Random Acts of Love- Chapter 5: "Strength to Move On"
By Matoko Shizaki
Standard disclaimers apply. Plagiarism will not be tolerated. If you do it I will seriously kick your ass. Thank you. Rose Diego © Stay the Nite (a band with it's roots in my town of Walpole, MA).
Notes: Oh my god, that took so long. I'm really sorry for delaying! I got really bad writer's block… and I'm a tad lazy.
Hey, thanks to my fans that have been contacting me and asking for me to continue. I would never get anywhere without you guys!
By the way, anyone thinking of attending Anime Boston 2004? Look for me! I'm hoping to do Artists' Alley this year. THANKS FOR INSPIRING ME, NICK!!!!
BTW, THANKS FOR PUTTING UP WITH MY LAZINESS AND CRAPPY WRITING! I SUCK AT FLUFF!!!!!
@~@~@~@~@
"C'mon Miroku-sama! You can do it!" Hachi cried, waving his fan in the air wildly. Miroku clung to the post, sourly looking over at the tanuki.
"Hachi…" Miroku didn't need to say another word. His eyes threatened the shape shifter enough. But not enough to make him stop.
"If you can't even take a step Houshi-sama, you'll never see Sango again!" the tanuki said with a smile. Then an idea struck Hachi. He smiled evilly and added. "Which means you'll get no more sensual pleasure."
Up until this point Miroku had been pretty good at keeping his temper in check. But that was it… This baka of a tanuki had just crossed the line.
"HACHI!!!" Clumsily, like a baby just learning to walk, he crossed the courtyard to the tanuki with a death wish.
"Miroku-sama!! You did it!! You--!"
*SMACK!*
"Don't… ever… say that kind… of thing… again…" Miroku panted, rolling up his sleeves and baring his fists threateningly. Sourly he thought, 'That raccoon is lucky I don't have my staff…'
"But master! You walked!" Hachi managed to say with little co-operation from his swelling jaw.
Miroku froze. He had, hadn't he? He did it! With a beaming smile, Miroku collapsed back onto his knees.
"I… did it…"
From afar, Chihiro smiled as she watched her patient rejoice in his success. "Only one more month and he'll be gone…"
@~@~@~@~@
"Oh…" As Sango stood, she could feel the baby squirm in protest. Calmly, she pressed a hand to her bulge and felt the baby calm as well. She smiled.
"Just think Sango! Only two more months! You've going to have to start relaxing more." Kagome drawled on as she helped pull Sango pull down one of the futon blankets from the line where they were airing them out.
"I know! I can hardly wait!" Sango replied with a smile.
"Any idea of what to name the baby?"
"Hm… I haven't really given it any thought, true be told…" Sango put a hand to her stomach. 'Maybe…' With a faint smile, a good name came to her. 'Houshi.' The thought was replied with another joyous kick from the baby.
"Sango?" Kagome noticed how quiet Sango had become and looked over. The black haired maiden was frozen, unaware of the rest of the world. Her head was bowed and she was staring down at her swollen stomach, tears forming in her eyes.
"Sango, are you alright?" Kagome asked, taking hold of the ex-demon exterminator's shoulder.
"Yes, I'm fine." Sango said looking back up.
"You're thinking about him again, aren't you?"
Sango nodded softly, bobbing her black bangs.
"…" Kagome paused. She wasn't quite sure what to tell her friend. 'He's very proud of you.' 'I'm sure he misses you too wherever he is.' 'He wouldn't want you to be sad.' But she had told her all that too many times before. None of it helped.
And still, Sango continued to fight back tears. Giving up, Kagome put a shoulder around her pregnant friend's shoulder. Sango burst into tears, taking Kagome's comforting jester to mean, 'Let it all out.'
Tears ran down her face and, in shame, she cover her eyes with her hands and the sleeve of her kimono. 'Why can't I get over him?' was her first question but, quickly, her sorrow turned to anger. 'Why did this happen?! What did we do to deserve this!?'
She suddenly found herself voicing her thoughts aloud.
"Why did Miroku deserve to die?! What did he ever do…? What did I ever do?!"
Kagome, had it been another time, would have brought up all of Miroku's perverted… tendencies and… actions… but this was a time to be serious and the thought didn't even cross her mind. All she could do was remain silent.
More sobbing. It seemed to echo through the practically empty village, empty from heat and the mid day meal. It hurt Kagome at heart to hear Sango like this. Peace had come to land, but not to those who had protected it so well; and injustice Kagome couldn't stand.
'Why did such awful things happen to the best of people?'
Sango fell to her knees, Kagome going down with her, her friend's arm still reassuring on her shaking shoulders. Tears dripped rhythmically from her fingers and onto the dirty expanse of land. "Why… Why Kagome…?"
She got no reply, only a small hug from Kagome… and the sound of her friend's sniffling.
@~@~@~@~@
Months had become weeks; Weeks became days. Miroku counted them off as a daily ritual. Three days… that's what it was down to now… And each of these days before and after Hachi visited, bringing new of the outside world. And each time it was the same question:
"Any news of Sango?"
"No, Miroku-sama. I haven't seen hide nor hair of her!"
"Well… what about the others…?"
"Shippo has temporarily left the village. He's very grown up now it seems.
"And of Inu Yasha and Kagome?"
Hachi smiled wryly. "Married."
"M-married?!" Miroku was surprised he had actually been able to say that much.
Hachi nodded. "Although I haven't talk to any of them at all, things seem well."
"You haven't talked to them at all?!"
Hachi seemed to shrink. "No… Houshi-sama…"
Miroku sighed. They probably thought he was dead! Not that it would have mattered to Inu Yasha but…
"I've decided then. I've leaving… today…" Miroku stood, wobbled a little, and then steadied himself.
"But Miroku!" Hachi said in such a rushed manner that he forgot all formality. "You can't leave for another three days!!!!"
"Three days will make no difference…" Miroku mumbled, looking in the hallway to make sure Chihiro wasn't nearby.
"If you leave now you'll be there by nightfall! Traveling then is dangerous Miroku-sama!"
"I don't care Hachi…" Miroku strolled over, opened the door linking his room and the courtyard, and slipped on his sandals. Near the door was a sack, which Miroku tied around his shoulders. Finally, he picked up the basket hat Chihiro had lent him and his staff.
"Make some kind of distraction if you could Hachi." Miroku said, turning to smile at the tanuki. "The old woman is very observant."
Giving in, Hachi nodded.
"Oh and…" Miroku stepped out into the sunlight. "Send her my thanks as well."
Hachi watched blankly as Miroku strolled off. "Very well… the favors I do for you…" He looked over at a tree in the courtyard. "Here goes nothing…"
@~@~@~@~@
Miroku descended the stairs as quickly as he could, hoping that Hachi would creating a reasonable distraction. Even one of his famous panic fits would allow his enough time to escape without Chihiro's noticing. His sandals slapped at the stairs desperately as he hurried. Suddenly, there was a piercing shriek, that of none other than Hachi, and a sharp crack. Looking over his shoulder while running, he noticed what Hachi defined as a 'distraction'.
One of the tall trees around the shrine swayed before cracking against and tumbling to the ground, crushing several other trees in the process. It landed dangerously close to the shrine.
"Thank you Hachi…" Miroku muttered, hearing Chihiro's shouts and Hachi's yelps. He was finally going home…
@~@~@~@~@
Another cliffhanger!!! BWAHAHA!!! I'm sorry it took so long. The next chapter will be along really soon. At least I hope so…
By Matoko Shizaki
Standard disclaimers apply. Plagiarism will not be tolerated. If you do it I will seriously kick your ass. Thank you. Rose Diego © Stay the Nite (a band with it's roots in my town of Walpole, MA).
Notes: Oh my god, that took so long. I'm really sorry for delaying! I got really bad writer's block… and I'm a tad lazy.
Hey, thanks to my fans that have been contacting me and asking for me to continue. I would never get anywhere without you guys!
By the way, anyone thinking of attending Anime Boston 2004? Look for me! I'm hoping to do Artists' Alley this year. THANKS FOR INSPIRING ME, NICK!!!!
BTW, THANKS FOR PUTTING UP WITH MY LAZINESS AND CRAPPY WRITING! I SUCK AT FLUFF!!!!!
@~@~@~@~@
"C'mon Miroku-sama! You can do it!" Hachi cried, waving his fan in the air wildly. Miroku clung to the post, sourly looking over at the tanuki.
"Hachi…" Miroku didn't need to say another word. His eyes threatened the shape shifter enough. But not enough to make him stop.
"If you can't even take a step Houshi-sama, you'll never see Sango again!" the tanuki said with a smile. Then an idea struck Hachi. He smiled evilly and added. "Which means you'll get no more sensual pleasure."
Up until this point Miroku had been pretty good at keeping his temper in check. But that was it… This baka of a tanuki had just crossed the line.
"HACHI!!!" Clumsily, like a baby just learning to walk, he crossed the courtyard to the tanuki with a death wish.
"Miroku-sama!! You did it!! You--!"
*SMACK!*
"Don't… ever… say that kind… of thing… again…" Miroku panted, rolling up his sleeves and baring his fists threateningly. Sourly he thought, 'That raccoon is lucky I don't have my staff…'
"But master! You walked!" Hachi managed to say with little co-operation from his swelling jaw.
Miroku froze. He had, hadn't he? He did it! With a beaming smile, Miroku collapsed back onto his knees.
"I… did it…"
From afar, Chihiro smiled as she watched her patient rejoice in his success. "Only one more month and he'll be gone…"
@~@~@~@~@
"Oh…" As Sango stood, she could feel the baby squirm in protest. Calmly, she pressed a hand to her bulge and felt the baby calm as well. She smiled.
"Just think Sango! Only two more months! You've going to have to start relaxing more." Kagome drawled on as she helped pull Sango pull down one of the futon blankets from the line where they were airing them out.
"I know! I can hardly wait!" Sango replied with a smile.
"Any idea of what to name the baby?"
"Hm… I haven't really given it any thought, true be told…" Sango put a hand to her stomach. 'Maybe…' With a faint smile, a good name came to her. 'Houshi.' The thought was replied with another joyous kick from the baby.
"Sango?" Kagome noticed how quiet Sango had become and looked over. The black haired maiden was frozen, unaware of the rest of the world. Her head was bowed and she was staring down at her swollen stomach, tears forming in her eyes.
"Sango, are you alright?" Kagome asked, taking hold of the ex-demon exterminator's shoulder.
"Yes, I'm fine." Sango said looking back up.
"You're thinking about him again, aren't you?"
Sango nodded softly, bobbing her black bangs.
"…" Kagome paused. She wasn't quite sure what to tell her friend. 'He's very proud of you.' 'I'm sure he misses you too wherever he is.' 'He wouldn't want you to be sad.' But she had told her all that too many times before. None of it helped.
And still, Sango continued to fight back tears. Giving up, Kagome put a shoulder around her pregnant friend's shoulder. Sango burst into tears, taking Kagome's comforting jester to mean, 'Let it all out.'
Tears ran down her face and, in shame, she cover her eyes with her hands and the sleeve of her kimono. 'Why can't I get over him?' was her first question but, quickly, her sorrow turned to anger. 'Why did this happen?! What did we do to deserve this!?'
She suddenly found herself voicing her thoughts aloud.
"Why did Miroku deserve to die?! What did he ever do…? What did I ever do?!"
Kagome, had it been another time, would have brought up all of Miroku's perverted… tendencies and… actions… but this was a time to be serious and the thought didn't even cross her mind. All she could do was remain silent.
More sobbing. It seemed to echo through the practically empty village, empty from heat and the mid day meal. It hurt Kagome at heart to hear Sango like this. Peace had come to land, but not to those who had protected it so well; and injustice Kagome couldn't stand.
'Why did such awful things happen to the best of people?'
Sango fell to her knees, Kagome going down with her, her friend's arm still reassuring on her shaking shoulders. Tears dripped rhythmically from her fingers and onto the dirty expanse of land. "Why… Why Kagome…?"
She got no reply, only a small hug from Kagome… and the sound of her friend's sniffling.
@~@~@~@~@
Months had become weeks; Weeks became days. Miroku counted them off as a daily ritual. Three days… that's what it was down to now… And each of these days before and after Hachi visited, bringing new of the outside world. And each time it was the same question:
"Any news of Sango?"
"No, Miroku-sama. I haven't seen hide nor hair of her!"
"Well… what about the others…?"
"Shippo has temporarily left the village. He's very grown up now it seems.
"And of Inu Yasha and Kagome?"
Hachi smiled wryly. "Married."
"M-married?!" Miroku was surprised he had actually been able to say that much.
Hachi nodded. "Although I haven't talk to any of them at all, things seem well."
"You haven't talked to them at all?!"
Hachi seemed to shrink. "No… Houshi-sama…"
Miroku sighed. They probably thought he was dead! Not that it would have mattered to Inu Yasha but…
"I've decided then. I've leaving… today…" Miroku stood, wobbled a little, and then steadied himself.
"But Miroku!" Hachi said in such a rushed manner that he forgot all formality. "You can't leave for another three days!!!!"
"Three days will make no difference…" Miroku mumbled, looking in the hallway to make sure Chihiro wasn't nearby.
"If you leave now you'll be there by nightfall! Traveling then is dangerous Miroku-sama!"
"I don't care Hachi…" Miroku strolled over, opened the door linking his room and the courtyard, and slipped on his sandals. Near the door was a sack, which Miroku tied around his shoulders. Finally, he picked up the basket hat Chihiro had lent him and his staff.
"Make some kind of distraction if you could Hachi." Miroku said, turning to smile at the tanuki. "The old woman is very observant."
Giving in, Hachi nodded.
"Oh and…" Miroku stepped out into the sunlight. "Send her my thanks as well."
Hachi watched blankly as Miroku strolled off. "Very well… the favors I do for you…" He looked over at a tree in the courtyard. "Here goes nothing…"
@~@~@~@~@
Miroku descended the stairs as quickly as he could, hoping that Hachi would creating a reasonable distraction. Even one of his famous panic fits would allow his enough time to escape without Chihiro's noticing. His sandals slapped at the stairs desperately as he hurried. Suddenly, there was a piercing shriek, that of none other than Hachi, and a sharp crack. Looking over his shoulder while running, he noticed what Hachi defined as a 'distraction'.
One of the tall trees around the shrine swayed before cracking against and tumbling to the ground, crushing several other trees in the process. It landed dangerously close to the shrine.
"Thank you Hachi…" Miroku muttered, hearing Chihiro's shouts and Hachi's yelps. He was finally going home…
@~@~@~@~@
Another cliffhanger!!! BWAHAHA!!! I'm sorry it took so long. The next chapter will be along really soon. At least I hope so…