Chapter 35: Sleeping

I finally arrived at Sango's house.  I had asked Kagome and, apparently, Sango had not moved since I had left my home.  Praying that Sango hadn't changed anything, I carefully climbed up on the wet porch railing and grabbed the extra key from its hanging place in the porch roof  Hopping down, I unlocked Sango's front door and carefully picked her up.  I had had to call a cab, so I had placed her on the porch swing when I went to get the key.  Sango's house hadn't changed much, but I hadn't expected anything radical.  It had only been a year.  Looking around, I noticed that Sango had finally gotten the new paint job she had wanted, so now the walls were a light blue instead of white.  The TV had also been upgraded, but everything else was the same.  Shrugging, I carried Sango, bridal style, up to the bedrooms. 

I had never actually been up to the second floor of Sango's house.  I nudged the door in front of me, and found that it was a bathroom.  Ignoring my find, I kicked at the second door and found that it was a large, master bedroom.  It didn't look terribly lived in, but I placed Sango on the, almost, dusty bed and cracked my back.  She could rest on the bed until I could find her room.  Sango wasn't that heavy, but I certainly wasn't Superman. 

I walked across the hall to the three other doors.  The first door opened onto a closet and the second door was locked.  The third door, however, was Sango's room.

It was a light pink color and very organized.  There were a few pictures on the walls, mostly of flowers and animals, but there were two framed photos on the desk.  I looked closer at them and smiled faintly.  They were older pictures of Sango.  One of them was of her in a fancy dress, probably from her high school years and the other one was from when Sango was a child.  She was standing with a man and a woman, probably her parents.

I was about to go when I noticed that one of the frames had fallen over.  Lifting it up, I almost felt guilty.  It was a picture of Sango, Kohaku and me.  We were sitting in front of Sango's house, gasping for air.  It had been taken when Sango and Kohaku were moving in.  I had offered to help, after groping Sango, and had instantly regretted my offer.  I had worked all day and was exhausted by the end.

Shaking my head, I placed the picture back on the desk and went to get Sango.  She was still asleep, amazingly enough.  She didn't wake when I placed her on her bed and pulled her blankets over her still form.  I pushed some papers off a chair and began to wait.  I didn't want to go until Sango had woken up.  I wanted to make sure she was feeling all right.  Okay, so it was also a great excuse to spend time with her.

HEY!  Everyone is a pervert at heart.  I'm just more open about it!

I finally got up and grabbed a washcloth from Sango's linen closet  Wetting it down, I came back into Sango's room to find her stirring.

"Sango?"  I asked, as I folded the towel length-wise.

"Mmmm.  Miroku?"  Sango asked, opening her eyes.  "Where am I?"

"I took you home.  You were out for the entire fight."

"What?!  What happened?  What did I miss?"  Sango asked, as she tried to sit up.  I gently pushed her down and placed the wet cloth on her head.

"Be still.  You were out for a really long time.  You'll feel sick if you move to fast.  I really hate to say 'I told you so', but… I did.  You need to take it easy with that leg of yours."

"You avoided my question, did you know that?"

"Yes.  Uh, let me see.  What happened?  Well, we won."

"Really?  That's nice.  I suppose there'll be a treaty made."

"Yes.  Right now Sesshomaru is with the factions, devising a pact."

"Whatever happened to Shippo and that girl?"  Sango asked after a minute of silence. 

"Souten?  Well, no ones really sure.  Inuyasha sniffed around on our way back to the parking lot, but he didn't smell any death, except the scent on his clothes."

"Oh.  I see."  Sango nodded.  "So… everyone's all right then?"

"As far as I know."  I nodded.

I looked out the window and wondered how Kohaku was doing.  I had recognized Sango's brother when he had jumped onto the platform, but I had been shocked.  I, along with Sango, had assumed he was dead.  It is always a bit of a surprise when you think a person has been dead for over a year and they show up again, very much alive.  Zombies?  I think I could handle that.  At least they're still dead.  Resurrections are another matter.  And then I had to go through two in one hour.  It's a brain-warp.

"Kohaku."  I called, as he moved to help the younger wind demon with her sister.

"Genkaku."  Kohaku nodded, as he turned to look at me  Pulling my fist back, I punched the younger man in the face.  Falling to the ground, Kohaku clutched his face in amazement.  "What the hell?!"

"You son of a bitch!"  I spat as I towered over the boy menacingly.  "Do you think you can disappear for two years, let your sister think you're dead and then just show up again?  You hurt her a lot, you asshole!  She cried for weeks when you first disappeared!  Don't you care?  ANSWER ME!"

"Of course, I care!" Kohaku shouted back.  "I hate myself for hurting her!"

"Then why did you leave?!"

"Something came up.  It was better for her that I leave."

"Uh-huh."  I snorted, not buying his story.  "Well, aren't you going to at least show yourself to her, now that you're 'back from the dead'?"

"No.  Not now."

"You…"

"But I will!"  Kohaku interjected quickly.  "I will.  When I've done something for her to be proud of."

"Kohaku, she loves you."  I told the boy, feeling slightly less angry.

"I know.  But I don't exactly love myself."  Kohaku admitted as he finally stood up.  "You'll take care of her, right?"

"Of course.  Do you want me to… carry a message for you?"

"No.  Don't tell her I'm alive.  It's better for her to think I'm dead until I'm ready to face her."

"Sex with a dancing ferret is great."  I heard Sango sigh.

"Oh, is… WHAT?!"

"Oops.  You weren't spacing out."  Sango blushed.  "What's wrong?"

"Uh, nothing."  I shrugged.  "Well.  I'd better go."

"But… but why?"

"Well, you don't need me here anymore and it's a long trip back to my place, so you know…"

"You could… stay here."  Sango told me, blushing again.  "I… I wouldn't mind."

"No, I'd better go.  People might get the wrong impression."

"I don't care, Miroku.  I just… that bastard Naraku was killing people.  I though we were all going to die.  And when I saw you falling off that cliff… I got so scared.  I thought I wasn't going to be able to catch you.  Just… What I mean is…"

"I won't leave you, Sango."  I smiled, stopping her uncomfortable speech.  "I'll stay with you."

"Thank you."  Sango whispered, as she moved slightly.  Grabbing my shirt, Sango pulled my face down and quickly kissed me on the lips.  "Good night."

"Good night."  I whispered, as I sat in stunned amazement.

'And what a good night it is.'  I smirked slightly as I watched Sango go to sleep.