Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or any of its characters.
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Miroku looked like he was ready to fight some sort of awful demon instead of looking at an incredibly attractive woman of child bearing age. I had never seen him react this way to a woman, and I instantly wondered who she was to cause the look of extreme concentration with the slightest edge of fear on his face.
My first impression of this Leiko-sama who had been brought up last night was that she was a very cold and hard woman. She was pale and seemed extra white in contrast with her black hair and black kimono. Her face would have been girlish and trusting if her eyes did not give her away. Her eyes were blue, first off. Not unheard of, but still very rare. They were icy to look into. What does she want with Miroku?
Miroku and Leiko probably would have just stared each other down for some time if Sachi had not intervened. "Leiko, come sit down." She began pouring another cup of tea. "We're all fine as you can see; Udo is out back bringing in fire wood. But the storm has brought us some visitors." Sachi proceeded to introduce Kagome, Shippou, and me.
The woman afforded each of us a small glance and a quick nod before she turned back to Miroku. "What interesting friends you have, Miroku. Especially the kit; he's charming." It was said kindly but I sensed malice behind it. If Miroku understood any sting behind the words he did not show it.
"Yes, Shippou has been incredibly helpful during our travels for one so young." The kit beamed under the compliment, but the attention of the room was clearly not on him. Even Sachi seemed tense.
"Sachi-san," Leiko said looking up into the face of the older woman. "I wonder if Miroku and I might have a word alone with each other."
Kagome reacted first. "I was just going to check on Inuyasha anyway. Shippou-chan, why don't you come and lend a hand?" Kagome and the fox kit quickly retreated into the house.
Sachi hesitated, glancing over at Miroku who smiled blandly at her. She nodded slowly before turning to me. "Sango, why don't I show you my gardens. I think you'll find them quite lovely even in the snow." I was terribly curious about what Miroku and Leiko were going to talk about but I reluctantly followed Sachi out.
Sachi led me around the compound to the center which opened up into her gardens. "Sachi-san," I ventured slowly. "I know you may think that this is none of my business, but..."
"You want to know about Leiko?" she interrupted with a nod. "By all rights, I shouldn't tell you anything. Miroku is a very dear friend to me despite the short time I knew him and the long time that we were separated." She paused looking out into the frozen garden. "I told you this morning that my husband is dead?"
"Yes, some time ago, wasn't it?" I watched her face carefully.
"Seven years ago to be exact." My head snapped around to look at her in surprise. "Yes, that was about a month before Miroku came here. I was lucky enough to have an arranged marriage in which there was love. Taki was everything to me. He was killed in a hunting accident after eight years of marriage." She paused. The look in her face was one of faded pain and bitterness. It was odd; I could see how hard it had been on her but was left with the impression that she had come to peace with her past.
"I was close to term in my first pregnancy when he died." She gave a wry smile. "We had waited so long for a child. Two weeks later the child was born dead. I don't tell you this so you pity me, but so that you understand what Miroku did for me."
"I couldn't pity someone who has so much strength after so much hardship," I said truthfully. I understood losing family in rapid succession, receiving one blow after another. I could not imagine the strength it would take to be at peace with that.
Sachi gave me a small smile as though she sensed something of our common pain. "You are still wondering what this has to do with your monk. Well, when Miroku showed up, he was as caring and kind a friend as I could ever wish for. He never treated me like I was broken or fragile like most of the village. It was no wonder I fell for him."
I gaped at her in surprise. She fell for my Miroku? That hentai? "Fell for him?" I squeaked with wide eyes. She laughed.
"Surely it's not so surprising," she said with a smile. She became serious again very quickly. "He was a boy, Sango, and I allowed myself to forget that. He turned me down, though. He told me I was just lonely. He told me to give it time to heal. I laughed at him. I told him that it couldn't heal." She sighed.
"He stuck by me though. He made sure that I wasn't alone, which is what I really needed. He was the one that suggested that my half brother, Udo, come to live with me. He found ways to help me that no one else could." She sighed and looked at me. "He's a better man than he lets on. Don't judge him too harshly for the mistakes of the past."
She turned and walked back into the house without another look at me. I stared out at the frozen garden, stunned. A woman came on to Miroku, and he turned her down. What would he do if I showed an interest, I thought suddenly. I was attracted to Miroku; I won't lie even to myself on that matter. But I had not really thought about any sort of urgency. When I was ready, I assumed he would be too. But now I was filled with a doubt I had never even considered: rejection.
I knew, however, Sachi's intent had not been to foster doubt. She had told me all she had because I had asked about him and this Leiko woman. Don't judge him too harshly for the mistakes of the past. What mistakes? I sighed. The only thing I could think of was that Miroku had turned her down, not out of a brotherly type of concern, but because he already had someone else.
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Leiko took a sip of tea calmly before she spoke. "So after al this time you show up. Don't you have anything you want to say to me?" she asked with piercing eyes. I returned her gaze with a glare.
"We both know perfectly well why I'm here."
She frowned. "So nothing has changed between us? And here I had thought you had changed."
"I've changed," I admitted. "And I will say that I handled things very poorly then. So yes, I'm sorry. But you know I was not wrong about most of it."
Her lips thinned in anger. "You are a fool Miroku. You always were, but I loved you all the same and no matter what you say now, you loved me too."
I stared at the bottom of my empty cup, my jaw set painfully tight. "Yes." When I spoke it was barely above a whisper and I cursed how small I sounded. "I did love you." There was a long moment of silence. I did not think there was anything left to say between us. I did not know what else she could possibly want with me, but I knew there had to be more.
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A/N: It has been pointed out that Miroku is actually 19. He he he, oops. Yeah, actually I read something to this effect just after posting the previous chapter. Oh well. Everyone in anime is so frickin' young. I'm just going to pretend he's older and you can imagine he's 453 years old and possessed by a genie if you want. I don't care. But thanks for pointing it out and for the subsequent advice. Thanks for reading and paying attention. Anyway guys, it's probably going to be a while for the next chapter. Can we say Organic chem? Let me know what you think; perhaps it will inspire me not to study and to write more fan fiction this week.
