Chapter 1:
"Ready?" calls out Sango from the opposite of the building from me. I can just barely hear her over the sound of murmuring surrounding us from the crowd that has grown to watch us. We've come to this village by accident; but once we've among the village we started hearing rumors of a demon residing underneath the house that I am now kneeling in front of. Before me is a bamboo pot with an incent standing inside, with a nasty smelling smoke rising from the lit stick. I've been fanning the smoke into the crevice underneath the house for a few minutes now and nothing has happened except for the sound of scurrying coming from underneath the house. "Lure it this way!"
Which way? Leaning forward a little, I try to hear the sound of the movement in the crevice to pinpoint where the demon could be. There is a sound to the right, so I focus on waving the smoke in that direction to lead it to the back of the hut.
Unsure if I am doing the job properly, I glance around for reassurance but there isn't any. Behind me Inuyasha huddles on the ground with his arm and red shirt covering his face from the smoke. He looks dizzy and nauseated, like at any moment he might barf and collapse. Shippo stands next to him, his wide eyes full of surprise as he watches the half demon in his weakness.
Around us, the crowd grows. Humans watch us with hope in their eyes that we'd get rid of their demon problem, but some are watching Inuyasha. Hovering feet away as they question each other. "Is he a demon that has felled by the smoke?" One man asks.
"Inuyasha just has a very sensitive nose." Shippo answers the man.
Miroku comes out from the crowd and stands on my left side, crossing his arms as he eyes both the smoke and the crowd. He must have come from the other side of the hut since I haven't seen him much until now.
Out from the crevice of the house, a loud roar can be heard. The sound of running and scraping follows, and then it silences. Suddenly, there is an earsplitting squeak before it quietens again.
"It's okay now, Keara," Sango calls from her side of the house. I place the fan down to my right and take the incense out from the bamboo pot and put it out in the dirt next to it. This should help Inuyasha now that the incense has been put out, but it might take a bit before he can recover fully.
There is a bunch of "ohs," and "ahs," coming from the crowd, but after a few minutes the crowd disperses as the excitement has ended. They instead round the house to the other side where Sango is, probably to inspect this dead or dying demon that Sango has eliminated.
Picking up the pot, I stand up and walk over to Inuyasha. Shifting the pot into my right arm, I gently rub Inuyasha's back in hopes to soothe him. "Miroku, can you help Inuyasha to the inn?" I ask. But when there is no response, I look over my shoulder at the monk to notice him staring at a beautiful woman who's holding a pink sheet over her head. She smiles at him, walking off into the distancing crowd.
Rolling my eyes, I repeat, "Miroku? Can you help Inuyasha?"
The monk finally breaks free from the woman's hold, smiles and nods over to me.
The two story inn is on the border of the village. For freeing the village of the demon rat that has been haunting them, we've gained the freedom to rest, eat and sleep as for the next few days. We eagerly accepted this deal. Sleeping outside on the dirt has become hard on the body; sleeping inside, on a thin mattress is something we'd fight a demon for.
A half an hour later; Inuyasha is still on the tatami floor where Miroku has left him, huddled beside me as I carefully pat his back. He's not as queasy looking as he was before, but it hasn't fully gone away. He hasn't moved a millimeter but quiet groans can be heard coming from the half demon. I frown at his distress.
The moment Inuyasha was placed down, Miroku disappeared. I didn't ask questions, figuring he must be chasing around the girl from the crowd.
Sango comes in dressed in her casual clothes with the Hiraikotsu in her right hand against her back. "Where is Miroku?" She asks.
"He followed after some strange woman," Shippo answers before I can, "She was really beautiful, he probably gave her the line about having his first-born child." It's miraculous that we can hear him, since there is a fried rice ball stuffed in his mouth.
"What? Have his child!" Sango exclaims in utter shock.
Blinding in confusion, I look up at her fully. Has she not received Miroku's typical introduction line to every woman he runs into? "Yeah, he asks about every girl he sees that."
"Oh?" Her head snaps back in surprise, but then there is a slight sadness behind her eyes.
By night time, Miroku has returned and we were served our meals of bowls of rice and meat soup. I sip at my soup as I watch Sango eye Miroku with an infuriating glare, earning a look of puzzlement from the monk. Miroku lifts a hand to his mouth and whispers something to Inuyasha who's at his left side.
Inuyasha's eyes narrow, "well, I dunno. Maybe it's from all the womanizing. What do you expect, Miroku? She thinks you're a philandering creep." Inuyasha says out loud.
I smirk. Sango has been stiff and irritated ever since we mentioned Miroku's perverseness, but it has escalated since he's returned.
"I've been misunderstood. You may not believe what I'm going to tell you, but…"
"Spare us the lies!" Sango snaps, glaring at him now from the corner of her eyes as she eats a chopstick full of rice.
"You could at least give me a chance to explain myself!" Miroku exclaims.
"I said there is no need," Sango hisses. She slams down her bowl of rice and chopsticks. She stands up swiftly and without another word she storms out of the room, down the hall to the bedrooms. I glimpse at Miroku and Inuyasha from the corner of my eyes. But either of them say anything.
After finishing up my soul and rice, I join Sango in the bedroom. Sango and I have a separate room from the boys, but Shippo still sleeps in the same room as us. Sango is already in bed, eyes closed with Kirara cuddled against her stomach. Learning about emotions, along with anger, I can't imagine being able to fall asleep so easily. From what I've experience of it all; from the red outlining and the adrenaline pumping, I wouldn't be able to rest. The heat, the rush, the boiling pit in my stomach. But Sango has managed.
The sun has just barely made it over the horizon when we notice Miroku is missing. We gather in the main hall of the inn and walk outside to the porch together. The village is already bustling with people at work. Some people fish in the large stream that snakes through the village, while others carry baskets of food, such as rice, wheat, fruits and vegetables.
An old man walks by with a basket in hand, he looks up at us with a smile that falters when he sees Inuyasha and Shippo.
Inuyasha places both hands on his hips and eyes the old man, "Hey, have you seen a monk leave this inn?"
The old man pauses all movement, his eyes wander upwards to the sky as he thinks to himself. He finally nods after a few seconds, "Yes, yes, he left before dawn." He says with a crooked voice.
So, he isn't too far away. This absence is strange for Miroku. He has never shown any signs of up and running away since we all decided to join together. So why now?
"He went out before dawn? You sure?" Inuyasha probes, leaning forward to make sure the old man can hear him.
"Yes, the monk said he was going on a long journey and he asked me to wish you well."
Instinctively I reach for the sacred jewel that dangles from my neck and sigh in relief when I feel the half sphere against my flesh. At least he didn't try to run off with the jewel like he did the first time we met.
Inuyasha stands up straight and glowers at the sky, "Stupid Miroku, running off and doing things on his own!"
When he didn't return by the next day, we are all at a loss on what to do. I look over the stream that crosses the center of the village, my forearms resting on the small wooden gate of the porch. I'm just outside of the bedroom where Sango sits in the center of the room with Kirara and Shippo not to far behind her.
"I wonder why Miroku took off on us yesterday?" Sango questions. She's been asking this question since yesterday morning and I haven't had any idea of what to say to her. We are all curious and unsure.
"Maybe it's because you shot him such dirty looks!" Shippo bluntly says.
The sliding door behind Shippo opens, and in comes Inuyasha. "Don't try to tell me that we hurt his feelings. He's not exactly sensitive." He says, having obviously heard what Shippo had said.
A tiny fleck of a dot hops on Inuyasha's right shoulder, I have to squint my eyes just to see the outline of Myoga the Flea. "Well, master Inuyasha…" The nasally voice can just barely be heard.
"Myoga, you're back?" Inuyasha raises a thick black brow.
"Yes, I returned late last night. And when I came in, I noticed the monk was acting strangely." Myoga waves all four of his hands in the air as he talks.
"What's that?"
"He kept staring at his right hand, the one with the wind tunnel, and he seemed very deep in thought. He didn't say what was bothering him." Myoga says.
Turning on my heels, I lean against the fence with my butt and cross my arms. "We should go find him," I suggest.
"So how do you expect us to go and find him? Just leave him! Finding the sacred jewel shards is more important now." Inuyasha turns his head towards me but doesn't look at me when he speaks. It's like he's looking pass me.
Sighing, I push myself into a standing position and shake my head at his passiveness. Inuyasha could probably smell his way to Miroku; but I can't force him to do it. My eyes linger down Inuyasha's face to the black beaded and fang necklace that encircles his neck. Only Kagome can control Inuyasha. A frown creases my cheeks as I remember the day she said his submissive word, truly connecting them in a way I can't with Inuyasha.
A part of me, somewhere deep inside the pit of my chest, hurts. There is a longing that I can't describe that I worry about. All these emotions are so new to me that I can't pinpoint the source of why they are happening to begin with. Suddenly, I don't feel so hot. I feel heavy and weak, and another sigh leaves my lips.
"You okay, Keara?" Inuyasha asks. This time he's looking at me; and his eyes look as if they are worried.
Not wanting to cause any more problems with Miroku being amiss, I pull a smile on my lips and nod, "Yeah."
We've been walking along the same dirt path for what seems like hours. The sun shines directly down at us through the leafy canopies of the trees. Noon. None of us spoke about Miroku since this morning. Sango stopped asking her questions and Inuyasha stopped grumbling about his disappearance. But I still feel out of place. Looking up at the canopy of the trees, the warmth of the sun heats up my cheeks and warms my insides. Regardless of how I feel, it is still so peaceful in this time period that I often forget that I don't belong here.
I never belonged in the present either. Was never accepted by a family for more than a few months to a year. Never accepted by my school colleagues. Never accepted of myself because I couldn't feel. Only when I came here, during the past, have I felt even remotely at home. Gaining friends and pieces of my soul back.
There is a soft buzzing that pulls me out from my thoughts, and its coming from up above in the tree tops. Everyone else notices the sound as well, alerting Inuyasha and Sango into a battling position just in case it's an enemy. The sound gets louder and familiar.
"It sounds like…" I start; the sound brings back memories of Naraku and his evil wasp insects that are gigantic in size.
The Saimyosho.
Inuyasha's right hand rests on the handle of his Tetsusaiga. He leans down a little, his left foot stepping back. He's ready for an attack. I look over my shoulder at Midoriko's sword and wonder if I should pull it out of its sheathe. But before I can do anything, I hear the subtle sound of Tetsusaiga slicing through what sounds like wood. When I look back, I notice Inuyasha has cut a tree in half, and while it collapses to the ground out pops a Saimyosho from its tree top.
Sango thrusts her heavy boomerang at the insect that now attempts to escape, and it collides with the wasp's wings, cutting them midair as it comes tumbling back down to earth. Right before it hits the ground, a new pair of wings sprout from its back and it continues to flee the area by flying up into the sky.
When Sango's boomerang returns to her, she readies to throw it again.
"Wait!" Inuyasha calls out, without needing to look at the demon slayer, "If he's using them to spy on us, something must be happening with Miroku. Let's follow it!"
We trail the poisonous insect for what seems like miles; starting at noon and now it's dark with no sun over the horizon. We keep behind trees to be out of sight as we linger behind.
Off in the sky is a horde of black clouds hovering towards the wasp; the sound of buzzing gets louder and louder, and the closer the cloud gets, the more I realize it's not a cloud at all, but a swarm pf Saimyosho. Out from the middle of it flies Hachi, in his giant orange blob form. He bursts from the crowd of insects with his large wide eyes filling up with tears as he screams.
"Help me!"
There is not a second that passes before Hachi slams into the ground of the cliff that we're not too far from.
Before he can be swarmed again, we rush out from out hiding spots and for Hachi. Inuyasha is first to arrive, shouting "Iron reaver soul stealer!" With his claws sharpened and out, he slashes through the horde of wasps like butter; eliminating a good amount of insects. The rest flee the scene, retreating towards the sky where the bright full moon shines down upon us.
Hachi climbs up the cliff and looks at us with teary eyes, "We have to go! We have to help Miroku!" He cries. Without saying another word, he pops into his massive form that hovers inches from the ground, "Get on!"
Looking at one another, we nod in silent agreement. We start to make our ascent up his body. Sango and I struggle, having nothing to grip onto while we try to make our climb up his orange form. Coming up from behind me, Inuyasha grabs my waist and lifts me up onto Hachi's back, sending hot shivers down my spine.
He does the same for Sango before leaping in front of us onto Hachi's head.
We're off the moment Inuyasha lands. My hands rest on Hachi's rounded back with nothing to grip to keep on. Taking a deep breath, I glance down at the ground that is far from us. My heart speeds up in my chest, and I straighten myself back out. At least on Inuyasha's back I can grab onto his shoulders or hair for support, but not even clenching my thighs tightly makes me comfortable with not falling off.
"Miroku is in danger! I knew it!" Inuyasha says.
"Yes, and he doesn't have the use of his wind tunnel! His hand was injured in battle. The sides of it got nicked when he tried to suck in a giant mantis. He went to the high monk, Mushin, to get it fixed. Mushin said if he used his wind tunnel before it healed, it would spread and kill him. There's Mushin's temple!"
I dare to look down once again. Below are brightly lit orbs that shimmer not far ahead of us, surrounding a decent sized temple that stands on a hilly surface. The closer we come the more the orbs take on the shapes of demons; many, many demons. Hachi shakes beneath me in fear, causing me to grip my thighs against his body even more so. Inuyasha slowly takes a stand, balancing perfectly on Hachi's head, even as the raccoon dog starts to dive down slightly towards the coming crowd of demons.
"Go Through them, Hachi!" Inuyasha demands.
And as Hachi does as he is told, the crowd of demons come rushing at us. Inches from hitting us, Inuyasha unsheathes his sword and cuts through the demons with ease. "Get outta the way! I ain't gonna waste my time!" Inuyasha shouts. He slashes back and forth at the incoming demon, forcing me to duck as demon parts come ricocheting from the Tetsusaiga. As the crowd comes to a near end, they disperse off from the sides and turn back towards the temple. They rush down for their next victim, whom from where I can see, is Miroku.
The monk sits with his legs crossed on the ground wearing a white kimono. He looks defenseless and unaware of the demons that are coming. Inuyasha leaps from Hachi's head and slices up the demons that come feet away from attacking Miroku. He lands on a hill not far from Miroku. Shippo does the same, leaping from Hachi's back without fear and landing on Inuyasha's head.
Hachi lowers close to the ground, popping back into his regular form, forcing Sango and I to land on our feet a meter away from Miroku. The sound of shuffling can be heard next to me, and my heart skips a beat as I lift my palm to blast any enemy that comes my way but pause when I see it is Sango. She pushes through a bush and disappears behind the foliage for what I am assuming is to get dressed into her demon slaying outfit.
Shippo hops off Inuyasha's head and into Miroku's arms, balling his eyes out.
"Why did you leave us without saying anything?" He cries.
The sound of rustling comes from the bushes Sango went off behind and when I look back, she's already dressed in her demon slaying garb, and on the back of Kirara whose taken on her large form. It was the quickest dress I have ever experienced, but then again, her demon slaying garbs are underneath her casual wear. All she has to do is slip out of her skirt and shirt.
"Have you been injured?" Sango calls out.
"I will punish anyone who dares to disturb my temple." The voice comes from an elderly man who approaches us from the temple behind me. He's thick in the belly, with a balding head and reddish nose. Large praying beads are wrapped around his left arm, and there is some kind of pot dangling on the right side of his back.
This must be Mushin, the monk Hachi mentioned.
From the corner of my eyes I see Inuyasha turn towards Mushin with Tetsusaiga resting on his right shoulder still in its transformed shape.
"Very interesting! Fight me, if you can!" Inuyasha swings Tetsusaiga to his right side, the sword shimmers in the moonlight.
"Keara, can you help me?" Miroku crooks. He sits up slowly, his body weak and in pain as it shivers with every movement. Without needing to say more, I come to his side, grab his right arm and wrap it around my neck. My left arm snakes around his waist and I put most of his weight onto my side. A groan escapes my lips when I realize how heavy he is but it doesn't stop me from walking up the short hill to watch Inuyasha and Mushin.
"Inuyasha, P-please, I beg you, don't kill him!" Miroku barely says above a whisper, but I know the half demon can hear him.
"That's a very good boy, Miroku. I raised you well, didn't I?" Mushin slurs. The closer I come, the more I realize how drunk the elderly monk looks. But there is something out of place about it. Though his nose is red, and his eyes are hazy, half closed, and barely looking straight at us – something is wrong.
"Who really cares if you raised him! It's over, you old drunk!" Inuyasha shouts. He leans forward, with both hands now on Tetsusaiga's hilt.
The old monk grabs a hold of the praying beads with his left hand, and slings it at Inuyasha. The purple beads swing around Tetsusaiha's blade with blue little lightning bolts shocking off in different directions from the sword and beads. Before our eyes, Tetsusaiga is forced back into its non-transformed self; still wrapped in the beads that weigh it down.
"The Tetsusaiga's been transformed back!" Miroku says as loud as he can, which even at my side, isn't very loud.
But the beads start to quiver and move, hovering off the sword and then circling Inuyasha before he can make his move. They glow bright blue before enclosing fully around Inuyasha's body, forcing him to drop Tetsusaiga on the ground.
Above us comes a newly formed horde of demons, the sound of growling and cackling fills the air as they fly down for Inuyasha.
Inuyasha struggles underneath the praying beads, but is able to release an arm just in time for him to Iron Reaver Soul Stealer; the demons split into pieces and collide with the ground.
"My, my, aren't we lively." Mushin raises two fingers up in the air, and just as he does, the lightning from the beads explode all over Inuyasha's body. The half demon yells in pain.
"What's going on!" Inuyasha shouts.
"I have bound you with my sutra magic, so I'm surprised you can still move. But you won't last long, I promise you." As Mushin speaks, a long gray smoke comes out from his mouth taking the shape of a hand at the very end as it elongates farther and farther, wrapping around the old monk.
My eyes narrow to inspect it but before I can get a good look at it, the smoke disperses.
"Demon worms!" Myoga calls out. My eyes follow the sound of his voice to my left shoulder where the small flea demon stands with narrowed eyes. "Yes, the monk has been possessed by a demon worm charmer."
A demon worm charmer? I've never heard of such a thing.
"Can't he be saved?" Miroku asks, shifting to look up at Myoga. When he does, I have to grip harder around his waist since his weight moves along with him.
"There must be a charmer close by who's manipulating him. We need to steal his worm bottle and place it towards the monk. Then the demon worm will leave the monk's body." Myoga adds.
"So, we need to find this charmer," I gently rest Miroku down on the ground where he sits on his knees.
"Be careful Keara." Miroku mutters.
Climbing the rest of the way up the hill, I make my way to the temple. Myoga holds onto my white top with all his might as I start to pick up speed. Before I can start to run, Kirara is at my right side with Sango on her back. Sango climbs off Kirara and approaches me, forcing me to stop altogether.
"What's going on? There seems to be no end to the demons." I must have not noticed, but Sango must have been out killing the hordes of demons to lighten our load.
Shippo cries out, "Keara, look up!"
I follow his tiny hand that points up on the roof of the temple where an ugly gray creature sits. He's wearing a blue long sleeved top and brown baggy pants, and is holding a thin spouted pot in his hands. His large orange amphibian looking eyes watches us from above. Maybe I can hit him with a blast? I lift my right hand towards the ugly creature, focusing purely on the energy surfacing to my arm. A purple glow surrounds me, but encircles my right hand. Releasing the energy gathered up in my palm, the purple blast just barely misses the creature by centimeters, as he shifts to his left side to avoid it.
"Shit." I curse.
"Don't worry, I got this!" Sango bursts towards the temple, Kirara following close behind.
"Damn it! I'm starting to feel weak!" Inuyasha says.
He's not too far up ahead of me. I begin to run for him, but something explodes above me, sending a wave of wind pushing me down to my knees. When I look up I see the explosion is that of a newly, larger horde of demons that are heading this way.
"Soon you won't have any power left to fight with at all, so you'd better decide your fate. Do you want to be devoured alive or shall I be more benevolent and chop off your head first?" Mushin asks.
"Don't get your hopes up, you stinkin' monk!" Inuyasha leaps, eliminating the space between the monk and himself. He grabs the monk by the throat, surprising the monk whose eyes widen in shock. "Now die!" He lifts his right hand up, cracks his fingers and readies to slice the monk into pieces.
"Wait! Think about it. I'm the only one who can repair Miroku's wind tunnel! If his hand is left as it is, all of you will be sucked inside of it by this time tomorrow." Mushin says.
Inuyasha growls, releasing the monk and leaping back, but it is not a safe distance. The beads electrify once again, sending Inuyasha down to his knees.
"Either way, everyone in this temple will die soon!" Mushin threatens.
And he's right, looking up I can see the demons are far closer than before. I tug out Midoriko's sword from the sheath on my back and swing it down to my right beside me. Behind me I can hear Miroku shift in the grass with a loud groan. I look over my shoulder to see Miroku tugging on the praying beads around his right hand.
"Master! The poison wore off! You can move! Eh! The wind tunnel?" Hachi comes over to Miroku side, his eyes full of fright.
"Hachi, prepare yourself."
"Miroku no…" Bu before the rest of my words can come out of my mouth. He releases his hand, the flap of cloth revealing the wind tunnel underneath. The demons are sucked towards him.
Miroku stands up to better control the direction of his wind tunnel but he shakes under its power. "Hachi, brace me!" He calls out. I can just barely hear him over the wind of the tunnel as it starts to suck in the horde of demons. Hachi does as he is commanded. He grips Miroku's waist and braces the both of them to the ground, slowing the sway of Miroku's shaking.
"He'll suck in everything around him, including the sacred jewel!" Mushin expresses by widening his eyes as he watches Miroku.
When I glance to Inuyasha, I notice he's shaking as well. His muscles on his neck and face tense up and not another second later, the beads around Inuyasha burst from his strength and blast off in random directions. He plunges forward, pulling his right fist back before throwing it across Mushin's face. "Give it a rest!"
Mushin is kocked unconscious from this attack, and he falls back onto the grass below.
Behind me I can hear Miroku's wind tunnel quiet, and a groan coming from Miroku, I look back just in time to see Inuyasha leap to his aid before he'd fall off the hill he was standing on top of.
"Damn it! If you try to use that wind tunnel again, I'll tear your stupid arm off!" Inuyasha threatens, as he pulls Miroku up the hill with a single arm until the monk is sitting next to Hachi at the top. The demons above us in the sky start to reform another horde, quickening their speed as they rush down for us.
Inuyasha transforms Tetsusaiga back into its stronger form and pulls the sword back next to his right side. "I don't care if you die or not. But you're not going to do it while I'm around, you got that! I won't be accused of abandoning you. I don't want no guilt trip!" He swings the Tetsusaiga forward and toward the demons up ahead of him, releasing his powerful wind scar attack, annihilating majority, if not all of the horde of demons that were coming for us.
"He blew up the demons!" I hear Shippo cry out.
"They were destroyed!" Hachi says behind me.
My eyes burn a bit from the sight of the brilliant shade the wind scar releases when it's in use. Pulling my head to the side to block out the light just a little. Bits and pieces of demon rain down on us from all over. Side stepping back and forth, I try to avoid the mess that comes down, droplets of blood kisses my cheeks. I wipe the blood away with the sleeve of my white shirt, staining the fabric.
From the corner of my eyes I spot the demon worm charmer leap off from the roof of the temple and up into the sky. His form shades to black when he faces the moon.
"Oh no you don't!" Sango cries out as she thrusts her hiraikotsu at the charmer. The boomerang cuts right through the demon like butter, halving him apart. Something falls from his grip and heads for the ground. I can't tell what it is, but Shippo races by me to catch it. The item lands perfectly in the little demon's arms and I am able to see it's the jug that we need to cure Mushin.
"Come on, Shippo, take it to Mushin!" I call out. We reach the unconscious old monk, and the little demon lifts the jug up to the old monk's mouth. A smoke rises from his mouth, dances and twists in the air, before shooting into the jug.
"Look at that," I deeply sigh, "Looks like he will be fine now."
A yawn escapes my lips, and I have to shade my eyes with my left arm from the morning sun. We've been waiting since the end of the fight for Miroku to be healed, sitting out on the porch as the two monks are inside going through whatever it is they need to do to heal Miroku. To my left, Sango sits with Shippo and Kirara at both her sides; she looks agitated and impatient. To my right, Inuyasha rests with his arms and legs crossed and his eyes closed. I know he's not sleeping, but he looks peaceful non the less.
"He's taking so long," Shippo mumbles. He glances at the door of the temple; at which we sit near.
All I know about the treatment, is that Mushin has to stitch the wound somehow, but I can't imagine how without exposing the wind tunnel. Frowning, I try not to think about it, and rest my head on my hands whose elbows rest on my crossed legs. Just as I am getting comfortable, the sound of the main door slides open, and Mushin's voice comes out from the other side.
"Fool. He should be more careful."
"How's Miroku?" asks Sango, the agitation on her face disappears in seconds.
"He's sleeping," Mushin nods, his red nose brilliant as he holds a jug of alcohol in his right hand. His eyes look half dazed, and I wonder how safe it was to have him operating on Miroku. "You, there, Inuyasha. Come with me."
While Mushin guides Inuyasha to an empty room, Sango and I get up and head for the room Miroku is in. When we open the door we see him lying on a thin white mattress on the floor with a white blanket on top of him. Hachi is already in the room, sitting on his left side near his feet.
"He sure puts up a strong front. How does he manage to stay so lighthearted?" Sango asks. She comes to his left side and sits near his head. Slowly, I sit on my knees on his right side and let out a little sigh. I don't know how to answer her because being new to emotions myself, I am not sure why people express or do certain things.
Miroku opens his eyes, alerting us all.
"You're awake. Mushin stitched up the wind tunnel for you." Sango leans forward as she speaks.
Miroku's eyes widen in shock, lifting his right hand and looking over its covered palm.
"What's wrong with your hand?" Shippo asks, approaching my left side as he walks up to Miroku. But that's when I notice Sango's face; her eyes wide and a blush covering the entirety of her visage. Miroku's left hand has snuck around Sango's back, and I can only assume he's caressing her ass. The demon slayer growls, and slams her right hand into his head.
Miroku groans in pain but a wide smile rests on his face. At least we know he hasn't changed.
