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.:*:.Chapter 2.:*:.
"Inuyasha, Sango, Kirara, Shippou! We're back!" called out Kagome as she and Miroku walked into the doorway. Miroku's eyes quickly swept across the room. "Sango?" he asked, wondering where she could be. He gasped in surprise, as he focused in on one small, dark corner of the room. "Sango?" he repeated, making his way over to the balled up figure. As he knelt down beside her and put his hand on her shoulder, he realized she was shaking violently. "Sango! What happened here? Where's Inuyasha?!"
When Miroku said that name, he felt her tense up, and begin to shake even more fiercely than before. He pulled her into his arms and tried to comfort her. "Kagome, do you have a blanket?" Kagome automatically went over to her bed and pulled out the blanket from behind her pillow. She handed the blanket to Miroku, but as she was putting the pillow back in its proper place, she gasped. As he was wrapping the blanket around Sango, he answered, "What is it?"
It was his turn to gasp as well, as he saw the blood covering, drenching, the underside of the pillow. "What...What on earth happened here? Where are Shippou and Kirara at anyways? Sango, tell us what happened." Sango tried to wipe away the salty liquid that spilled down her face, but it wouldn't stop cascading down, soaking the blanket. "Thank... you... for coming back... In-Inuyas-sha...he..." She burst into another fit of tears, and could say nothing more for the rest of the night. After many warm murmurs and calm reassurances, she finally fell asleep in Miroku's arms. When she had finally calmed down, and gone to sleep, Miroku turned to Kagome, who was still in shock herself. "I wonder what happened here. Sango is a very valiant fighter. It would take quite an attack to make her...make her go into shock like that."
Kagome picked up the pillow again to turn it over and relieve them of the horrible sight. "I'm not sure what happened here. But Sango did say something about Inuyasha. Maybe Naraku attacked? And whose blood is this?" Miroku looked back down at the sleeping Sango. "I don't think it's her blood..." but then trailed off, as he saw the bandage wrapped around her torso, which he only just now noticed.
As he turned her over, he realized just how bad the wound was. As much as he hated to wake her, he gently shook to Sango awake so he could change her bandages. "I'm sorry to wake you, Sango, but I need to change your... err...bandages..." She slowly sat up, wincing as the pain in her stomach grew.
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After Sango's bandages had been changed, and they had all shared some of Kagome's food from her world, the group, excluding Inuyasha, Shippou, and Kirara, sat in a close circle as Sango reiterated that night's latest turn of events.
"Inuyasha -- he will return soon." she said in a low whisper. "Where did he go to?" asked Kagome. Sango looked at her momentarily, and then looked back down at her lap. "After you had left, Inuyasha came in here. He told me that he knew that I saw..." Miroku looked slightly confused, as did Kagome also. "What was it that you saw? Sango, you aren't making any sense."
"After... After the last battle, I saw Kikyo hand Inuyasha a bottle... a bottle with amber-red liquid inside. But it wasn't actually Kikyo. I felt Naraku's spirit energy, yet Inuyasha did not. After he told me that he knew I had seen him, I asked him about what was in the bottle. But he just evaded the question, and told me he would tell me later. I was feeling tired again, so I lay back down to go to sleep, when I felt someone grab my neck. I wouldn't have been able to get up if Kirara hadn't attacked him. When I was finally able to get up, I stepped outside to help Kirara, when... when I saw that Inuyasha... Inuyasha had turned into a full demon."
"A full demon?" questioned Kagome and Miroku simultaneously.
Miroku put his hand gently on her shoulder, and urged her to continue.
Sango nodded her head. "Then he stepped forward like he was going to attack me, like he didn't even know who I was. He slashed my abdomen, but Kirara pounced on him. We then engaged in battle. That was nothing like the hanyou Inuyasha was... That was much too fierce, even for Inuyasha..." Sango trailed off, as though she was reliving the battle in her mind. After a few grimaces, she shook her head to free her mind of the sight, and continued her narration. "He finally trapped me against a tree, and... I remember seeing his claws come down toward me, but... after that everything went black, and I ended up here... Thank you for bandaging my stomach Kagome-chan. But why did you leave again?"
Kagome eyes grew wide as she looked at Miroku. "Sango... We weren't the ones to bandage up your stomach the first time... It was already bandaged when we arrived here..."
Sango's expression grew just as troubled as Miroku and Kagome's were, "What? But someone carried me inside... I remember someone bandaging my wounds... then they left... and I fell asleep, and when I woke up, I heard some noise, so I moved to the corner for better protection and I was so scared... but then you came back... and... You mean that wasn't you the first time??"
Kagome silently shook her head no.
"Kagome...What if that wasn't really Inuyasha that attacked me... or even worse... what if it wasn't really Inuyasha who has been traveling with us?"
.:*:.~!!~.:*:.
"Who are you and what is your business here?!"
"What are you talking about? Are you three feeling okay?"
Inuyasha had arrived. And with his arrival came a barrage of questions.
"What do you mean who am I? I'm Inuyasha!"
"Then why would you attack me!?" asked Sango.
"Attack you? I haven't attacked you!"
"Where have you been all night then?" asked Miroku, putting his arm protectively around Sango.
"I've been out walking all night, monk. Where do you think I've been?"
"How'd you get that wound then, Inuyasha? If that even is your real name." This came from Kagome, referring to the bandage around his left arm.
"Of course that's my name! And I... I don't remember where I got it from..."
A puzzled expression made its way across Inuyasha's face, soon followed by more bewildered expressions from the others.
"Where are Kirara and Shippou?" Kagome looked behind Inuyasha but still couldn't see the two furry creatures.
"I don't know. I haven't seen them." He answered.
Silence fell over the group. Kagome and Sango stepped back, and pressed into the corner as Miroku stepped in front of them.
"Inuyasha, let us go outside and talk privately."
"Feh." Was the only reply that Miroku got from the hanyou.
.:*:.~!!~.:*:.
"Inuyasha, do you realize what happened tonight?"
Inuyasha gave Miroku a funny look. "I guess someone attacked Sango and she's delusional about it. Too bad for her... not my problem though..."
Miroku swiftly brought his staff down onto Inuyasha's head.
"I ask you not to speak of Lady Sango with such impudence again." requested the monk, with the most serious expression the pervert could muster up at that moment.
Inuyasha crossed his arms over his chest and muttered a 'whatever'.
Miroku sat down on the ground beside him; just as dawn was breaking, he began to explain to Inuyasha what had transpired in his absence, since he was obviously oblivious to the damaged he had caused.
Midway through the story, with lots of superfluous cursing from Inuyasha the whole time, Shippou appeared on the horizon. Within a minute or so, Shippou was in his customary place, perched on Miroku's shoulder.
"Where were you, Shippou? Where's Kirara at?" Shippou looked at Miroku blankly. "I don't know where I was. I don't remember; I just woke up in the middle of the woods. Kirara was there too. She's with Sango now." Miroku quickly murmured a single word under his breath: "Naraku." Miroku looked back at Inuyasha, and knew there was one question that would ultimately solve all others.
"Inuyasha... What was in the bottle?"
"Viagra..."
After Inuyasha had laughed hysterically for what must have been an extremely long time, judging from the unnatural bright red flush of his face, he finally managed to choke out, "It was just a joke, Miroku." Instead of following his instinct to whap Inuyasha a few times on the head, Miroku just let it go. Though he does have to wonder what that drug would do to increase his potency level... the possibilities were endless...
Before Miroku had a chance to think about what he was going to name his (and hopefully Sango's) future children, Inuyasha woke him up from his internal reverie by asking, "Seriously, what bottle are you talking about?" "The one Kikyo gave you..." answered Miroku hesitantly.
At the mention of that name, Inuyasha involuntarily blanched. "I haven't seen her for months... And she never gave me any bottle. The only bottles I know of are the ones Kagome brought back from her time." Miroku nodded his head. "That's just as I suspected." Inuyasha raised an eyebrow up. "What is it that you suspect, monk? Finally figure out that women don't like to be groped?" Miroku's eyes grew large. "They don't?!? But Mushin said..." Miroku shook his head, and he muttered a barely audible "Who would've known..." Inuyasha blinked. "So what was it that you suspected?" Miroku shook his head. "Later. Here comes Lady Kagome now." Inuyasha turned around. Sure enough she was making her way towards the trio. When she arrived, she stood behind Miroku, until he finally placated her fears by telling her that Inuyasha would not harm her. She apprehensively kneeled down on the ground next to Inuyasha. "Why did you attack Sango?"
Miroku spoke up and said, "It was not Inuyasha who attacked Sango. At least it was not this Inuyasha who attacked Sango." Kagome gave him a quizzical look. "I will explain my hypothesis tonight. Please go check on Lady Sango and Kirara, and change her bandages also. We will be back shortly." Kagome looked from Inuyasha back to Miroku. "Okay...?" she answered questioningly.
Miroku looked over his back to make sure Kagome, who was already half way over the hill, and fast disappearing into the horizon, was not still in hearing distance. "Inuyasha... There is one last question I have to ask of you..."
Lying back against the tree trunk, Inuyasha gave Miroku an uncertain look. What was he going to ask now? To make light of the situation he attempted to say one of those things that Kagome said her time called a 'joke'. He just called it degrading the corrupt monk. Inuyasha paused a moment to feign sincerity. "Look, Miroku, I already told you that I don't know if any more girls are around here or where they would be, okay? And no, I don't think Sango will actually let you grab her butt today-- not that you wait to ask anyways!" This witty reply earned Inuyasha another whap on the head. "Feh! What is it, Miroku?" Miroku paused for a moment to consider the correct way to word his last question.
"Inuyasha... do you like flowers?"
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