Chapter Three: Spy in the rose bush

Miroku just looked at her a while until she said" So what are you doing here?"

"huh...oh I was suppose to get some water from the river." he said

"me one." she said and got a bucket from behind the rose bush to fill with water. Miroku watched as she kneeled by the river bank and filled the bucket with water.He did the same but barley paid attention to what he was doing he kept looking at her butt. After a while he just couldn't help himself and put his hand closer to her.

Shadow finished filling the bucket with water and got up.When she did she felt a hand on her ass. "Please remove your hand before I break it off." she said then stepped on Miroku's foot.

"Now i know why that girl slapped him before." she said to herself. Shadow turned around to see him jumping around holding his foot. "I guess I stepped on his foot too hard.Oh well serves him right." she thought in her head.

She sat down quietly by the rose bush and pulled out a string from her pocket.She started playing around with it making diffrent shapes with it around her fingers. Miroku sat in front of her as she made the shapes with the string.

"How do you do that?" he asked after awhile remembering what Sango said.he thought she might be doing that with some kind of spell or something.

"Just by looping the string through my fingers.Here you try." she said handing him the string. She showed him how but he was unsuccesful. "It takes a while to get it right." she said smiling

"Yeah.Sorry about earlier." he said

"That's okay as long as you keep your hands to yourself you can keep them." she said

"Well I have to be getting back to my friends.Do you want to come?"

"No thank you.I have to be getting home." she got up and started to leave.

"Where do you live?" he asked as she got up

"Around the edge of the forest. Well... bye." and she disappeared

"Bye." he said looking in the direction she went before returning to his friends.

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"Where's Miroku? I'm getting thirsty." Inuyasha complained

" For the tenth time,He'll be here soon.Stop complaining already." Kagome said

"Well the sooner he hurries the sonner we can get back to the village" he said

"Then why don't you go find him?" she said

"Because i don't want to." then he went and climbed to the top of a tree nearby.

"What's his problem?" Sango asked as Inuyasha settled himself at the highest branch of the tree.

"I don't know.Impatient i guess." Kagome responded. A few minutes later Miroku returned whistling carrying the bucket of water. He set it on the ground.

"About time you got here." Inuyasha yelled from the top of the tree.

"Sorry. I was talking with Shadow. I met her by the river." he said

"You saw her again? Did you ask her about her powers?" Sango asked

"No.And I didn't see anything strange about her when I talked to her." he responded

"Hey you guys.Was that rose bush always there?" Kagome said pointing in the direction near where Miroku had come from.

"No I don't think so." Sango said

"I don't remember seeing it when I came." Miroku said

Inuyasha came down from the tree to listen to what they were talking about.

"What are you guys talking about now?" Inuyasha said comming up to them

"That rose bush over there." Kagome said pointing to it. "Has it always been there?"

"Of course it hasn't.But maybe someone's hidding around it." he said then sniffed the air to see if he could catch a scent. But the only thing he could smell were the roses.

"Nope.I can only smell the roses.But i still don't get how it got there"

Neither did anyone else.

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"I knew I shouldn't have put the bush here." Shadow thought to herself. "Now they know i'm here.Or at least they think they do." She looked around through the bush watching what they were doing and only barley hearing what they were saying.Soon they picked up their things and started to leave in the other direction.

"Looks like this is the only fun i'm getting tonight so i may as well follow them.Or else i'll be bored for days." she sneaked behind a few trees following them silently. They didn't seem to be aware that she was following and she hoped they wouldn't for find out for awhile.

They reached Kaede's village just before dark not noticing that they were being followed.They went into a house and Shadow listened by the window.

XXXX IN SHADOW'S HOME BY THE FOREST XXXX

"Shadow, time for dinner.You've in you room for out." the woman opened the door. "Shadow? .... Shadow?" she looked around the room but found nothing but an open window.

"Oh no.She's escaped again.I'm getting into so much trouble for this when the mistress finds out." she sighed "I'll have to find her before she starts up with her tricks again.I only hope i'm not too late."

The woman went out of the room and closed the door behind her locking it. She grabbed her cloak and went out of the house leaving a note for her mistress.Then disappeared into the forest.

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For weeks no one noticed the shadow lurking outside following them where ever they went.They did however notice the rose bushes that seemed to appear every where they went but never the spy that hid silently behind it watching them.By now Shadow learned all she needed to know about Miroku and his friends.

She knew Kagome loved Inuyasha and so did he but neither of them would confess. She learned Miroku loved Sango and showed it in his own way which mostly ended him up unconcious with a mark on his cheek. Sango though she wouldn't admit it was also in love with him. She also learned of Shippo another of their friends she thought was adorable with his little tail.

She watched day after day as Inuyasha argued with either Shippo or Kagome and Miroku get slapped by Sango for being a pervert who couldn't keep his hands to himself. Though after a while it got boring watching them do the same thing all the time. Shadow decided to return home before getting into trouble with her sister if she noticed her disappearance.

As she walked home her mind started coming up with a plan that would provide her with entertainment and amusment for a few weeks. Given the fact she did not get caught.

"It's the perfect source of amusement." she said to herself "I just hope it works and i don't get caught."

End of chapter three.The next chapter should be up soon.Maybe tomorrow.I hope you liked it.Please review. Thank you.

--Koneko