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Writing on the Wall

Chapter 21: Wet Blanket

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Miroku all but drags him down the shrine steps, and Inuyasha immediately regrets informing him of Kagome's boundaries. "Will you fucking stop already?!" he snaps, yanking his arm from his friend's death grip. He's pretty sure if the idiot had been grasping his arm instead of the fabric of his coveralls he'd be left with bruises to show for it. "I got thinset drying up there! If I have to chisel it out of the bucket because you –"

"Are you serious?!" Miroku hisses, glancing around. It's the middle of a weekday and the sidewalk is empty other than an old woman pushing a walker ten yards ahead of them. "That's what you're worried about?! Your house is infested with, with something, and you're worried about thinset?!"

Inuyasha grunts, irritated that he's got to deal with this now. "There's no infestation. It's just Kagome, and she's harmless." And, you know, something else in the well house, but Miroku really didn't need to know that.

Miroku throws his hands up, voice no longer quiet. "That you know of!"

"Well I'm still alive, aren't I?" he challenges. This is exactly why he hadn't said anything. Now he's caught up in an argument he doesn't want to have and wasting time. "Can you just drop it, already?"

Miroku, of course, does the exact opposite of dropping it. He leans in close, voice dropping. "Look, if you're worried about the money then we'll figure it out – okay?"

"Damn it, I'm not staying there because I'm worried about the money!"

His friend isn't listening, though. He's too busy hiding his mouth behind a hand, eyes darting around in a way Inuyasha recognizes as a sign that his brain's going a mile a minute. "Maybe you could auction it off? I mean there's some real weirdos out there that would probably buy it just for the novelty –"

"Stop," Inuyasha growls. What little patience he started with has completely worn thin. "Just stop."

"But –"

"No! No fucking buts!" He points up the flight of steps. "I got a fucking job to finish and I ain't going to waste time arguing!"

Miroku stares at him, deathly silent. When he finally speaks, Inuyasha finds himself wishing he had run back up the steps when he had the chance. "You... you like it."

Inuyasha recoils. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"That spirit! The one you've been talking to!"

"For the love of – Kagome's stuck there, alright? She can't fucking leave. It ain't like she's haunting me. She's just... there. So, yeah, I'm making the best of it, ok? Besides, she saved Shippo from falling off the roof, so as far as hauntings go, I could do a hell of a lot worse."

Miroku isn't impressed. In fact, if anything, he seems even more perturbed. "Have you even looked her up?! Have you done any research about who she says she is?"

"What the hell does it matter?" Inuyasha snaps defensively. "She's dead ain't she? What else would I need to know!?"

Obviously it's the wrong answer, because Miroku's hands are gripping his head as if it physically pains him. "God, you're an idiot!" He jabs a finger to his friend's chest. "If we were in a horror movie you would be the first one to die, do you realize that?"

Inuyasha slaps his hand away. "Well, it's not! Ok?! It's my fucking house and it's my fucking life!" Miroku probably has a response, sharp and waiting on his tongue – he always does – but Inuyasha doesn't stay to listen.

He's heard enough as it is.


AN: I hope this chapter finds you safe and healthy, dear readers. To all of you out there working, whether it be medical or retail, thank you for all that you've done and all that you're doing. Take care, my friends.

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