Miroku's eyes are opened by the least expected person and Sango comes to some of her own conclusions. Written for un_love_you. Prompt used - Author's Choice.

I know this one is short but I hope it explains itself. Thanks for reading and feel free to review.

Time, Miroku discovered, has a way of making you heal, whether you intended to or not. In the passing weeks after the disastrous dinner, Miroku came to understand what Mushin had attempted to do. In Mushin's heart, they were still his boys and there was a bond between them that could never be broken. That bond was damaged but Mushin believed it could be repaired. In the back of his mind, Miroku couldn't help but wonder if that would even be a possibility.

It was hard to reconcile his feelings for Inuyasha. Kagome was easy to let go once he finally faced her. The treachery of her actions changed his whole opinion about her and he couldn't help but wonder why he had been drawn to her in the first place. She had been attempting to contact him but he elected to ignore her, refusing to entertain her pleas on Inuyasha's behalf.

Inuyasha.

Thinking of Inuyasha made Miroku's heart ache. Seeing Inuyasha brought back all the old feelings. The anger was still there but now there was a longing for what had been. Miroku was now ready to acknowledge he missed his friend and his brother. Seeing Sango with her brother made Miroku realize what he had truly lost. As the months had past, he finally came to understand most of the pain he felt came not from the actions of Kagome but those of Inuyasha. Miroku meant what he said when he told Inuyasha he was willing to die for him but the very fact that Inuyasha had betrayed him in the most brutal and intimate of ways had destroyed Miroku's soul.

Miroku really wanted to understand the reasons behind Inuyasha actions. While visiting Sango's family in Osaka, Miroku found himself having late night tea with her aunt, Kaede. In the quiet darkness, the talk soon turned to Miroku's past. Later, he wondered if his tea had been dosed with a truth serum but at the time, Miroku had been compelled to share his soul. Once he had finished talking, Kaede was quiet for a moment.

"Have you ever considered the possibility of Inuyasha being envious of your relationship?"

Certain the shock was evident on his face, Miroku couldn't help but gape at the older woman.

"But why? There have been women before."

"But none who had truly captured your heart."

Staring onto his cup of tea, Miroku allowed Kaede's words to roll around his head. For the longest time, Inuyasha and Miroku only had each other. There had been girlfriends but no one had come between their bond...until Kagome. Thinking, Miroku began to pick apart all the times he spent with Kagome often leaving Inuyasha to his own devices. Guilt surged as he could recall the times Inuyasha invited him to different events but he wouldn't go because he had plans already. His heart slammed into his ribs as he realized it had been months since he and Inuyasha had spent any time together at all.

"I was so in love and so blind." Miroku stated, his voice broken and sad.

Reaching across the table, Kaede patted his hand. "Not blind. You were on a different path. Inuyasha couldn't see beyond his own needs and desires to realize he wasn't losing you. He was selfish and that selfishness led all of you down this path." Standing, Kaede moved toward the kitchen door, leaving a brooding Miroku at the table. Before she retired for the night, there was one last thing.

"The question is, do you remain on the path or do you finally construct a new path?"

ooOOoo

That question continued to linger in Miroku's mind. He had never considered Inuyasha's jealousy as a viable reason. In the past, there had never been an issue of envy between them or at least, Miroku didn't think so. He always wanted Inuyasha to be happy and until "Kagomegate", he would have bet everything that Inuyasha would have wanted the same for him. Realizing that only way he would get a definite answer was to talk to Inuyasha, Miroku decided to bite the bullet. He would call his former brother but first, he really needed to talk to Mushin.

ooOOoo

Sango signed as she stared at the work on her desk for the millionth time. It had been two weeks since the dinner with Mushin and while she was glad he and Miroku finally cleared the air, she couldn't help but feel apprehensive. She didn't speak at the dinner, allowing Miroku the opportunity to share his thoughts and feelings but it irritated her how easily Mushin had believed Inuyasha. She knew some of that came from the fact that Miroku left without sharing what happened, leaving the door open for Inuyasha to weave his story but it seemed like Mushin didn't even take Miroku's feelings into consideration at first.

The more she heard, the more she realized Inuyasha was attempting to manipulate everything to ease his guilt. Sango still wondered why he went after Kagome, knowing that she was Miroku's girlfriend. There was a lot Inuyasha had been willing to share but Sango could see he left out so much more. She trusted her instincts and believed that Inuyasha was truly devastated by what happened between he and Miroku. She could also tell that things weren't going well between Inuyasha and Kagome. With the guilt that was running rampant between those two selfish souls, Sango couldn't see them staying together much longer. Inuyasha wanted to repair his relationship but there was no way that would happen while Kagome was still in the picture.

Sango wondered. "Would Inuyasha be will to give up Kagome for Miroku? Would it even matter?"

Shaking her head, Sango tried to clear her head and focus on her growing pile of work. Maybe a call to Inuyasha later would be in order but right now, she had things to do.