Chapter 4- No Good Deed...

Again, refer to the disclaimer on chapter 1.

The next week passed swiftly enough. The wagon train shook itself out, it's people settling into a routine as miles slowly rolled past. Kagome and Sango were settling in no less than the others, and found out that Molly and Naomi had taken it on themselves to make sure the girls were part of the group. Their new friends were the nicest of the women and welcomed them, ensuring most of the others did too. Some, like Agatha Barnes, were sour and only got more so as the journey continued.

Especially when she found out that Kagome and Sango didn't share her stern religious convictions. That happened when she spotted Kagome praying in front of the little family altar her Mother had packed for her, along with almost everything the family had brought from Japan. Her reasoning was they would soon be back at the Shrine-and her daughter ought to have the mementoes. She'd asked what it was, and when told had a case of the vapors.

That little event led to her arriving at their wagon armed with her Bible along with a couple of other women, aiming to make some conversions when they camped a day later. Well meaning, but entirely unwelcome.

"But Miss Higurashi, surely you are Hellbound with such heathen ways."

"I don't think so! How dare you?" Kagome yelled.

"Honestly, I'm just trying to help you! You came from such a strange land, I can certainly understand your ignorance. But I think you should-" Agatha began, her thin face earnest.

"Ignorance? What is..." she didn't know the word.

"Why, backwards. Foolish," Agatha explained gently.

Oh, really?"Why you-" Kagome was getting down as a wide eyed Sango tried to stop her! She broke loose and jumped down to lay into the woman when a hand picked her up by the collar. Yash.

"Kagome!" he scowled. She realized her feet were off the ground and gasped as he held her without the slightest effort. Where had he come from? She hadn't even seen him! Her hands went to his wrist in a futile attempt to break free. He had a grip like iron!

"Put me down!"

"No." He looked at Agatha and the other women, "what's going on?"

"We are just trying to explain the Bible to the girl, Sheriff. She's keeping some sort of odd ritual things, and I saw it as my duty to speak to her." Nods. Yash turned the furious hellcat he held and studied her, then looked at the women.

"Seems to me she don't want to hear it."

"They insulted my family, and my ancestors! Let go of me!" her feet kicked as Kagome yelled. He winced when she got his legs, but didn't let go.

"Feh," Yash planted Kagome back in the wagon without so much as grunt of effort and shook his head. "You. Stay in here or I'll dump you in the nearest pond," he said flatly, making her gasp. He then turned to face the trio, "if she wants to stay Shinto, it ain't your business. So leave her be."

"Surely you'll have her convert, Sheriff? As her husband, you have a responsibility-"

His eyes narrowed.

"She ain't any business of yours, Miss Barnes."

"Well, I never!" Agatha sniffed, and stormed off with the others in tow, muttering sourly about how ungrateful people were.

"I can't believe you let her get away with that! How dare she say such things? Her duty?! I ought to give her duty! In Japan, it's much better!" Kagome yelled in Japanese as she glared.

"Let's get something straight, wench. It ain't better," Yash snapped. Her eyes widened.

"I..."

"Feh. You can keep your damned ancestor worship all you like. But don't ever get on no high horse about Japan to me! I fucking grew up there too! Got it?" he finished with a glare. She paused, and Kagome nodded. As angry as she was, something lurked in his expression that warned her off arguing or questions.

"Inuyasha-"

"It's Yash," he left her staring after him.

But the incident was the talk of the train. Several women eyed her with puzzlement and suspicion...and a few gave Kagome looks of unabashed approval and amusement. Agatha had already stared getting on a few nerves and most were of the mind that she ought to keep out of other people's business anyway. The attention embarrassed her, so she took her supper to her wagon to eat alone.

When she got there, the Wagonmaster was waiting. Thumbs hooked in his belt, Bessonner stood there glaring. Kagome gulped as he moved to tower over her, and she backed away until she bumped into the wooden side of the wagon.

"What do you want, Mr. Bessonner?" she asked nervously.

"I hear tell you're causing trouble, woman. I'll not have scrappin' and fights in this wagon train," Jason Bessonner said coldly.

"I didn't. It was-"

"Don't you dare backtalk me. I'll beat you good and proper if'n it happens again and toss you out for the coyotes to pick at. Hear? I don't like a woman who gets out of her place, an I ain't got a problem putting her right back in it," he promised, his washed out grey eyes boring into her.

She nodded, frightened. Kagome realized he knew he was scaring her...and that just made it worse. Then she saw someone stride up behind him, and shivered at the anger in Yash's eyes. Nor did she understand why those eyes suddenly looked...golden for a moment. Was his hair white??

He was angry enough from the stench of her fear that his illusion was straining.

"What are you doing, Bessonner?"

"Just explaining a few things. How things are. Wasn't I?" he answered, nodding to Kagome in warning before he turned to face the man.

"It was...nothing, really," Kagome barely managed to get the words out.

"Get away from her," Yash ordered. Bessonner spat to one side and considered.

"This here's my wagon train, and I don't take kindly to being ordered when I'm the man in charge. We ain't in Sweetwater, now are we, Sheriff?" the last was laced with contempt.

"I don't need a badge to deal with you," for a moment, it looked like the big man was going to take him up on the clear offer to settle it then and there...but he just nodded and turned to leave.

"Well well. I'll keep this in mind, Sheriff. I will keep this in mind. Making it easy, reckon."

"See that you do," Yash watched him as he stalked away. Then he helped Kagome get in the wagon and passed her supper in. "Asshole. You stay in there tonight. He gives you any more trouble, you tell me."

"Thank you, Inuyasha," her eyes were soft as she smiled.

"Feh. It's Yash, I said. I told you-this ain't Japan, and that ain't my name here. Eat your supper and get some rest. Stay out of trouble."

"Yash, then," Kagome answered.

"He what? Did he hurt you?" Sango looked worried later as she sat with her new friend. Kagome was scared to death and had nearly jumped out of her skin when she'd climbed up into the wagon. Now, she'd told her everything that had happened. Except for Yash's eyes and hair. That she left out, putting it down to a trick of the light and her own fear.

"No...but Sango-he wanted to. I know he did. If Inuyasha, I mean, Yash hadn't stopped him, I don't know what he'd have done. He frightens me."

"Well," the woman frowned, "if he tries to get at you, he'll have to get past me," she announced, and scooted through the well packed wagon to a traveling trunk that had seen better decades. The one that held all of her personal possessions besides a big bundle strapped to the iron roof hoops that she'd packed personally, allowing no one else to touch it. Opening a compartment in the trunk, she removed a slim Katana and set it under her bedding. Kagome peered inside as she did-and gasped.

"Sango! Those are Spirit wards on the inside! And that mask..." she stared at the older girl, who looked embarrassed. Ashamed.

"You aren't the only one who brought a piece of the old country, like Molly says," she sighed.

"What are you?" Kagome managed.

"I-I was a tajiya. I was trained as one, anyway."

"A youkai slayer?? Then what are you doing-I mean..." Sango had never said much about her family, and Kagome hadn't pressed. But now she was completely confused. A tajiya was a respected, important person! How did you go from that to so desperate that you had to marry for money?

Of course...she was a former Shrine Maiden who'd done the same.

"My former village is full of slayers, you see. We lived there, and worked at it like the others. But then Father was passed over for my Uncle when it was time to choose a new Headman for the village. So he appealed to a friend in the Shogunate, and he obtained permission to leave when they denied him the position. He thought we could come here and grow rich, since there aren't a lot of us here who are trained to fight youkai. But...our magics and remedies don't work on most of the youkai here. Many of them are from different lands and came with the human immigrants, and the native ones are just as bad. They're almost completely immune to our tactics unless it's direct combat. He was too proud to admit it was too much for one family to fight like that all the time and just return home or try and learn the new ways...so he wanted to find another way to support us."

"Let me guess, investments?" he'd tried to get her to invest her finder's fee when they left Mr. Carter's, so it made sense to the girl.

"More like scams. Father wants to believe every two bit hustler and snake oil salesman-and soon we were almost penniless after they took his money. I hate people like that! Smooth talking tricksters who only want to coast along on other's foolishness. So when he saw the advertisement...he jumped at it, and now I am to wed this-person," Sango admitted. One she saw neither honor or security with. A mere gambler who'd been fortunate! It was shameful! One who seemed just as likely to eye other women and perhaps gamble off this saloon of his at any moment, leaving them with nothing!

"Oh. No wonder you don't care for Miroku," Kagome nodded. He'd proudly told them he'd won his business in a poker game to impress them, and ever since she'd been so sad. No wonder! He had to seem exactly like what had brought her family low. Alright-he seemed that way to Kagome as well. But she couldn't say that.

"It would not be my choice," Sango sighed.

"I understand. Father came here first, because he didn't want to be a Shrine Priest. He had a good job with a trading company that brought him here, and sent for us...but he died of a fever a year later. So I agreed to this to help them get back."

"I heard part of it before but, a Shrine? Really? Are you a miko?"

"Not really. I was taught some, and Grandfather always said I had gifts...but nothing serious."

"Ah. We're quite a pair, aren't we? A youkai slayer who's skills don't really work on the locals, and a miko with no Shrine," Sango smiled.

"I'm to marry a man who isn't even Shinto and doesn't seem to even like me-and you're to marry...Miroku," Kagome couldn't say it. A confidence trickster. Sango winced. She wanted to talk to her, warn her about the strange feeling she got from Yash-but couldn't bring herself to set more on Kagome's shoulders.

"I will do my duty and fulfill the obligation as I promised. Besides, at least we have each other, right?"

"Me too. No matter what, and we'll face it together," Kagome smiled gratefully, and they both settled for sleep. Worry kept them both awake in the night, though. For the present, the past...and the future.

Yash didn't sleep either. Not when he was worried about Bessonner and he'd suddenly smelled power from the girl's wagon. A small, sudden surge-when Sango opened the sealed compartment of her trunk. A glance at a dozing Miroku...and an eye opened. He nodded, and rolled over on his back. Lying on his bedroll, he frowned thoughtfully up at the stars before he closed his eyes and breathed in a slow, centering rhythm.

He'd sensed it too.

The next day, Miroku went sniffing at their wagon...but not as a tomcat. Instead he used his rusty Spiritual sight. He never really bothered with it anymore. He'd centered himself last night, and now took a good look at the wagon as he rode by the rear wheel. In all honesty, he wasn't expecting much. Perhaps an item from home in their belongings or something with a strong blessing of some sort. Wasn't uncommon, really. But Yash had cornered him at breakfast and asked him to look. He'd have done so anyway out of curiosity, but the hanyou had insisted.

He nearly fell off his horse!

There was a massive, glowing silver white light flaring from the front! He rode forward more by accident then design, the gelding picking up on his rider's distress as it tried to shy and bolt. Getting him back under control wasn't fun, but he managed. Oh, no. Sango's was a clear, solid, astonishingly steady aura. It spoke of a great deal of personal discipline, perhaps even training of some sort. Given her background, he could guess either a strict dojo or perhaps even Shrine training. Kami knew what she'd do when she learned about Yash, but then there was the bigger problem, the source of the light.

The magnificent silvery glow was Kagome! What in the Kami's names was she doing with that kind of power and not in a Temple or Shrine? She had to have been once, he saw the signs of it, but seemed to be at best half trained from the flaring of energy. If she were taught how to manage European or native magics, not a youkai here would be safe if she went after them, much less a Japanese one. A true miko, a half taught and gifted woman-was engaged to wed a hanyou that was extremely vulnerable to her skills, and didn't even know it.

Of all the ill fortune! Of all the women he could have gotten, he'd gotten them! Miroku reflected that Inuyasha was going to kill him. Nor would he blame his friend. The hanyou hadn't had to worry about inimical magics in years! Certainly not from his own betrothed or possibly his friend's own bride. Who knew how they'd take it when they discovered him?

Miroku remembered to calm himself. Maybe it was a fluke. Maybe he was overreacting. He made himself look at their wagon. Neither woman matched the thread of power from last night. He'd noticed it because it had suddenly appeared, and he berated himself for letting his Sight deteriorate to the point that he hadn't even noticed Kagome's aura before. He was an idiot-but at one time a trained one.

Spirit wards, and sophisticated ones. On one...no two items. Up near the canvas roof, and something inside the wagon proper. They shielded something, and damped down the aura of anything within them. Oh, no.

He avoided Yash, and tried to figure this out.

While Miroku poked and discretely prodded, the next days passed swiftly. All of them were feeling the heat and eating the dust of the trail as the land slowly changed.

He finally decided on the direct tact when they rested in camp one night.

"Sango?" she was seated on a cushion, sewing up a tear in a shirt sleeve. He admired her profile as she knelt there working in the last daylight, and she glanced up. The woman had been cool, but polite the entire trip. Lately even more so. He honestly wasn't sure why. But even if there was a contract, he didn't want an unwilling or unhappy bride.

"Yes, Kinjo-san?" she asked, and he wanted to sigh.

"Sango, please, call me by my name. I have asked you to do that before, haven't I?"

"It would not be proper," she answered stiffly, eyes down as she set her work aside. She'd proved adept at keeping a formal distance, and it annoyed him even as it fascinated him. He'd nearly forgotten how it was to court a woman from home.

"If not for the dress," he nodded to her plain brown skirt and white shirt, "you seem a very picture of Japan. It's good to see a fine, honorable woman will be my wife. Not to mention I'm glad you're here so I won't have to do my own mending," he was joking to cheer her up, and she knew it. But it only reminded her she was marrying beneath her family's former glory. Back home, other women saw to such tasks when she had served with her fighting group.

"Thank you. I will do my duty, Kinjo-san."

"You aren't going to make this easy, are you?" he asked with a wry grin, kneeling across from her.

"Easy? Have I offended?"

"Hardly! But you aren't happy. Is there anything I can do, Sango? Is it...that you miss your family?"

She was quiet for a moment.

"I miss them as they-no, Kinjo-san. I am fine, thank you," she finished. Sango missed them as they were. As she was, once, before her father's harebrained plans!

"You aren't, though. Anyone can tell. I really wish you would feel easy in confiding in me. After all, we're to wed. If there's anything I might do to make you happy, I'd be glad to. I really do think perhaps you do miss them. I didn't see anyone waiting with you besides the Higurashi. Are you worried for them? Are they well? Heading back home like Kagome's kin, perhaps? You haven't told me much of them."

"My father and brother live in St. Louis, and they are well."

"A brother? Younger? Older? Your mother? I'd like to know everything about you," Miroku asked kindly.

"My mother died long ago. My brother is younger, his name is Kohaku. My father will see to it he is well," she replied. Evasions. Lots of them. But he tried again.

"So...why did you leave Japan, Sango?"

"Why?" She looked up, "Father wished to. I...really would rather not discuss it."

"As you wish," he rose, and sighed, "but one day, I hope you'll talk to me. Or at least tell me why there are wards inside your wagon. I am quite trustworthy, and I wish only for you to be happy, Sango."

Sango stared after him in shock. She nearly went after him to demand to know how he could possibly know that. But when supper was announced, he started lavishly praising the cooks with a wicked grin at them. At that, the young woman let her distaste answer her unspoken questions. He'd probably been spying or something! There the matter rested.

Author's notes-Ahhhh. Sweet conflict! Bessonner went after Kagome, because the Wagonmaster kept order. Not to mention he's a bastard. : ) Sango and Miroku were fun to write in this chapter, and yes, a lot's starting to bubble under the surface. Good things. Thanks for Reading!-Namiyo