Well minna, in a few short hours I'll be on a bus to Guadalajara.... with o
internet, so I'm gonna go ahead and post chapter 2 already, I promise the
first chance I get I'll post chap 3, anywho thank you for the reviews and I
don't blame most of you for thinking I wasn't coming back. -_-' anywho as
some of you pointed out there is no big difference in this one, just itty
bitty stuff. Blah blah, let's get to it ne?
~~ My Hana ~~
It seemed like an eternity before they finally made it to the thermal waters. It was completely dark now and Shippou hand fallen asleep on Inu- Yasha's shoulder. They decided to let the little kitsune sleep for the night as everyone else left behind their equipment at a reasonably good campsite getting ready to bathe.
The warm lake, was divided by boulders in three sections, the girls obviously took the furthest from the campsite.
"Don't wait up for us if we take too long ne?" Kagome winked at the boys
"And don't go wandering around 'inspecting the grounds'..." warned Sango eyeing Miroku.
He was however removing the knot from his violet cloth seemingly elsewhere. His eyes were gazing at nothing in particular as he loosened his robes. This without a doubt left Sango with a look of surprise on her face. She actually couldn't help but tilt her head and stare at the Houshi for a while. It wasn't until he felt everyone's gaze on him that he snapped out of his small trance and looked up to Sango.
"What is it?" he asked calmly
Sango eyed him cautiously "Nandemonai...." she said heading off the springs along with a smiling Kagome.
The girls calmly entered the small pool of water letting its warm temperature relax the tired muscles of their bodies. They relaxed for a few minutes before proceeding to wash off their filthy clothes. Once finished they found two comfortable rocks to sit on and just sat in silence for a while before Sango began a casual conversation.
"Houshi-sama was acting odd ne?"
Kagome turned to her friend "Hai."
"He seemed distracted... Why do you suppose?"
She hid a smile "I haven't the slightest idea."
A drowsy silence invaded the pond before Kagome had to ask.
"So Sango. You've known Shinosuke for year's ne?"
"Aa."
"And so." she didn't know how to ask the next question without seeming nosy.
"He was my first love."
She looked a little surprised at her friend to find her smiling softly gazing up at the starry night sky. Well that was easier than she thought.
"Hontou ne?" Kagome asked ready for the details
"I met Shinosuke when I was five, and I hated him." She began
~~
"Ah!" she yelled crashing into the sand. Above her stood a boy brushing his nose looking down mockingly at her.
"Too bad shorty, better luck next time." He chuckled
Red in the face she recovered quickly and pushed her face against his, having to look up of course. "I will kill you one day!"
"No you won't." he smiled
"I will so! I swear one day I'll cut you up with your own weapon!"
"Nop..."
"Yes I will!"
"No you won't."
"Will to!"
"Sango!"
An adult's voice interrupted their little debate. Recognizing her father Sango picked up her new but heavy weapon and ran up the hill to the village. Not before turning back and sourly sticking her tongue out at the show off.
~
"What is it?" she said staring at the weird animal.
Her aunt chuckled and uncovered the tiny thing in her arms. "He's not an animal Sango-chan..." she raised an eye brow "This is your baby brother. Kohaku."
"Kohaku..." she whispered leaning over to see it better. "Why doesn't it open his eyes?"
"He's sleeping. Would you like to hold him?"
Before Sango could object the small warm lump was being placed into her arms. She stared at it for the longest time before her father came out from the room behind them.
"Miyo." She signaled for her aunt
She got up and both talked about something very serious Sango couldn't hear. Instead she headed to where her father had just come from, to find her mother still laying down over the futon. It wasn't like her to stay in bed for so long.
"Hana..." her mother called seeing her daughter. "Come." She smiled warmly.
Always loving it when her mother hugged her she crouched against the bed letting her mothers arms come around her. She couldn't hug her back at the moment as she was busy with her little brother.
"My two treasures..." her mother whispered into her hair.
She was hot, and hugging them very tight. Letting them go at last, Sango looked to her mother's face. Her stomach jumped when she saw tears running into her hair. She didn't know why her mother was crying, but she knew it was because of something bad.
"Okaa-san..."
Putting on a smile, her mother stroked very gently the worried little face of her daughter.
"You are too young to have such expressions Hana... cheer up, everything will be fine."
Not too convinced she looked at the woman on the futon. Red in the face but with cold hands. Something was wrong, something didn't feel right, and it scared her.
"You're all right... ne kaa-san?" she asked
Her mother gave her another one of those heart breaking smiles and stroked her hair.
"Kohaku will need you Hana; you have to take good care of him and your father. Remember I will always be looking to you."
"Okaa-san...?" Sango asked getting scared. Her mother took her into her chest and hugged her uncomfortably tight taking in a deep breath.
"Do not wilt before your time my little flower..."
~~
If Sango would known she would never hug her mother again, she would have tried to take in everything she was with that hug. When her father called for her she didn't know her mother would never look her way again, despite what she said. She would never kiss her gently on the cheek, or take her hand in the village. Never again encourage her with Hiraikotsu, never hug her the way only she could and hear the soft thump against her chest, never finish teaching her about the plants and animals or come to this place, their field, to collect flowers for tou-san. Never to laugh or sigh or smile or cry. Never again.
"Hey shorty, didn't show up for your daily defeat. What's the matter finally gave up?"
She didn't realize there was somebody here, that he had said anything offensive, or that she had been collecting many flowers that were now in her lap. And she realized tears were streaming down her cheeks only when she saw his expression.
Giving a small gasp the boy she hated rushed over to her bombarding her with questions she couldn't hear.
"What's wrong?! Are you all right? Are you hurt? Do you need help? Who did this?"
Looking down to the flowers in her lap she took the biggest one gently with both hands. "Kaa-san loved flowers... I was hers." She said thinking it was important that he know this.
~~~
"He looked at me with sad eyes I guess debating on what to do." Continued Sango back from her own past
"All he did was sit silently beside me. I was just about to ask him to leave when he took me by surprise, doing something a boy had never done to me. He hugged me. I went stiff but he didn't let go, actually, he pulled me into his lap. I was shocked at first and blushing like mad. And then he said that." Sango smiled bitterly.
"If he had just kept quiet I would have been able to knock him silly and complain about his weird attitude. But he beat me too it." She smiled at her friend
Kagome looked up to Sango cautiously "What did he say?"
Sango looked down at the ripples her body created in the water before continuing "I bet she still loves you. No one could not love you, or forget you."
Kagome gave small gasp taking her hands to her chest "He said that to you?" she asked unable to hold in her smile
Sango nodded sheepishly "Not great with his grammar but, at that moment I forgot I was supposed to hate him. After the shock of what he had said and done wore off I decided it wasn't that bad being where I was, or being cared for by kid I wanted to kill a few days back. So I let out what I had to, all over poor Shino. The sun set and Tou-san called me back home. I ran off without saying anything."
Kagome listened intently with a few tears building in her eyes; God knows she was the most sentimental person in Japan.
"We never mentioned that day afterwards. The next day he came to my house, and gave me a white flower from the field. And he said." Sango paused, as a nostalgic smile crept onto her face " 'Here Jou-chan. to make your life more pretty.'" she chuckled "Then he ran off like the coward he was, and I was left redder than a ripe tomato in complete shock. It was the first time he called me Jou-chan, and the first time he was 'nice' to me. After that day I guess you could say I crossed 'the thin line'. But I actually didn't figure it out until a couple years later. I never told him of course, but I was pretty obvious. And as we grew up, so did our relationship, he still taunted me and what not, but father's training gave good results. The day I beat him was the best day of my life, I still remember his expression when my katana came down to his throat." She smiled
"I was starting to think he would be the man I would marry someday. That's when I realized I loved him. When I was fifteen I had made up my mind to tell him, I would tell him and hope he said it back. I was almost certain he loved me too." she paused to swallow the lump in her throat "I could have almost sworn..."
Kagome looked at her friend and at the forced smile on her lips before she continued.
"On the way to his house I met up with him in the street, I asked if he had a second and he nodded. I had everything all planned out. I would take him to the field behind the fort and give him back the white flower I owed him from nine years back, and then I would confess. On our way we spoke of many things, mostly memories. Finally out of the fort I asked him to sit beside me. With my hands behind my back I plucked out a flower secretly, and took a big breath ready for whatever came out. It was then that he looked up to me and spoke before anything happened... He told me about Yumi."
"Yumi?" asked Kagome
"The girl he was going to marry." finished Sango.
Kagome made a small noise at the back of her throat at her friend's words.
"He told me he thought he was falling in love with her. He described his feelings for her and was scared of what might happen. We had both met Yumi about two months back, when Kenji-san found her injured in the woods. When the elders in the village discovered she was an orphan they decided to take her in with her consent. She gladly agreed. Tou-san told me to take care of her and befriend her as we were not a normal village. I went to see her almost everyday taking care of her wounds. And Shinosuke would come along some times... but I never imagined he..." she gave a small sigh before continuing
"So I stood there with my heart in a million pieces listening to how he would propose to her. Smiling through the pain and congratulating him. He smiled down at me one last time and gave me a hug. I still don't really know why, he just held me in his arms for a while, and pulled away when I didn't hug him back. If I had held him the way I wanted to, I would have probably started to cry, so I didn't." she shrugged
"I did nothing, but give him a fake smile and wish him luck. So I watched the love of my life for ten years leave the field where it all started, when he was out of sight I took the flower I had cut for him and crushed it in my fist.... The worst thing about it was. I really liked Yumi, she was always so kind to me, and I couldn't hate her for taking him from me. She really did deserve him more than I did. She wasn't an exterminator, but a kind, feminine girl... Everyone in the village found out of course. Everyone knew how I felt about him. Except him, they all talked about how cruel he was, but I never blamed him. Because I never told him. I let them get married and wished him a happy life."
"I'm so sorry Sango." said Kagome not knowing what else to say. As her friend finished her story
Sango shook her head "It's in the past."
Kagome tilted her head looking at the sad eyes of her friend "Is it really...?"
~~~
Miroku sat crossed armed in the warm waters of the pond just staring at the ripples. What the hell was wrong with him? Shinosuke's appearance wasn't anything special, why was he getting so worked up over nothing. He was a very calm and cool person; never over reacting or doing anything irrational. So why couldn't he push this horrible feeling aside? He was acting oddly and he knew it, so he had to stop it before people started saying things.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Inu-Yasha's voice interrupted
Miroku's eye brow twitched, so much for the shake-it-off-before-anyone-says- anything plan.
"You've been acting weird all afternoon, it's getting annoying."
"Thank you for your preoccupation Inu-Yasha but I'm fine..."
Inu-Yasha humped before his lips curled up into a sneer "You're jealous aren't ya?"
Again Miroku's brow twitched involuntarily "Among other things...yes."
Anything Inu-Yasha was expecting wasn't close to this. He uncrossed his arms and stared at the monk with wide eyes "You are??"
Miroku let out a deep sigh not bothering to answer the hanyou, if those dog ears were good for something, it was hearing. He didn't know why Inu-Yasha was so surprised. It wasn't as if everyone was a stubborn ass who wouldn't admit or voice his feelings no matter how much they gushed out. He was honest and accepted the truth, unlike others. He was just about to voice out this very thought when movement from the bushes attracted both their attention. Both men looked up at Shinosuke as he entered the water.
Miroku's eyes widened and he tried not to stare too much, but Inu-Yasha being his usual blunt self just spat it out.
"What the hell is that on your back?"
Miroku sighed with a mix of frustration and embarrassment. 'That', seemed to be a shapeless black scar about as big as his hand on Shinosuke's lower back. Now Miroku was an honest man but he was also taught when to be prudent.
"Inu-Yasha." Warned Miroku, not the first or last time Inu-Yasha would say something dumb
Shinosuke smiled "Don't worry about it; I know having a youkai planted on your back isn't exactly normal. Both men tensed up at his words. "Oh don't worry, I'm in perfect control of myself, this isn't the kind that seeks domination over a body."
"A youkai?" asked Miroku glancing down at his back again
"What kind is it then?" asked Inu-Yasha a bit uneasily
"It's a parasite" said Shinosuke settling into the water calmly "It finds a host to feed off, does so until they die, and then looks for another one."
"You're the host?" asked Inu-Yasha
Shinosuke nodded giving a half hearted smile.
"But then you..."
"According to the size of this thing I probably don't have more than a week left."
"What?" called out Miroku immediately thinking of Sango's reaction to this.
The monk who had been listening intently now turned serious and looked over at Shinosuke.
"Why haven't you had an exorcism?" asked Miroku.
Shinosuke started rubbing his arms and shoulders clean from the goo. "Once this demon is inside of you, it becomes a part of you, so much that if it's pulled out you die. The only way it can be removed is if the parasite leaves voluntarily, but to do so it needs another healthy host, and not many exorcists are willing to make that sacrifice. I've been told you can expel it yourself it, but you need special training for that. That's one of the reasons I've been traveling, trying to find someone who knows how to get rid of it, or at least anyone willing to teach me. Apparently though, it's a very ancient technique, no one seems to know how to do it anymore. So I pretty much have accepted my destiny, after all it's not as if I had a reason to stay."
The men looked solemnly at the man sitting in front of them. Miroku, understood him in a very realistic way, but this man knew he had less than a week to live, Miroku couldn't tell you with certainty, and as Moushin used to say, ignorance was bliss.
"Why do you say you have nothing to live for? Sango cares for you." Miroku said to his own displeasure
"I didn't know she was still a part of my life. Still in my condition there isn't much I can do anymore... so I plan to leave before anything happens, that way she will leave me saying, see you next time, instead of a final goodbye. She will think I simply continued my journey. I don't think it's necessary to put her through that kind of pain. She has lost too many loved ones already."
"You're not going to tell her?" asked Miroku
"No." he said seriously "And I would appreciate it if you two also kept this to yourselves. Please."
Nobody said anything for a while until the girls appeared behind a boulder.
"You guys still aren't finished? Geez and you say girls take forever." Said Kagome taking her things back to camp. Sango gave them all a pleasant smile before following her. After Kagome disappeared behind a line of trees Inu- Yasha turned back to find both men staring at Sango. With his usual bored face, he raised an eyebrow. Well at least Shinosuke didn't have it for Kagome; Miroku would have to worry about this one.
"They're right. I'm done already, and I have no interest in becoming a 'Human raisin' as Kagome says." Said Inu-Yasha getting out of the warm lake.
Miroku raised an eyebrow. "Inu-Yasha." he warned. The mentioned stopped in his tracks and turned.
"Don't shake."
The Hanyou scowled and left for his towel with his normal 'Feh!' Shinosuke smiled at Inu-Yasha then turned to Miroku.
"I will leave peacefully knowing that Jou-chan is well taken care of and well loved. I know you will not let anything happen to her."
"She is a strong woman." Answered the monk
"Yes, but she is still just a woman..."
Miroku looked at the man before him, choosing not to say anything. Shinosuke was wrong, she was so much more than just a woman... she was his woman. Common sense kicked in seconds after his small daydream. His woman? His brows furrowed, he was beginning to sound like Kouga now...
~~*~~
There was more to this chapter but I kinda had to cut it off cuz it would have been ridiculously too long. Anywho I'll be back when I can and, for the people who didn't already know Hana is flower in jap... I noticed by the spell check I use a lot of jap, maybe I should put up a translation sheet... it's been requested before...
What do you think minna? Let me know in your review! Ohohoho!
¬¬' *cough cough*
~~ My Hana ~~
It seemed like an eternity before they finally made it to the thermal waters. It was completely dark now and Shippou hand fallen asleep on Inu- Yasha's shoulder. They decided to let the little kitsune sleep for the night as everyone else left behind their equipment at a reasonably good campsite getting ready to bathe.
The warm lake, was divided by boulders in three sections, the girls obviously took the furthest from the campsite.
"Don't wait up for us if we take too long ne?" Kagome winked at the boys
"And don't go wandering around 'inspecting the grounds'..." warned Sango eyeing Miroku.
He was however removing the knot from his violet cloth seemingly elsewhere. His eyes were gazing at nothing in particular as he loosened his robes. This without a doubt left Sango with a look of surprise on her face. She actually couldn't help but tilt her head and stare at the Houshi for a while. It wasn't until he felt everyone's gaze on him that he snapped out of his small trance and looked up to Sango.
"What is it?" he asked calmly
Sango eyed him cautiously "Nandemonai...." she said heading off the springs along with a smiling Kagome.
The girls calmly entered the small pool of water letting its warm temperature relax the tired muscles of their bodies. They relaxed for a few minutes before proceeding to wash off their filthy clothes. Once finished they found two comfortable rocks to sit on and just sat in silence for a while before Sango began a casual conversation.
"Houshi-sama was acting odd ne?"
Kagome turned to her friend "Hai."
"He seemed distracted... Why do you suppose?"
She hid a smile "I haven't the slightest idea."
A drowsy silence invaded the pond before Kagome had to ask.
"So Sango. You've known Shinosuke for year's ne?"
"Aa."
"And so." she didn't know how to ask the next question without seeming nosy.
"He was my first love."
She looked a little surprised at her friend to find her smiling softly gazing up at the starry night sky. Well that was easier than she thought.
"Hontou ne?" Kagome asked ready for the details
"I met Shinosuke when I was five, and I hated him." She began
~~
"Ah!" she yelled crashing into the sand. Above her stood a boy brushing his nose looking down mockingly at her.
"Too bad shorty, better luck next time." He chuckled
Red in the face she recovered quickly and pushed her face against his, having to look up of course. "I will kill you one day!"
"No you won't." he smiled
"I will so! I swear one day I'll cut you up with your own weapon!"
"Nop..."
"Yes I will!"
"No you won't."
"Will to!"
"Sango!"
An adult's voice interrupted their little debate. Recognizing her father Sango picked up her new but heavy weapon and ran up the hill to the village. Not before turning back and sourly sticking her tongue out at the show off.
~
"What is it?" she said staring at the weird animal.
Her aunt chuckled and uncovered the tiny thing in her arms. "He's not an animal Sango-chan..." she raised an eye brow "This is your baby brother. Kohaku."
"Kohaku..." she whispered leaning over to see it better. "Why doesn't it open his eyes?"
"He's sleeping. Would you like to hold him?"
Before Sango could object the small warm lump was being placed into her arms. She stared at it for the longest time before her father came out from the room behind them.
"Miyo." She signaled for her aunt
She got up and both talked about something very serious Sango couldn't hear. Instead she headed to where her father had just come from, to find her mother still laying down over the futon. It wasn't like her to stay in bed for so long.
"Hana..." her mother called seeing her daughter. "Come." She smiled warmly.
Always loving it when her mother hugged her she crouched against the bed letting her mothers arms come around her. She couldn't hug her back at the moment as she was busy with her little brother.
"My two treasures..." her mother whispered into her hair.
She was hot, and hugging them very tight. Letting them go at last, Sango looked to her mother's face. Her stomach jumped when she saw tears running into her hair. She didn't know why her mother was crying, but she knew it was because of something bad.
"Okaa-san..."
Putting on a smile, her mother stroked very gently the worried little face of her daughter.
"You are too young to have such expressions Hana... cheer up, everything will be fine."
Not too convinced she looked at the woman on the futon. Red in the face but with cold hands. Something was wrong, something didn't feel right, and it scared her.
"You're all right... ne kaa-san?" she asked
Her mother gave her another one of those heart breaking smiles and stroked her hair.
"Kohaku will need you Hana; you have to take good care of him and your father. Remember I will always be looking to you."
"Okaa-san...?" Sango asked getting scared. Her mother took her into her chest and hugged her uncomfortably tight taking in a deep breath.
"Do not wilt before your time my little flower..."
~~
If Sango would known she would never hug her mother again, she would have tried to take in everything she was with that hug. When her father called for her she didn't know her mother would never look her way again, despite what she said. She would never kiss her gently on the cheek, or take her hand in the village. Never again encourage her with Hiraikotsu, never hug her the way only she could and hear the soft thump against her chest, never finish teaching her about the plants and animals or come to this place, their field, to collect flowers for tou-san. Never to laugh or sigh or smile or cry. Never again.
"Hey shorty, didn't show up for your daily defeat. What's the matter finally gave up?"
She didn't realize there was somebody here, that he had said anything offensive, or that she had been collecting many flowers that were now in her lap. And she realized tears were streaming down her cheeks only when she saw his expression.
Giving a small gasp the boy she hated rushed over to her bombarding her with questions she couldn't hear.
"What's wrong?! Are you all right? Are you hurt? Do you need help? Who did this?"
Looking down to the flowers in her lap she took the biggest one gently with both hands. "Kaa-san loved flowers... I was hers." She said thinking it was important that he know this.
~~~
"He looked at me with sad eyes I guess debating on what to do." Continued Sango back from her own past
"All he did was sit silently beside me. I was just about to ask him to leave when he took me by surprise, doing something a boy had never done to me. He hugged me. I went stiff but he didn't let go, actually, he pulled me into his lap. I was shocked at first and blushing like mad. And then he said that." Sango smiled bitterly.
"If he had just kept quiet I would have been able to knock him silly and complain about his weird attitude. But he beat me too it." She smiled at her friend
Kagome looked up to Sango cautiously "What did he say?"
Sango looked down at the ripples her body created in the water before continuing "I bet she still loves you. No one could not love you, or forget you."
Kagome gave small gasp taking her hands to her chest "He said that to you?" she asked unable to hold in her smile
Sango nodded sheepishly "Not great with his grammar but, at that moment I forgot I was supposed to hate him. After the shock of what he had said and done wore off I decided it wasn't that bad being where I was, or being cared for by kid I wanted to kill a few days back. So I let out what I had to, all over poor Shino. The sun set and Tou-san called me back home. I ran off without saying anything."
Kagome listened intently with a few tears building in her eyes; God knows she was the most sentimental person in Japan.
"We never mentioned that day afterwards. The next day he came to my house, and gave me a white flower from the field. And he said." Sango paused, as a nostalgic smile crept onto her face " 'Here Jou-chan. to make your life more pretty.'" she chuckled "Then he ran off like the coward he was, and I was left redder than a ripe tomato in complete shock. It was the first time he called me Jou-chan, and the first time he was 'nice' to me. After that day I guess you could say I crossed 'the thin line'. But I actually didn't figure it out until a couple years later. I never told him of course, but I was pretty obvious. And as we grew up, so did our relationship, he still taunted me and what not, but father's training gave good results. The day I beat him was the best day of my life, I still remember his expression when my katana came down to his throat." She smiled
"I was starting to think he would be the man I would marry someday. That's when I realized I loved him. When I was fifteen I had made up my mind to tell him, I would tell him and hope he said it back. I was almost certain he loved me too." she paused to swallow the lump in her throat "I could have almost sworn..."
Kagome looked at her friend and at the forced smile on her lips before she continued.
"On the way to his house I met up with him in the street, I asked if he had a second and he nodded. I had everything all planned out. I would take him to the field behind the fort and give him back the white flower I owed him from nine years back, and then I would confess. On our way we spoke of many things, mostly memories. Finally out of the fort I asked him to sit beside me. With my hands behind my back I plucked out a flower secretly, and took a big breath ready for whatever came out. It was then that he looked up to me and spoke before anything happened... He told me about Yumi."
"Yumi?" asked Kagome
"The girl he was going to marry." finished Sango.
Kagome made a small noise at the back of her throat at her friend's words.
"He told me he thought he was falling in love with her. He described his feelings for her and was scared of what might happen. We had both met Yumi about two months back, when Kenji-san found her injured in the woods. When the elders in the village discovered she was an orphan they decided to take her in with her consent. She gladly agreed. Tou-san told me to take care of her and befriend her as we were not a normal village. I went to see her almost everyday taking care of her wounds. And Shinosuke would come along some times... but I never imagined he..." she gave a small sigh before continuing
"So I stood there with my heart in a million pieces listening to how he would propose to her. Smiling through the pain and congratulating him. He smiled down at me one last time and gave me a hug. I still don't really know why, he just held me in his arms for a while, and pulled away when I didn't hug him back. If I had held him the way I wanted to, I would have probably started to cry, so I didn't." she shrugged
"I did nothing, but give him a fake smile and wish him luck. So I watched the love of my life for ten years leave the field where it all started, when he was out of sight I took the flower I had cut for him and crushed it in my fist.... The worst thing about it was. I really liked Yumi, she was always so kind to me, and I couldn't hate her for taking him from me. She really did deserve him more than I did. She wasn't an exterminator, but a kind, feminine girl... Everyone in the village found out of course. Everyone knew how I felt about him. Except him, they all talked about how cruel he was, but I never blamed him. Because I never told him. I let them get married and wished him a happy life."
"I'm so sorry Sango." said Kagome not knowing what else to say. As her friend finished her story
Sango shook her head "It's in the past."
Kagome tilted her head looking at the sad eyes of her friend "Is it really...?"
~~~
Miroku sat crossed armed in the warm waters of the pond just staring at the ripples. What the hell was wrong with him? Shinosuke's appearance wasn't anything special, why was he getting so worked up over nothing. He was a very calm and cool person; never over reacting or doing anything irrational. So why couldn't he push this horrible feeling aside? He was acting oddly and he knew it, so he had to stop it before people started saying things.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Inu-Yasha's voice interrupted
Miroku's eye brow twitched, so much for the shake-it-off-before-anyone-says- anything plan.
"You've been acting weird all afternoon, it's getting annoying."
"Thank you for your preoccupation Inu-Yasha but I'm fine..."
Inu-Yasha humped before his lips curled up into a sneer "You're jealous aren't ya?"
Again Miroku's brow twitched involuntarily "Among other things...yes."
Anything Inu-Yasha was expecting wasn't close to this. He uncrossed his arms and stared at the monk with wide eyes "You are??"
Miroku let out a deep sigh not bothering to answer the hanyou, if those dog ears were good for something, it was hearing. He didn't know why Inu-Yasha was so surprised. It wasn't as if everyone was a stubborn ass who wouldn't admit or voice his feelings no matter how much they gushed out. He was honest and accepted the truth, unlike others. He was just about to voice out this very thought when movement from the bushes attracted both their attention. Both men looked up at Shinosuke as he entered the water.
Miroku's eyes widened and he tried not to stare too much, but Inu-Yasha being his usual blunt self just spat it out.
"What the hell is that on your back?"
Miroku sighed with a mix of frustration and embarrassment. 'That', seemed to be a shapeless black scar about as big as his hand on Shinosuke's lower back. Now Miroku was an honest man but he was also taught when to be prudent.
"Inu-Yasha." Warned Miroku, not the first or last time Inu-Yasha would say something dumb
Shinosuke smiled "Don't worry about it; I know having a youkai planted on your back isn't exactly normal. Both men tensed up at his words. "Oh don't worry, I'm in perfect control of myself, this isn't the kind that seeks domination over a body."
"A youkai?" asked Miroku glancing down at his back again
"What kind is it then?" asked Inu-Yasha a bit uneasily
"It's a parasite" said Shinosuke settling into the water calmly "It finds a host to feed off, does so until they die, and then looks for another one."
"You're the host?" asked Inu-Yasha
Shinosuke nodded giving a half hearted smile.
"But then you..."
"According to the size of this thing I probably don't have more than a week left."
"What?" called out Miroku immediately thinking of Sango's reaction to this.
The monk who had been listening intently now turned serious and looked over at Shinosuke.
"Why haven't you had an exorcism?" asked Miroku.
Shinosuke started rubbing his arms and shoulders clean from the goo. "Once this demon is inside of you, it becomes a part of you, so much that if it's pulled out you die. The only way it can be removed is if the parasite leaves voluntarily, but to do so it needs another healthy host, and not many exorcists are willing to make that sacrifice. I've been told you can expel it yourself it, but you need special training for that. That's one of the reasons I've been traveling, trying to find someone who knows how to get rid of it, or at least anyone willing to teach me. Apparently though, it's a very ancient technique, no one seems to know how to do it anymore. So I pretty much have accepted my destiny, after all it's not as if I had a reason to stay."
The men looked solemnly at the man sitting in front of them. Miroku, understood him in a very realistic way, but this man knew he had less than a week to live, Miroku couldn't tell you with certainty, and as Moushin used to say, ignorance was bliss.
"Why do you say you have nothing to live for? Sango cares for you." Miroku said to his own displeasure
"I didn't know she was still a part of my life. Still in my condition there isn't much I can do anymore... so I plan to leave before anything happens, that way she will leave me saying, see you next time, instead of a final goodbye. She will think I simply continued my journey. I don't think it's necessary to put her through that kind of pain. She has lost too many loved ones already."
"You're not going to tell her?" asked Miroku
"No." he said seriously "And I would appreciate it if you two also kept this to yourselves. Please."
Nobody said anything for a while until the girls appeared behind a boulder.
"You guys still aren't finished? Geez and you say girls take forever." Said Kagome taking her things back to camp. Sango gave them all a pleasant smile before following her. After Kagome disappeared behind a line of trees Inu- Yasha turned back to find both men staring at Sango. With his usual bored face, he raised an eyebrow. Well at least Shinosuke didn't have it for Kagome; Miroku would have to worry about this one.
"They're right. I'm done already, and I have no interest in becoming a 'Human raisin' as Kagome says." Said Inu-Yasha getting out of the warm lake.
Miroku raised an eyebrow. "Inu-Yasha." he warned. The mentioned stopped in his tracks and turned.
"Don't shake."
The Hanyou scowled and left for his towel with his normal 'Feh!' Shinosuke smiled at Inu-Yasha then turned to Miroku.
"I will leave peacefully knowing that Jou-chan is well taken care of and well loved. I know you will not let anything happen to her."
"She is a strong woman." Answered the monk
"Yes, but she is still just a woman..."
Miroku looked at the man before him, choosing not to say anything. Shinosuke was wrong, she was so much more than just a woman... she was his woman. Common sense kicked in seconds after his small daydream. His woman? His brows furrowed, he was beginning to sound like Kouga now...
~~*~~
There was more to this chapter but I kinda had to cut it off cuz it would have been ridiculously too long. Anywho I'll be back when I can and, for the people who didn't already know Hana is flower in jap... I noticed by the spell check I use a lot of jap, maybe I should put up a translation sheet... it's been requested before...
What do you think minna? Let me know in your review! Ohohoho!
¬¬' *cough cough*