A/N: Note to self: Before cracking a joke about being a man in disclaimers, make sure reviewers know you're joking.

No, I'm not a man. ¬_¬

I am 100% female. It was amazing how many people actually took my 'man joke' for real.

Also, another reviewer commented 'it's been like forever since you updated!' when I updated the morning they left the review. ¬_¬ If anybody else sees the irony, then good, I'm not the only one.

BTW, little complains about the lack of fluff is alright and I even crack a smile at some of them, but if it gets bigger than that [a.k.a. demanding me to], I'm afraid I'd be forced to chase you with a spatula.

But fluff at the end [kinda] for those who asked NICELY. -_- Enjoy, even though it's not I/K.

Anyway, good news. Merry Christmas everyone! I'm in the Christmas spirit and it feels great this year. I wrote an extra, extra long chapter just for all of you! Have fun reading it, will you? It didn't cost my blood to write so much, but it did require a lot of brain cells working. ;) Have fun, and in return, give me some nice, long reviews as presents, okay? Enjoy!

Disclaimer: No man jokes in my disclaimer this time. Just the simple, I don't own Inuyasha. *makes sure there wasn't any glitch in saying that*

Behind the Masquerade

Love over Lust

The explosion happened in a heartbeat.

Miroku grabbed Sango's ass, Sango slapped him with an echoing slap before opening her mouth to argue, King Komiya dropped his goblet of wine on the ground, Lady Komiya looked horrified, Sesshoumaru got up to leave, Rin looked torn between staying or leaving with him, Shippou scampered out the door and Inuyasha practically bellowed his disapproval.

That to say in the least, wasn't a nice scene.

Kagome winced when all she heard was Inuyasha yelling obscenities at someone she wasn't sure of and she covered her ears with her hands. Closing her eyes, she could hear Kikyou argue back while the King and Queen tried to stop the mayhem.

She knew…oh yes, Kagome knew this would happen. She had a thought that everything would erupt into a bloody feud and she would develop a migraine and here it was. Sinking into the seat, she could hear the pounding of her heart in her ears beat alongside the rhythm in her head, and she gently laid a hand over her chest. Why did it hurt so much? She had known the moment to return would come one day, and it was only sooner than expected…so…why did it hurt?

"Fuck! Don't I get a say in any of this?!" the hanyou roared in ire across from Kagome, his face livid with anger. His eyes swirled in an emotion only defined as enraged and his claws clenched so hard at the table edge, there were half moon marks left as dents in the wood.

Kikyou frowned at him. "Are you going to defy your parent's orders and not marry me? Hmm? Inuyasha? Tell me, are you?" she asked daringly, matching his mad gaze with a calm, penetrating glare.

Inuyasha didn't say anything as he felt his parents gaze fall on him and only growled openly at his fiancée, whom returned his growl with a smile which infuriated him.

"Inuyasha! Sit down right now and calm yourself!" Lady Komiya cut in when she saw that her son had stopped yelling for a while. "You will behave yourself in front of your fiancée, got it?"

"Will I have to marry this girl?" he whispered menacingly, narrowing his eyes at Kikyou.

"Yes you will." King Komiya answered solidly.

Inuyasha snapped his threatening glare over to his parents, opening his mouth to say something before closing it again. Slamming a frustrated fist onto the table, the food and plate shuddered and he heard a sharp gasp from the girl across from him. He ignored it though as he got up and stalked out of the room, a dark aura covering him.

Everyone else inside the dining room breathed easier.

"Thank god," Lady Komiya muttered, relieved that Inuyasha hadn't gone as far as throw a bigger tantrum in front of all these people. If he had, it would have been so embarrassing for her as his mother.

"Heh," Kikyou scoffed softly when she heard a distant sound of glass breaking. "He's such a kid."

King Komiya wiped perspiration from his forehead as he motioned for a servant to bring him a new cup of wine to replace the one that had fallen onto the ground. He was use to his younger son's bouts of anger, but they never seemed to stop tiring him out. He was getting old after all.

Sango was muttering about two different subjects under her breath: angry men and perverted men. Fleeting a look at the perverted man next to her, she made sure his wandering hands stayed far away from her harassed ass. Miroku was just mumbling stuff about violent women though and absolutely made sure he didn't try another pass…for the meanwhile.

The main concern however, was Kagome at the moment.

"Dear, are you alright?" Lady Komiya asked, looking at the girl who had grown incredibly pale.

Kagome mutely nodded her head before suddenly shaking it and getting up from her seat. She looked around her at the people, eyeing them slowly, before stopping her gaze at Kikyou.

'You always win,' she mouthed wordlessly, before changing to glimpse at the King and Queen. "Excuse me, I'll go pack my things right now," she said monotonously, hoping no one caught the crack in her voice near the end of her sentence.

"But Kagome dear, you could---" the queen began, although Kagome had turned heels and was pacing her way out the room calmly.

She soon disappeared and the dining room was left with only half of its inhabitants, which didn't go well to brighten the sudden dreary atmosphere that had taken a hold of it. Miroku and Sango fidgeted nervously in their places while Kikyou looked perfectly content.

King Komiya only sighed and called for another goblet of wine while Lady Komiya held up her dessert and optimistically questioned, "Anybody?"

Sango was about to excuse herself from the table, but Lady Komiya held up a restraining hand. Motioning for the girl to sit back down, the queen sighed as she put down her dessert.

"I think…we all are in need of a little discussion…"

*~*~*

Kagome quietly took down another dress from her closet and folded it neatly, putting it on top of a pile of other clothes. There was material on the bed to hold the clothes in after she finished her action. Yet, in the end, she couldn't help the tugging near her chest.

It wouldn't stop, that irritating tugging. She had willed it to go away, but it only seemed to pull tighter. She wasn't new to this feeling, but she never wanted to stop and figure out what was causing it.

Was it because she was stubborn? No…it wasn't that, and she knew. She knew well that if she figured out what emotion was causing her to feel like this, and if she acknowledged such a feeling, then it would only cause more trouble.

Sighing, she moved along to the drawers, taking out all her personal belongings. She didn't have many since she assumed one month to be a short time, yet she had never thought it would only be one week.

Then she stopped.

She could feel her eyes begin to water, but she held back. Clenching her left hand, she picked up the object with her other hand and examined it. It had wilted and was rather dry now, but in her eyes, it was still beautiful. The flower Inuyasha gave her those seemingly long days ago was absolutely beautiful.

The pull on her chest increased and she almost dropped the flower to hold the place over her heart instead.

The first flower a boy had given her was dead, waned, and faded, but she still saw it as if it was alive.

"Kagome…?" a small voice asked through the silence, and Kagome dropped the flower back into the drawer to stare at whom had spoken.

She saw Shippo, his eyes wide in frightened innocence.

"Are you really leaving?" the little kit asked in a broken whisper, taking gentle steps towards the girl.

Kagome neither shook nor nodded her head as she stared at the little kid. Her silence spoke words to him though.

Shippo, in one leap, clung himself onto Kagome's body and started crying, his tears wetting the material she was wearing. His furry body shook in sobs and Kagome put a reassuring arm around the kit, trying to comfort him.

"No! Don't go, please! I wouldn't know what to do if you left me!" the kitsune cried in his childish anguish, hugging Kagome closer to him. "Don't leave me like mama and papa did!"

That felt like a blow to the princess, as she realized Shippo didn't have parents and was going to be forced to be a stray if she left. She would take him back with her, but she hardly thought her parents would approve. "I won't leave you," she said, although she felt dirty for lying to a child.

It didn't seem to convince Shippo however, as the kid started crying even harder. "I'm going to die, Kagome! That ugly man is going to get me if you leave…" the kit mumbled into her chest, as he tried to draw warmth from the girl.

Another blow. 'I can't leave…' Kagome thought, remembering her promise to Naraku. 'I still have to find the Shikon no Tama…I forgot about that…No…I can't leave…'

"You won't die, Shippo. I'll make sure of that, okay? I promise," she whispered, hugging the kitsune closer to her body than he already was.

"But you're going to leave~" Shippo whined, staring up at her with wide, red eyes.

Kagome managed a small smile. "No, I promise you I won't leave until you're free from him, okay? You're not going to die." That seemed to reassure her too, as she felt an emotion grow stronger inside of her.

Was it determination? Maybe…it was more like her fortitude…her grit…basically all in all, her willpower if she must say. It brought an adrenaline rush inside of her, almost like when she fell out a tall tree when she was small. She felt…strong.

"Thank you, Kagome." The kitsune wiped his eyes and smiled childishly with his little fangs hanging over his lips. "I love you. You make me feel as warm as my mama did."

Kagome couldn't help but smile brilliantly at that comment, a slow, fuzzy feeling taking a hold of her heart. Shippo was just so adorable. "I'm glad then." The smile was still on her face as he bounded off her arms and scampered out the door, off to his own adventures since he had gotten reassurance from Kagome.

She stood still for a moment, staring at the doorway the kit had just run out of before smiling a bit wider. "You always win, Kikyou…" she muttered, more to herself than anyone. "But not this time."

Forgetting about her clothes and packing, Kagome held a confident look on her face as she walked out the door, intent on staying right where she damn felt like---and Kikyou wasn't going to stop her. She had a mission to fulfill, and fulfill it she must.

Rushing down all the corridors and stairs, she clenched her fists tight. Who knew how long this adrenaline would hold, so she had to make the most of it before it disappeared. Seeing the dining room, the princess strolled right through confidently and was pleased it see that everyone was still in there, save for Inuyasha, Sesshoumaru and etcetera.

However, she seemed to have interrupted a rather lengthy discussion as surprised looks were shot her way.

"Oh, little sister, this is good. We all had something to tell you---" Kikyou started, a cold sneer evidently hiding behind the face she was directing at Kagome.

Kagome shot her a dark look which stunned a few of the other onlookers. "No, I have something to tell you, elder sister." Even Kikyou was a little surprised to hear how much spite was put into the words 'elder sister.' "You can't decide to make me go home or not, even if you will be a future resident of this castle. I am not leaving until the end of my month's time, okay?" Kagome stopped to think about something. "Unless Lord Komiya and Lady Komiya kick me out of course," she added as an afterthought.

"Oh dear! We would never!" Lady Komiya exclaimed, and smiled delightfully at the girl. "We wouldn't mind if you decided to stay here forever! We do enjoy your company very much, my husband and I."

Kagome seemed taken aback by the comment, but replied 'Thanks' as Lady Komiya continued to smile at her. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could almost see Kikyou secretly roll her eyes at her, but when she looked directly at the older girl, there was only an expressionless face.

"Really, little sister, you have to make everything overdramatic."

Kagome clenched her fists at the comment. How dare she! That…that…sister!

"We had been discussing previously about you staying, so you didn't have to make everything theatrical. We were going to tell Sango to go up and tell you, you know. But you seemed to have been thinking up there a lot, so it saves the trouble. I don't really care if you stay or go, really, because it's all the same to me." Kikyou slanted the younger princess a lengthy gaze before getting off her seat and started to walk out of the room.

Walking past closely to her sister, Kagome heard Kikyou whisper so low that only her ears could catch what she said.

"I'm still telling you, Inuyasha will be my husband, so don't you dare get too close to him…it won't do you any good."

Kagome had to stop herself from flinging her whole body on her sister and punching the older girl senseless. Kikyou enraged her to no end, and it never changed. What did she suggest from that comment? That Kagome was some girl who would start a liaison with the most annoying man on earth?

Kikyou calmly strolled out of the door and proceeded off to wherever she planned to go, knowing that all eyes were on her back as she disappeared into the corridors.

Kagome took in deep breaths through clenched teeth, before a voice started laughing and caused her to break free of her angry mind.

"Well, that's good! I really thought you would go home," Lady Komiya said, smiling over at Kagome. "If you did, I'm sure it would be rather lonely with Sango and you gone. I'm glad you decided to stay."

Kagome stared long and hard at the queen, before breaking into a small smile of her own. "Yea…I think I would actually miss this place once I go."

"Then stay here forever." Lady Komiya looked so serious about that comment, Kagome was truly taken aback. But then the queen started laughing. "I'm just playing with you again, dear. But you know, the offer does stand if you ever need to consider it." Lady Komiya gave Kagome a playful wink.

Kagome started laughing. "And spend my whole life living next door to Inuyasha? I don't think I would be able to stand listening to his snores."

Lady Komiya laughed heartily at that comment on her son, before motioning for the girl to sit down. "Eat. I'm sure you'll actually have the appetite now, don't you?"

Kagome stared at the food on the table, then felt the slow rumble down in her stomach. She laughed out loud again. "Actually, I am beginning to feel hungry," she admitted, and took her place at the table. "Any more of that rice pudding?"

"Plenty."

*~*~*

The blossoms rustled with the wind, painted black as it flew off into the dark night sky. The stars twinkled like incandescent fireflies eternally etched into heaven until its time was gone. The moon was in its crescent phase, thin and almost skeletal, but shone with an ethereal light. The night had its mysteries and he knew it was dangerously beautiful…a cool kind of beauty…one that could consume a person in darkness…and he loved it.

Leaning against the trunk as he swung his legs perilously over a branch, he stared out to the mysterious infinity. He could see the faraway waves lap against the shores and he could still see the sparkle of dark waters from the moon's gleam.

He knew nobody would bother him up in his perch, other than the annoying little girl who nearly would have moved back home. He had heard everything going on in that dining room from his post and he heard clearly her defying her sister. "At least her self-esteem isn't as low as I thought," he muttered under his breath, and the storm of cherry blossoms that blew up at that moment carried it away.

He took in a deep breath as he felt his own hair being blown up with the cherry blossoms, watching the tiny, dim flowers flutter off. He would admit as much, he had almost---almost---felt sad that the girl was leaving. Almost.

If she had, he wouldn't have anyone else to argue with, apart from his fiancée and that wasn't pretty. Yes, that was the reason. If she left, no one else would fight back with him…

Other than his mother of course…

And his father…

Oh yea, and Sesshoumaru…

And he couldn't forget Miroku…

He cursed his train of thought.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to admit to myself…she's rather special." He scoffed after he said that. It felt foreign to his tongue to admit such blasphemy, or blasphemy in his own mind. Was it wrong though?

He shot a quick glance behind at the castle, not helping how his mind seemed to wonder about a lot of things right then such as Kikyou, Kagome, Kikyou…Kagome…Kikyou, Kagome…

Okay, so he finally had new women problems and he didn't know how to handle them. His world was slowly being turned upside down, one day at a time. He was engaged to someone he didn't like and for some unknown reason, he thought unhealthily a lot about his fiancée's sister. Why?

Backtrack. Didn't he think of that before?

Inuyasha growled. Maybe…just maybe that girl reminded him of the one girl he met at the masquerade? It was undoubtedly the eyes, but he knew there were many stormy orbed women in the world.

And like he had thought of before, it certainly couldn't be the girl. Had the girl been at the masquerade anyway?

Inuyasha sighed, staring up at the stars. He wouldn't think further on the subject because it didn't seem to get him anywhere anyway. So instead, he decided to gaze at the twinkling diamonds.

He smiled when his glimpse landed on two stars, both almost adjacent to one another. It was his and Ikari's star. His smile faltered just a bit when he saw hers flicker, almost seeming like it was going to fade. It wasn't as bright as it had been all those long years ago. His still shone as bright as a lamp light, but hers was slowly disappearing next to his.

"You always did say we'll be forever linked," he mumbled, watching the two lone stars flicker together in the dark night.

He failed to however, notice the small sparkle growing in the black expanse a bit further away from the coupled stars.

It didn't matter though as Inuyasha continued observing the stars. It was not until a snap of a twig caused him to twitch his ears to listen to the ground. Figuring it was the wench that caused him so many problems, he instantly adopted an annoyed tone of voice. "What do you want, girl?"

The voice that answered however, was not the usual angry tone. "Are you always so rude to people who want to simply just talk to you?" a feminine voice floated through the air, slicing the peaceful atmosphere with the mock pain in her voice.

Inuyasha whipped his sight down on instinct and came eye to eye with a rather amused fiancée. "What do you want?" he asked dully, maintaining eye contact with the girl down on the ground.

"I felt the need that I should talk to you," was her answer, and this caused Inuyasha to snort as he averted his gaze to the ocean.

"Then talk," he responded back dryly.

He could hear Kikyou fidget down on the grounds, most likely with her skirt. No words came from her for a while, until it came out crystal clear, like a knife cutting through the crisp night.

"Do you hate me?"

The question had been asked so outright and direct that it even stunned the hanyou for a while. Looking comically down at the girl, he saw that she was totally serious as she penetrated him with her gray eyes.

Gray eyes…gray eyes…

He couldn't look away from them. They drew him in, just as much as Kagome's, yet Kikyou's eyes reminded him…of so much more. While Kagome reminded him of all things free and innocent, Kikyou's eyes made him think of pain, suffering, death, all that good stuff.

He couldn't lie, not when she was looking at him so purely.

"Yes."

She smiled at him, and he felt something in his heart move.

"Well, you know Inuyasha, I promise I'll try my hardest to make you like me then. Do you believe in second chances?"

Inuyasha smirked. "No, I don't believe in second chances." She shot him a surprised look. "But I guess I do believe in second impressions."

Kikyou smiled a bit more. "Then, I'm glad to know that."

She started to walk back in and Inuyasha stared after her back, watching the way her long, black hair swayed with the wind. He rolled his eyes when he noticed his gazing and snapped his look back to the ocean, content to watch the dark waves rising and falling.

What had that been all about?

And why…why had he felt what he thought he sometimes felt when he argued with Kagome?

"Is it better this way?" he asked the night, watching as the wind was his only answer. "If I don't hate my fiancée…would it make all our lives better? If I just let go…and accept my fate, maybe…everything would be better off that way."

He could hear a wolf demon howl in the far distance, and Inuyasha sighed as he closed his eyes. It would be wrong though, to just let things run the way they should. He always believed that in order to live the life he wanted, he needed to carve his own destiny. Yet, now, all he seemed to run into was woman after woman.

And damn him if they weren't the most evil creatures to plague men.

*~*~*

Sango and Miroku were found walking along a deserted corridor, with him in front and her scrutinizing him in the back. He had a red handprint on his cheek and a smile on his lips while she had a deep scowl on her face.

There was a thick silence in the air, which signified there had just been an end to a groping session. The moon's beams slid in from a window far down and the corridor lamps cast an eerie glow on the two people. Someone decided to disrupt the atmosphere.

"If I could have a decent conversation with you without you groping in places you aren't suppose to, perhaps we could have been friends," Sango muttered to the pervert, glaring a hole in the back of his pretty little head.

"Could have been?" Miroku echoed and stopped walking to glance surprisingly back at her. "We aren't friends now?"

Sango did a long, tired sigh. "No, houshi, I'm afraid we're not. Not until you have some respect for me."

"I do! I have re---"

"Respect for things other than my body."

Miroku pursed his lips and willed his eyes not to roam down her figure. "I do have respect for you as a woman," he answered quietly, closing the distance between them slowly as she rolled her eyes.

"And since you see me as a woman, you see me as another object which you can feel around. How about seeing me as a friend? Or maybe even just a human? Why can't you love a woman instead of lust over them?" She locked her fiery magenta gaze on his violet ones, and finally noticed that he had closed the distance between them. "What are you---" A finger on her lips silenced her and she begged the lords he didn't see the blush that amazingly rushed over her face like a storm.

"Sango," he whispered huskily, looking down at the girl.

The way he said her name only made her blush even more as she tried to avert her gaze. Any moment now, he would ruin the moment by grabbing her breasts, or touching her butt, or just grabbing her somewhere where she wouldn't like.

"I know you're hiding things from me," he continued and she caught her breath. Did he know? "And I know you're not about to tell me anytime soon." She breathed easier. "But although I see you as a woman…" He stopped and she found herself almost straining to hear an answer.

"…You may hate me, Sango. But these days with you, I find myself smiling more than I usually do."

Sango's breath caught again and she found herself cursing her body and the way it betrayed her. Was he serious? She couldn't tell, and she found herself being reminded of those times seemingly so long ago when she and he would fight alongside each other. Argue too, mind you…but still, fight, together. She found even her heart betrayed her as it beat faster. She didn't like to admit it, but she knew, she missed those times with him. With Miroku.

"And the reason I sometimes argue with you, Sango, is because I do see you as a woman."

She was confused. What did he mean by that? If he saw her as a woman, he only saw her as another groping post. She found herself being backed into the wall with him towering over her, yet her hands didn't move. They stayed like a traitor by her side and the only thing her mind could comprehend was that her eyes were still on his.

"I miss those times too," he whispered tenderly, closing his eyes as he bent his head closer to hers.

Sango's eyes were wide. Was he going to kiss her? No…he can't…he shouldn't…but he was. She felt her heart beat outrageously and her mind scream to move away, but her spirit still told her to stay right where she was and let it happen. Which should she listen to?

Her body shook as she found his lips mere millimeters away from hers and she squeezed her eyes shut. This wasn't happening, it just couldn't be. Was Miroku really going to kiss her? It was too much for her to understand and it was definitely too much for her to handle.

So she did the first thing her body told her to do.

She slapped him on reflex.

He staggered away from the force of the blow, and he stared at her with those violet orbs, an unexplained emotion swirling just underneath them. He clenched his hands as he forced himself to look away. "I'm sorry, Sango. I didn't mean to," he whispered under his breath, beginning to walk down the corridor to his room.

Sango stared after him, the hand that had slapped him right back at her side again. She had never spoken a word ever since he tried to kiss her, and she couldn't find the strength to say anything now. One part of her wanted to call him back while the other half shunned away at the thought of contact with him.

She felt cold as she watched him round the corner, not once looking back at her. Her body felt cold too, and she shuddered. He had been that close to kissing her…if she hadn't slapped him. She unconsciously lifted a finger to her lips. Did she want him to? Did she not?

It was all so puzzling to her.

"Houshi…"

A/N: Long chapter as a gift to my readers. (: Anyway…will you readers ever find out what happened between the two of them 'long ago'? Will Miroku ever tell Sango something she understands properly? Will he see her as a human? Or does he? Will Inuyasha figure out his dilemma? And who the hell is Ikari? Will Inuyasha realize he's marrying Miss. Evil? Or is Kikyou evil? Does Kikyou like Inuyasha? How about Kagome and her mixed emotions? Will she ever allow her mind to figure through her feelings? Will Shippo die?

So many questions, so many unanswered responds. Merry Christmas everyone, and remember to drop a few long, nice reviews for me to read. ;) Until next time, ja!