AN: Whoa, how long has it been? Anyways, even though I said this was on hold, I ended up writing it anyway! I always do the thing I say I won't do, so…I won't write a novel! He he he…I've changed the details and the plot of this slightly, so if there are any rough spots in the story I'll try to smooth them over. I added a tiny bit in chapter 4 to go in line with my new idea (the change is in Kagome's mother's reactions to the humans) but I'm way to lazy to re-write the chapters. It took a lot to lift my heavy butt to get this one working. Hmm…I don't seem to have much of a plot yet, but I'll say Kikyo's part of the plot and she's introduced here, so I'm getting to the plot. Stick with me for this one. Oh, and if you like my stuff, read Reclaiming Life (I know, I'm plugging. But it's my author's notes!). It's a vampire story, but don't expect anything Buffy-like. Anyway enjoy this chapter…probably laze around before getting to writing the next one.

Secrets Unveiled (Don't Pick Me Up)

            Inu-Yasha was laughing hysterically, banging on the side of a coral building with his fist. "Lovers?" he sputtered, barely getting the word out. "Miroku going steady? When that happens I'll flirt with every waitress in the restaurant to get a free meal!" Then he exploded into more bursts of laughter.

            Kagome was worried about another thing. "Why didn't you tell me about Naraku, Sango? He's dangerous! He's worse than Kouga." Turning the humans, she explained, "When merchildren are bad, their mothers tell them, 'You'd better behave or I'll make Naraku come and eat you.'" Her concerned look dropped for a minute when she smiled slyly. "Then again, I've also heard he's really rich."

            "Hey! That's my girl!" Miroku said, beaming at Kagome. "You know what they say, great minds think alike." The arm around Sango's waist drew her closer to him. "But Sango isn't going back for anything, when she's got a handsome hunk like me."

            "Oh, please!" Sango twisted out of his grasp and crossed her arms angrily. "It's not what you all think. Miroku and I are not—"

            "Tut tut, honey, no fights," Miroku said with a twinkle in his eye. "Someone might be watching."

            Sango looked like she wanted to rip his head off and feed it to the sharks, but she just tossed her head and looked away. "Think of it as a lover's spat," she snapped.

            Inu-Yasha shook his head. "Of all the mermaids who could have saved us from the storm, it had to be the two that attracted the city's major badasses. Why couldn't we get ugly mermaids?"

            "That's exactly what I said," Miroku added. "They could have just tossed us on shore and we'd think we were saved by dugongs with arms or something. If they'd been ugly we could have gotten out of here faster and never known there was this amazing world with gorgeous mermaids." He turned mournful eyes up above him. "Woe is our fate."  

            "So are you guys, uh, dating?" Kagome asked, furtively floating away from Sango in case she triggered some maniacal reaction. Sango turned and glared at her frostily. "I guess that means yes," Kagome said feebly.

            "For one month. That's how long Naraku's going to keep an eye on her." Miroku suddenly thought of something, and his brow furrowed. "Wait, that means we have to stay here for one month. We can't return Rin yet. We can't go back yet! I mean, I don't really want to go back yet, but what if Lord Sesshoumaru gets pissed and doesn't give us our payment?! Aah, I'm torn!"

            Inu-Yasha muttered something like, "Oh, what a tangled web we weave." But he knew Miroku wasn't going to leave until the month was up—which meant he would be staying too. He wondered if they were ever going to get home…he looked furtively at Kagome and wondered why he was in such a hurry.

            "Hang on," Sango said suddenly. "If we are going steady, then didn't Inu-Yasha say he would flirt with every waitress in a restaurant?" The first smile they'd seen from her appeared on her face as she pointedly stared at Inu-Yasha. It was time for someone else to suffer. "And I'm willing to admit that we're going steady if I get to see Inu-Yasha flirt."

            Miroku snorted. "Inu-Yasha, flirting? That's like me becoming a monk." Then he laughed as if that was the stupidest thing in the whole world.

            Kagome was also smiling. "Actually, I think I remember you saying that too, Inu-Yasha."

            Sango raised her eyebrow at him. "Come on, you just spent the past few minutes laughing at me. Now it's my turn."

            "What? I wasn't laughing at you! I was laughing at Miroku!" Inu-Yasha protested.

            "You guys, Inu-Yasha's never been the romantic type. That's why I get all the girls back in Houshi," Miroku explained, ignoring his friend's withering glare. "He wouldn't flirt, and I doubt he's very good at it."

            "Hmph. Like you are, Miroku," Sango muttered. "Shall I find a lovely mermaid whom you can ever so charmingly compare her to a booger and pick—"

            He placed a hand over her mouth. "Now, now, dear…"

            "Remove that hand or I'll do it for you," Sango said bluntly in a muffled tone. 

            Kagome looked at Inu-Yasha, her eyes dancing with laughter. "You can't be worse than that," she said, latching on to his shoulder. "Please, Inu-Yasha, pleeeaase?"

            One look into those eyes and he was lost. "Okay." Behind him, Miroku and Sango exchanged knowing grins, Miroku having removed his offending hand from Sango's mouth.

            All throughout the swim to the Shark Shack, Inu-Yasha was thinking of pick up lines. And about how stupid he was. He didn't have to do this! He didn't flirt with people. That was Miroku's forte. And although he sucked sometimes, he was good enough to get them the free meals. Inu-Yasha just ate, there was no telling how he would do.

            The restaurant was half-full, so they easily got seats and their free cups of altea. "Ready?" Miroku said slyly. "Or are you chickening out?"

            This was Inu-Yasha's weakness. No one could ever accuse him of chickening out. "Hah! Bring it on!"

            "Excuse me, waitress!" Miroku yelled, beckoning for one of the mermaids flitting about. She swam over. "Your turn," Miroku said, and winked. Turning to the waitress, he said smoothly, "My friend wants to ask you something."

            The waitress turned to Inu-Yasha. Upon seeing him she smiled. Inu-Yasha was good-looking, after all, and the confused expression on his face made him look cuter. She leaned over to him and bent her head down, her copper hair mingling with his silver strands.

            Kagome felt a prickle of irritation. Chill, it's just a game…but does she have to get so close?

            "Hey there, honey, what can I do for you?"

            Inu-Yasha swallowed. Come on, Inu-Yasha, when you look at her what do you see? Gorgeous hair, dazzling eyes, just say whatever comes to mind first.  "…So, you're a girl, huh?"

            Her smile froze. Miroku's jaw dropped. Inu-Yasha realized what he said and shook his head wildly. "I mean, that's not what I meant! What's a nice girl like you doing with a face like that?" Miroku's jaw dropped even further. The waitress was beginning to look a little offended. "No! I meant your face is nice! Really! But it must have really hurt when you fell from heaven!" Inu-Yasha stammered. The waitress crossed her arms. "Don't take it the wrong way! I'm just saying you're an angel! A fallen angel! No, I mean an angel that fell from…heaven…you know? So you're like, not normal, because…you're from heaven?" Miroku's head was buried under his arms. Inu-Yasha didn't even want to see Kagome's expression. One last try…he smiled brilliantly at the waitress. "Would you touch me so I can tell my friends I was touched by an angel?"

            "With pleasure!" The waitress slapped him. "You may be a handsome human boy, but you should work on your pick up lines. Maybe you can call when you aren't so insulting." And she swam off, leaving a flurry of bubbles against Inu-Yasha's face.

            There was silence as all eyes were fixed on Inu-Yasha's pink cheek. "Well, that went well," Miroku finally said. "Considering she didn't kill you halfway through your speech. I would have."

            Inu-Yasha glared darkly at Sango, who was blinking at him innocently. "This is all your fault. Why don't you try and pick someone up, huh?"

            "Oh, she already did," Miroku said casually. "At a raw salmon kiosk on our way to meet you guys. Let's just say she's as good as it as you are, Inu-Yasha."

            Sango flicked him hard on the arm. "Miroku, shut up!" Looking at Kagome and Inu-Yasha smirking, she explained, "He was doing the flirting thing against just five minutes after we shook Naraku off. So I tried to give him a taste of his own medicine."

            "Operative word being 'tried,'" Miroku cut in. "Let's just say whatever the reason Naraku's interested in you, it's definitely not your flirting skills. I think Sango just wanted to see someone else suffer today, so she picked on Inu-Yasha."

            Inu-Yasha frowned thoughtfully. "Then that means the only person who hasn't humiliated themselves in front of us is—" His gaze slid to Kagome. She was drinking her altea but stopped when she saw everyone looking at her.

            She widened her eyes innocently as she put her cup down. "What? Me? Whatever for? Both of you did this by choice. I just want to sit back and enjoy my meal, and no one's ordered it yet."

            "That's why you're going to do this," Inu-Yasha said, as if that explained the whole thing. "Come on, you can't be worse than me. Or Sango, although I wasn't there to witness the fiasco—though I wished I was. Ouch! Sorry…and besides, if anyone slaps you, I'll kick their ass."

            "My hero," Miroku chimed in a singsong voice.

            Kagome grinned. "Fine. I'll do it." When Miroku raised a hand to call a male waiter, she stopped him. "No, I can do this myself. Watch, I'll give you a run for your money." She turned her back to Miroku and his "Oooh, big words" warning and caught the attention of a male waiter leaning against the restaurant wall. The waiter, one of those tall Nordic muscly types, looked confused for a moment and pointed at himself. Kagome nodded and extended a hand, beckoning him to her by curling her forefinger towards him.

            He swam as if in a daze towards her. "Uh…Shark Shack, can I take your order?"

            Kagome tossed her head and smiled coyly up at him. "If I said you had a good body, would you hold it against me?" Beside her, Miroku whispered, "Ooh, two points!" The waiter's smart response was, "Uh…"

            Kagome leaned back and surveyed the waiter. "Maybe you're not an oral person," she mused thoughtfully, still with the hint of a smile. "It's okay. I am." Sango and Inu-Yasha were staring at their friend, who'd never said such things in her entire life. Well, Sango would know about that. Inu-Yasha, on the other hand. was feeling slightly annoyed, and not because he sucked at this game, because he couldn't have cared less about that. It was because she was good. And that merman was already smitten with her, if she wasn't careful she could have another stalker on her hands…or something like that…

            "You must be tired," Kagome said, placing a hand on the merman's arm. "Because you've been running through my mind all night." The waiter was looking at his arm like a great white had just taken a huge chunk out of it, and nothing better could have happened to him.

            "Oh yeah, that's a favorite," Miroku said knowingly, to anyone who'd listen. "A crowd-pleaser, that is. She's a natural."

            "Would you shut your trap?" Inu-Yasha said shortly. Miroku held up his hands. Kagome glanced sideways at Inu-Yasha, and for a split second her brows twitched in worry. Then she turned back to the waiter. "Now, don't get me all tongue-tied when I say my order…"

            She went around the table, asking everyone what they wanted and repeating it back to the waiter in that coy fashion. When she reached Inu-Yasha, he just scowled at her. But this time, instead of looking worried, she looked annoyed. 'What is it with you?' she mouthed at him, away from the waiter. 'It's only a game!'

            'It's not that!' Inu-Yasha mouthed back angrily, oblivious to the fact that he was facing the waiter and his expressions could be easily seen, which obliterated the whole purpose of mouthing words. "I'll get the shrimp noodle bowl. Make sure it's cooked," he said directly to the waiter.

            "Cooked?" The waiter repeated. His deep blue eyes traveled down to Inu-Yasha's legs. "Oh, yeah, I heard about the mortals here and their strange appetites."

            "Geez, the service in this place is horrible!" Inu-Yasha said loudly to the ceiling. "Can't a guy just eat in peace?!"

            "That's all," Kagome said charmingly to the waiter. "My friend's just a bit grumpy. He got dumped recently. He can't seem to…pick it up." She hit him where she stung.

            Inu-Yasha glared at her. "Yeah, apparently girls don't like it when you shamelessly flirt around with restaurant staff," he murmured under his breath. Abruptly he stood up and swam away from the table towards the exit. Sango and Miroku looked at each other, Sango biting her lip.

            Kagome closed her eyes and counted to three. When she turned around to the blond waiter again, she said, "I'm really sorry about his attitude. Um…how much does that cost?"

            When the waiter named the price, Kagome put a hand to her mouth, shocked. "Wow…that's so much…I don't think I brought that much." Her eyes looked teary, as if she were really about to cry. It didn't seem to be part of her act. "But a handsome waiter like you could just wave away the bill, right? You do look like you have some power around here."         

            "Well," the waiter preened. "I'm sure I could arrange it so that the bill never makes it to this table. You know…for a girl so pretty."

            Kagome giggled. "You're so sweet. You must have girls falling all over for you." She fluttered her fingers at him when he left, but lowered her head in her arms when he was gone. 

            Miroku was shaking his head in wonder. "Kagome, we must be related," he declared.

             Sango cautiously patted Kagome's shoulder. "There, there…you shouldn't let men make you feel bad…it wasn't your fault at all…"

            "Don't cry," Miroku added, not knowing what else to say.

            Kagome looked up, and her eyes were blazing—but dry. "Cry? Hah! Inu-Yasha's a jerk! Besides, he's the one who put me up to it! Just because I'm better at him at it…"

            "I think it's not that," Miroku said. "I think he's jealous. Hee hee…"

            Kagome stared at him. "Jealous? Um…because the blond guy had more muscles?"

            "No, jealous because of all the attention you showered on that guy," Sango put in. "I mean, we could see it on his face."

            Her friend was blushing now. "No way, he couldn't have been jealous. I mean, you saw how he acted. He was mad at me. Although he's got no right to be…" then another thought hit her. "Hey, is he going to eat his food?"

             "Are you going to call him in?" Miroku asked.

            "I think he ran off," Kagome said. "Which means firstly he probably won't be eating, and secondly he's forgetting all about the one-hour thing and he'll be choking and writhing on the ground about ten minutes from now unless a mermaid helps him."

            "Tough. Guess he won't be eating then," Miroku said nonchalantly. "So, aside from me, who wants shrimp?"

*          *          *

            The days passed, and the week was almost up. It was almost time to visit the king. Three more weeks would pass before they could go home.

            Kagome and Inu-Yasha made up (as expected—they couldn't stay mad at each other. This happened with much consoling from Sango and Miroku, and also because Inu-Yasha couldn't keep approaching strangers asking them for the kiss of life), but not without Miroku humming the tune of "Jealousy" in Inu-Yasha's ear for the next three days. This also meant that Sango had to drag Miroku around wherever they went, since he was usually incapacitated from Inu-Yasha's often violent reactions. They went around eating, laughing, and playing around like children. Kagome taught Inu-Yasha a thing or two about pick-up lines, and Miroku always kept one of Sango's hands in his—there always seemed to be a shadow lurking behind a building corner.

            Talks from the street about their relationships reached their ears, but they pushed it into the back of their minds—after all, they weren't in love, right? The two mortals would go back up to land and probably would never be seen again.

            That thought worried Kagome. She wasn't going to deny that she'd grown attached to Inu-Yasha. It was hard not to like a person who'd saved you from the bad boy of the town, and who actually felt jealous when you flirted with other men. Besides, during the week she'd learned a lot about him. He and Miroku were practically street urchins up on land. Their fathers had been great sailors, and they'd had a great ship, but they'd disappeared mysteriously and neither of them had been able to find their fathers.

            But at least he'd experienced life with a father. The day before visiting the king, Kagome had to go to the grocery store to get vegetables. Inu-Yasha went with her. Being the nice gentleman he was, he carried the empty shopping bag that the family owned. Or, rather, Kagome thrust it at him with the short words, "Hold it" and reminded him that she'd saved him from a storm and gave him a place to stay and fed him and etcetera until he really had no choice but to comply.

            In the grocery, Kagome was sorting through different bags of the last item on her list: plankton chunks—at least that's what it said on the wrapping. Inu-Yasha gaped at the display. "What on earth do you need plankton chunks for?"

            "They're quite good to eat alone, actually, but mostly they season the broth." Kagome grabbed bags, felt them, then dropped them, unable to find one that satisfied her. "Oh man, their selection today isn't that good."

            Inu-Yasha gaped some more. He lifted up two bags. "What is the difference between this bag and this bag? They both say plankton chunks on the front!"

            "Inu-Yasha! It's more than just picking a bag, you know," Kagome said, shaking her head. "You have to know exactly what you're buying. One of your bags could have soggy plankton and the other could be too dry. I don't know if it's just that guys don't understand grocery shopping or what."

            He scanned the room. At the sea cucumbers section, a merchild and her father were having a similar argument. "But Daddy, what's the difference between this cucumber and that cucumber? They're both gonna have worms in them anyway!"

            "No, sweetie, you've got to really look at them. Some might have more worms than others." Her father reached in and grabbed a sea cucumber. "See, this one's getting rotten…feel it. Besides, if we pick the wrong one, your mother will be mad."

            "But Daddy, they all look the same!"

            "But they're not, darling. If I pick the wrong cucumber that has plenty of worms, I'll have no place to put them—except in your hair!"

            The little girl's shrieks and the father's laughter almost made Inu-Yasha break into a big doofy grin. He looked at Kagome, half expecting to see her sniffling with happiness at the sight, but she didn't look happy at all. She looked sad and wistful.

            "Often I wonder…why other kids got wonderful fathers and I got the one that skipped," she said softly. Inu-Yasha remembered Sango telling him they didn't talk about Kagome's father.

But he was curious. "But you knew who he was, right?"

            "No…he left before I was born. I don't know, maybe to you it seems like the typical tragic sob story of a fatherless person, since I know that's quite common on the surface. But down here, it's disgraceful if you don't know your father. Only two people know, my mom and—" she suddenly stopped. "My uncle," she continued. "And they're both not telling. It's as if he's so bad he's gotta be kept a secret."

            Inu-Yasha leaned against the table of plankton chunks. "It's not like you're being shunned by the mermaid community, is it?"

            "No," Kagome replied. "But that's because…well, I'm on the rescuers patrol, which always has honor in it, and…I'll just say the rest of my family is respectable enough to make up for it. But if I were a normal mermaid, then life would've been kinda different."

            What did she mean by the rest of her family? He'd only seen her mother. And what was this about being normal? "You know, there's something you're not telling me," he said. "But if you don't want to tell me that's okay. I'll find out, though. It's obviously bugging you inside. In the meanwhile, I think even if you didn't have that patrol job or a good family, you'd still be liked." He wanted to tilt her chin up, raise her downcast eyes to meet his. His hand strayed around her cheek, and instead he tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears. I'm such a concerned sweetheart…he thought, cringing slightly. If this doesn't stop soon I'll be spouting off bad dialogue worthy of Mexican soaps.

            "I can't tell you. Not yet. But thanks for being concerned." Kagome said, reddening at his touch. "And you really didn't have to listen to my blathering." Then her face became grave. "Okay, seriously! I need to buy some plankton chunks!"

            "Here!" Inu-Yasha picked up a couple of packs and put them in the shopping bag. "Now let's go! We've spent enough time here!"

            "Hang on! You didn't even check to see if they were right or not…" The look Inu-Yasha gave her made her voice trail off. "But you know I bet they're great…you're hungry, aren't you?"

            "Whatever gave you that idea?" He grabbed her hand. "Come on, or I might actually start to eat those things."

            She followed, smiling, her cheek warm with his touch and her thoughts filled with the boy with the golden eyes. Meanwhile, Inu-Yasha worried about the girl with the silver-blue tail. What did the merworld think about her, in this state of apparent disgrace?

            But most important, what did he think about her?

*          *          *

            The week was up. And the king was waiting.

            They took dolphins, and Miroku was able to experience the straight-down-behind-a-dorsal-fin feeling as well. The castle was just passed the mercity, but they could see its golden spires gleaming above all the other buildings. The four of them dismounted in front of the castle and the guards that flanked either side of the large door.

            Miroku said, "Is it just me or is this kind of scary?"

            "It's just you," Inu-Yasha lied. Kagome and Sango talked with the guards a moment—the guards nodded and pushed the golden doors aside. "Please enter," one of them said. The four of them swam inside. Out of the corner of Inu-Yasha's eye he saw the guards bow their heads slightly to Kagome as she lagged behind.

            The castle was richer than Lord Sesshoumaru's manor. Somewhere a choir of angels was singing. Vases of pearls lined the castle—the mermaids had to restrain the humans from trying to make off with them. The floor was not only coral, but pressed into the coral were semi precious stones—a pebbled hall of jewels.

            They reached a door that had pictures of beautiful mermaids engraved on it. Inu-Yasha took a closer look at the door. "Hey, Kagome, that looks like you," he said, pointing at one particularly gorgeous mermaid.

            She stiffened. "That's not me."

            "Yeah it is. Look, the hair, the face, that's you."

            "It's not me," she snapped. "Don't push it, okay?"

            "What? Then how are we supposed to get in?" Miroku asked, then chuckled at his own lame joke. He was the only one that did.

            No one had to push the door open, since it swung open on its own. Must have been the power source. When the two mortals peeked in, their jaws dropped simultaneously.

            The room was large than the first floor of Sesshoumaru's manor. Shining torches alight with flame (courtesy of the power source, of course) lined the walls. Mermaid courtesans with strings of pearls wrapped round their waists swam gracefully around, laughing.

            Two of them came up and grabbed Inu-Yasha's and Miroku's arms. "His Majesty will see you now," they said with silky voices.

            "You guys go on ahead," Kagome said, lingering behind the door. "I'll stay here."

            Inu-Yasha looked backwards—the mermaids had already began tugging them forward. "Hey, what are you doing? We can't face the king alone."

            "Yes you can. Sango'll stay with me." Sango's confused face switched to understanding at Kagome's warning glare. "Besides, the king's seen enough mermaids. He's really only interested in the two of you. Now go, he doesn't like to be kept waiting either." She shooed them off, and the look that followed showed that she wasn't going to be going with them, no matter what.

            The two mortals passed the throng of mermaids until they reached the back of the room. On a platform, on a throne made of pearls, was the king of the mercity. He had thick black hair that was flattened by his massive gold crown. But to Miroku, something seemed missing…

            "Where's his trident?"

            Inu-Yasha nudged him hard. "You sot, what kind of silly question is that?"

            "Well, obviously you were deprived as a child." Miroku sniffed. 

            "At least I don't still act like one…unlike some people."

            "Apparently is it not your custom to bow before a king?" a deep, rumbling voice interrupted their argument. His voice echoed throughout the room. They both looked up and remembered where they were. Then the hint reached their brains and automatically they sank to their knees.

            Oh lord, oh master, however may we serve you? Inu-Yasha thought dryly, his eyes meeting the king's imperious stare. He didn't like this guy already. But then the king's face split into a grin and he laughed, his laughter practically shaking the walls.

            "Well it's not in ours! Get up! Hahaha!" They jolted to their feet. Inu-Yasha saw Miroku mouthing, 'He's completely loony' from the side of his mouth. He couldn't have agreed more.

            "So you've been here a week, eh? How'd you find our humble city?"

            Miroku shrugged. "It's better than what humans have. Your power source works wonders. And there's lots of pretty ladies," he added with a lopsided grin. Inu-Yasha smacked his hand over his face and slowly slid it down. "We are going to be kicked out before Miroku can say 'If I leave, my girlfriend's dead.'"

            "Hm…but you know the rule about mermaid-mortal relationships?" This time the king looked serious. "They can cause so much trouble…" Then he perked up. "Isn't the mermaid that saved you Kagome?"

            Inu-Yasha nodded. "And Sango," Miroku added.

            "Well, did she come with you?"

            "Yeah, but she didn't want to come inside," Inu-Yasha shrugged. "She's waiting back at the entrance, thought."

            "What?" The king roared. "That's ridiculous. Send Kagome in. Kagome! Kagome!" Miroku winced, fighting the urge to cover his ears. Everyone turned towards the direction of the entrance. Then, finally, Kagome appeared from behind the doors, flanked by Sango.

            "Kagome, what's this I hear about you not wanting to come inside? Come in!" the king commanded. Scowling like a petulant child Kagome swam through the path made for her by the courtesans. "Tattletale," she muttered when she reached Inu-Yasha. She raised her voice to address the king. "What do you want, your Majesty?"

            The king shook his head. "Don't 'Your Majesty' me, Kagome, does Kikyo call me Your Majesty? Does your mother? You're family!"

            "Family?" Inu-Yasha repeated, shocked.

            "I've always tried to make you call me 'Uncle' but you never will, will you?"

            "Uncle?" Miroku asked. "Let's rewind a little. I think we're missing a bit of the conversation."

            The king raised his eyebrow. "Didn't you know? Kagome's my niece. She'd be living in the castle if it weren't for, you know, that whole thing with her father…" Kagome looked down, her face red. But Inu-Yasha could see she wasn't embarrassed. She was angry. But she kept her lips tightly shut.

            A door to the side of the throne opened, and two mermaids floated in. They stepped aside to let another pass through. She was tall, her tail long and a beautiful reddish silver. No one in the mercity had reddish silver tails—they all had blue-green ones, except for Kagome and her mother, who had silver in theirs. It must be royalty who had the silver tails. The girl had long black hair that flowed past her waist. Her human top was while and slender. She was breathtaking.

            And she looked exactly like Kagome.

            About a million questions were answered in Inu-Yasha's head, like the carving on the wall and Kagome's bitterness about her 'respected family' and the princess. But he didn't look at Kagome—his eyes were fixed on the girl. And her eyes were fixed on him.

            "Father, why are you causing such a ruckus?" the princess asked, her voice like cool aloe vera on his eyes (great, now he was getting poetic). "But now I see…mortals have come into the city. No one told me?"

            Her father waved a hand carelessly. "Don't concern yourself with these things."

            Kikyo swam slowly to the throne, her eyes never leaving Inu-Yasha's face. "But I will be queen one day. It's my responsibility to concern myself with these things. Especially mortals."

            Kagome was watching Inu-Yasha's face. Her own was tight with anger.

            Miroku took a few steps back and surveyed the picture. The king's eyes were on Kagome. Kagome's eyes were on Inu-Yasha. Inu-Yasha's eyes were on Kikyo. And Kikyo's slowly slid between Inu-Yasha and Kagome, trying to discern their relationship. Mostly they were on Inu-Yasha, and a smile played around that beautiful mouth.

            He repeated the words Inu-Yasha had said just days before; "Oh, what a tangled web we weave."