. X .

"I feel quite fearless protecting the people I love."

~Paloma Faith

Sango sat up quickly, already preparing herself for her third round of defending the houshi. But she wasn't in a forest this time, she realized, studying the beautiful lake. It shone calm and clear under a brightly shining sun. A village was busily at work not too far away, and Sango squinted when she recognized a pair of figures on the sandy shores of the lake. Slowly, she climbed to her feet, brushing herself off. Then, she nearly cried in relief. Her Hiraikotsu was still there.

And this time, beneath her travel clothes, was the armor of the taijiya. Grinning to herself, Sango proudly ran her fingers through her brown bangs and began the long trek down to the lake. She'd pass the pair on the beach, perhaps ask where she was and if they'd heard of either Munshin or Miroku, then go hunt either of them down so that she could find the other. Because that's precisely what she wanted to hurry and do. The sooner she did it, the sooner she could protect the houshi.

As she slowly made her way towards the lake, Sango became aware of an ache in her body. She was tired, she realized with a slight nervous twinge. She had to stay awake; she couldn't sleep and let her body rest. No, she had to stay awake or she'd fail her mission.

She was mere feet away from the couple when she recognized one of them. Naturally this is how she'd find the bastard.

He was about a year or so older than Kohaku was...or had been before things had gone wrong for the taijiya. Maybe two. But he was smiling innocently at a girl of around the same age and dressed in a simple yukata of the color black. And it was for that very reason that Sango had no issue with butting in between them, sending the young girl that glared at her a look that just screamed "scram". She smirked. She'd learned that look from Kagome and Inuyasha.

Miroku scowled up at her. "Hey! Who do you think you are? You can't just butt in, and-"

Sango smiled sweetly. "Oh, I think I can, little guy. I'm a taijiya, and I was sent here to slay a demon. Would you mind telling me if you've heard of it or even seen it?"

His eyebrow rose. "You're a taijiya? There are no women taijiya, I'm not stupid."

Irritated, Sango planted her hands on her hips after waving at the weapon she'd strapped to her back. "Well, now there are and you're looking at her, kid." Oh, he was so getting yelled at for this when she saw him properly again... "Demon? Sightings?"

He scoffed. "There's more than one." He smirked, patting his hand. "I came to get rid of 'em though, so you're not needed, taijiya. You can leave."

"Okay," Sango gritted out. She stared the boy straight in the eye, feeling confident after dealing with the younger versions of him. "Listen here, M- kid." She switched titles hastily. He didn't know she knew his name. "You're going to die pretty quickly if you use that Kazanna you have. So why don't you leave the slaying of youkai to me and you can go play with your little girlfriend?"

"...you almost said my name," he accused, suspicious. His hand went to the beads wrapped around his wrist and Sango wanted to smack herself for her stupidity. "How do you know my name?"

"I heard the little girl say it," Sango said quickly, coming up with a lie on the spot.

Much to her surprise, he believed it. "Huh. How do you know I have a Kazanna, taijiya?"

"Sango, my name's Sango," Sango told him, then replied, "because my friend has a Kazanna like yours and he was sucked into it not too long ago." Not quite the truth but close enough. Grief struck her and she cursed herself. No, she hadn't lost him yet. He was still alive, just paused in time.

Miroku went still. "You...you knew someone with a Kazanna, too?"

Sango smiled softly. "Yes. And I know just how to keep what happened to him from happening to you, Miroku-kun. Listen, do you have an adult here with you?"

Miroku shook his head. "Munshin finally let me out by myself." He rolled his eyes. "About time. I thought he'd make me stay and hang out with him all the time. He always talks about how pretty the girls are out in the real world and then won't let me go see for myself."

Why did his words not surprise her?

Amused, Sango waved towards the village. "Well, why don't you help me find this youkai and accompany me around until it's good and dead, and then you and I can go our separate ways, Miroku-kun? But whatever you do, don't use your Kazanna? You don't want to end up like my friend, do you?"

He shook his head hurriedly. "No," he said firmly. "And I don't want to end up like Oto-san."

"You won't end up like your father," Sango reassured, shuddering as she thought back to that day. That day hadn't ended well at all for the poor child. Adjusting the strap that Hiraikotsu hung from, she started the walk to the village with Miroku sticking close to her. Thanking whatever kami was out there that this brat wasn't nearly as rude as the previous Miroku's she'd helped, she found herself willing to share a story when Miroku asked, "Sango-san? What kind of person was your friend?"

Sango's eyes softened. "He's a good man, my friend. We were actually going to marry after the defeat of our worst enemy, but he didn't make it." She hated using the past tense in this situation. There was still a chance that he would live. There was no way he was dead. Yet she had to use it to get the child to listen to her... "We were close, too. He and our other friends were so close to defeating that bastard..."

"What about your other friends?" Miroku said curiously.

Sango threw her head back and gave a small laugh. "My other friends? You're going to love this. The first one of them is a nekomata youkai that I've known my entire life. She goes by the name of Kirara, and she helps me on my of my jobs. Then there's Shippo-kun, who's a young orphaned kitsune kit. He's a bit of a nuisance, but we love him anyway. Inuyasha's an inu hanyou," she paused, laughing a bit at the disgusted look on Miroku's face. "He's a jerk, but he's a good man. He won't admit it, and neither will she, but he's in love with my other friend, Kagome. Kagome-chan's a miko, and a really powerful one at that."

"You have odd friends, Sango-san," Miroku commented, making a face at the thought of the inu hanyou again. "Why do you stay with them?"

"Because they're loyal and helped me out when nobody else would," Sango said softly, then smiled broadly. "My brother Kohaku recently joined us, too. It's fun. Or it was, until..." She shook her head, biting back a lump that was forming in her throat. She needed to focus on the youkai! "Oh, look," she said, cutting off another question. "The village."

Indeed, the odd pair had reached the village, and it didn't take long for the occupants to take notice of her boomerang. Within moments of entering, the headman was rushing over, a hopeful look on his face. "You are a taijiya? I mean, we didn't send for one, we have not the money to afford one..."

"Yes," Sango told him. "I'm a taijiya, and that's quite alright. I'll do it free of charge. Just tell me when and where the youkai will be and it'll be taken care of." She spoke with serious brown eyes, confident now. This was the youkai that was putting Miroku's life further at risk.

"It's a rather nasty inoshishi youkai," the headman told her. Sango grimaced. She hated the disgustingly large boar youkai that reeked of the dead and rot. "It comes in as the sun sets and destroys at least one of our homes at a time..."

"Come sunset, it will be taken care of," Sango swore, then waved at Miroku. "In the meantime, would you be willing to feed us? We're kind of hungry."

"Of course!" the headman gasped, ushering them towards the largest hut in the village in an instant. Miroku's eyes had gone round and Sango chuckled at him. He wouldn't have to eat wasted food this night. Content to wait for sunset, Sango fell into step beside him, humming a lullaby under her breath as she did so.

"How are you going to kill the youkai?" Miroku questioned as they were served food, his eyes still round with surprise.

Picking up a pair of chopsticks, Sango set to work on devouring her meal. Traveling as strangely as she did left her with quite a large hunger, she thought with amusement. "With my Hiraikotsu," Sango told him, nodding towards the large weapon. "You, little one, are going to stay back. Is that clear?"

"I'm not little," Miroku argued irritably, "I'm thirteen years old, thank you very much. And I want to help."

"How do you plan on helping without using your Kazanna? No, stay here. I'll be fine," Sango retorted. Miroku scowled at her, and she rolled her eyes. "Trust me, kid. You don't want to be covered from head to toe with the blood of a inoshishi youkai. It's not fun."

"Then why are you doing it?" he challenged, violet eyes flashing with annoyance.

"Because it's my job," Sango told him. Or it had been her job, up until she'd joined her friends on their journey and her main priority had become to slay Naraku, avenge her and Kohaku's people, and then finally settle down with the man she'd grown to love.

Miroku stuffed another bite of food in his mouth. "Huh!"

Sango smiled slightly at the attitude the boy now gave, reminding her more of Inuyasha than anyone else at the moment. It was the hanyou that gave such reactions when Kagome told him to set back and let the humans take care of the youkai that was causing problems.

Sango patted Hiraikotsu affectionately as she finally finished her meal. She pushed what remained away, then patted herself down, searching for the cloth she used to clean and polish the weapon to perfection along with the tools for sharpening the edges. She beamed when she found them, returned alongside her armor. Miroku watched with curiosity as she began to rub the massive boomerang down with a cloth, scrubbing dried blood and dust away. So old blood comes with me then...do injuries? I'll need to be careful...

They remained this way for quite some time before screams suddenly filled the air. Sango's head ripped up and she shot to her feet, Miroku scrambling to his feet beside her. "Stay here," she ordered harshly, removing her travel clothes, relieved that her armor had appeared underneath them. Miroku looked stunned, his eyes widening incredibly wide when he realized what she was wearing.

She wanted to cry. He was such a hentai, even at such a young age. Munshin had definitely put perverseness into the child's heart.

She gave him a look. "Miroku," she said sharply, waiting until he met her gaze. "You stay in here. Do you hear me? Unless the place is on fire and you're at risk of dying, you stay in here. Make sure you don't have to use that Kazanna, or you'll end up like my friend, got it?"

"Yes, Sango-san," Miroku said nervously. "You'll come back, right?"

"Of course," Sango replied confidently, smirking as she carefully pulled her hair up. With a final smile, she scooped up Hiraikotsu and started for the door. With a final glance to make sure Miroku wasn't going anywhere, she gave him a look and then stepped outside. Even without Inuyasha's sense of smell, she could smell blood. She wrinkled her nose in disgust, longing for the company of her companions as she slowly began to walk towards the shadow of the inoshishi youkai.

Sango took a moment to wash any thoughts and grief out of her mind, letting her face settle into a stony look, then smirked and hoisted up her boomerang. With the strength only a taijiya could have, she reeled back, then threw it, watching as it slammed into the leg of the beast with a sharp crack. While it didn't manage to slice through as she'd hoped, the boar went down with an agonized scream. Its leg had shattered.

"Okay," Sango murmured aloud. So the youkai would be a bit more difficult to slay than she'd originally believed. She caught her weapon, reaching for the katana that had materialized at her hip. Hope surged through her. With each battle, it appeared, and perhaps each memory she surpassed, she was regaining most of her belongings. If she could regain her poisons, there would be so much more she could do in saving Miroku!

She unsheathed the katana, as she leaped forward, thrownig Hiraikotsu again as the youkai screamed and attempted to get up. "Don't think so," she muttered, darting forward and lashing out with the katana. The blade caught the inoshishi across the throat and the boar screamed as it went down. Sango grimaced when she was doused in a splash of blood.

"There," she said smugly, proudly pulling back and pushing some damp and sticky hair out of her face. She'd once again won, defended Miroku-

Another scream filled her ears and Sango whipped around with wide eyes. Another inoshishi youkai stood over a pair of children, baring sharp tusks at them, and she lunged forward, already swinging both of her weapons. Not too far away, there was yet another, tearing into a house with fervor. "A herd," Sango whispered as she used her Hiraikotsu to block a tusk, "Someone pissed off a herd of them. Just what I needed. How lovely."

"Sango-san!"

"Miroku-kun," Sango said sharply, furious as the small boy came running into view, soot dusting his face. His violet eyes were serious for one at his age, his cursed hand clenching and unclenching with every second. "I thought I told you to stay inside!"

"That was before the hut went up in flames," Miroku retorted with a huff. His eyes widened when he saw the other inoshishi youkai. "There's more?"

"Sadly," she muttered, then pushed the children she'd saved towards the boy. "Miroku-kun, get these two to safety and protect them." She closed her eyes, hating herself for what she was about to say. "E-even if you must use your Kazanna, okay? Just only use it if you're about to be killed and I can't get there in time. Understood?"

He nodded, his eyes serious. "I won't use it unless I have to, Sango-san." He turned to the two young and fearful children. "Come on, you two, let's get you out of here."

Sango's lips twitched into a smile. Even at this age he was protecting those who couldn't protect themselves. Feeling proud, Sango darted away to fight off a boar that had suddenly turned and charged her. She threw Hiraikotsu and hopped up, landing lightly on the youkai's tusk. It snarled, and she hurried to jump up again when it shifted swiftly, swinging her bloody katana at its eye. She nailed the creature there, and ripped her short sword free as the inoshishi went down with a grunt. She held her hand up, waiting until she caught the Hiraikotsu before whirling around. "One more," she whispered under her breath, "Just one more-"

She couldn't find it, and her blood ran cold when a child's scream filled the air. She knew exactly where it had gone. It had followed Miroku and the other two children. Of course it had! Terrified, Sango scrambled to follow them, her brown eyes filled with concern.

Even as she ran, she knew she couldn't save him from this time completely. Her blood ran cold. She had failed him. He would die because she hadn't been paying attention like she should have.

But as she ran, a vision flashed through her mind. A vision of the boy she'd sent off with the children running this way and that, carelessly opening his Kazanna as he rid the village of each and every inoshishi youkai, and Sango realized. She was saving him. Just not as thoroughly as she wanted to. He would still have to suck in a few, but she could kill the majority of them.

There was a sudden roar and Sango's face went white at the familiar sound, then even more so when she found her feet lifted off the ground. Mere yards in front of her, Miroku had opened the Kazanna, swallowing the inoshishi with a fierce look in his eyes. But she was being sucked towards it, too, she thought fearfully, a scream bubbling up in her throat. No! Not again!

But the danger vanished when Miroku rushed to wrap the beads around his wrist, clumsier than she was used to, but closed it nonetheless. She dropped to the ground again, and she stumbled for a few moments before picking back up into a jog, hurrying over. Miroku looked up at her with tears shining in his eyes. "Sorry, Sango-san," he said softly, "I had to, like you said!"

"It's alright," she soothed, smiling gently as she tussled his hair. "I wouldn't have gotten here in time. One time won't kill you." No, the first time would have. She remembered the dozens of youkai he'd sucked in and shuddered. Turning away, she said, glancing back towards the village and searching firmly for the white spotted backs of the youkai, "It looks like we got them all, Miroku-kun. Why don't we head back?" She offered her hand to one of the children, but they recoiled, looking terrified of her.

Oh, that's right. She was covered from head to toe in inoshishi blood. Grimacing at her appearance, she nodded at Miroku. "Why don't you bring those two with you, hm? I need to speak with the headman. I'm going to have him give you anything he wants to hand over as payment." She knew people. They would scramble for as many things as they could to gift her.

Miroku's violet eyes widened as he grabbed the children's hands. "Really?" he breathed. "You'll give it all to me?" His voice trembled as he spoke and she laughed softly in amusement as she gave a nod. "Thank you, Sango-san." The sassy boy from earlier was gone, replaced by a gentle and polite one that was more similar to the man Sango knew.

Humming quietly, Sango turned and led the three children that followed back towards the village, her eyes narrowed with thought. After she spoke with the headman, she knew, she would be shoved out of this time and into a new one.

How frustrating this never ending...game was.

"Thank you," the headman said for the umpteenth time after Sango came out of the hut, clean compared to how she'd been mere minutes before. His eyes glistened with unshed tears. "Thank you so very much, ma'am. Please, let us repay you."

Sango hid a smile. There was the payment she knew would be coming. A horse was led over, tied to a cart full to the brim of no doubt the finest the village could offer. Miroku, who had darted over to stand beside her, grinned as she told the headman, "Thank you, but I have no need for it. If you want, however, you can gift it all to this little guy." She tussled Miroku's hair despite his huff of protest. "He did just as much as I did; he saved the lives of two of the children here."

The headman gave Miroku an easy grin. "Of course," he said, waving for the man who led the horse to bring the spoils closer. Miroku eagerly took the reins of the nickering beast with a bright smile and a quiet thank you to the headman.

"Let us feast on the flesh of the monsters that fought to destroy us!" the headman said a moment later, throwing his head back and giving a joyous laugh at the look of astonishment on Miroku's face. "Have no fears, little one, the flesh of an inoshishi youkai is edible. I swear it."

When Miroku turned to Sango for confirmation, the taijiya gave him a comforting smile, her gaze saddening, much to his confusion. Her time with this version of Miroku was ending and she had to admit: though she loved her Miroku, the Miroku she intended to save, she'd grown quite fond of this one as well. But there would be a time, she realized. A time when she would have her own version of this child running around her, but with her features in perfect combination with his. Smiling to herself, her sadness vanished. "I apologize," she told the headman softly, "I can't stay. I must leave now and return to the village of the taijiya."

Miroku frowned. "But Sango-san-"

Sango waved his words off, gently ruffling his hair with a smile. "Don't worry, Miroku-kun. You'll see me again soon, I promise. Why don't you stay and eat with the headman before going back to Munshin, hm? I bet that old man will love everything you're bringing back."

Miroku paused to thoughtfully rub the horse's muzzle, and it whickered. "Maybe he'll let me have my father's staff," he said with an eagerness that made the taijiya chuckle.

"Maybe," she agreed. She gave the boy a final affectionate pat to the cheek, then stopped to smile at the headman.

The headman bowed his head with a look of utter gratitude. "Thank you, taijiya. Relay my gratefulness to the others of your village, please, you have no idea what this means to me, my family, and the others that live here."

"Nonsense," she retorted, "I'm just glad I could help." That said, Sango gave a small laugh, turning and walking away.

As she did so, she let her eyes close, her eyelashes fluttering shut as she exited the village. A loneliness swept through her again. Why was it always here walking away from him? Always, she was turning away, making the difficult decision to not tell the boy a single thing of what was to come. Silently, she questioned whether or not she was doing what she needed to do to get back to her friends.

Even as she thought this, memories of sitting beside many fires at night filled her. When Inuyasha would be pouting up in a tree, his eyes full of irritated annoyance over the fact that his wench was ignoring him in favor of teaching Shippo some new game or bribing the kitsune kit into silence. Then there was Kirara, curled up in a purring ball beside the taijiya as she stroked her furry head, giving Miroku a dirty look as the houshi rubbed his red cheek, a pout on his face.

Sango smiled. She was just one step closer, she told herself, hardening her determination. And this time, she stepped into the changing of memories with the ease of water gliding downstream, her eyes fluttering shut as she vanished into nothing.

A/N

And here's your next chapter. As promised, quite a bit longer than the previous chapter. |D And on request of a reviewer, here is a glossary for all unfamiliar terms that may have shown up or I believe I have used (and really haven't |D).

Glossary

-kitsune: a fox demon, what Shippo is

-nekomata: a twintailed cat demon , what Kirara is

-kusarigama: a chainscythe like the one Kohaku uses, Kohaku's weapon

-hanyou: a half-demon , what Inuyasha is

-miko: a woman with powerful spiritual abilities, what Kagome is

-houshi: a monk, what Miroku is

-shakujo staff: the type of staff that Miroku uses

-taijiya: demon slayer, what Sango and Miroku are

-Kazanna: Miroku's Wind Tunnel/Vortex, the curse cast upon his hand by Naraku

-kanzashi: a hair pin used by women

-kimono: a type of Japanese clothing, what many of the characters in Inuyasha wear

-youkai: a demon, such as Sesshomaru

-inu: dog

-inoshishi: boar

-katana: a short sword, the sword Sango uses and what Tetsusaiga's "bad" look is