Author notes: I probably should have mentioned this before but I write really long chapters. Because of that I have decided to break them up into sections. This would be chapter one section two. So for those of you who are weighting for my explanation of Norse mythology that I plan to give in chapter four, chapter four may be a long way away. Also, FanFiction.net is being a pain in the ass when it comes to putting my story on the site (I'm suppose to weight 24 hours, that was three days ago). I don't really know how that is relevant however it's really discouraging for me "sigh".



"I sense an ominous cloud has appeared over this castle." Miroku said to the elderly lord. "I think that it would be best if I were allowed to stay here tonight in order to ward off the evil spirits." Here Miroku was again, giving his old routine. This time it was a medium sized castle complex nestled against an open bay. The castle itself was beautiful however it was the strategic waterway that had made its construction necessary in the first place. Only a few minutes walk away from the castle gates lay one of the busiest seaports in all of Japan.

"Evil spirits?" One of the lord's samurai said in fear. "I think we should take the monks advice."

"I agree." The lord said, then turning to Miroku he asked. "I will see to it that you receive a gracious welcome from the servants. Would you also like accommodations for your disciples?"

"Decibels!" Inuyasha roared, nearly bursting a lung.

"I'm so sorry!" The lord frantically apologized. "I shouldn't have assumed! I just didn't think that you were all his concubines."

"Concubines!" Kagome outraged.

"I'm s-s-sorry!" the lord stammered. "It was wrong of me to assume anything. I think it would be best if I just shut up."

"I think your evil sprit might have possessed the weak mind of this lord." Inuyasha silently commented to Miroku.

"I hope that this lord has given you two a good idea that you should both seriously consider." Miroku said to the girls.

In perfect unison Sango and Kagome spun around to look at Miroku and with fire in their eyes they delivered such a nasty duel punch as to knock him to the ground. "Pig!" Kagome screamed as she stormed off into the castle, leaving Sango standing over Miroku's body.

As Miroku began to recover from the mild concussion he looked up towards Sango. When Sango realized that Miroku was now aware of his surroundings she hawked up a giant wad and spit it at him. In his futile attempt to avoid the lougey Miroku banged his skull against the ground and as his head came up on the bounce Sango booted him in the temple. Satisfied that her temper had been eased she stormed off after Kagome.

"What I don't understand." Inuyasha pondered as he watched Miroku flutter in and out of conciseness. "Is how you're not dead after a boot to the head like that."

"That doesn't really matter right now. Them getting that angry can only mean one thing."

"And what could that be."

"They secretly liked the idea of being my concubines." Miroku smiled.

"Feh." Inuyasha groaned as he slowly turned to head into the castle complex in search of Kagome, secretly worried as to the potential logic of Miroku's ranting.

"I am so sorry if I got you in trouble with your lady friends." The castle lord apologized to Miroku. "Is there anything that I can do for you?"

"Yes actually. I would like a hot bath and some good tea to help relieve this splitting migraine I seem to have developed."

"Of course," The castle lord said. "I will have the servants prepare the bathhouse for you."

"Thank you."





Miroku uttered a sigh of relaxed as he dosed his soaked body with a clean towel. "I think that was just what I needed. I feel completely refreshed."

"Are you almost done in there Miroku?" Sango called from the other side of the door. The sound of Sango's voice struck softly in Miroku's ear and he gave a small smirk as his one-track mind instantly deviated to the deviant.

"I was planning on taking another bath but I'm sure I wouldn't mind if you would like to share the tub." Miroku smiled as he stepped into his robes before sliding open the shoji. "There's more than enough room in there for two," he grinned.

"I don't think so."

"Come on Sango," he whined. "We've barely gotten a chance to talk lately. This would be a good chance for us to catch up."

"You and I both know that you have absolutely no intention of talking."

"I promise, I will be a gentleman," Miroku sincerely spoke before he added a little extra that Sango couldn't quite hear under his intentionally mumbled breath.

"Fine, you win. I'm too exhausted to argue. I just want to take a bath and then get to sleep." Sango said as she pushed her way through the open shoji door. "Since you wanted to talk." She said as she threw off her outer kimono and started to undo her combat suit. "I want to apologize for hitting you earlier. I overreacted."

"Don't worry about it." Miroku managed to gain enough focus to say as he watched Sango slowly strip before him. One of his lecherous lines had actually worked on Sango, that never happened before. "I'm feeling much better now," he said, talking as much about how Sango's delicate body unwrapped before him as about his headache.

"Even so, there is no excuse for what I did." She softly said as she slowly pulled the combat suit down over her shoulders, casually and yet deliberately enticing. She didn't know why she was letting herself got so close to Miroku. She only knew that for some unknown reason he had never been more desirable, the moment had never before felt so right, and besides, if anyone ever asked, she figured she'd blame it on the saki. "Can you ever forgive me?" She passionately whispered into his ear.

"I am sure that I can be persuaded to forgive you." Miroku murmured in ecstasy as Sango lowered her suit to slowly reveal the bare curves of her chest. Caught up in the enticement of Sango's passion Miroku didn't notice when the worst thing he could have possibly said slipped out of the recesses of his mind and off his tongue. "Kagome overreacted also. Perhaps she two would like to be forgiven. It would be a tight squeeze but I am quite sure we could fit her in the bath as well."

"Get out!" Sango roared as she quickly pulled her suit back up over her shoulders.

"What, Why?" Miroku questioned, surprised and confused as to what had suddenly brought Sango out of their moment of lust.

"Get out!" she screamed again.

"Please, whatever it was I did to make you change your mind I apologize." Miroku said as a long stream of nervous sweat rushed down his brow. The strain of confusion and the fear of loosing his big chance now showing in his eyes.

"Get out!" Sango screamed as she reopened the shoji and shoved Miroku out of the room.

"Give me one more chance." Miroku begged as Sango slid the door shut in his face. "Please, just one more chance." He called out to her through the paper walls. In response to Miroku's cries the shoji slid open. "I'm so glad that you are going to give me a second chance." Miroku thanked as he looked into Sango's enraged eyes.

"And stay out!" she screamed as she threw his used towel in his face before closing the shoji shut again.

"No." Miroku sobbed as his knees gave out under the weight of his own stupidity and he gently crumbled to the floor. "I was so close."

"Why are you crying Miroku?" Shippo said as he suddenly appeared over Miroku's shoulder.

"I don't want to talk about it," he sobbed.

"You said you were close to getting something. If you don't tell me what it is than how am suppose to try and help you get it." Shippo asked, completely ignorant of what it was that Miroku wanted.

"I want to be left alone." Miroku whined.

"Fine then. I was only trying to help." Shippo complained as he turned and left.

Miroku watched Shippo disappear around a corner before he began to cry again. "I was so close," he sulked.

Realizing that he had told the castle lord he would perform an 'exorcism,' and thus had a job to do, he brushed aside the tears in his eyes with his sleeves and picked himself up off the floor. As Miroku turned his back to the closed shoji a massive tentacle crashed through the castle walls, shattering the bathhouse to pieces.