Kagome put a hand on Miroku's shoulder as he shovelled his breakfast into his mouth in a fashion more suited to Inuyasha than himself. "Don't eat so fast, or you'll give yourself a stomach ache," she suggested.
He swallowed his mouthful. "I'm just so excited. All I have to do is finish off the painting, and the matchmaking agency will be ready for it's grand opening. It's only in two days, you know."
"I know, I know. Why don't you bring Inuyasha?" She narrowed her eyes, remembering the bedroom painting incident of a week ago. "He likes painting, " she said, in an ominous voice.
"Hey," said Inuyasha through a mouthful of cereal. "You said you wanted the bedroom painted. How was I supposed to know that paint was for the dining room?"
"Because yellow is a colour for dining rooms, not bedrooms. Oh, never mind. I love it because it was such a thoughtful thing for you to do, I really do."
"Anyway," Inuyasha said, stretching his arms back. "Now that I'm back in human form, I don't mind spending my time playing video games."
"Oh, do come Inuyasha," Miroku agreed. "Hey, I can buy you lunch to make up for the fact that you were stuck here all week because of me."
Kagome spun around and glared at Inuyasha. "I told you not to say that in front of him! Miroku, you know we didn't mean that how it sounds, don't you? Anyway, we'll get to go back next time Inuyasha changes. That's due the first week of the new year, so it's perfect timing. It means we'll have time free to spend Christmas with my family. It'll give Miroku some time to get his matchmaking agency up and running too."
Miroku flashed a smile at Kagome. "You know I don't mind what he says, Kagome. I know how Inuyasha has a big mouth sometimes."
Inuyasha folded his arms and muttered epithets under his breath.
"What's that, Inuyasha?" Miroku asked innocently.
"I said, I'm going to get you for that," Inuyasha growled. Miroku was certain that wasn't all that Inuyasha had said, but he felt it best to leave it at that.
"If you guys hurry," said Kagome, reaching for her car keys, "I can drop you off on my way to do some shopping."
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"Y'know," said Inuyasha as he slapped red paint onto the office walls. "I could be doing something way more fun than this right now." Miroku did not answer, being so deep in thought he didn't even realise that he'd been painting the exact same spot for five minutes.
The colour of the paint reminded him of a sunset. Not just any sunset but a particularly special sunset one late summer's day soon after he and Sango were married.
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Miroku sat under the tree, among the tall grass, trying to soak up the waning warmth of the setting sun. No other time of year smelled quite like this, a fresh warm smell with the hint of flowers and grass. It was strange how he never noticed it before. Maybe it was because he had the freedom now to live the rest of his life without the constant worry of a curse anymore. Maybe it was her.
Being with Sango made everything seem extra special.
A smile came to his lips as he thought of her face.
His face twitched as something tickled across it. Thinking it was a mosquito, he swept his hand lazily across his face. The tickling continued, and was accompanied by a laugh that was quite unlike any mosquito he'd ever come across. Miroku opened his violet eyes lazily, to see Sango's sparkling eyes and vibrant smile. She held back a giggle as she tickled his face with a long piece of grass.
Miroku laughed. "What are you up to?" he asked.
"Oh, just waking you up. I thought you would have started cooking dinner by now."
"I wasn't sleeping. I was thinking of something."
"It must have been something nice. You were smiling."
"I was thinking of you."
Sango blushed, almost deep enough to match the glowing sunset. She sat down in the grass, and Miroku wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his head on her shoulder so she could feel his warm breath on her neck.
"Do you know…" Sango began, "You always used to be so…grabby, before. Now that we're married, you never do that anymore."
"Because you have trained me well," he answered. "I know you don't like it."
"Well now that you're my husband, I won't mind now."
Miroku grinned playfully. "I don't really feel like doing it, now."
Sango turned away and pouted. Miroku looked on, feeling slightly anxious.
"I didn't mean it like that, Sango," he assured her. "You know I find you as attractive as ever."
As he leaned forward to comfort her, she turned at him with a sudden laugh. Using the element of surprise to her advantage, she pulled him towards her until he toppled forward right on top of her. The two locked in an embrace in the grass, staring into each other's eyes for a moment, until Miroku rolled over to lie beside her on the grass.
"I love sharing this with you," Sango murmured.
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Inuyasha's voice startled Miroku out of his reverie.
"Hey, Miroku! Pay attention!"
Miroku turned towards the sound of Inuyasha's voice, and came face to face with a dripping paintbrush-smearing red paint across his cheek and onto the collar of his shirt.
"You fell for it!" Inuyasha crowed in delight. "I told you I'd get you back!"
"Great. Kagome is going to be furious with you, you know."
"No," Inuyasha said triumphantly. "She's going to be furious with YOU. My clothes are spotless."
Miroku closed his eyes, his eyebrow slightly twitching. He took a deep breath. "Okay…" he said, then suddenly lashed out with his paintbrush, adorning Inuyasha's chest with a streak of red. "Now, she's going to be furious at both of us."
"No way!" Inuyasha protested. "That's way more paint than I got on you. That's not fair!" He leapt towards Miroku, brandishing the paintbrush as if it were his trusty Tessaiga.
"Gyah! Inuyasha, that's my hair. That was uncalled for!" he shouted angrily, trying to wipe paint from the side of his hair with a towel. Unfortunately, the towel in question had already been used to wipe up a paint spill, and it only made the situation worse. Grabbing a new towel, Miroku undid his ponytail so that his hair burst free, falling gently around his ears. He combed through his loosened hair with the towel, trying to mop up the remaining paint.
"That is it," Miroku growled, leaping at Inuyasha from behind. "If you paint my hair, I'm going to paint yours."
"No!" Inuyasha exclaimed. He was fiercely proud of his head of thick black hair. "Please! Lets call a truce." But, even as he said the words, his paintbrush was leaving it's mark on Miroku's bottom. Miroku indignantly responded in kind.
Finally after a prolonged skirmish, the two men, panting for breath, agreed to save the remaining paint for the walls. Every inch of their bodies was either splattered, smeared or dripping with paint. Just as they finished clearing up the finished paint buckets and rolled up the tarps, a car horn could be heard outside.
"That must be Kagome," Inuyasha said.
"Yes, looks like we finished just in time."
Kagome's shiny black BMW was pulled up outside the door. As Inuyasha and Miroku emerged from the doorway, she took one look at them and shook her head. She rolled her window down and fixed them with a steely glare.
"You guys are walking home," she said, then rolled up her window, and drove off.