore. I'm not waiting till it shows up on our doorstep."

Sango was totally bewildered at this. "You mean we're charging out into a dark snowstorm just for a scouting mission?"

"I know, it's not ideal," Miroku acknowledged. "But we can't just let this be. It's too close to our home and too big a risk to be ignored. I've already told Inuyasha and Kagome. They'll be up all night as well, guarding the village."

"Well it's a damn shame this had to happen on the night of the new moon," Sango pointed out. "Sounds like we could use Inuyasha in his prime at the moment. Are you sure we shouldn't bring them along? Kagome is still as sharp as ever and even as a human, Inuyasha's still a better warrior then just about anyone you'd find in the village."

"That's why they're staying here. I'm not depriving our home of its best defenses while we're away." With that, Miroku pulled from the cabinet a bit of extra shot and powder, as well as his ultimate prize, the snaphance long arm. His ultimate solution for the loss of his wind tunnel. Using his sutras to enhance the bullets had enabled him to make it particularly devastating weapon against demons at long range, as now he could propel them well beyond their previous short throwing distance.

"Okay I understand," Sango replied, now resigned to her fate as she and Miroku finished collecting their equipment. "It's just that this wasn't was I had planned for your homecoming."

"Need I remind you that I just came back from out there?" Miroku pointed out, while also brushing off a bit of snow that had stuck to his robe. "I was kind of hoping for a little time by the fire myself. But think of it this way, you have been saying we never have the time to do anything together these days," Miroku pointed out. "Well now here's our chance. And all it's going to cost us is a little hypothermia."

"Oh you make it sound so wonderful," Sango jokingly replied. "Well I suppose if I have to freeze to death, there is no one I'd rather do it with then you."

"Now that's the spirit," said Miroku as he slid open the rear door of the house to the outside. "Now come my fair lady, our steed awaits."

"Of course". Sango thought to herself. Miroku had take a horse from the town stables. While it certainly made sense under the circumstances, it only made their current excursion even more miserable. Ever since she had allowed Kohaku to take Kirara with him on his personal journey, Sango had longed for ability to travel with her old companion. She had made a few feeble attempts at learning how to ride a horse, but all of them had ended horribly, usually with severe pain just a few steps short of broken bones. Apparently non-reasoning animals simply were not fit for her. Fortunately Miroku had never had any such troubles.

However, it didn't take long upon walking outside to see the necessity for more expedient transportation. Snow was swirling around and a dizzying pace, and while it had only started recently, it was already up to her ankles in some places. Trudging through this on foot was totally out of the question. Of course, the bitter cold wasn't making anything easier. It was so severe it felt as if the whether itself was assaulting her. Whatever this trip involved, one thing was for sure, it would have to be done fast.

As they both tramped out through the snow to the nearby horse, Miroku pointed off into the distance, and a quick glance in the direction he was pointed showed their destination: Sango could indeed see fire burning in the distance. And this was no mere camp fire from lost travelers. This was an intense blaze, as one would have to be in order to keep burning in freezing temperatures. She couldn't hear any sounds of battle as Miroku had, but with the swirling winds picking up intensity, it was hard to hear her own voice. Miroku was right. Whatever was out there had to be investigated...investigated and possibly dealt with.

Soon the reached the horse and Miroku climbed on first, extending his hand for her to join him. "That's it Sango, that's where were's going", he said as he saw her staring at the fire in the distance. "Want to take any guesses as to what it might be?"

"Well maybe we'll get lucky this time," Sango replied. "Maybe it's some rich merchant under attack, and he'll grant us a big reward for coming to his aid." With that, she took his hand and climbed onboard behind him."

"Sango? Now that doesn't sound like you. I thought I was supposed to be the greedy one."

"Well having three children to take care of can have that effect on you. Now come on, let's get going, this damn beast is making me uncomfortable already." Indeed, the horse was already bucking a bit, as if Sango's mere presence on its back was an unnatural act that needed to be corrected. In response, Sango quickly wrapped her arms around Miroku and pressed herself against him for extra support and warmth.

"Well I can't imagine what you mean, Sango," said Miroku as he felt his wife's body pressing tighter against him. "This is most relaxing, I must say. In fact, just a bit more and perhaps I won't be feeling the cold at-"

"Miroku!"

"Oh...yes. Fire, distance, threat to the village. Don't worry Sango, I'm ready for the task at hand."

"Good, because if I have to spend any more time on this blasted beast then I have to, I'm going to be the biggest threat you'll be facing today!"

Miroku needed no further encouragement. He immediately put his horse into a gallop, charging through the swirling winds and heavy snow. "Rest assured Sango, I'm just as eager to put an end to this little adventure as you are. I feel like I've already been through enough of this frozen misery to last a lifetime."

"I can certainly share your sentiment," replied Sango, who was already wondering how Miroku could stand being outside in this whether for so long. "But let's be realistic, when have things ever gone that smoothly for us?"

"A fair point, Miroku admitted. "But it doesn't matter. No matter what happens, no matter what's waiting for us out there, I promise I'll do whatever it takes to get us through this. If whatever is out there turns out to be hostile, we're going to make them regret ever coming so close to our home."