AN: Abarai Renji is a charactrer from Bleach, AKA, not mine. Xellos belongs to Slayers Next and Slayers Try, AKA not mine again. Do you see a pattern developing? A note on Inuyasha' blindness: He still has his eyes; he's just blind. However, they are the silver, colorless ones that Rezo had before. Rezo has Inuyasha's brown(human)/gold(demon) eyes, but Inuyasha gets angry... his eyes still change color. I don't know why I decided that... maybe Urahara can figure it out for me.
Epilogue
"Ah, Sango's back. We can start now," Urahara said, smiling at his friend.
She took the seat next to him, feeling very out of place. At the head of the table sat Sesshoumaru, flanked by both Rukia and Ichigo. Also present were a host of demons, half-demons and some humans Sango had never seen before, all of them looking very important with their designer suits and their proud gazes. Fuu and Ferio, as well as her uncle, were also present. Much to her surprise, handcuffed to the chair and looking quite disgruntled, sat Inuyasha.
Rukia stood up, coughing for attention. She had it almost immediately. Despite her small stature, all eyes turned to her, and she seemed imposing in the quiet room. She glanced around the table, staring at everyone in turn for a moment, and then held her chin high.
"War will be upon us shortly. The IBSP has made us strong, for it has made us united, but we have grown lax with peace. We are lucky, for Shabranigdo is weak. He cannot strike us yet, and so we have time to more. The International Bureau of Studies for the Paranormal is being shut down and relocated. We cannot have all of us in one place. It is folly. A single well-conducted attack could wipe us out. Scouts are already scouring Japan, searching for new bases. Supplies are being packed up, and people are being told to move themselves, post haste. By tomorrow evening, we aim that only three layers in this building shall remain active. The first is the jail area. We lack the facilities to contain demons elsewhere. The second shall be the morgue, until a suitable sight can be constructed. The third will be the Bond Level, as it is affectionately called. Again, we need time to build the appropriate place for Urahara and his group to relocate."
There were murmurs as Rukia paused. In particular, one man was quite vocal. Sango stared at him, curious at the poppy-red hair tied in a tight ponytail and the tattoos she could see peeking over the collar of his shirt. Slowly, Rukia's eyes turned to him.
"Abarai Renji, have you something you'd like to address?"
Sango bit her lip to keep in a gasp of surprise. Abarai Renji! Sango had never expected him to look… look so... bureaucratic. He was the head of security at the IBSP, the head of the security department and in charge of the guards, the tape monitors, the security passes, the security codes: anything and everything to do with the protection of the building and people within the IBSP was under his jurisdiction. She had always imagined him as rather rugged and decked out in weapons. The reality was quite opposite. In his tasteful clothes he looked like a businessman, and the sunglass laying by his side accompanied with the hair and the tattoos made him look more hip than anything.
"I have questions, Rukia-sama, but I will not address them so long as he is here." He nodded down to Inuyasha. The other man growled back at him softly.
Rukia frowned at them both. They childishly continued to glare at each other. "If you don't like him being here, Renji, then you may leave. Inuyasha is important right now, as is Sango. Otherwise, address your question first and then I will address the issue of these two and why they will now be holding permanent seats on this council."
Renji bolted up, sputtering. "Permanent! Rukia-sama!"
Sango had almost jumped up too. Fuu's hand touched hers, and Urahara's hand landed on her shoulder before she could leap up in protest. She didn't know why she was here. She had been summoned, and so she had come. That's what good IBSP members did, she'd always been taught.
Rukia glared at Renji. "Yes. Permanent. Now, speak."
He glared at her, but he sat back down in his eat. Slowly, the glare died away, and Sango was surprised to see that he actually looked worried. He regarded Rukia hopefully, and with something more than that, something that resembled love. It wasn't love exactly, Sango observed, but something close to it, which mingled with it. It was something more like respect, or honor.
"Do you… will it… will Shabranigdo really cause a war?"
Rukia met his gaze evenly. Her voice was strict. "Last night, before we called this meeting, we got a box from Shabranigdo. It came to us via a delivery service. We had it tested for bombs. When we opened it up, there was such a stench that even I lost my lunch. Inside, there was a human head from his latest victim. She'd been in a hot tub for about ten hours. It was a message. Shabranigdo doesn't need to kill. Some of his followers do. Shabranigdo doesn't need to kill to live, but he kills anyway. He kills to enforce his position, he kills to reward people, and he kills for fun. Everytime he kills for fun, he's going to send us a part of their body."
Renji gulped.
"And that is why Sango and Inuyasha are here and will continue tobe here. I know the spell they used on Miroku. I only wish I had seen the connection earlier! Ichigo and I were working on those bodies! I should have made the connection…"
Surprisingly, it was Sesshoumaru who calmed her down. With his hands folded and tucked under his chin as he leaned on the desk he looked like he had distanced himself from the conversation. It appeared he had done anything but. "You can't be expected to remember everything, Rukia. None of us can."
The small woman nodded, but she didn't really seem to accept it. "I know the spell," she repeated. "They had to kill Miroku to complete it. Killing Miroku would cement Shabranigdo into one form, transforming the host body into a half-demon, or a full-demon if they were already half-demon. If they were a full-demon already, they would have become stronger."
"Transubstantiation," one of the men at the table said, nodding.
Sango knew the term. It wasn't transubstantiation, not really. That was a Catholic thing, the idea that during their Roman Catholic ceremonies normal, every day wine was blessed from a priest and through some unknown, unseen, and other-worldly force the wine was transformed into the blood of Christ. That wasn't transubstantiation, but it had the same idea. A human body was transformed into something else, something impossible, because of a powerful being.
"But Miroku is still alive, and recovering wonderfully, from what I hear. Shabranigdo is not at full strength. But, if my theory is correct, it means that Shabranigdo is not restricted to one body the way our essences are. He can move about. How he does it, how many times he can do it, they all depend on how much strength Shabranigdo possesses." She straightened, pushing back her dark hair. A lock of it fell back in place, brushing her nose. "They tried to use Sango's body."
Urahara's hand was still on Sango's shoulder. He squeezed it reassuringly as many pairs of eyes all turned and stared at Sango. She blushed under their suspicious gazes. When she risked looking up, she found that not all of them were suspicious. Some of them were ones of fear and, almost worse, of pity. At these last ones she glared back in response, challenging them. Most of them looked away and paid attention to Rukia as she continued.
"For a brief while Sango was possessed by the demon. She managed to eject it, but we wonder about possible side effects." Rukia seemed to wish she hadn't said these words, and she quickly continued.
Sango continued to stare at Rukia, feeling shaken. Side effects? What side effects? Fuu squeezed her hand. She was grateful for the friendly hand on her shoulder and the motherly one in her lap. Without the steady, gentle pressure they had on her she would have snapped and said something.
"Do you think you could tell us what it was like having Shabranigdo inside you mind, Sango?" Sango was so shocked by the question she missed Rukia's pained expression at having to ask it. Rukia wished she could have let Sango forget the incident, but her memories would prove to be vitally important to their war-cause.
The young lady's face paled and she shook her head. "I… I don't want to…"
Rukia shut her eyes briefly. Several seats down from her, Sango was aware that Ichigo was tensing, getting ready to stand up and take matters into his own hands. Rukia slowly sat back down as Ichigo stood up. Sango was certain that if Akane had been there, for the first time in her life, Akane wouldn't have been afraid of the red-headed man. He was smiling at her gently. He slowly walked forward. Urahara and Fuu's hands slid from Sango as he twirled her chair around. Kneeling, Ichigo took Sango's hands into her own. She stared down into his brown eyes, wishing, wishing she wasn't there, wishing she could forget, wishing that she could just quit the council and go see Miroku, wishing…
"What was it like?"
He said it so gently, so much like Miroku, that for a brief moment Sango thought she was mistaken. Ichigo wasn't touching her, holding her hand. It was Miroku. God help her, that was almost believable, and it worked enough for Sango to find her voice. Thinking of Miroku, with the way his eyes danced and how he could illicit a smile from anyone, made her want to speak. She wanted to be brave, like him. She wanted to be strong enough, strong enough that he couldn't worm his way under her armor like he'd already done. Dealing with Shabranigdo was a way to make herself stronger.
So if it made her stronger, how come she was crying?
She felt Fuu reach around, standing behind the chair and brushing Sango's hair gently. It made her feel a bit easier. Miroku had learned Fuu's ways of coming people down, that was for certain.
"You can still feel your body. At first it felt like nothing has changed. You can feel your body, every inch of it. And then you realize that his hands are running over your body, exploring it." Tears began to drip from the corner of her eyes as she remembered the way Shabranigdo had touched her. "He explores your body, judging it. And you can feel it. You can feel his hands pressing into your stomach and your hands as they press… and you try to control yourself. You try to stop the way the hands move over your body, and you can't. You try to speak and you can't. You can't even focus your eyes. He makes you stare at whatever he knows will affect you the most, does things…"
She shuddered and continued. "It's not you in control at all. It's him. You know he's there. It's like a glass wall surrounds you. A glass cage! You can feel him everywhere, all around you, and you can't fight back against him. You can't see him. There's nothing there to fight! But he sees you. He holds you in that little glass box and he can see everything about you. He can see your hopes, your dreams, your knowledge, your memories… and your fears. And he makes fun of them. Even your dreams. He throws all of your mistakes in your face. He knows just what to say to make you feel hopeless. He makes you relive the worst moments of your life over and over and over again. And you… you get so mad at him that you yell and scream and swear and he laughs at you. He takes pleasure out of your agony…
"That's what the worst thing is. It's not the loss of control over your body. It's the things he says he's going to do with it," she sobbed. Sango couldn't help it. She was clinging to Ichigo's broad shoulders, crying, sobbing, burying her face in his chest as if he were her uncle. As she thought about it, the more things kept coming back to her. They were painful, sore wounds, the things he had told her. They still sat, open wounds on her heart, waiting to inflict pain the moment her thoughts came close to them.
"He threatened to kill Miroku, Ichigo-sama! He tasted his blood. He made me taste Miroku's blood. He told me all the things they were going to do him. He told me how they were going to kill him. He was going to use me; he was going to use my body. It… it made me so mad… and then he started talking about letting me be used as a reward… to give his followers my body so they could abuse me… to give me to Suichiro as a prize… and all because I had killed Miroku…"
There was nothing more to say. There was nothing more Sango could say. She was wrapped around Ichigo, crying. He was as solid as stone, his arms wrapped back around her, his brown eyes fiercely protective of her as he let her cry. Fuu and Ferio were shocked at what she had said; Urahara and Kakashi looked compassionate; Rukia was ashamed that she had to make Sango relive Shabranigdo's possession; Sesshoumaru was stern, his face showing no emotion; but the other men in the room looked like something inside of them had broken. Kakashi was a well-respected member of their society. They knew him; they knew Sango. Many of them, like Abarai Renji, had watched Sango grow up within the IBSP. Seeing their normally solid, steady girl sobbing and clinging to Ichigo was a sobering sight.
"Are you trying to tell me," said a growl from the far end of the table, "that my Kagome's body is being inhabited by that… by some thing that's abusing her body and mentally fucking with her?"
The people, save Sango and Ichigo, turned to see Inuyasha. He was hardly a pretty sight at the moment. A red gash stretched across his neck.Thoughpredominately healed, it was still red, sore, and swollen. His silver hair had tangled, and as he spoke of Kagome, the faintest sight of ruby emerged in his eyes as his fangs thickened.
Ichigo nor Sango answered. He had picked her up, scooping her up into his arms. Sango didn't resist. She liked being there, his body offering steady understanding and warmth. When she felt new hands touching her waist to steady her she looked up into the face of her uncle. Her arms slid from Ichigo and instead wrapped around her uncle's shoulders. Her tears were done, but the sight of him made them start a new. Kakashi's eye looked at her with such deep sympathy and sorrow that Sango felt like crying from relief. He was not holding her tears against her. Moreover, she was crying from the guilt of having made Kakashi worried.
It was Rukia who answered Inuyasha. She said nothing. She simply locked eyes with him and nodded, daring him to say or do something to change Kagome's predicament. Inuyasha leaned back when confronted with the challenge, deep within a mental debate.
"I'm sorry, Uncle," Sango whispered to him. One of his hands reached up and dried her tears from her cheeks. She smiled at him weakly, feeling even more out of place. It was hard to imagine any of the strong men or women present curled up on their uncle's laps and apologizing for crying.
"It's a natural thing, Sango," was his reply. "Sometimes it's good to get it out. I was always glad when you were little that you were too grown up to cry when you skinned your knee… I don't even know if mature is a good word for it. At times, it made me concerned, Sango."
"Really? Why?"
He smiled at her, brushing her hair. Sango leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. His voice was comforting in its familiarity. "Because Sango, sometimes people simply cry. Sometimes they need to get something out and it is easiest to get it out through tears. Sometimes crying is the natural response. I still cry when I hurt myself. You always held so much emotion back because you didn't want to show it because you felt it might somehow make you weak."
Her voice was quiet. It was barely above a whisper and Kakashi, with his close proximity, had to strain to hear it. "These people do probably think I'm weak… I don't know if I'll ever be able to look Ichigo-sama in the eye."
"You will," he said, believing that it was the truth. "None of these people think you're weak for what happened, Sango. It's the opposite, in fact. You went through something we can barely understand and something that made them feel weak and scared just from hearing you speak about it. You experienced it first hand, and you survived. Even better, you managed to save yourself. You found a way to push him from your mind, Sango. You're a survivor. Crying has nothing to do with that image you created for yourself."
The smallest smile of pride tugged at Sango's mouth. Feeling strange at smiling while there were still tear-stains on her cheeks she buried her face in her uncle's neck to hide them both.
Inuyasha had decided. He leaned as far forward in his chair as his restraints would let them. As if he was trying to make the words come out quicker or easier he'd raised his voice, forcing them out. "I can give you the names of the people in the IBSP who were moles! I can tell you everyone I know about! Gin! Suboshi-san! Xellos-san!"
At the last name, one of the men at the table pulled out a gun. He held it straight at Inuyasha, fear in his eyes. They were open and wide, an odd shade of purple. He pulled the trigger and a shot ran out. The man's gun was shot away. He stood, wounded, his hand dripping blood where a bullet had grazed him. He whirled and glared at the other end of the table. Sesshoumaru's smoking gun rested on the table before him and he was glaring at the man. The others at the table were already reaching for their own weapons, the quicker ones already having drawn them and pointing them. All they needed was an excuse to shoot.
The man looked around at his predicament and then grinned. He simply vanished.
Abarai Renji jumped up. He turned to Sesshoumaru, waiting to follow and wanting the command. There was a smile on his face Sango recognized from the mirror. He longed for the chase Xellos was giving him and he knew it would be a successful hunt.
Sesshoumaru nodded. "Bring back Xellos. I would prefer alive so that we may find out if his subordinates were also members of this cult." Abarai grinned and winked out of existence, just as Xellos had. The leader gazed back down across the long table. "Proceed, Inuyasha."
The half-demon frowned at being spoken to so rudely. "Rezo has a place outside of town. He calls it his summer house. I can give you directions. He probably doesn't know I'm helping you, so he might go there and hide out until they find a way to get their feet back on the ground."
One of the people shook her head. Sango didn't know her, but if Miroku had been there he would have realized she was the Dean of his university. "Rezo already has his feet back on the ground. He came to work today, the cocky bastard. We don't have any hard evidence linking him to the crime. We have no way to hold him legally."
Inuyasha's ears picked up. "Hard evidence? I thought you guys were above the law!"
"We try to work with the human law, not against it," she coldly answered.
Inuyasha snarled with anger. "Then let me out of these fucking chains! Let me go and find Kagome myself! Let me out of here, damn it!"
Rukia's voice was hard. "We have testimonies keeping you here, Inuyasha. Sango and Miroku, for one. Secondly, Kagura has admitted that she killed Wufei, and that you were the one who killed Eve. Lastly, we aren't holding you here as a criminal, though you will be under restraint, guard, and lock and key. Inuyasha the surgeon was injured in a kidnapping and is spending time at a private health care center to recuperate. We don't want you to be a criminal right now, Inuyasha. The public will be more likely to call us if they see Kagome because we've made a tragedy. She's the beautiful wife of a potentially dying, upper-class man. If we introduced her to the public as the missing wife of a criminal, people wouldn't remember her. Those that did would do so because they were afraid of her. They would be more likely to scare her away then help us find her."
Silence briefly rested over the table. Sango slowly looked u p, glaring down the table at the handcuffed half-demon. "How come you're helping us? I don't get it."
He stiffened. Eventually he looked away. "If what you said is the truth than Kagome is being tortured by that thing. I thought my wife was dead. I thought that when Shabranigdo took over that she was dead. Kagome wouldn't have tried to kill me. Kagome wouldn't have slashed my throat and looked so pleased when she did it. I thought Rezo had played me. I thought nothing of my wife remained in that body, but according to you, she does. I want my wife back. I was telling the truth to you, Sango. I would do anything for her. I have killed for her and I will kill again for her, if needs be. So I will help you find Shabranigdo because that will help me find my wife. My help, understand Sesshoumaru, will only extend that far. After I get Kagome back I don't give a damn about the IBSP."
"After you get your wife back we will arrest you for manslaughter and you will be sentenced by your peers in a proper court of law," the other white-haired demon said sternly.
Inuyasha seemed to have no complaint over this. "But I'll have Kagome back. She'll be safe." He was smiling. So long as he had Kagome back, Inuyasha didn't care what happened to him. It was like a game. Inuyasha considered himself to have won so long as his wife was safe and sound.
The rest of the meeting was fairly boring. It was all a discussion about what they were going to do, where they were going to move, and how to organize it. At one point Sango even accidentally began to drift off to sleep from boredom. She had been manipulated into the telling her story because it, in turn, manipulated Inuyasha into helping them. Whatever they had been talking about "lingering effects" it thus far didn't seem to be of importance. Maybe Rukia had been stretching the truth, even!
When the meeting was ended and everyone was excused, Sesshoumaru's voice broke out over the others. "Tora-san…. Please remain behind for a moment."
The others left. The meeting room felt large and alien when it was just Sango and Sesshoumaru. She shifted nervously, toying with the belt loops of her jeans. Was this about her state of dress? Had he been affronted because she had worn a t-shirt and jeans to a meeting of some of their most important members?
"Sesshoumaru-sama…"
"Rukia wasn't kidding when she said there may be side-effects. Some people that Shabranigdo has had… intimate relations with in the past have maintained a psychic connection with him. It's how they keep in contact. He canlocate them when they need him and in turn they can sense when he is in trouble, so that they can go and aid him." He sighed. His silver hair floated around him. "It's true that those relations were sexual. Yours and his weren't, but it was intimate. Perhaps even more intimate than those sexual ones I spoke of. You two, for a brief time, shared a body. All we would like to ask is that you pay more attention to the urges you have. If any of them feel like they aren't coming from you or seem ill-fitted to the situation, we ask that you tell somebody."
Sango nervously nodded.
"Secondly, about the people that you killed…"
She immediately stiffened. Sango knew the topic had to have come up sooner or later, but she had never expected it to be so blunt. Sesshoumaru wasn't beating around the bush. He knew she had killed them, and so did he. She looked away from him, making him pause as she guiltily stared at the desk.
"…they will not be held against you," he slowly continued. Sango's face shot up to stare at his. "Sango, you have consistently tried to deny that you were different from the people around you. When you were little you forced yourself to stay in that human shape of yours through external forces. You do not have very good control of your instincts to the point that when something triggers them you become single-mindedly devoted to that thing, ignoring everything else, even if is a threat to yourself.
"Such qualities are not what we want in our members, Sango. You have to learn to control yourself more, and that is a direct order. You will train with Urahara four times a week during the summer months, and twice when school returns. You will be required to keep a journal of your diet to make sure that you are fulfilling the proper dietary requirements for a half-demon of your age and gender. We will do our best to make sure that this never happens again…"
"Yes sir…"
"…to protect you, Sango, not them. This was hard on you because you lost something. You'd never killed humans before, never tasted human blood before, and now you have. Even with those requirements in place, Sango, be prepared. Prepare yourself for it to happen again."
She waited to make sure he was finished before she spoke again. Sango felt bad for interrupting Sesshoumaru and wondered if she would get reprimanded. "I don't want it to happen again, sir," she said honestly.
The days Sesshoumaru had spent with Rin had weakened his mask some. The faintest hint of a smile appeared in his gold eyes. "I know you don't, Tora-san. Nobody does. But, you are a half-demon. You will never have as much control as a full demon has at controlling your instincts. You are also human. You are allowed and encouraged to show more emotions than we are supposed to, and perhaps as a result you feel it with more ease. When someone threatens someone you love, or yourself Sango, your instincts will kick in. You will fight and kill to defend yourself and your family. Tigers have no family, Sango, but humans do. It is because you are human that rage builds up, and because you are human you have people you use it to defend. If you don't want it again you must live as the tiger in you was meant to live: alone."
Her brown eyes softened. She didn't want to be alone, and both of them knew that. He gently touched her arm, guiding her out. "You will train. You will try to fulfill your bodily needs as is required. But you must prepare yourself, Sango. Nothing comes without a cost. For half-demons, not even love comes without a cost."
Sesshoumaru opened the door for her. Kakashi, Rin, and Urahara stood in the hallway waiting for them. Rin immediately jumped on Sesshoumaru, and he looked down at Sango as he held the little girl. "Our meeting is adjourned."
Once Sesshoumaru was safely out of ear-shot, Urahara looked at Sango. "He wasn't too abrasive with you, was he?" She shook her head and he smiled with relief. "Good! Well then Sango-san, shall we go and train?"
"In a minute. Actually…" Sango seemed to be lost in thought for a long moment. When she looked up at Urahara he could see there was goal she had in mind. "Could you give me an hour, Urahara-sama? I want to check on Akane and Miroku and make sure they're okay. Then I will meet you in the training rooms."
Kakashi's hand landed on her shoulder. "I will escort you to the med-area. We have to talk, niece." Sango gulped, but she didn't look away from Urahara. The blond man smiled at her and walked down the hallway ahead of them, giving the uncle and niece a bit of privacy. "After you train with Urahara, you'll have to come and pack your room. I know that you're already mostly moved out of it… for years now you've liked staying at the cottage to get some privacy… it's understandable, Sango. You're… you've been through so much, Sango. Sometimes, parents… adults, really. I'm not your parent, Sango. Sometimes adults don't want to see children grow up. With working two jobs, I think I missed you growing up, and I regret that, Sango."
His hand found hers. She blushed. "You were always there when I needed you, Uncle. I never kept anything from you. You let me share my life with you, to be my confidant." She smiled up at him. "I think, Uncle, that sometimes you knew as much about my life as I did."
He smiled back down at her. "You should be given a place of your own, Sango. You should have a place where Akane can come over and you two can have a drinking party, a place where you can feel free to read erotica…"
"Uncle…"
His smile turned into a jovial grin. Kakashi even laughed at the stern face Sango was making up at him as they stepped on to the elevator. "All right, all right, I know you aren't like that. But you should have a place where you can bring a boy over and not have me worry that there's another male in the house. You should have a sanctuary. You should have a place where you can start building your memories. Call me selfish, Sango, but I don't want you to. Not now."
Sango looked up at him in surprise. He was staring at the doors of the lift and squeezing her hand, as if making sure she wouldn't slip away from him.
"It will be a war, Sango. I'll be working double duty to make sure that humans don't find out about it. If he gets his hands on weapons… The sheer idea of having you leave me and live in residence again makes me cringe. I can't look out for you there. I can't come home every night and make sure that you're okay, asleep in bed. And so, I was thinking, it wouldn't take much to convert the garage…"
"What are you thinking, Uncle?" she inquired after he had trailed off.
He looked down at her. "We can't stay here. People are being ordered to move out. After you train with Urahara, you have to come and start packing. I don't want you to live in residence when the school starts. Come and stay at the cottage. I'll be living there. It's my house, after all. I was thinking that over the rest of the summer we could change the garage into a large bedroom. Akane could stay with us during school. I can drive you two… or you could drive yourselves. We'll sell the 'vette and buy you a car, Sango. Your own car. I don't like the idea of Akane living by herself on campus either. At least if you two are together, I won't worry as much. It would give you two a bit of privacy from me. We could make it apartment style… run cable and the net out in there… we'd have to share a kitchen, though…" He paused as the doors opened. "Fuu and Ferio are making much the same offer to Ranma and Miroku. Both of them will be living with the Forests and commuting every day…"
"Uncle…" Sango smiled at him. Never, he thought, did she look more like her mother than when she smiled. "Uncle, you're family. I love the cottage. I wouldn't live anywhere else."
Akane was well. She was limping around the hospital floor, testing out her crutches. When she saw Sango she grinned. "I wish I could heal like you do. I feel like such an invalid having to limp everywhere, but the crutches have their good points."
"Yeah," Ranma piped up. He sat in the guest chair, his face buried in a martial art magazine.
Sango looked back and forth between them, hardly able to keep a smile from her face. She had felt something different between them. There was something wrong with them, she could feel it. She felt almost ashamed when she wondered if there had been some romantic moment between them, an almost kiss, and then the elevator doors had opened and she had ruined everything. "And what benefit is that?"
Ranma lowered the paper and she gasped when she saw the print on his cheek. It wasn't a hand print, but it looked familiar… His visage was trying hard to appear nonchalant, but she could see a hint of amusement in there somewhere. "She has two portable weapons to take with her now to replace the use of one leg."
Akane winced, sliding into an occupied chair. "I did apologize. You scared me, sneaking up on me like that! At the rate you're going improving yourself, Ranma, we're going to have to get you geta sandals like Urahara wears to keep you from sneaking up on me." She smiled at Sango. "How was the meeting?"
"I don't really want to talk about it…"
"Oh?"
"We're going to have to move out of the building…" Sango was looking forward to the cottage and the idea of living there with Akane, but the IBSP had been her home, really. She had gone there after school. She had done her homework in that library. She didn't want to leave, deep down. She had worked hard all her life to be able to stay within the walls of the IBSP, after all.
Akane was nodding. "I know. Someone already told us. At least you have the cottage. I get to go home and live with my two older sisters. Kasumi's going to do nothing but try to teach me how to cook, and Nabiki will find a way to blackmail me for something or another. And dad… well…"
She trailed off. Ranma was looking away as well, appearing guilty. Sango arched an eyebrow. "Your dad?"
Akane was twiddling her thumbs. She glanced over at Ranma, and then back in her lap. Finally, after what seemed like an inquisitive infinity to Sango, she heard Ranma make the smallest sound of concession. When Akane remained silent Ranma looked at her, disgruntled.
"I'm not going to tell her. She's your partner. It's your duty."
Akane sighed and then looked up at Sango. She played absentmindedly with the crutch leaning against her side. "Well… father met Ranma that weekend we went to the dojo to train. When he saw Ranma fight I think my dad fell in love with him." Ranma shuddered at the thought. "He started talking to Ranma—asking him where he had learned to fight, what style it was, if he could show him… and since Dad knows about the IBSP, he even went so far as to ask Ranma about his heritage.
"I think Dad had something planned then and there. Kasumi talked him out of it—bless Kasumi. But when Dad showed up here and found out about my leg… well, you should have seen him, Sango-chan. When I told him Ranma protected me Dad was crying. He kept shaking Ranma's hand and calling him 'son' affectionately. Dad's rarely affectionate. Protective, yes. Most of the time he tries to act like he's the head of the family when it's Kasumi who really kept the household going since my mom died. Before I knew it, Dad was saying 'that settles it' and marched off. After supper that night Ranma came downstairs. He'd run all the way downstairs rather than taking the elevator. Dad was right behind him and butted in before Ranma had a chance to explain…"
She paused for breath. Her gaze slipped down to Sango's chin so she didn't have to look her friend in the eye. "We're engaged."
Sango could only stare.
"We are. Our parents arranged it. Dad wants Ranma because of his martial skills, that way we'll have a strong fighter to teach at the dojo. Ranma's father agreed because it means they don't have to worry about finding Ranma a job or a place to live, since Ranma inherits the dojo when we wed. The only stipulation is that Ranma has to teach."
She looked between the two of them. "Are you going to do it?"
Ranma shrugged. "Like Akane said. It was arranged by our parents. We can't go against our parents."
"But… I mean…" Akane was avoiding Ranma. He was avoiding her. Akane was so still she had stopped toying with the crutch. Sango continued to stare between them. "I don't get it! If you two hate each other, then won't you be perfectly miserable your entire lives?"
"Maybe…" they both quietly answered in unison. Akane looked up firmly. "But we'll be doing what our parents want. We won't be dishonoring our families. That's the important thing."
"So what if I have to spend my life married to an un-cute bull?"
"And so what if I have to spend the rest of my life listening to a misogynistic jerk?"
"We'll be doing the right thing," Ranma concluded. Akane was nodding. "Neither of us want to get married, not right now. We're both in school. We're both too young. Our parents have agreed to give us plenty of time to get to know each other so I can get used to being engaged to slow, weak-punching girl…"
"And I can use Ranma as a punching bag until I'm strong enough to kick his ass for calling me un-cute one more time," Akane agreed. They two of them were looking at each other again, but barely. "So really, all we've settled on is that we've…"
"Agreed to disagree. If one of us learns something about the other that makes us think morally we can't wed…"
"We'll call it off. Immediately."
"Right. But so long as I can get used to it…"
"In order to keep from being rebellious and shaming our parents…"
"We won't fight it…"
"For once in our lives, Sango, we'll both be passive…"
They nodded. Sango felt dizzy from following their conversation. Both of them were bright red, and they still weren't looking at each other eye to eye. Sango smiled wildly. "I see…" She did see. Akane and Ranma did like each other. Neither of them knew if they liked each other enough to wed, but they were willing to try out their growing friendship and see what it was capable of. Honor was something important to both of them, and she could respect and understand that. By deciding to be passive about the engagement, they neither had to disrespect their parents or hurt the partnership the four of them had formed by breaking their friendship.
"Well," Sango shrugged, trying to look on the right side, "they say that rates of divorce are lower among people who are betrothed than among people who just get hitched." She shifted nervously. "Are you sure you're okay, Akane?"
"Yeah." Slowly, a sly smile began to spread across her face. While her own budding relationship with Ranma was a relationship she often found frustrating and refused to acknowledge, she enjoyed teasing Sango about hers. "Miroku's down the hall. He's awake, you know. He seemed a bit upset when he woke up and you weren't there."
Her friend's face went bright red. She opened her mouth and stood gasping like a fish for air before she closed it and looked away. Her dark hair fell over her shoulder as she toyed with her bottom lip, thinking. "I didn't realize he'd been knocked unconscious so many times he'd begun to think it was natural to wake up and find me by him…" She kept her eyes locked to the floor. "Do you… do you think he'd want to see me? After what I've done?"
Akane stood up, leaning on her crutches. Her voice was stern. "Sango-chan! You can't keep beating yourself up for hurting those people! Miroku is your friend! He'll understand! Just like Ranma and I do, right Ranma?" The boy nodded. She turned back to Sango with a smile. It faltered when she saw that Sango was honestly worried. She was rubbing her hands on the thighs of her jeans, trying to erase their clamminess.
"I meant about nearly costing him his life, Akane…"
She didn't know how to answer that. Ranma did. Opening the magazine again he shrugged. "Miroku's a really easy going guy, Sango. I think that's why he gets along with you. You're high-strung enough to keep him from getting too bored." Sango glared at him so fiercely for being called high-strung that he shivered behind his magazine. "If you want to know so badly, ask him yourself." One eye peeked out from behind the magazine. "His bedroom is just down the hall."
With Akane encouraging her and Ranma ready to nitpick her until she got fed up enough to go, Sango walked down the hallway of her own volition. She didn't want to disappoint Akane or give Ranma a reason to think she wasn't brave. She was brave! She wanted to know—she needed to know—but she was nervous. What if he hated her? What if, worse, he was afraid of her?
She knocked on his door, shifting her weight from foot to foot. When she heard his voice telling her to come in she felt a small amount of tension release. He was awake, and he sounded healthy. When she opened the door she found him standing up, looking strained and pale. His skin lacked the healthy warmth, but his eyes were bright and alive. She stood, feeling out of sorts in the room, her hand still resting on the doorknob. She felt the rest of her uneasiness evaporate when he looked up and saw it was her.
He smiled at her.
There was no fear. There was no look of horror. There was no repulsion. There was just the opposite. He was happy. He was happy because he had her back. His smile was broad, and earnest, and Sango couldn't help her reaction.
She rushed at him, throwing her arms around him. She almost knocked the air from his lungs, and he was stiff at first. He hadn't expected her to do that. He watched the door slowly swing shut as she buried her face in his chest. Miroku heard Sango breath in deeply, inhaling his scent. He slowly brought up his hands and wrapped them around her.
She beat him to talking. "Now I know how you felt, Miroku-sama."
Her use of the 'sama' made him feel nervous all of a sudden. He felt confused. He couldn't help his hands, however. With her hair so close, smelling clean and irresistible, he began brushing it. She felt her body shudder and press closer to his. "What do you mean Sango?"
"When I was missing… when you thought I would never come back and you were worried about me… that's how I felt with you. When you were on that stone table and you passed out… I thought that was it. I thought they were going to kill you and I would never see you again."
His expression softened, as did his voice. "We both know that didn't happen though, Sango. I'm safe and sound. I'm a little bit tired, and I'm on a lot of painkillers," he joked, "but I'm alive, and that's what counts."
"I know! I know you are, Miroku-sama…" He heard her sniffle. Through his shirt he hadn't felt her tears. When she lifted her head he saw that she was crying again. Her voice shook as she spoke, wavering. "It's just that you mean so much to me that I don't want to ever lose you."
Miroku was staring at her. He didn't know what to say. Instead of something momentous he simply stated the obvious. "You're crying."
She nodded. "I know I am." She let go of him to dry her tears. "It's silly. Stupid human emotions. I'm not sad. I'm relieved. I'm happy. So if I'm happy, why am I crying?"
As he watched her, he slowly began to understand. She was crying because she was glad he was okay. The relief she felt was relief over him. She had even added on an honored suffix because she respected him. That last thought made him feel even warmer than the others did. Never had he felt more silly trying to romance a girl and sweep her off her feet than he did with Sango at that moment.
He placed a finger under her chin and tilted her face up to see him. "Sango… I think your tears are beautiful."
Miroku's silliness was rewarded with a blush that made her cheeks stand out. He was delighted to see that even the tips of her ears turned a slight shade of pink from his comment. His fingers became gentler as he stopped trying to make her blush and spoke from his heart. His eyes half-closed themselves as he gazed down at her, their blue hidden behind his long eyelashes. "I think you are beautiful, Sango."
"Stop." It caught him by surprise. Both eyes opened wildly again. She regretted her words, but they had been needed. "Miroku-sama… the adults are all preparing for war. If we do this… it will be in the middle of a war."
"So?"
"So! So they could use me against you! They could use you against me! We'll be making ourselves vulnerable! We…"
His face softened. He sat down on the bed with shaking knees. He could stand, but only for short periods of time. "Sango… they already have used us to get to each other. Dating you will not change that for better or for worse. Yes, it may make us more vulnerable. If something were to happen to you, I don't think any force in heaven or in hell could stop me from avenging you… yes, even humans are capable of that kind of force and anger, Sango. It's the human part within you that lets you unlock the strength in your demon heritage and become stronger and faster in times of need. But we'll have happiness too, Sango. We'll have movies in the theater. We'll have study parties. I'll cook you dinner. I'll get to see you more often in normal clothes. Maybe I might even get to see you naked," he laughed. Miroku played with his hair. "And the possibility of experiencing pain will be worth it… because it's you."
Sango nervously sat down beside him on the bed. "The question is… do I care enough about you to make that same choice?"
He gave her a moment to think and then he touched her hand. Her gaze rose up to meet his. "You wouldn't be here checking up on me if you hadn't already made that decision, Sango. Our partnership was over when the IBSP arrived and arrested the members of the circle. I won't get any visions anymore. I know I won't. They've summoned Shabranigdo. And my powers are weaker than before. They're back to what they were when I first met you. It seemed that Kagura was keeping me weak by giving me drugs to enhance my psychic ability rather than suppress it. With me trying to block out what powers I could because they scared me, the fear of the visions, the pain of the visions as well… I was blind to what they were feeling. I couldn't feel nervousness when they lied, leaving Kagura free to try and manipulate me into her corner. I'm nothing more than a normal human now with good intuition and a damn good shot with a gun. The question is… can you stand me like that?"
"Why wouldn't I?" she quickly answered.
Miroku smiled at her. It was a little sad. "We will see, Sango. We will see. That's all this is Sango: seeing. I care for you. I would die for you… let's be honest: I nearly did. You killed for me, I know it. I wouldn't be here now if you hadn't kicked Shabranigdo out of your body, and neither would you. The way that I like to think of it, your bloodlust saved us both. You're my friend Sango. I rely on you; sometimes I think I rely on you too much. But does that mean I want to marry you? Does that mean I want to live my life with you romantically? I don't know. If we knew the exact moment we met someone that they were perfect for us it would be a very boring world. There would be no trial and error, no adventure…
"But I do know that since I met you I've wanted to get to know you better. I want to see the real you. I want you to see the real me. Then… then we'll know, Sango. If we aren't… then I know another man who loves you, and I'll get to have another adventure. But if we are Sango… then I would happy. I'd be very happy."
She looked up at him hopefully. "It's just an experiment… No more other girls for you? No more flirting?"
He held up his right hand to swear. "I swear that I will have romantic interest in no girl other than you… but I can't promise that I won't occasionally think another girl has a hot ass or flirt to get a bit of extra gravy from the lunch ladies in the cafeteria." Sango was looking at him grumpily. "What? Can you promise that you won't look at Urahara and think he's attractive?"
"Yes! Yes, I… well… well… I don't know." She paused. "But it is just an experiment, right?" He nodded. Sango felt relived. She slid off the bed and offered him a hand up. "Come on, then. The IBSP is packing up and moving out. I'll help you pack up your room, seeing as how you don't have the best mobility right now, Miroku-sama."
He took it and smiled at her as he slipped his arm around her shoulders for support. "Sango… it's just Miroku still. Respect me some other way, and call me Miroku… you know… I think I have decided something though. Even though I know my last name now… I think I'm finally going to formally adopt Ferio's last name. He's the last one in his family, you know, like me. Let that damn line die out and hide, but let his live on, I say…" He grinned. "How soon do you think we can give them grandkids?"
"Miroku," she said warningly. But she laughed when she said it. The sound was crisp and clean. Her body was strong and hard, but soft in all the right places. He thought she was perfect. At that moment, as her body was flooded with happiness, Sango could find no fault with Miroku. He made things fun and unpredictable. He made her laugh and cry, and he was so honest with her sometimes it hurt.
The problem was this: as Sango laughed, her body remained as it was. She laughed as a seventeen year old in love laughed, though her body was several years older. She knew that one day her maturity level and her body would catch up. Miroku, as he watched her laugh, was already aging.
And somewhere, as she cut a hole between the worlds, Kikyou's mind was consumed with the two bodies she had let slip through her grip. If the IBSP was as ruthless as she they would slaughter Miroku in his sleep to ensure her soul could not pass into another body, but she knew they would not. She would have the last child in that damn familyline. And then, she would use him to get Sango.
She would make Sango bow down in submission. That body would be hers. With it and the powers it possessed, nothing would stop her.
To be continued in The Cruel Twists of Fate