Disclaimer: For like, the ninetieth time- I DON'T OWN INUYASHA!

Chapter 3

The next morning, Nightingale awoke to see fresh clothing already laid out for her. She changed quickly, feeling much better than the day before, but still weak.

She was worried about her father and silently hoped that he and the men had managed to escape the bandits. She wasn't sure what would happen to her if he was dead too. She would have nowhere to go. The last to survive in a village that didn't even exist anymore.

Stepping outside, she noticed a few people outside. Most were working, but several children hopped and skipped about in a round-about game of tag.

One spotted her and before she could react, they were all begging her to join their game. With a laugh she gave in, not sure she could hold out against their puppy-dog eyes for long.

She was running around, shrieking like a child when Turo found her. He relaxed against a hut to watch her for a time, admiring the agile way she dodged the children's grasping hands as they tried to catch her and she evaded them each time.

Finally, she spotted him and allowed one of the children to catch her, the child crowing in victory as it became his turn to be 'it'.

"I didn't want to disturb you." He told her, taking in her laughing eyes and flushed cheeks.

"I would have needed to stop soon anyway." She told him with a brief laugh. "They nearly tired me out!" She saw the concern register in his eyes and realized what she'd said.

"Don't worry." She assured him quickly. "I won't overdue it." He gave her a look that clearly told her he didn't believe her and she laughed again.

"Actually, I came here to see if you wanted a tour of the village."

"Could I?" She asked happily.

"Of course."

"Then I'd love one."

Toru smiled and began to point out various places as they walked down the main road through the small village.

He discretely made it a point to stop at places where she could rest for a few moments before moving on, so she wouldn't get tired.

She seemed thrilled by everything, although living in a village much like this, she probably had seen much of the same thing her whole life.

People stopped and talked to her as they made their way through the village, all of them curious about the newcomer- although they had all heard her story at the gathering. She smiled and answered their questions, laughing often and asking them questions right back, as interested in them as they were in her.

One particularly insistent monk even went so far as to try and touch her when she wasn't looking. A single glare from Turo and he stopped immediately, slinking away to ask the first women he saw if she would bear his children. (A/N: Can't resist adding a bit of Inuyasha in...)

He didn't say much, just relished the feeling of her beside him and wondered at his inability to distance himself from her.

He noticed she stopped to speak to children often, particularly the girls. When he asked her about it, she frowned slightly.

"I have... had a sister. Named Kya. She was about four I suppose."

He didn't pressure her, already annoyed at himself for bringing up what was obviously a painful memory for her.

She noticed his look and set a hand on his arm. "Please don't. It's hard for me to talk about them, but it does help."

He almost missed what she had said, as he relished the wave of sensation her touch on his skin created. When he words registered in his addled brain he nodded and pulled his arm out of her grasp, although at the moment that was the last thing he wanted to do.

What was he thinking? He had known her a total of two days, less if you counted the actual time, and he was already completely at her mercy. His knees were quivering at every smile, every brush of her hand.

Being near her was going to kill him if he wasn't careful.

OOOOO

She winced slightly as the Wise Women applied a slight pressure on the healing skin of her wound.

"You'll always have a scar." The women told her, wiping her hands off on a damp towel. "But that is a small price to pay for your life." She carefully replaced the bandages, silent the entire time.

When she was finished, she stood and eyed Nightingale with a calculating look as the girl pulled back on her clothing.

"You healed faster than I assumed you would." She said finally. "I told you when you first came here that when you were healed, you could leave. I have watched you for as long as you have been with us. Your appetite is fine, you are not dizzy or overly tired, and the wound itself has healed well with no signs of infection that I can see. So... you are free to go when you choose."

Nightingale froze. Go? Leave? She could go and find out if her father and brother were still alive!

She threw herself at the Wise Women hugging her fiercely as tears of happiness trailed down her face.

"Oh thank you! Thank you!"

Patting the girl on the back gently, the Wise Women pushed the girl away and brushed the tears from her face.

"Go and inform the head man of my decision. He will see to it that you have adequate provisions and a guide to help you to your destination, whenever you decide to leave."

She was about to rush out of the tent when a thought hit her. "But... my friends... What will they think?"

"They will be sad that you are leaving, but happy that you will find your family again. They will not stop you from going."

I'm going to miss them... Nightingale thought, exiting the tent to begin the walk to the head man's hut. Old Bayo, the story teller... Mira, the seamstress... Fiori, who had mothered her enough so that she had never felt unloved... Sima, the youngest girl, who had reminded her so much of Kya... And Turo. What would he think of all this?

She kept her eyes down as she thought about him. A dull flush crept it's way up her cheeks. He had quickly become her best friend in the village. But unlike a best friend, her feelings for him weren't always brotherly. Him, she would miss most of all. And though it hurt, she knew that she had to find out what had happened to her father and brother.

Immersed in her thoughts, she reached the head man's hut before she realized and would have walked past it, had not a small kitten with yellow fur, it's head marked with a distinctive black triangle, skittered across her path at that moment. (A/N: Guess who...?)

She looked up in confusion, glancing around for the cat. Did that animal have more than one tail? However, she quickly forgot about the strange cat, when she realized where her feet had led her.

With a slight droop of her shoulders, she entered the hut.

The head man sat in deep meditation on a raised mound in the center of the room. The smoke in the room made her eyes water and she choked back a cough.

She lowered herself to her knees and settled her hands in her lap to wait until he awoke from the trance and realized she was there.

She breathed in and out slowly, trying to stay awake, though the smoke made her sleepy. She was about to doze off when a voice shook her from slumber.

"What is it you wish to discuss with me little bird?"

"The Wise Women has said that I am well enough to travel. I wish to leave and locate my family."

"So you are sick of our hospitality then?"

"Never!" She answered, slightly shocked. "I am in debt to your people for what they have done for me! I merely wish to-"

"Peace little bird." he said, holding up a hand for silence. "I know the meaning of your words. You may go whenever it is you desire."

"I wish to leave... tomorrow." To stay any longer than she already had would be foolish. It was already hard to leave, why make it worse?

The head man nodded slowly. "You will need a guide then. My son should suffice. I have noticed you two have gotten along quite well in your time here and he should be a good companion for you on your journey."

Turo? Come along with her? That would make it harder than ever to leave, but she didn't dare to refuse.

"Thank you."

"Good, leave me. Take this time to say goodbye to those you knew. You will depart in the morning. Send Turo to me so that I may inform him of his mission."

She stood, ignoring the pins and needles sting of legs gone to sleep and walked out the door and into the light and fresh air.

She took a deep breath before beginning her way into town again. This may be harder than I realized...

I have to find Turo. If he finds out I'm leaving before I tell him, he'll be angry I didn't let him know first.

She went down the road looking to the left and right, trying to spot the young man. When she didn't see him, she walked over to a group of young girls, who were engrossed in a game that Nightingale didn't see the point of.

"Sima?" She touched the girl's shoulder to get her attention. "Have you seen Turo lately?"

Eyes wide, the child shook her head.

"He went scoutin' this mornin'." Another girl spoke up. "Wiff' Dero."

Nightingale mentally cursed her bad luck. The two boys could be gone for hours, and by the time they returned it may be too late to say goodbye to her friends. She'd have to forget about Turo for the moment and deal with his anger when he returned.

"Thank you." She told the children, dusting off her clothing as she rose from the dirt of the road.

She spent the remainder of her day visting each of the villagers in turn, informing them of her choice and biting back tears each time they tred to convince her to stay.

By the time she was finished with last hut, her eyes stung from the tears that had been building all day.

With a small sigh, she wiped her eyes roughly against the fabric of her sleeve, trying to hold the tears at bay a while longer. She walked to her hut, miserably collapsing onto her pallet.

She wasn't sure if she was happy or sad. Her emotions were in such turmoil she wasn't sure what she was feeling. She was happy because she had the chance to find her father and brother, and sad because she was being forced to leave the people that had become her temporary family. They had taken her in when she had nowhere else to turn and had become as close as her old village had. She loved them all, and it would be more than difficult to leave when the time came to go.

Hearing noises outside she walked to the door and observed Turo and Dero laughing together as they walked up the road. She ducked back inside her hut, wiping her eyes and scrubbing them with her palms. She couldn't let either of them see her like this.

Finally satisfied, she stepped outside to intercept them as they walked past.

"Turo?"

He turned instantly, taking in her appearance in a quick glance. She seemed tired, more than usual- and her eyes were red-rimmed, as if she had been crying.

What's going on? He found himself wondering.

She flashed him a bright smile, but it lacked it's usual luster. "Your father needs to tell you something. I'll keep Dero busy while you speak to him."

She linked arms with Dero, sending a pang of jealousy through him, though he knew he had no real claim on her himself. She steered Dero away down the street, talking in a soft voice, that had him wondering what they were conversing about.

He turned, feeling another pang of jealousy hit home and stalked up the road to his father's hut. He threw back the flap and forced himself to calm down before entering the shadowy blackness inside.

"Son." His father's formal voice resounded from somewhere in the smoke.

Turo remained silent, a little apprehensive about what he might say.

"Nightingale has decided to return to her family. I have selected you to be her guide on the way back. I know you will guard her well. You must secure provisions for your journey, including medicines and herbs for her wound. You leave in the morning."

Turo was frozen from the first sentence. Nightingale was going back? And she hadn't told him?

"You may go."

Turo rose and left the hut, his body feeling like it was made of ice. Frozen, cold.

It was bad enough she was leaving, but he had to be the one to take her back? The irony of it all set his teeth on edge.

Well, at least now he understood why she had led Dero away. But why would she look so sad? Wasn't she getting exactly what she wanted?

It was foolish to think she would have stayed longer. Stupid. He knew that once she was healed she would leave. He had always none. But he couldn't help but fall for her. And hard.

He loved the way she laughed, the way she smiled, the way she chewed on her bottom lip when she was worried about something. He loved her. He couldn't even deny it to himself anymore. He had cared about her from the moment he laid eyes on her.

And now she was leaving. Just thinking about it made his heart ache.

He realized he had been standing outside the hut for some time now, deep in thought. He set off down the road, not sure what he was going to say when he found her.

OOOOO

Author's Note: Sorry all. I'm going on a two week vacation starting tomorrow. I hope you're not too mad at me. However, if I get an immediate response from the few reviewers I have I might find it in my heart to post one more chapter before I go...

To my reviewers: suicide-greeting (All I have to say is... MINE TOO!), and DarklessVasion, thanks for taking the time to review!

MysteryMaiden7