Reflections
By
Elven Child
Disclaimer:
Why do people always ask for these? Who
here has actually been sued for posting a story on fan fiction.net? Come on it is pointless! As far as I am concerned, the characters
belong to themselves, their creators, and loyal fans everywhere. If this is not good enough for you then report
to the first chapter of this story and then seek psychiatric help for all our
sakes. *adds in small, squeaky voice*
Rumiko Takahachi is the real genius behind all the mayhem. I know I am a coward so please just read and
review while I hide under my bed praying the lawyers will not spot me. PLEASE anything but THAT!
"And I will stand for nurturing if I can
Symbol of my faith in who I am
But you are my only...
And I must follow on the road that lies ahead
And I won't let my heart control my head
But you are my only
And we don't say goodbye..."
Chapter 2:
Sango awoke to one of her greatest fears. The second Miroku had let out that
cry of pain she had been on her feet and by his side in what seemed like an
instant. Not quite comprehending at first,
she had opened her mouth to berate him for the rude awakening.
She stopped at about mid sentence though, finally taking notice of the crimson
liquid leaking through three gashes in his chest. Frantically she put pressure on the wound
with her hands, yelling all the while at Kagome to get the first aid kit.
The others had reacted immediately as well.
Inuyasha could be heard scaling the treetops looking for some sign of an
attack. Shippou was instantly on his
guard as well trying to search everywhere at once; not exactly sure, what he
was looking for or indeed what he would find.
Kagome really didn't need Sango's command. The second she had heard the noise coming from
the Houshi, she had started wrestling with her bag, trying in vain to unzip a
zipper that had been stuck since 3 days ago.
Finally, frustration brought her ripping the bag in half to get to the concealed
box inside. That done she ran to Sango's
side, laying out bandages and water to dress the injury.
As Kagome worked to stop the bleeding and treat the scratches with a special
salve to hold off infection, Sango wetted a damp piece of cloth and gently
placed it to Miroku's forehead.
He was already looking pale due to blood loss and the beads of precipitation
that formed showed just how much pain he was really in.
" He's not going to make it unless we
get back to the village," Inuyasha said bluntly although his eyes portrayed a
different emotion for his friend, one of worry.
"Then we leave as soon as everybody is packed," Sango snapped, it was more of a
command then a statement and nobody argued.
Once she had gotten her own things in place she called Kirara to transform once
again. The cat demon was just as weary as anyone else in the group was but she
complied without protest, once more turning into the greater saber beast that
was her truest form.
Inuyasha carefully lifted the monk off the ground noting that his breathing was
getting shallower and pulse growing faint. Though the slight groan was a good sign.
Sango got up behind him and put her arms around his chest to stabilize him so
he would not fall off. With a quick word
to her companions, Sango let the fire cat demon carry her off into the
direction of the small town ahead. Above
them, she could see Inuyasha and Kagome leaping from branch to branch with ease.
She looked down at the still limp form in her arms. "Houshi-sama, tell me, who did this to you and
how?" She was positive there had been no
one in the camp last night. She cursed
her arrogance at having absolutely no idea what was going on. "I should have listened more carefully to
your words, I...I am sorry."
Kirara went at her fastest pace for what seemed like hours before the forest
gave way to the familiar sounds of humanity. Without needing guidance, Kirara made a swift
turn down the busy street to old Kaede's infirmary.
As soon as she stopped Inuyasha, Kagome and Shippou calmly alighted next to
her. Kaede herself and some of the other
villagers were already making their way down from the raised huts. She took one look at Miroku and waved for
them to bring him inside quickly.
Inuyasha carried the monk into the tiny room where Kaede's assistants were
promptly readying a fire and some warm water for cleaning and bandaging. Following her directions he laid him down on
the makeshift pallet and drew back to join the others.
At the slight glare Kaede gave them they reluctantly took their leave. They knew that expression a bit to well. 'There is nothing you can do for him so scat
and let me work.'
Walking back into the streets of the rural countryside they decided to get
something to eat before heading back to check on their wounded comrade.
"So how exactly do you think he managed that one?" Kagome asked nervously over supper. "Hn, probably just slipped and fell on a
sharp rock, stupid monk." Inuyasha
replied kicking a stray pebble out of his way.
They knew this was not the case but try as they might they just could
not come up with a reasonable answer.
"Maybe the thing was invisible or something," Shippou tried. "But why Miroku for crying out loud!" Inuyasha snapped back. The kitsune cub gulped and did not say
another word.
Silence reigned at the table until Sango decided she had enough. "I am going to go outside and see if I can
find more fire wood," she lied and barely kept herself from wincing. She hated doing it, especially to those she
considered to be trustworthy friends.
All she got in response though was a few mumbled cautions about danger lurking
in the woods still. Everyone was too engaged
in trying to figure out a solution to the situation at hand to notice
anything.
Steeling her way back through the town's square she crept up into Miroku's room
through the window.
Why am I here? She thought to
herself confused, yet her feet had a mind of their own as she made her way to
his bedside. She knelt beside him and
carefully removed the washcloth on his head to dip it in the pot for more
moisture.
Slowly, ever so slowly, she reached up once again and carefully began to pat
his face softly, cleaning wherever she saw dirt or mud. Barely allowing herself to breath, lest he
wake up, she smoothed a few stray bangs from his face.
He looked much better to her relief. No
longer a ghostly pale his skin was now returning to its original peach
coloration. Almost as though he
returned from the dead, she thought to herself and shivered. She had seen death to many times in her life
to not know the effect it had on those it touched. Almost as if reading her thoughts Miroku let
a chill wrack his body.
She retrieved a blanket and put it over him. After a few minutes passed she felt underneath
to see if he had warmed up any. He had
not; in fact, it was as if there was no body warmth left inside him at all. Even the roaring fire was not managing to
help him. If he got any colder, he would
die. She helplessly tried to get him to
drink some hot liquid but to no avail.
He was too weak to swallow.
She felt heat rising to her checks as she realized what had to be done. She gulped and for a minute just stared at
him. When it registered how blue his
lips had turned and she heard his teeth chatter that is what decided her.
Slowly, looking at the monk with a mixture of distaste and anxiety, she lifted
the covers and slipped under them. Pulling
him close she sighed and swore to herself she would never live this down. "You had better not get any ideas Houshi-sama
or I swear I will..." she was not sure what she would do. Slapping was not enough, kicking was not enough;
tearing apart his hide in strips was not enough.
She froze as he instinctually pulled her closer. She looked at his innocent face fast asleep
and unaware of what he held. He was just
looking for the heat source after all. Sighing
she decided to worry about morals and ethics later. She had dreamed about this after all, hadn't
she? Of course not! She denied haughtily,, yet moved closer still
until his breathe mingled warmly with hers.
The setting sun was the only one who would ever know about this intimate moment
anyways.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Inuyasha and Kagome had decided to take a walk in the forest while Shippou
played with the younger inhabitants of the village. Well actually, it was more as Kagome did the
walking and pulling while Inuyasha dragged along, unable to break her grip for
fear of hurting her. Down they went
farther and farther in.
Neither of them really knew where they were going and in reality neither of
them cared. Past the small lake and over
the tiny streams they went finally deciding to stop at the Gods' Tree. Kagome took a seat under it and asked
Inuyasha to do the same, which resulted in a face fault on his part.
He looked up furious only to see Kagome blushing and looking very guilty indeed. She refused to look up when she offered him
an apology. His anger dissipated as he
hurriedly assured her it was all right and it was not her fault at all. She just stared at him as if he had grown
horns.
He felt the same heat creeping up his cheeks as it had Kagome's a minute ago. He just decided to sit down immediately before
he made an even bigger fool of himself.
Together they watched the last remaining piece of sun slowly sink in its field
of rainbows and clouds.
Kagome absolutely loved the sunsets in Feudal Japan. While the smoggy air in her era may have
enhanced the colors to near brilliance, here it all looked so pure. Steeling a glance at Inuyasha she thought, Absolutely
perfect.
The hanyou seemed memorized by the painting of twilight in front of him. Without really thinking about it he reached
out and gave Kagome's hand a light squeeze with his own, then continued to hold
onto her fingers tightly.
Kagome was a bit confused but did not protest. Actually, she was kind of enjoying herself and
she had not done that in a long time. Leaning
over she rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.
That got Inuyasha's attention. He looked
as though he was about to say something then changed his mind halfway as he
realized she had fallen asleep.
Stupid human, walking all the way out here only to make me carry her back,
he thought with content but that was not what his heart felt. That he was just being able to touch her, the
fact she trusted him enough to fall asleep next to him, gave him a sort of
fierce pride.
Carefully lifting the girl into his hold his heart went still as she stirred
and mumbled a few words. Then to his
utmost relief she went back to her dream world, leaving her protector the long
walk home. He wished it could last
forever, just her, him, and blissful silence for eternity.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's note: Did I manage to fit a cliffhanger in here? I am sorry, but I wonder what Miroku's
actions will be when he wakes up to find a beautiful woman, no other than Sango
with him. What about that dream? Well you will just have to wait for chapter 3. I sure do love my fluff though and I hope you
enjoyed it as well! (Final Draft)