I found a place to post it and finally had time!... and well that's about
it, thank you for your reviews minna!
~~Midnight Wanderer~~
Sleeping would not be part of her night; she had way too many things on her mind for her to do something as productive-less as sleep. What on earth had Kagome meant by that question of hers? Of course it was in the past. The guy had broken her heart, although she never had any ill feelings towards him or Yumi. But, she had forgotten about him, she had long since accepted that he was no longer a part of her life anymore. Of course she would never forget him, but that's all he would be: a memory, just like everyone else at the village.
As far as she was concerned her life was divided in two now, that bastard Naraku being the line of separation. Her life at the village had been wonderful and she would never forget it, but now it was simply a different time, a time of change and new experiences. And along with the new pain and suffering, there also came new friends, joy and emotions. She paused for a second thinking about this last thought for a while. New emotions. Her eyes swiveled left to the base of a tree where he had fallen asleep. He wasn't there.
A small sigh escaped from her chest. She was used to it by now. The first time she had woken up to find his space empty she had freaked out and run into the forest looking for him like crazy, which lead to a very embarrassing moment when she finally crashed into him searching frantically in the dark. He had asked if she was ok first and then what she was doing running around the woods after midnight. After that there was stuttering, blushing, groping and smacking. The usual.
She gave another sigh shaking her head. But as she said that had only been the first time, his midnight wanderings in the woods didn't come as a surprise to her anymore, although she still wondered why he did it so much. Of course she would never ask him. After all it wasn't as if it were her business and what would he think if he knew that she knew he often did this? After all she was supposed to be sleeping.
She looked up to the night sky and let her eyes wander from one shining star to another, sometimes if she looked close enough she could see shapes. She couldn't help it. If feelings could be controlled the world would be a different place. Of course that baka sukebe meant something to her. And she knew all to well. Truth be told it really freaked her out when she accepted it. After all heartbreak was not something she could forget, and if it happened once with a boy who was very kind and thoughtful, what in the world would happen with this lecherous woman hunter?
There had actually been a time when she tried with all her might to forget about him. She snapped at him, she ignored him, and she mentioned all his defects at every moment of the day to herself, as a bitter reminder. The most convincing thing was the fact that he didn't have any other feelings for her than simple friendship. That almost worked. Actually to this day it was the fist that kept her down whenever she got too excited over something small.
Her feelings for Miroku really were silly, and at times she wondered if they were even genuine. The facts were; Inu-Yasha and Kagome, even if they were a hopeless case, were always together in their little group. There was Kirara and Shippou, but being realistic Miroku was the only one she could have a half decent conversation with. They were, a sort of 'default' pairing in the small group. Second, no one on this planet could deny the fact that the monk had very nice looks. He was attractive, she accepted it. And she was forced to see him every day. She was after all a growing woman. And he unfortunately... was of the opposite sex. Could these feelings be helped? Well... It was better than falling for Inu-Yasha.
She chuckled to herself shaking her head. No offense to the hanyou. But hell no! White hair, fangs and claws may work for Kagome, but they weren't exactly a turn on for her. That beast should be grateful for having someone like Kagome by his side. He was a picky ingrate. She lifted her eyebrows. Not her business if her best friend's hanyou was attracted to a block of well shaped clay that looked almost like Kagome herself.
But getting back to her own case, it wasn't as if she were some hormone altered freak with feelings for every man she met, she was simply an adolescent. At least that's what Kagome had told her. And maybe she was right; she didn't go after every male specimen she saw. Unlike, other people she knew.
Her brows furrowed. Baka houshi. She really chose the absolute worst man to fall in love with. But it wasn't as if there were many choices. A rustling close by alerted her senses. She turned her eyes a bit to see a familiar silhouette come forth from the trees. The rings of his Shakujo were mainly what gave him away. He looked over the campsite before heading over to the place where he was supposed to be sleeping. Sango listened, more than watched, as the monk set himself comfortably against the trunk of the giant tree and finally gave a calm sigh. She didn't actually know if he was going to sleep, you could never know with this guy to be honest. But she had to admit she was always more relaxed when he was somewhere near her. Where she could see him at least.
Her eyes shifted a bit to her left and fell upon another man she cared for. She didn't know what was bothering her so much. When she had first seen him of course everything had been wonderful, but as the night passed she couldn't help but feel something eerie in her stomach. Apparently nothing was wrong, but her gut instinct, as Kagome would call it, was telling her there was something about this whole situation that didn't fit in.
Getting to think about it she thought it was rather silly, and she knew she wasn't one to be trusting. She never had been, and since the incident with Naraku and his trap, even less. It was probably just an overreaction. She had also become a bit more pessimist, explaining to herself that it was just her imagination thinking that nothing good could happen anymore without it being accompanied by something horrible.
This was also absurd, but then why couldn't she shake this feeling off. The worst part about it was, precisely that she didn't know what it was. Maybe this wasn't really happening, maybe there was something wrong with him, or maybe it was a trap. There was however, nothing about this situation that indicated anything of the sort. It was frustrating. Even if she did since an odd atmosphere in the evening, supposed it was just the group not used to a stranger. She wasn't the only paranoid one.
The thing she was afraid of, was finally giving in to her need for her best friend, let down her walls and push aside her instinct, finally trust him, and then have her happiness ripped apart for the hundredth time. There was a limit to every person ne? And she could only take so much. But what could she do about it? How could she know? Just, being by his side and not letting her guard down right? That would work, she would give him half her trust, if something happened, it wouldn't hurt as badly. She just had to be careful not to give in completely.
A soft whisper in a familiar voice made her jump
"You'll be tired in the morning if you don't get some sleep."
She sat up turning to the voice trying to lower the rhythm of her heart. She looked at him smiling skeptically.
"So says the midnight Rurouni." She answered
He smirked "Midnight rurouni ne? I didn't know anyone knew about my little excursions."
Sango smiled "I'm a light sleeper... and your Shakujo always wakes me up."
"Gomen... you should have told me it bothered you."
"It doesn't."
There was an uncertain silence between the two and Sango wondered if she should keep up the small conversation, or just say goodnight and try to go to sleep.
"Daijoubu?" he asked
She turned to him confused "Nani?"
"You seemed troubled... are you?"
She wanted to ask him how the heck he knew, but then she would give herself away. Besides he was one to speak... if anyone was acting odd it was him. While these thoughts were running through her head, her mouth compensated by stuttering.
Miroku smiled "It seems you are the one who needs a midnight wandering."
"If you're gonna be muttering go far, some of us were sleeping and are still trying to..." murmured a grouchy voice from a tree.
"Gomen nasai Inu-Yasha." Smiled Sango
"Ikou..." suggested Miroku
~~
It definitely didn't take much to convince her to go walking in the middle of the night with him. She had warned him, but frankly didn't know how much good it would do. Meanwhile he had done all the talking since they left the campsite speaking the obvious of course.
"You are like all of us Sango..."
She was now walking by his side, looking from the leaf covered forest floor, to the tall walls of trees and the night's starry sky. It really was pleasant out here, and she always thought his voice had a comforting tone to it, very tranquil.
"Why do you say that Houshi-sama?"
"Because all of us are afraid of happiness. In the past if something pleasant happened to us we would give in to the moment. But nobody in our little freak show is trusting of those feelings anymore."
"Freak show?" Sango interrupted
"It's been a while since any of us has received happiness with no strings attached. We're just not used to it anymore, for we've learned there will almost always be silence before the storm. You get burned once and you never go near fire again, that's how you feel towards Shinosuke-san... it's just a bit of fear that's all..."
Sango looked ahead of her, hearing the rings of Miroku's staff clank against one another. She knew this, but was surprised at how well he could read her. He had always been a perceptive person but it was even a bit creepy how well he interoperated things, mostly it made her jealous because she wanted to know him like he did her. It was difficult though.
"And yes, I think Freak show defines a short tempered hanyou, an odd girl from the future, a young orphan kitsune, a handsome cool monk with a vacuum in his hand and a very well formed demon huntress, quite well."
A vein popped up involuntarily on Sango's forehead as she raised an eyebrow.
"Well formed?" she asked. That was the first adjective he came up with when he thought of her?! Well formed??
"It's a compliment Sango!" He defended, then smiled down slyly at her "I have knowledge on the topic."
She went stiff. She couldn't possibly be any angrier at him than right now... well what could she have expected? This was just like her. She got too confident before time.
"Remove your hand if you wish to keep it..." she said coldly
He smiled innocently at her. Two seconds before his face was slammed into the soil. Sango stomped back to camp murmuring something about a waste of time. Why did it have to be him?!
~~
Miroku had come back to camp soon after his little encounter with decaying leaves to see if he should apologize to Sango or just leave things as always. He was acting as normally as he could what with disturbing thoughts running through his head and all. This had already happened once before. But when it did, he knew Sango wasn't going to abandon their mission just yet for the prince. It was a sort of egotistical knowledge. But for the split second he thought she would actually stay with him, he had made a promise to himself not to interfere.
He reached the small clearing where everyone was sleeping only to find her place empty. He wondered if she was all right, and asked himself if he should go looking for her. It was after all his fault she was rampaging furious around the woods. In the end however he decided against it. If something were wrong he would sense it. So instead he simply took his place against the giant oak and waited for her to return. If she took too long though, he would go after her.
Remembering his inner conflict from earlier on he gave a silent sigh. Sango deserved much more than what he was. She deserved more than to travel from town to town looking for a very dangerous monster that had already caused her so much pain. If she had what she deserved she would be living in a castle with everything at her feet and the man she loved by her side. Nothing less than that. And what could he offer her? It was ridiculous to compare. That's why he thought it was best if he didn't interfere and maybe even help her to find someone who was really worthwhile.
That was the reason behind the groping, and the flirting and the walls. It would be better to push her away, it would be better if she saw what kind of a jerk he was. She needed to know he wasn't good enough for her. Still in everyone's heart there was always a beam of hope. And though insignificant and trivial as it was, he had it as well. A tiny voice that said to him maybe if all his circumstances changed, he could be with her. Even so, at this moment that was completely out of the question, or so he tried to believe.
Shinosuke's arrival had screwed up everything. He thought if he could just hang in the way he was, time might change things. But now Sango had the possibility to go with someone else she cared for, and this option was much more feasible than the prince at the castle. It was too real. Of course after a while of thinking he decided it was actually best if she went with Shinosuke. It was after all, what he 'wanted' for her... or at least that's what he told himself.
He looked up into the dark woods. She was back, hopefully a bit calmer. He shut his eyes not really sure of what he would say to her if she found him awake. She stepped quietly into the camp and Miroku couldn't help but steal a peek. She looked around to everyone then to him. With an unreadable expression she stood staring at him for the longest time. He was beginning to get uncomfortable when she looked down at the floor sheepishly and lay back down beside Kirara. It took her a while to get to sleep but eventually her breathing evened out and her muscles relaxed.
He couldn't help the small smile that came over his lips. Watching her fall asleep was one of the things he most enjoyed from their epical journey. His smile turned bitter. It was pathetic really, if it were happening to someone else, it would almost be funny.
~~
Mourning came too soon and she didn't even remember falling asleep. Inu- Yasha was up already as well as Miroku, she wondered if he had slept at all. 'Baka Houshi...' she thought lifting herself up from the floor. Yesterday's hot bath did wonders for her tired muscles but she was still tired. Sango cursed herself for wandering off that late at night. Even so it took a short while for her to get up and ready. Kagome appeared with Shippou wrapped in a towel too big for him. She had probably gone to bathe him given that last night he was too tired to join them. Had she been the last one up? Impossible.
"Jou-chan? Can I talk to you for a second?"
Sango looked up at Shinosuke still a bit groggy. Nodding, she followed him a bit into the forest
"What is it Shino?" she asked still trying to rub the sleep out of her eyes.
He seemed uncertain as to how to start this; she noticed this and perked up.
"Listen Jou-chan..." he started once out of hearing range, or so he thought "I'm still very grateful for last night and I want you to know that it gave me great joy to see you again."
Sango's eyes widened. He wanted to leave. And soon. She couldn't let him do that this quickly. At least for a few more days or maybe even... She got a crazy idea that she would probably regret later. Right now however she didn't think too much of it. He took a deep sigh seeing she wasn't saying anything and decided to continue.
Sango interrupted still searching for the right words. "I was glad to see you too Shinosuke... and actually I was... I want to ask you a question." She said quickly
Not expecting this from her he simply shrugged "Very well."
"Would you like to come with us to find Naraku?"
Shinosuke stared at the girl before him and didn't know what to say, he had pulled her away to say goodbye, not to---
"You are a very skilled warrior Shinosuke; and the more we are the higher possibility we have of defeating that terrible monster, besides I would... I would really like your company. You don't know how much I've missed you and, now to see you here, alive and well... it just wouldn't be easy letting you go again..."
She had said too much. She knew it, and he knew it, he was a bit surprised at how perceptive she was actually. It had probably been about eight months since he last saw her and in such short time she had been forced to grow up so quickly. The monk was right; she was a very strong woman. So much that he would be a burden to her now.
"I don't know Jou-chan I... I'm not as strong as I used to be... I would only hold you back and---" he said sadly
"Shino I know you and you would definitely not hold me back. Even if you were out of practice I don't want you to come along just because you're strong, I want you to come because you're my friend and I... I miss you more than you know..." she blushed looking up at his sad face almost begging him
He looked down at her uncertainly "But what about your friends? How do you know they want me along?"
"You don't have to worry about them, Kagome loves company so she won't say anything, Shippou will be on her side too... and all Inu-Yasha would care about is you not getting into trouble."
"What about the Houshi?"
Sango made a small sound of surprise trying to figure out just what he had meant by that. Still her mouth was quicker than her mind "What about him?"
Shinosuke looked down at his uncertain friend and decided it was best if he didn't say what he was thinking. Still he had a decision to make. He was horrible at saying no and with that sad face she had now... to make matters worse, he didn't actually want to leave her either. He had a lot to talk about with her. There were a lot of things to be set strait. He looked down already regretting his decision, knowing that later on he would hate himself. But his heart and his head were two opposites. They never did get along and the wrong one always seemed to win.
"Jou-chan... listen I... I have, things to tell you. I'll accompany you to the next village... it's a days way, but there we will part. I'm sorry, but I'd really be more of a burden than you know. You have a new life now and I... well I would be an extra piece." he saw how she was about to protest and set two fingers over her determined lips before he continued "If you like I can explain it at the village, but for now I think it's best if we just get moving."
Sango knew there was no point in arguing about it now. After all she had convinced him to stay with them for a day, that would be enough time to try again to convince him to stay longer. She wasn't really sure if including him in their little group was the smartest thing to have done, but that would be taken care of later. Knowing that if Inu- Yasha got impatient he would be in a bad mood all day, she looked up to him and gave a small smile.
Everyone in the group ran over each other when Sango and Shinosuke turned back to camp scrambling to get back before they noticed they were eavesdropping. But of course, everybody was specialized at that. So pretending to pick up supplies they all looked up when Sango and Shinosuke came back to the clearing. Everyone watched as Sango stepped determinedly up to Inu-Yasha. He looked down at her serious face, looking somewhat panicked.
"Inu-Yasha. Shinosuke is going to accompany us to the next town." She started "and maybe afterwards, he'll join the group and come with us to destroy Naraku."
Inu-Yasha raised an eye brow, but Sango looked up daring him to disagree. He looked towards Shinosuke who just shrugged lightly. One last look at Sango told him to not even try. He turned indignantly crossing his arms
"Do what you want. He just better not slow us down."
A smile of triumph came to the Taiji-ya's face, while Shinosuke sighed heavily. A small bead of sweat came down over Inu-Yasha's face once he was sure no one could see him. It was definite... women were scary.
~~*°*~~
I felt this last part could have been better but if I pick at something too much I get something I didn't really want and... well ah! Hem hem.... sorry I took so long. But since our semesters have become 4 months long the teachers are flying through the classes proudly leaving us a lot to do, plus the tutor mentor thingy... bleh! What do you think is better Evolution or Ornithology? -_-' mmmmm I hate second semester.....
BTW about the jap translation sheet, I was gonna put it at the end of this chapter but it's kinda..... really long, so if anyone is interested in 6 pages of words in Japanese English AND Spanish, you can leave your e-mail in your review and I'll gladly send it to ya.
~~Midnight Wanderer~~
Sleeping would not be part of her night; she had way too many things on her mind for her to do something as productive-less as sleep. What on earth had Kagome meant by that question of hers? Of course it was in the past. The guy had broken her heart, although she never had any ill feelings towards him or Yumi. But, she had forgotten about him, she had long since accepted that he was no longer a part of her life anymore. Of course she would never forget him, but that's all he would be: a memory, just like everyone else at the village.
As far as she was concerned her life was divided in two now, that bastard Naraku being the line of separation. Her life at the village had been wonderful and she would never forget it, but now it was simply a different time, a time of change and new experiences. And along with the new pain and suffering, there also came new friends, joy and emotions. She paused for a second thinking about this last thought for a while. New emotions. Her eyes swiveled left to the base of a tree where he had fallen asleep. He wasn't there.
A small sigh escaped from her chest. She was used to it by now. The first time she had woken up to find his space empty she had freaked out and run into the forest looking for him like crazy, which lead to a very embarrassing moment when she finally crashed into him searching frantically in the dark. He had asked if she was ok first and then what she was doing running around the woods after midnight. After that there was stuttering, blushing, groping and smacking. The usual.
She gave another sigh shaking her head. But as she said that had only been the first time, his midnight wanderings in the woods didn't come as a surprise to her anymore, although she still wondered why he did it so much. Of course she would never ask him. After all it wasn't as if it were her business and what would he think if he knew that she knew he often did this? After all she was supposed to be sleeping.
She looked up to the night sky and let her eyes wander from one shining star to another, sometimes if she looked close enough she could see shapes. She couldn't help it. If feelings could be controlled the world would be a different place. Of course that baka sukebe meant something to her. And she knew all to well. Truth be told it really freaked her out when she accepted it. After all heartbreak was not something she could forget, and if it happened once with a boy who was very kind and thoughtful, what in the world would happen with this lecherous woman hunter?
There had actually been a time when she tried with all her might to forget about him. She snapped at him, she ignored him, and she mentioned all his defects at every moment of the day to herself, as a bitter reminder. The most convincing thing was the fact that he didn't have any other feelings for her than simple friendship. That almost worked. Actually to this day it was the fist that kept her down whenever she got too excited over something small.
Her feelings for Miroku really were silly, and at times she wondered if they were even genuine. The facts were; Inu-Yasha and Kagome, even if they were a hopeless case, were always together in their little group. There was Kirara and Shippou, but being realistic Miroku was the only one she could have a half decent conversation with. They were, a sort of 'default' pairing in the small group. Second, no one on this planet could deny the fact that the monk had very nice looks. He was attractive, she accepted it. And she was forced to see him every day. She was after all a growing woman. And he unfortunately... was of the opposite sex. Could these feelings be helped? Well... It was better than falling for Inu-Yasha.
She chuckled to herself shaking her head. No offense to the hanyou. But hell no! White hair, fangs and claws may work for Kagome, but they weren't exactly a turn on for her. That beast should be grateful for having someone like Kagome by his side. He was a picky ingrate. She lifted her eyebrows. Not her business if her best friend's hanyou was attracted to a block of well shaped clay that looked almost like Kagome herself.
But getting back to her own case, it wasn't as if she were some hormone altered freak with feelings for every man she met, she was simply an adolescent. At least that's what Kagome had told her. And maybe she was right; she didn't go after every male specimen she saw. Unlike, other people she knew.
Her brows furrowed. Baka houshi. She really chose the absolute worst man to fall in love with. But it wasn't as if there were many choices. A rustling close by alerted her senses. She turned her eyes a bit to see a familiar silhouette come forth from the trees. The rings of his Shakujo were mainly what gave him away. He looked over the campsite before heading over to the place where he was supposed to be sleeping. Sango listened, more than watched, as the monk set himself comfortably against the trunk of the giant tree and finally gave a calm sigh. She didn't actually know if he was going to sleep, you could never know with this guy to be honest. But she had to admit she was always more relaxed when he was somewhere near her. Where she could see him at least.
Her eyes shifted a bit to her left and fell upon another man she cared for. She didn't know what was bothering her so much. When she had first seen him of course everything had been wonderful, but as the night passed she couldn't help but feel something eerie in her stomach. Apparently nothing was wrong, but her gut instinct, as Kagome would call it, was telling her there was something about this whole situation that didn't fit in.
Getting to think about it she thought it was rather silly, and she knew she wasn't one to be trusting. She never had been, and since the incident with Naraku and his trap, even less. It was probably just an overreaction. She had also become a bit more pessimist, explaining to herself that it was just her imagination thinking that nothing good could happen anymore without it being accompanied by something horrible.
This was also absurd, but then why couldn't she shake this feeling off. The worst part about it was, precisely that she didn't know what it was. Maybe this wasn't really happening, maybe there was something wrong with him, or maybe it was a trap. There was however, nothing about this situation that indicated anything of the sort. It was frustrating. Even if she did since an odd atmosphere in the evening, supposed it was just the group not used to a stranger. She wasn't the only paranoid one.
The thing she was afraid of, was finally giving in to her need for her best friend, let down her walls and push aside her instinct, finally trust him, and then have her happiness ripped apart for the hundredth time. There was a limit to every person ne? And she could only take so much. But what could she do about it? How could she know? Just, being by his side and not letting her guard down right? That would work, she would give him half her trust, if something happened, it wouldn't hurt as badly. She just had to be careful not to give in completely.
A soft whisper in a familiar voice made her jump
"You'll be tired in the morning if you don't get some sleep."
She sat up turning to the voice trying to lower the rhythm of her heart. She looked at him smiling skeptically.
"So says the midnight Rurouni." She answered
He smirked "Midnight rurouni ne? I didn't know anyone knew about my little excursions."
Sango smiled "I'm a light sleeper... and your Shakujo always wakes me up."
"Gomen... you should have told me it bothered you."
"It doesn't."
There was an uncertain silence between the two and Sango wondered if she should keep up the small conversation, or just say goodnight and try to go to sleep.
"Daijoubu?" he asked
She turned to him confused "Nani?"
"You seemed troubled... are you?"
She wanted to ask him how the heck he knew, but then she would give herself away. Besides he was one to speak... if anyone was acting odd it was him. While these thoughts were running through her head, her mouth compensated by stuttering.
Miroku smiled "It seems you are the one who needs a midnight wandering."
"If you're gonna be muttering go far, some of us were sleeping and are still trying to..." murmured a grouchy voice from a tree.
"Gomen nasai Inu-Yasha." Smiled Sango
"Ikou..." suggested Miroku
~~
It definitely didn't take much to convince her to go walking in the middle of the night with him. She had warned him, but frankly didn't know how much good it would do. Meanwhile he had done all the talking since they left the campsite speaking the obvious of course.
"You are like all of us Sango..."
She was now walking by his side, looking from the leaf covered forest floor, to the tall walls of trees and the night's starry sky. It really was pleasant out here, and she always thought his voice had a comforting tone to it, very tranquil.
"Why do you say that Houshi-sama?"
"Because all of us are afraid of happiness. In the past if something pleasant happened to us we would give in to the moment. But nobody in our little freak show is trusting of those feelings anymore."
"Freak show?" Sango interrupted
"It's been a while since any of us has received happiness with no strings attached. We're just not used to it anymore, for we've learned there will almost always be silence before the storm. You get burned once and you never go near fire again, that's how you feel towards Shinosuke-san... it's just a bit of fear that's all..."
Sango looked ahead of her, hearing the rings of Miroku's staff clank against one another. She knew this, but was surprised at how well he could read her. He had always been a perceptive person but it was even a bit creepy how well he interoperated things, mostly it made her jealous because she wanted to know him like he did her. It was difficult though.
"And yes, I think Freak show defines a short tempered hanyou, an odd girl from the future, a young orphan kitsune, a handsome cool monk with a vacuum in his hand and a very well formed demon huntress, quite well."
A vein popped up involuntarily on Sango's forehead as she raised an eyebrow.
"Well formed?" she asked. That was the first adjective he came up with when he thought of her?! Well formed??
"It's a compliment Sango!" He defended, then smiled down slyly at her "I have knowledge on the topic."
She went stiff. She couldn't possibly be any angrier at him than right now... well what could she have expected? This was just like her. She got too confident before time.
"Remove your hand if you wish to keep it..." she said coldly
He smiled innocently at her. Two seconds before his face was slammed into the soil. Sango stomped back to camp murmuring something about a waste of time. Why did it have to be him?!
~~
Miroku had come back to camp soon after his little encounter with decaying leaves to see if he should apologize to Sango or just leave things as always. He was acting as normally as he could what with disturbing thoughts running through his head and all. This had already happened once before. But when it did, he knew Sango wasn't going to abandon their mission just yet for the prince. It was a sort of egotistical knowledge. But for the split second he thought she would actually stay with him, he had made a promise to himself not to interfere.
He reached the small clearing where everyone was sleeping only to find her place empty. He wondered if she was all right, and asked himself if he should go looking for her. It was after all his fault she was rampaging furious around the woods. In the end however he decided against it. If something were wrong he would sense it. So instead he simply took his place against the giant oak and waited for her to return. If she took too long though, he would go after her.
Remembering his inner conflict from earlier on he gave a silent sigh. Sango deserved much more than what he was. She deserved more than to travel from town to town looking for a very dangerous monster that had already caused her so much pain. If she had what she deserved she would be living in a castle with everything at her feet and the man she loved by her side. Nothing less than that. And what could he offer her? It was ridiculous to compare. That's why he thought it was best if he didn't interfere and maybe even help her to find someone who was really worthwhile.
That was the reason behind the groping, and the flirting and the walls. It would be better to push her away, it would be better if she saw what kind of a jerk he was. She needed to know he wasn't good enough for her. Still in everyone's heart there was always a beam of hope. And though insignificant and trivial as it was, he had it as well. A tiny voice that said to him maybe if all his circumstances changed, he could be with her. Even so, at this moment that was completely out of the question, or so he tried to believe.
Shinosuke's arrival had screwed up everything. He thought if he could just hang in the way he was, time might change things. But now Sango had the possibility to go with someone else she cared for, and this option was much more feasible than the prince at the castle. It was too real. Of course after a while of thinking he decided it was actually best if she went with Shinosuke. It was after all, what he 'wanted' for her... or at least that's what he told himself.
He looked up into the dark woods. She was back, hopefully a bit calmer. He shut his eyes not really sure of what he would say to her if she found him awake. She stepped quietly into the camp and Miroku couldn't help but steal a peek. She looked around to everyone then to him. With an unreadable expression she stood staring at him for the longest time. He was beginning to get uncomfortable when she looked down at the floor sheepishly and lay back down beside Kirara. It took her a while to get to sleep but eventually her breathing evened out and her muscles relaxed.
He couldn't help the small smile that came over his lips. Watching her fall asleep was one of the things he most enjoyed from their epical journey. His smile turned bitter. It was pathetic really, if it were happening to someone else, it would almost be funny.
~~
Mourning came too soon and she didn't even remember falling asleep. Inu- Yasha was up already as well as Miroku, she wondered if he had slept at all. 'Baka Houshi...' she thought lifting herself up from the floor. Yesterday's hot bath did wonders for her tired muscles but she was still tired. Sango cursed herself for wandering off that late at night. Even so it took a short while for her to get up and ready. Kagome appeared with Shippou wrapped in a towel too big for him. She had probably gone to bathe him given that last night he was too tired to join them. Had she been the last one up? Impossible.
"Jou-chan? Can I talk to you for a second?"
Sango looked up at Shinosuke still a bit groggy. Nodding, she followed him a bit into the forest
"What is it Shino?" she asked still trying to rub the sleep out of her eyes.
He seemed uncertain as to how to start this; she noticed this and perked up.
"Listen Jou-chan..." he started once out of hearing range, or so he thought "I'm still very grateful for last night and I want you to know that it gave me great joy to see you again."
Sango's eyes widened. He wanted to leave. And soon. She couldn't let him do that this quickly. At least for a few more days or maybe even... She got a crazy idea that she would probably regret later. Right now however she didn't think too much of it. He took a deep sigh seeing she wasn't saying anything and decided to continue.
Sango interrupted still searching for the right words. "I was glad to see you too Shinosuke... and actually I was... I want to ask you a question." She said quickly
Not expecting this from her he simply shrugged "Very well."
"Would you like to come with us to find Naraku?"
Shinosuke stared at the girl before him and didn't know what to say, he had pulled her away to say goodbye, not to---
"You are a very skilled warrior Shinosuke; and the more we are the higher possibility we have of defeating that terrible monster, besides I would... I would really like your company. You don't know how much I've missed you and, now to see you here, alive and well... it just wouldn't be easy letting you go again..."
She had said too much. She knew it, and he knew it, he was a bit surprised at how perceptive she was actually. It had probably been about eight months since he last saw her and in such short time she had been forced to grow up so quickly. The monk was right; she was a very strong woman. So much that he would be a burden to her now.
"I don't know Jou-chan I... I'm not as strong as I used to be... I would only hold you back and---" he said sadly
"Shino I know you and you would definitely not hold me back. Even if you were out of practice I don't want you to come along just because you're strong, I want you to come because you're my friend and I... I miss you more than you know..." she blushed looking up at his sad face almost begging him
He looked down at her uncertainly "But what about your friends? How do you know they want me along?"
"You don't have to worry about them, Kagome loves company so she won't say anything, Shippou will be on her side too... and all Inu-Yasha would care about is you not getting into trouble."
"What about the Houshi?"
Sango made a small sound of surprise trying to figure out just what he had meant by that. Still her mouth was quicker than her mind "What about him?"
Shinosuke looked down at his uncertain friend and decided it was best if he didn't say what he was thinking. Still he had a decision to make. He was horrible at saying no and with that sad face she had now... to make matters worse, he didn't actually want to leave her either. He had a lot to talk about with her. There were a lot of things to be set strait. He looked down already regretting his decision, knowing that later on he would hate himself. But his heart and his head were two opposites. They never did get along and the wrong one always seemed to win.
"Jou-chan... listen I... I have, things to tell you. I'll accompany you to the next village... it's a days way, but there we will part. I'm sorry, but I'd really be more of a burden than you know. You have a new life now and I... well I would be an extra piece." he saw how she was about to protest and set two fingers over her determined lips before he continued "If you like I can explain it at the village, but for now I think it's best if we just get moving."
Sango knew there was no point in arguing about it now. After all she had convinced him to stay with them for a day, that would be enough time to try again to convince him to stay longer. She wasn't really sure if including him in their little group was the smartest thing to have done, but that would be taken care of later. Knowing that if Inu- Yasha got impatient he would be in a bad mood all day, she looked up to him and gave a small smile.
Everyone in the group ran over each other when Sango and Shinosuke turned back to camp scrambling to get back before they noticed they were eavesdropping. But of course, everybody was specialized at that. So pretending to pick up supplies they all looked up when Sango and Shinosuke came back to the clearing. Everyone watched as Sango stepped determinedly up to Inu-Yasha. He looked down at her serious face, looking somewhat panicked.
"Inu-Yasha. Shinosuke is going to accompany us to the next town." She started "and maybe afterwards, he'll join the group and come with us to destroy Naraku."
Inu-Yasha raised an eye brow, but Sango looked up daring him to disagree. He looked towards Shinosuke who just shrugged lightly. One last look at Sango told him to not even try. He turned indignantly crossing his arms
"Do what you want. He just better not slow us down."
A smile of triumph came to the Taiji-ya's face, while Shinosuke sighed heavily. A small bead of sweat came down over Inu-Yasha's face once he was sure no one could see him. It was definite... women were scary.
~~*°*~~
I felt this last part could have been better but if I pick at something too much I get something I didn't really want and... well ah! Hem hem.... sorry I took so long. But since our semesters have become 4 months long the teachers are flying through the classes proudly leaving us a lot to do, plus the tutor mentor thingy... bleh! What do you think is better Evolution or Ornithology? -_-' mmmmm I hate second semester.....
BTW about the jap translation sheet, I was gonna put it at the end of this chapter but it's kinda..... really long, so if anyone is interested in 6 pages of words in Japanese English AND Spanish, you can leave your e-mail in your review and I'll gladly send it to ya.