&&&&&&&
The first thing Kagome did when she got back home was head to her room to pack for her trip back in time. After two steps past her door, she stopped, looking around.
'He was here. I can feel it.'
It used to creep her out when he invited himself into her room like that. She eventually realized that he would never do anything untoward and that he was really just a puppy around her. She smiled. Except when he was being obstinate and unreasonable.
'Yes, Inu-Yasha. I've missed you too.'
&&&&&&&
Sango was packing for a short trip to her village. Since Kagome's absence, they had no one to give them any indication of where a Shikon shard might be, nor had either Sesshomaru or Naraku bothered them. She thought this was as good a time as any to take a quick break from her friends to check on her clan's remains. She didn't need much. Some dried, salted meat, potable water, and one of those wonderful "cotton" things Kagome had brought back for her during one of her trips to the future. A "towel" Kagome had called it. Sango wondered what she had done before she knew about these. A few medicinal herbs for "just in case" and she was ready to leave.
Miroku observed Sango from his seat near the fire, absent-mindedly stroking Kilala's fur, listening to the cat-yokai purr contentedly.
'Sango, I'd love to put my hands on you like this. I bet I could make you purr...'
"...back in about a day and a half. Miroku? Miroku? Are you all right?" Sango was beginning to become concerned about the monk.
"Oh. Sango. I, ahem was just..." Miroku blushed.
"Thinking about something Kagome said to Inu-Yasha, I'll bet." She gave him THE look.
"No, actually, I was thinking about how I'll miss you for the time you're away." Well at least that was true. It was Sango's turn to blush.
"Miroku. That might be the nicest thing you've ever said to me." She moved closer to him as he stood, setting Kilala on the floor. Kilala hissed her unhappiness, but Miroku was only paying attention to Sango. Not only was she truly beautiful, but there was an honesty behind her beauty that he had never seen in any of the women he had known.
"Are you sure you don't want an escort?"
"It's all right. Kilala and I will be fine. Perhaps next time?" She looked into his eyes to gauge the affect of her tease.
"I'll look forward to it, then." He moved to embrace her. From experience, she hesitated, then reciprocated, her eyes never leaving his. At the last second, his face moved so his head was now in the crook of her neck, his arms embracing her.
'Thank the gods she's not wearing her skin-tight battle suit, the one that shows me the muscles of her calves, the shape of her rump, the curve of her breasts, the sweep of her thighs, the...'
Oddly, he found he had to grasp the wrist of the hand that wanted to grope her with his other hand. When he did that, his biceps flexed, causing Sango to realize just how strong he was.
'This is nice.' She thought. She had flinched in anticipation of the grope that never came.
'I'd better stop now.' She felt her breathing get a bit shallow.
'I'd better stop right now before I give him the wrong...'
'O.k. One more moment.'
Sango kept her eyes downcast as she broke their embrace, not wanting the monk to see her blush. She quickly snatched up Kilala, and turned and grabbed her small pack.
"Bye."
And she was gone before Miroku knew what happened.
&&&&&&&
Kagome ran back downstairs (as quickly as she could, given the weight of her pack). Passing her mom in the kitchen, she paused momentarily.
"Well, I'm off again."
"Kagome, be careful. And you know I love you." Kagome put her pack down to hug her mother.
"I love you too, mom."
"Thank you for spending time with me. I know I'm not one of your, umm, clitch, but..."
"That's clique, mom, but don't worry. We'll be doing more of this soon, I promise. I want to say 'bye to Gramps and Sota. Where are they?"
"Well, your grandfather is visiting another shrinekeeper so he'll miss you this time, but Sota should be in his room."
"O.k." She skipped back up the stairs. Strange, but Sota normally was the first one to greet her during her comings and goings.
'I wonder if he's feeling alright.' She rapped on his door.
"Go away!" She heard through his door.
"Sota it's me, Kagome."
"Go away! I don't want to see anybody!"
O.k. This was weird. She opened his door and poked her head in. Her brother was sitting on the edge of his bed, his head in his hands. It looked as if he had been crying.
"Sota. Tell me what happened?" She ran over and knelt in front of him.
"I...I...Inu..." He couldn't finish because he was sobbing.
"Inu-Yasha? What did he do?"
"He...He...He stole my i-Pod!"
&&&&&&&
'How the hell did this happen?' Thought the confused hanyou.
Frightened at his own emotional outburst, he had fled the scene at Kagome's house, not even remembering that he had the i-pod clutched in his hand until he was well on his way back to the Feudal era. He thought about the promise he made to Sota and felt even worse. He looked at the pieces scattered about.
'Maybe I can figure out how to put it back together.'
&&&&&&&
Kagome was still a bit ticked. Inu-Yasha a petty thief? It wasn't true, was it?
'It's not like I don't bring him stuff all the time whenever I come back...'
Her emotions were conflicted. She was in love, yes. But she didn't stand for anyone messing with her family. Sota was a pain in the butt sometimes, but he was still her only brother. That was why it was so difficult right now. It took her a while to console Sota, to explain to him that it had to be a misunderstanding and that something had happened to cause Inu-Yasha to leave without returning his property. She would bring him and it back and he would apologize to Sota. That seemed to make her brother feel better.
'He'd better have a good explanation...'
She allowed herself the satisfaction of mentally 'sitting' him one hundred times in a row for his punishment.
She did a last-minute check to make sure she had everything. Her pack was 'packed' to where it barely closed. Being away for so long meant that everyone would be waiting even more anxiously for the treats she brought them. Shippo loved his lollipops and assorted other candies. She had to watch him as he was starting to develop a sweet tooth. The vision of her bringing a kitsune to the dentist to have a cavity filled broke through her anxiety for a bit and brought a small smile to her face. Kaede was experimenting with some of the over-the-counter medicinal remedies she brought back. Sango never asked for anything, but her eyes always lit up when Kagome brought different kinds of makeup... blush, lip gloss, among other kinds. The two of them would spend some of their down time practicing on each other. Oddly, Sango never wanted Miroku to see her made up. The thought of Miroku reminded Kagome of the weight of the two six- packs of soft drinks at the bottom of the pack. He had become quite fond of the fizzy stuff. She then gave herself the thought of him ever getting his hands on a six-pack of beer instead. She laughed out loud. Poor Sango wouldn't stand a chance against a buzzed Miroku.
As fit as she had become from their many adventures, she groaned under the weight of the pack as she headed to the shrine.
'This thing weighs almost half of me.'
She hefted it over the edge of the well and then down it went with her hanging onto the straps. She had learned her lesson the hard way traveling through time with the pack on her back, having landed once on her stomach. The weight of the pack had knocked the wind out of her when that happened, and she didn't want to go through that experience again.
&&&&&&&
Inu-Yasha was frantic. He had gathered up the broken pieces at the base of the tree and had tried to put them back together, but he had no clue as to how to do it. After three or so unsuccessful attempts, he gave up. The thought of an angry Kagome and what she would do to him made him groan with dread.
'Maybe Kaede will know what to do.'
He was about to depart when he picked up a scent he had become very familiar with.
Soul Stealers.
'Kikyo!'
&&&&&&&
The first thing Kagome did when she got back home was head to her room to pack for her trip back in time. After two steps past her door, she stopped, looking around.
'He was here. I can feel it.'
It used to creep her out when he invited himself into her room like that. She eventually realized that he would never do anything untoward and that he was really just a puppy around her. She smiled. Except when he was being obstinate and unreasonable.
'Yes, Inu-Yasha. I've missed you too.'
&&&&&&&
Sango was packing for a short trip to her village. Since Kagome's absence, they had no one to give them any indication of where a Shikon shard might be, nor had either Sesshomaru or Naraku bothered them. She thought this was as good a time as any to take a quick break from her friends to check on her clan's remains. She didn't need much. Some dried, salted meat, potable water, and one of those wonderful "cotton" things Kagome had brought back for her during one of her trips to the future. A "towel" Kagome had called it. Sango wondered what she had done before she knew about these. A few medicinal herbs for "just in case" and she was ready to leave.
Miroku observed Sango from his seat near the fire, absent-mindedly stroking Kilala's fur, listening to the cat-yokai purr contentedly.
'Sango, I'd love to put my hands on you like this. I bet I could make you purr...'
"...back in about a day and a half. Miroku? Miroku? Are you all right?" Sango was beginning to become concerned about the monk.
"Oh. Sango. I, ahem was just..." Miroku blushed.
"Thinking about something Kagome said to Inu-Yasha, I'll bet." She gave him THE look.
"No, actually, I was thinking about how I'll miss you for the time you're away." Well at least that was true. It was Sango's turn to blush.
"Miroku. That might be the nicest thing you've ever said to me." She moved closer to him as he stood, setting Kilala on the floor. Kilala hissed her unhappiness, but Miroku was only paying attention to Sango. Not only was she truly beautiful, but there was an honesty behind her beauty that he had never seen in any of the women he had known.
"Are you sure you don't want an escort?"
"It's all right. Kilala and I will be fine. Perhaps next time?" She looked into his eyes to gauge the affect of her tease.
"I'll look forward to it, then." He moved to embrace her. From experience, she hesitated, then reciprocated, her eyes never leaving his. At the last second, his face moved so his head was now in the crook of her neck, his arms embracing her.
'Thank the gods she's not wearing her skin-tight battle suit, the one that shows me the muscles of her calves, the shape of her rump, the curve of her breasts, the sweep of her thighs, the...'
Oddly, he found he had to grasp the wrist of the hand that wanted to grope her with his other hand. When he did that, his biceps flexed, causing Sango to realize just how strong he was.
'This is nice.' She thought. She had flinched in anticipation of the grope that never came.
'I'd better stop now.' She felt her breathing get a bit shallow.
'I'd better stop right now before I give him the wrong...'
'O.k. One more moment.'
Sango kept her eyes downcast as she broke their embrace, not wanting the monk to see her blush. She quickly snatched up Kilala, and turned and grabbed her small pack.
"Bye."
And she was gone before Miroku knew what happened.
&&&&&&&
Kagome ran back downstairs (as quickly as she could, given the weight of her pack). Passing her mom in the kitchen, she paused momentarily.
"Well, I'm off again."
"Kagome, be careful. And you know I love you." Kagome put her pack down to hug her mother.
"I love you too, mom."
"Thank you for spending time with me. I know I'm not one of your, umm, clitch, but..."
"That's clique, mom, but don't worry. We'll be doing more of this soon, I promise. I want to say 'bye to Gramps and Sota. Where are they?"
"Well, your grandfather is visiting another shrinekeeper so he'll miss you this time, but Sota should be in his room."
"O.k." She skipped back up the stairs. Strange, but Sota normally was the first one to greet her during her comings and goings.
'I wonder if he's feeling alright.' She rapped on his door.
"Go away!" She heard through his door.
"Sota it's me, Kagome."
"Go away! I don't want to see anybody!"
O.k. This was weird. She opened his door and poked her head in. Her brother was sitting on the edge of his bed, his head in his hands. It looked as if he had been crying.
"Sota. Tell me what happened?" She ran over and knelt in front of him.
"I...I...Inu..." He couldn't finish because he was sobbing.
"Inu-Yasha? What did he do?"
"He...He...He stole my i-Pod!"
&&&&&&&
'How the hell did this happen?' Thought the confused hanyou.
Frightened at his own emotional outburst, he had fled the scene at Kagome's house, not even remembering that he had the i-pod clutched in his hand until he was well on his way back to the Feudal era. He thought about the promise he made to Sota and felt even worse. He looked at the pieces scattered about.
'Maybe I can figure out how to put it back together.'
&&&&&&&
Kagome was still a bit ticked. Inu-Yasha a petty thief? It wasn't true, was it?
'It's not like I don't bring him stuff all the time whenever I come back...'
Her emotions were conflicted. She was in love, yes. But she didn't stand for anyone messing with her family. Sota was a pain in the butt sometimes, but he was still her only brother. That was why it was so difficult right now. It took her a while to console Sota, to explain to him that it had to be a misunderstanding and that something had happened to cause Inu-Yasha to leave without returning his property. She would bring him and it back and he would apologize to Sota. That seemed to make her brother feel better.
'He'd better have a good explanation...'
She allowed herself the satisfaction of mentally 'sitting' him one hundred times in a row for his punishment.
She did a last-minute check to make sure she had everything. Her pack was 'packed' to where it barely closed. Being away for so long meant that everyone would be waiting even more anxiously for the treats she brought them. Shippo loved his lollipops and assorted other candies. She had to watch him as he was starting to develop a sweet tooth. The vision of her bringing a kitsune to the dentist to have a cavity filled broke through her anxiety for a bit and brought a small smile to her face. Kaede was experimenting with some of the over-the-counter medicinal remedies she brought back. Sango never asked for anything, but her eyes always lit up when Kagome brought different kinds of makeup... blush, lip gloss, among other kinds. The two of them would spend some of their down time practicing on each other. Oddly, Sango never wanted Miroku to see her made up. The thought of Miroku reminded Kagome of the weight of the two six- packs of soft drinks at the bottom of the pack. He had become quite fond of the fizzy stuff. She then gave herself the thought of him ever getting his hands on a six-pack of beer instead. She laughed out loud. Poor Sango wouldn't stand a chance against a buzzed Miroku.
As fit as she had become from their many adventures, she groaned under the weight of the pack as she headed to the shrine.
'This thing weighs almost half of me.'
She hefted it over the edge of the well and then down it went with her hanging onto the straps. She had learned her lesson the hard way traveling through time with the pack on her back, having landed once on her stomach. The weight of the pack had knocked the wind out of her when that happened, and she didn't want to go through that experience again.
&&&&&&&
Inu-Yasha was frantic. He had gathered up the broken pieces at the base of the tree and had tried to put them back together, but he had no clue as to how to do it. After three or so unsuccessful attempts, he gave up. The thought of an angry Kagome and what she would do to him made him groan with dread.
'Maybe Kaede will know what to do.'
He was about to depart when he picked up a scent he had become very familiar with.
Soul Stealers.
'Kikyo!'
&&&&&&&