A.N. The manga is called Provence by Nicky Lee and the illustrations are so gorgeous it will floor you. And I did no justice to the plot line. The scenes definitely were owned by Nicky Lee. I recommend you buy this Korean Manga. It's a two part story about love between four people and their connection to this French shop. It's great.
Summary: And they met at small café called Provence. It was where she fell in love… under the soft magic of French jazz and the influence of lavender tea.
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. Neither do I own Nicky Lee's Provence.
Genre: Humor, Romance
Pairing: Mirouku & Sango
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Precious Moments:
(Tsuki)
Provence
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There was something entrancing about the small store on the corner of the quiet street. Provence. Named after a French city… No doubt it was the owners' place of birth.
A brunette stared at the café from her position on the street, disparagingly.
If only she had not been so reckless…
She needed Provence. She needed its quaint outdoor seating and seduction.
Its romance….
There was nothing that was not romantic about it. Before she could even open the door to the store, the atmosphere was swirling with the intoxicating allure of tea and a small hint of jazz whispered seductively to the surrounding area. Sweet orange and wild flowers scents made a person feel as if all their troubles had gotten lost along the way into a French slice of its countryside taste.
Imported plants and some Japanese flora framed the shop beautifully, further adding sensuous appeal.
It was a complete accident that Sango Tarijya found the café. She had been trying to find some source of inspiration…
And happened onto the street where Provence was located.
She had found refuge from insomnia and an unrequited love.
And yet….
That was all gone to her now.
And all that was there was the bittersweet after taste.
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(Tsuki)
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Sango was an artist.
One could hardly tell by her appearance, though. She was athletic in structure, noticeably in shape with long lengthy deep brown hair that she always kept in a high ponytail, usually thrown up in a rush, or left it down. She did not really project her artistic ability.
And although mediocre in her own opinion, her talents had landed her a job in illustrating and writing children's books. It was rare for a high school student to hold a job, especially one with so much responsibility. However, it was how she paid for her own books for school and her apartment rent. She lived by herself since her father and brother were in another district in Japan. The three had faced the dilemma of her father having to transfer towns for a promotion the year before and it had ended with her unable to leave with them since not only her high school was there, but her college of choice.
As the seventeen year old chocolate haired girl pushed her lengthy locks out of her pale face, she realized she was hungry. Her eyes were usually lively despite the fact that she had dark rings under her eyes, but after such a long day of school after she had pulled an all-nighter, she was exhausted.
And besides that she had walked past her street.
….About five blocks ago.
"Hunger and exhaustion—the perfect combination." Sango lips pursed as looked around. She groaned. "Where in the world am I?"
Her brow suddenly lifted as she saw the shop.
The name triggered something.
Her insomnia suffering mind vaguely remembered her female classmates mentioning it once or a good dozen times.
The outdoor foliage seemed to lure her inside as she opened the door and seated herself next to an open window. The sound of French jazz hit her full blast but soothing effect. The round table spoke its European background with its ornate cloths with flower embroidery.
And then he appeared.
Raven locks, which contrasted smoothly with his knitted white turtleneck, were unruly and tied back into a low ponytail at the nape of his neck, accompanied a smile that could quicken your heartbeat in an instant. She was immediately drawn to his eyes, though. His midnight blue eyes were sharply unlike the warmth the smile gave…
They were cool and guarded and yet entrancing all the same.
The violet and blue swirled orbs gave an un-interpretable warning.
And it distanced her a little.
"Would you care for a cup of chamomile-lavender tea? It should help with your lack of sleep." He held up an intricately thrown ceramic tea pot, glazed with various blues and reds over a white base.
Sango looked surprised, "How did you know?"
The man smiled and a bit and rubbed underneath his eyes, "Your eyes told me."
Sango's hand confusedly lifted to her eyes, until she realized what he meant. She blushed as he poured her a cup of tea and winked, "Consider this on me."
The brunette thanked him softly and as he walked away Sango groaned, "Is it really that noticeable?"
Sure she had lost weeks and weeks of sleep trying to meet deadlines, but she had drenched her eyes with a few globs of tonal foundation that morning since her friends were starting to worry.
With a sigh, she brought the cup to her lips, murmuring, "This smells great…" And it tasted better. It was a mix of lavender, chamomile, and honey with a nice touch of milk.
The vocalist singing on the current track had a cajoling voice that seemed to coax her to just give into the chamomile.
As she lost herself in the music, she drifted off to sleep.
"Sango?"
"…Sango?"
Sango felt someone lightly shake her. Her head slowly rose.
"Hmm?"
He gave her another of his warm smiles that seemed as if they were just for her as he remarked with amusement, "I'm guessing your insomnia is gone. We're closing."
"I-I fell asleep?"
He nodded and handed her the bag that she had brought with her. It was a simple black leather bag that she kept her illustrations and rough drafts in. "It's alright. It happens."
Sango took the bag with a thank you and cocked her head to the side, "How…How did you know my name?"
He pointed to the skirt of her uniform, "After you had fallen asleep, your school id fell out of your pocket. When I went to ask you for a refill, I found it. I placed it in your briefcase."
Sango smacked her forehead lightly, "God…thanks…" She looked a bit sheepish, "I must be being a huge pain today, but before I leave, I really must ask for one last favor."
His eyes looked bit more guarded but he grinned and said, "Shoot."
"Could I possibly purchase some of the tea I had? This is probably the longest I've slept in weeks." He led her to the counter, chuckling a bit, "Then I'd certainly be happy to oblige you."
She picked a bag of the herbal tea she had been drinking from a shelf of a myriad of them located at the front of the shop.
He paused before handing her the purchase, "Is it alright to head out so late? From your ID I gathered that you're still in high school."
Sango smiled and shrugged, "It's fine. I live by myself." She shifted uncomfortably and quickly changed the subject, "Erm… that CD you were playing? The artist was a French female singer—"
He looked under the counter and produced a CD jacket with a pretty woman on the cover, "You mean this? You like it?"
Sango nodded and he smiled, "You want it?"
She blushed a bit, "I couldn't possibly ask you—"
"Well, it was brought overseas. I don't think it can be bought here in Kyoto. However, if you really like it, then I'll ask my friend to order it for you, Sango. So how about it? It'd be no trouble at all."
Sango blinked and gushed, "R-really? Thank you!"
He smiled and abruptly called, "Abura! Time to see our customer out." As a slightly chubby dog pattered out, he rubbed his ears and lifted his paw "Say good bye."
The golden white dog let out a cheerful woof.
Sango giggled and waved.
As she left she had to wonder what his name was. He seemed so nice…so comforting…. And yet, there was also that air that was so painfully unapproachable.
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(Tsuki)
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Sango visited the shop again the next day.
She had gotten a great night of sleep and the rings underneath her eyes had diminished greatly. She usually stayed at school two hours later to finish her homework, so she could work on her ideas uninterrupted. Today, she finished an hour earlier.
She had expected to see the man from last night …
However, as she walked into Provence, through the double glass doors with the arched top, letting the sweet aroma of blending herbs and the soothing music waft over her, she was greeted by someone other than him.
It was a beautiful woman. Her raven hair was flowing down her back in straight locks and her eyes were a lively milk chocolate. Over her collared yellow button up shirt was a plain apron that even made Sango's bland and plaid green uniform pale in comparison.
She smiled, "Welcome!"
"Hi," Sango returned with a confused smile. "I don't mean to be rude, but isn't the owner of this shop a man?"
The woman smiled the same gentle smile the man from last night had, "Mirouku? He won't be here for awhile. I look after the shop during the day and he takes over around six."
His name was Mirouku?
Sango smiled a bit. It fit him…
There was a patter of footsteps at the door. Sango glanced up as there stood Mirouku with Abura barking up a giddy storm. "Hey, onee-chan."
Sango inwardly gaped. They were brother and sister. She could not help thinking, 'They must have gorgeous parents…Ridiculously gorgeous parents….'
However, she was relieved for reasons she could not quite understand. Sango rubbed her brows wearily and moved to glance at the bagged tea for sale. She brought money to buy another bag.
Kikyou raised a brow, "You're early today…What happened?"
Mirouku walked towards the back of the store but continued to converse with his sister, "I had no class in the afternoon, so I came here earlier. Thought I'd give you a break, Kikyou."
Kikyou began to take off her apron, "Then it's all yours. I'll go run some errands. Father said he was sending some new samples of tea so I have to pick that up as well." She smiled fondly at the thought.
As Mirouku set his backpack down and took off his coat he returned to the front with a wave, "See you later." Kikyou smiled and on her way out stopped by Sango, "Everything on the third row is hard not to fall in love with."
Sango let out a small laugh, "Thanks, I'll get something from there when I leave."
Kikyou waved good bye and left.
Sango ventured outside after making a mental note of what she would get, taking a two person table. Her company was her school bag.
The brunette ordered a pot of raspberry lavender tea when Mirouku came by and found herself watching him through the glass window wondering if he remembered her.
"I doubt it…"
'He sees so many people in a day, it's doubtful that I stood out.' She crinkled her nose. Currently the shop was filled with a dozen customers who had been there during Kikyou's shift.
And the customer flow did not seem to be stopping, Sango noted as a group of giggling girls from her high school walked up to the shop.
Sango sighed and sipped her tea, trying to clear her mind of anything that couldn't be a subject for her next deadline. She cocked her head to the side. A few feet away on the tiled walkway outside, stood two dogs.
She heard Mirouku call, "Abura, Eika and Ciel are here to see you!"
Abura scampered out onto the patio, and immediately went over to the smaller of the two dogs. The larger dog in response drew closer and looked more alert.
Sango giggled a bit. There seemed to be some sort of love triangle between the three. Eika was clearly the only female amongst both males. She was a slight white and black female with a curved lengthy tail. Ciel was a strong looking male Golden Retriever with golden brown fur.
Abura clearly disliked the other male.
Mirouku stepped out and leaned against the doorway.
Sango remarked more to herself than to anyone else, "Eika must be quite conflicted."
Mirouku grinned, "So you noticed?" He pointed to Eika, "She at one point only had eyes for Abura, but then Ciel appeared and has been showing him up. It doesn't help that Abura's a bit…" he paused before he whispered, "overweight."
Abura howled sadly and Sango leaned her head into her hands, "Poor guy."
Mirouku winked, "Come on, Abura, don't lose to Ciel!"
And suddenly, Sango found her inspiration.
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(Tsuki)
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As the sky darkened and the customers increased it became more noticeable that girls were the most frequent customers.
It wasn't too guess the reason why.
Sango was grateful she had chosen to sit outside. She hasn't noticed yesterday, but in the café, was a competition to vie for his attention and waltz into his favor.
A blonde suddenly waved him over, "Ah, Mirouku, I found that book you had said you wanted. My uncle owns a book store and he was able to get me the first edition."
He smiled as she handed the book over, "I'm surprised you remembered that I was looking for this! Thank you, though. It's great"
Flirtatiously, she continued in a purring tone, "I went through a lot of trouble to get it, so how will you repay me?"
Seemingly, not understanding what she really wanted, he offered, "I made some rose jam this afternoon. I'll wrap up a jar of it for you guys free of charge." He walked to the back of the store before anyone could comment.
In a delayed response the girl cried after him, "Mirouku-sempai!"
The blonde turned to her two friends, all three attending the same university as Mirouku, "How can anyone be that dense!"
An auburn headed woman sighed, "I'll try next time."
When Mirouku returned with the jam he moved to check up on a table occupied by the only couple in there not trying to get Mirouku's attention. They were a middle aged couple who were chatting, oblivious to the desperate attempts surrounding them.
"Mirouku-sempai! We heard you were amazing at math! Would you mind tutoring us? We're not that good at it." She sighed despite the fact that she was currently crumpling a folded test in her hands with a hundred percent written in bold atop the sheet.
The college women pursed their lips. "Damn those high school girls!"
Mirouku ran a hand through his hair, "That would be problematic. I have classes during the day and I have to run Provence until it closes."
A curly haired doe eyed girl looked crushed, "Well would it be fine if we ask you about assignments that trouble us?"
Sango abruptly noticed then that his smile was the same for everyone. It was a soft, assuring smile, but that was all. It held no promises, nothing special for any specific person. "I can try."
The girls at that table cheered and the women across from them scowled.
As he arranged flowers in a nearby vase, it made Sango wonder whether or not Mirouku knew how much popularity he held with the female population. How they fought over him jealously behind his back.
Was he really that oblivious?
He acted so warm…but he was always guarded. His smile could give a person all that they wanted to hear, but his eyes hinted that no one would ever get special treatment..
That's what was wrong with him.
To each girl he unknowingly promised what he would never deliver.
So lost in her thoughts, she did not notice when Ciel came bounded towards her. He leapt into her lap and the added weight caused her to teeter backwards.
Sango let out a sharp shriek as she fell, Ciel, wildly flailing for he apparently had not anticipated that much damage.
Her table jostled, and everything on it was strewn to the ground.
Mirouku rushed out at the sound of shattering of the ceramic cup, Sango's yells and Ciel's barking. "Ciel!" He hit the dog lightly in admonishment before helping Sango up, "Are you alright?"
Sango rubbed her shoulder, "I-I'm fine. I was just a b-bit surprised."
He helped her stand and sighed, "I forgot to warn you about Ciel. He's so energetic I never know what to do with him."
Sango laughed and joked, "I guess I know why hardly anyone ever sits outside."
Mirouku's eyes suddenly caught sight the many papers on the ground. He knelt to pick them up and Sango let out a small noise of surprise. "Oh!"
"Did you draw these?"
Sango nodded slightly embarrassed that he found them. Even though she had been observing Mirouku, she had been sketching rough drafts of her new storyline. "Yes…"
He raised a brow, "These are good! I've always been envious of people who can draw…" Mirouku added the last with a small chuckle.
Sango picked up the rest of what had flown from her sketchbook. ""
With a laugh he turned to Abura who seemed to be gloating over Ciel. "It seems you're the main character of this, Abura."
Despite the fact that he was completely sincere, his eyes were still so controlled. It made her wonder if ever showed any vibrant emotions.
Sango snapped back to attention when he sighed, "I'm sorry…All the tea spilled. Let me get you another pot."
He handed her a menu, and it clicked suddenly, why he was so popular.
People were attracted to his almost ersatz but gentle gaze. They wanted to break the barrier set up around him and get closer than anyone had ever gotten and be the first to catch a glimpse of genuine gentility and compassion from his eyes.
"Are you ready to order?"
He was an unknowing womanizer.
Without meaning to he could catch even the most unwilling woman.
'And I guess…I have fallen for his charms already.'
It was inevitable that she would.
"Yes…I would like a pot of …Casanova."
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(Tsuki)
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Throughout the following days, Sango came to the realization that she and Abura were a lot alike.
Both were in a one-sided love longing for someone who was uninterested.
Her illustration on Abura became more about herself than he.
And then sometimes she would think—Maybe she was becoming shallow. She knew nothing about the violet-eyed man. Had she been pulled in just by his haunting smile?
As Abura lay at her feet, she patted him on the head, "Am I shallow, Abura?"
The dog nuzzled her leg and shook his head, patting her foot with his paw, comfortingly.
"You think so?"
Abura's expression seemed to speak to her and with a small giggle, Sango drew the dog, feeling a lot better.
"'Feelings of unrequited love, can be both wonderful and bittersweet. The ability to feel love is the wonderful and the bittersweet is the fact that perhaps I will be forever alone in this feeling.'"
Sango jumped, a blush rising on her cheeks. "Hello!"
Mirouku looked at what she had done so far, "Is this how you feel, Abura?"
The dog wagged his tail rapidly.
One of the biggest pros to working on Abura as her subject was that when business was slow, Mirouku would find time to check her progress.
"It must take a particularly clever person to be able to draw. The skill must take keen observation…diligence…patience… and of course, one's imagination…It's really something."
He seated himself across from her and poured himself a cup of tea.
Sango blushed, "Not really… Or at least, that doesn't describe me at all." She laughed, "Honestly, at school I can barely manage my sciences let alone math. I'm a train wreck when it comes to anything but art or athletics. Besides when you say clever, don't you automatically think 'mathematician'?"
Mirouku snorted, "Are you talking about me?"
Sango stuck out her tongue playfully, "Don't get conceited, I was speaking in general terms, just as you were."
She continued with a shrug, "I've always envied anyone who could ace math."
Mirouku abruptly borrowed a sheet of paper and wrote down a lengthy mathematic problem that stretched across the wide sheet.
Sango cringed, "Oh…my…God." She put her hands over her head, "I think I had an aneurism just looking at that…"
Mirouku smirked, "That was just a homework problem." He leaned back a bit. "I guess God is fair after all."
He flipped over the sheet and quickly drew a picture. Sango looked at him questioningly.
"Abura? Come here!"
Abura padded over and he showed the dog Sango's art work. The dog yipped happily and pawed it gently, looking content.
Mirouku then showed him what he drew and Abura let out a howling wail before bolting away.
Mirouku crossed his arms and looked away. "Could it be considered sad that my art teacher did the exact same thing?"
Sango snorted out in laughter as she looked it over. "I'm sorry, I-I don't mean to l-laugh!" Mirouku pouted a bit as Sango felt her eyes tearing as she laughed heartily at the elementary school quality artwork, the lines awkward and disproportionate.
Mirouku scoffed, "Your sorry doesn't mean anything if you keep laugh!"
She was gracious for the first time in awhile that she could draw.
It gave her moments like these.
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(Tsuki)
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A week and a half later, Sango saw a new side of Mirouku.
A university woman, who Sango had seen around a few times before had suddenly proclaimed, "I want to know what it's like to kiss those lips of yours. How about it, Mirouku?"
Mirouku placed down her order with a smile, "I suppose you could try. But then perhaps you would also end up knowing a bit more. And you might just find that unfavorable…" With that, he walked away.
She was the same girl who had gotten Mirouku that book weeks before.
She looked flustered and muttered. "What type of response is that? I've don't think I've ever been rejected that coldly!"
Mirouku was now behind the counter, by the brewing machine. His back was turned to the shop.
Sango looked at him in shock that he said something like that.
And she had to wonder what he was thinking.
Mirouku currently looked appalled as he looked at an unmarked package. 'What the hell! Is this the tea father shipped? Even from here is smell so pungent! Kikyou did say we should try something new but I was thinking along the lines of custard. We wouldn't want to drive away customers…'
Suddenly, a silver haired man walked inside the shop, wearing a long sleeved black shirt with the sleeves rolled to his elbows and a pair of blue jeans. His coat was draped over his arm.
He was wearing a pair of deep purple tinted shades. "Oi! I'll have the blueberry pudding."
Mirouku merely smiled, "Alright, take a seat and I'll serve you in a moment."
The man rolled his eyes beneath his sunglasses, "Why so damn formal? You think you'd remember me."
Mirouku cocked his head to the side, "…Were you in here last weekend?"
The man looked frustrated and pointed to his hair, "God, Mirouku, how could you not remember this hair? How many people could pull this off?"
He cracked his knuckles as Mirouku continued to look at him blankly. "Fine…Then I'll make you remember!"
He grasped Mirouku's face and planted a kiss on the other man's lips. Countless amounts of tea spilled over as customers looked over in shock.
He smirked, "So?"
Mirouku looked him over with a frown, "Who exactly are you?"
The man sat down on the counter and with a dejected scowl. "Are you fucking kidding me? I haven't seen you in eight years and you haven't changed at all. Damn bloody annoying bastard. Don't you walk away from me!"
Mirouku rubbed his chin as he moved to get a towel for the spilled tea, "I don't recall having such vulgar friends like you…"
He paused. "Wait…"
And suddenly the strange man was able to break the barrier that seemingly around Mirouku.
"Inuyasha?"
Said person clasped his arms around Mirouku's neck, "Finally man! I mean I thought the kiss would do it, but… "
Mirouku muttered beneath his breath, "I don't see how, you idiot! Maybe if I were Kikyou…"
Inuyasha rolled his eyes and Mirouku continued, "Besides, I couldn't recognize your face with those idiotic sunglasses."
He took the sunglasses off of Inuyasha only to reveal a black eye. Inuyasha scowled, "I met Kikyou this morning. I swear…that sister of yours." His eyes lightened with a bit of affection despite his words.
As small strains of their conversation reached Sango in the corner of the cafe, she sighed. "I suppose this make sense then…. He's gay."
Mirouku's eyes…
The warmth in his smile paralleled the laughter in his eyes.
And she found herself envious as both laughed together.
Maybe they were just good friends, right?
Or maybe she was just a hopeless brunette pining over a truly unattainable man.
She scowled and sipped her tea.
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(Tsuki)
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Silver hair seemed to flare from the affects caused by whatever was written in the fan-mail he had received via email. "You have gotta be shitting me!" He grumbled, "I just got an email from a so-called fan who said they were "in love" with my antagonist! What a masochistic dumbass!"
Inuyasha became a very frequent visitor after the kissing incident.
More frequent than her perhaps.
Whenever she got there, he would be seated outdoors, with the appearance of someone who had been there a good hour. Ciel had been banned permanently from the patio apparently.
Mirouku hit him over the head with a tray, "That will be five dollars, Inuyasha."
Inuyasha winced and rubbed the spot, "Ow! I didn't even buy anything, yet genius."
Mirouku sat on the table, "I'm helping you get rid of that bad mouth of yours."
Inuyasha's eyes widened, "Why so fucking expensive? You damn thief!"
Sango laughed a bit as Mirouku gave him another hit over the head, while slipping his hand into a nearby bag and retrieving a few bills.
Walking away he pocketed them, "It's for your own good."
There were noticeably less girls in the shop. As outsiders who knew nothing of their actual relations…the misassumption that the two were gay was built.
Mirouku was so open with Inuyasha.
They teased each other….They argued….they laughed.
Sango banged her head against the table, 'And I feel like such an idiot, still coming here, even though he's noticeably taken.'
But she could not give up.
She wanted to find the key to unlocking his emotions as well. Seeing all of the different facets of him made her like him more.
"How's work?"
Sango jumped when she heard the object of distraction place his hand on her piles of sketches. She was seated outside as well. Having Abura pose for her.
"Are you almost done?" Sango tried to calm her heart and nodded a bit, "I'm on the last few scenes."
Inuyasha snuck up behind her and peeked a look at her work. He took hold her shoulders suddenly, "Draw for my novels! This is obviously a sign from God, that my erotica novels need pictures."
Mirouku rolled his eyes, "Go back to writing your smut, Inuyasha. Leave, my customers alone."
Inuyasha flipped him off and returned to his seat.
Sango looked uncertainly at Mirouku, "If he really needs help, I'm ahead of my deadlines…"
Mirouku ran a hand through his hair, "Forget he ever asked. You shouldn't be subjected to drawing what he writes. You should just stick to children's books."
Sango blinked, a little angry and hurt.
So she was not good enough to draw anything but that?
But before she knew it, he was sitting next to her, the CD he had promised her on their first meeting in his masculine hands.
He handed it to her with a smile, "This," he pointed to one of the tracks, "is a personal favorite."
And in that moment, he was so close that she could smell his cologne and feel the warmth of his body radiating off of him and his elegantly crafted lips called out to her.
Before she could stop herself she had grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer. And then their lips were touching. His lips felt warm and silken, yet touching them shocked her back to reality.
She jumped away and they stared at each other for a moment before he turned away. Sango felt tears come to her eyes as she sprinted out of the café and past Inuyasha, who was coming back from inside after helping himself to a refill of coffee.
"Did I miss something?"
Mirouku only stared in confusion at the silver haired man.
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(Tsuki)
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Her insomnia came back in full effect. She had made it a habit to purchase the tea from the shop after almost every visit so its scent filled the air. And now she had the same music…
And yet.
It wasn't the same.
There was no cool and yet warm smiled man…
It was no…
Provence.
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(Tsuki)
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She never realized how popular Provence was. Girls from her high school seemed very taken to speaking about it. So much to the point that she had to wonder how she hadn't noticed before.
That undoubtedly made everything worse though, because she couldn't go back there. He probably did not want to see her after what she did.
But she had to.
When she ran out, it had been sans not only her sketchbook, but her illustrations as well. So she had decided to suck it up, mustered all of her bravado… and sent her friends to collect her drawings.
And they came back empty handed.
According to them in his own words, Mirouku told them that she needed to get her things in person.
And so she found herself sitting a block away from Provence, in the middle of the street. Why the street, she was not sure. But she was mulling her loss, yearning for her Provence, talking about bittersweet after tastes…
Sango sighed, when suddenly she saw the familiar chubby form of Abura. He immediately padded over to her, before nuzzling her neck affectionately.
Sango hugged him, "What am I going to do, Abura? I can't see him again, but there's no way that I could recreate your story before my deadline. If I go in there I wouldn't even know say, though."
Abura nudged her with a whimper and Sango let out a huff of air, "That guy really knows how to toy with peoples feelings! Acting like some something out of a host club then turning out to be someone who could host Queer Eye? I mean I respect his …sexual preference, but really! People should come with clearer signs!"
Abura continued to nudge her. "I'm sure he hates me now. And Inuyasha will probably feel the same too—though I can't blame him! I made a huge mess out of everything!"
She was nudged one last time before she heard someone clear their throat.
Sango froze.
"You truly are one confusing girl, Sango."
Sango released Abura and shot up. "Mirouku?"
Hr rubbed the back of his head and opened his mouth to speak. However, Sango sprinted down the road before he could utter a syllable.
Mirouku groaned and told Abura to head back to the shop before chasing after Sango.
Sango did not know where she was running to, however she knew Mirouku was behind her and there was no way that she could stop.
She ran a few blocks from were she had originally been before she saw the district park. After half an acre of clearing, the ground had a sharp lengthy decline in a downward slant before reaching a flat level. There were scatters of trees, bushes, benches, and there was a shallow duck pond in the center.
He wouldn't follow her through here and if he did, she could lose him.
Sango began her decent down, in a cautious run. She was almost halfway down when she saw Mirouku out of the corner of her eye.
She lost her balance and started falling.
Someone collided with her body as she dove head first into the grass and cradled her as they started rolling.
When they reached the bottom of the hill Mirouku let her go and rolled onto his back, before he started laughing, "Of all of the things you could have done, you had to run?"
Sango rolled onto her side to look at him, in a dazed voice she murmured, "…I kissed you…"
There came a snort, "I vaguely remember that, yes."
"So you do hate me for it, then? You looked horrified and I shouldn't have presumed that I could just—!"
He started at her intently, "I don't hate you… And I did not look horrified. I was shocked." He furrowed his brows, "And I will admit that I am still confused. Why did you kiss me?"
Sango blushed and turned away, "Because I couldn't help myself….I—"
Mirouku reached over, and as she had one before, pulled her in for a kiss. After a moment he smiled, "There…we're even."
Sango cheeks flushed profusely.
Mirouku suddenly raised a brow, "So I really come across as a homosexual, huh? 'Someone who could host Queer Eye if I heard correctly?'"
Mirouku inwardly was picturing strangling Inuyasha. That really messed up his image with that hadn't he? He mentally grimaced. Crazy bastard… A simple, 'It's Inuyasha!' Would have sufficed.
Sango looked exasperated, "I don't even know anymore!" Under the light of the moon, Mirouku's face took on a mischievous glint.
He laughed, "Look's like you really don't understand me at all… Perhaps we could remedy that. What do you propose?"
He could not help but tease her. If she was really confused about him then clearly he had to throw her a few more signs. Apparently hunting down that CD for her, having Abura shadow her whenever she walked home by herself, and pulling her into conversations whenever he could wasn't enough.
Sango blushed and buried her head in his chest out and murmured embarrassedly, "If you're free on Saturday, you could maybe go out with me."
Mirouku chuckled and lifted her head, "What was that?"
Sango scowled, "Don't tease me… I said, 'go out with me.'"
Mirouku grinned, "I suppose that would do. I'll see you Saturday." Sango started laughing as all the stress and worry she felt over the last few days ebbed away, "Great!"
He planted a kiss on her forehead…
Perhaps it was simply easier being direct with this foolish woman. But then again…his other method was just a tad more fun. He had loved teasing the brunette ever since she walked through the doors of that little café.
Their place of meeting…
Their Provence…
-- End--
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(Tsuki )
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Hmm…Okay so admittedly, it was hard placing Sango in the same situation without completely making her character OOC. But I definitely had to undertake this because Provence was definitely one of my favorite two volume manga (mostly due to the art) although I will admit that I was confused as to why Alan (Inuyasha) ever did end up kissing Hayes (Mirouku), but Nicky Lee did end up confirming that neither of the two were gay or bi or whatever and that Alan (IY) was head over heels in love with Yumi (Kikyou). But I'll save that story for another chapter maybe…