A/N: I've really got to come up with some better titles, ne? Anyway, this is another one for IY no Kakera's 100 themes.
Set 1, theme 21.
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or any related characters.
:-: Ornamental Hairpin :-:
Sango rolled over in the sleeping bag Kagome had lent her and opened her eyes. As she looked around, still disoriented, her eyes met a pair of dark blue ones. Of its own accord, her hand snaked out and connected soundly with a face.
"Ow! Sango, what was that for?" a startled Miroku asked, one hand over his stinging cheek. Was it his imagination or did Sango hit harder when she was half-asleep?
She blinked accusingly at him, wide awake now. "What do you think? You were about to grope me again, you lech!" she said, blushing slightly.
"No, no, I promise you, I wasn't," he said, waving his hands in front of himself in his defense.
"Then what were you doing?" she demanded, sitting up and crossing her arms.
"I was, uh . . . . there was a, uh, bug in your hair, and I was trying to . . . get it off of you," he stammered. Sango narrowed her eyes but lay back down.
"Whew, that was a close one," he whispered. What would he have done if she hadn't fallen for his cover-up?
The truth was, he was trying to figure out what color hair ornament would look best on her. They had just defeated Naraku, and Miroku wanted to give Sango a present to tell her that he loved her, without actually saying it. Kind of a pre-marriage present, in his eyes.
He sat down next to the fire and propped his head up with one hand. Then it occurred to him: dark blue would work beautifully with her hair. He reached into the front of his robe and drew out the prayer beads that had kept the Wind Tunnel sealed for the longest time. He felt incomplete without them, but he knew that they could serve a better purpose than staying in his robe.
Before sunrise, he snuck out of camp, telling no one where he was going.
A few hours later, after everyone was awake and Kagome was making breakfast, he returned, holding a small box in one hand.
"There you are, Miroku, where have you been?" Sango asked, standing up from where she had been sitting with Kirara.
"I just went out for a bit. I managed to pick up something for you," he said, handing her the box. She took it, looking at him suspiciously.
She gasped when she took the lid off. Inside was a hairpin in the shape of a crescent moon. It had a dark blue sheen to it, one that seemed oddly familiar . . . .
"Miroku, this is the same color as your beads," she said.
He nodded. "That's what it's made of. I took it to someone in the town we just left, and he shaped them into this.
"What is this for? It's not my birthday," she said, taking it out to admire it.
"I know. It's . . . it's a wedding present. I want you to marry me, Sango," he said, blushing slightly. When he looked up, he saw that Sango was crying. "What-what's wrong? Did I do something wrong?" he asked, beginning to panic.
She shook her head. "You have no idea how long I've been waiting to hear those words," she whispered.
Miroku stepped forward and took the hairpin from her, slipping it into her hair just above her left ear. "Thank you Sango," he said, kissing her on the cheek.
"I should be thanking you. You just made my dream come true."