Disclaimer: I don't own Inu Yasha, Miroku, the whole anime/manga thing.
Chapter 6 – Paper Hearts Are Fragile
Several weeks had passed since the group left the village. Kagome had sensed 3 shards at a nearby town. The group has successfully claimed 3 more shards with ease. They had decided to settle at a village once again, to relax while they could. Kagome began to unpack the ramen and other food, as Sango unrolled the sleeping bags and helped set up the fire.
"Hey," Kagome suddenly spoke up, breaking the comfortable silence, "Have you ever heard of the holiday called 'Christmas?'" The group glanced at her awkwardly; blank and questioning faces were surrounding Kagome. She sighed. Maybe Christmas wasn't invented yet? "It's this really great holiday where everyone gives each other presents and they set up big trees inside their houses and put all these decorations on the trees and outside their house too. There's this fat guy, called Santa Claus, and he supposedly gives out all the presents to every children. It's awesome! There are so many carols and food and festivity, the streets are all lit with green and red Christmas colours," she explained all in one breath. Taking another look at the rest of the group's faces, she shook her head. "Nevermind. The point is, my family celebrate's Christmas every year, and because you know, it's my favourite holiday and everything, I kind of have to go back to my era for a week or so."
The first to react was the little kitsune.
"Aww!! Don't leave Kagome!! Please?!" begged Shippou, his eyes wide, forming tears in the corner.
She giggled at his cute expression. "Don't worry, I'm not gone forever. Besides, I'll bring you back some candy canes and cookies from our Christmas stash," she replied with a smile. Shippou frowned, but his face lit up quickly when he heard she was going to bring him things back.
"Well, okay…but don't be gone too long!" said Shippou, before he bounced off.
Kagome finally turned her attention to the rest of the group who had stayed unusually silent. This seemed rather awkward coming from a group that generally bustled around, arguing about something.
"Is it okay if I leave for just about a week or so?" she asked, more to Inu Yasha than the rest of the group.
But it was Miroku, who spoke up. "Yes, it should be fine. We did work very hard these past few weeks," he replied with a soft smile. Kagome nodded slightly and returned a smile as well.
"What do you mean we all worked very hard? YOU did NOTHING," Sango retorted, smacking Miroku's head with the back of her hand.
He hissed for a moment, before rubbing the back of his head, "I beg to differ. I obviously tried very hard," he snapped back.
"Yeah right, you were just staring at Inu Yasha's butt while he was fighting," she replied, grinning from ear to ear. Miroku's eyes widened in fear and in embarrassment. His cheeks turned into a bright shade of red and he diverted his attention elsewhere, not wanting to push this certain subject any further. After letting out an unconscious breath that he had been holding, he turned to Sango once more.
"So, you know?" he asked casually.
After a moment of silence, she slowly began to nod her head. "Yes," was all she said. Taking the brief answer as a sign of discomfort, Miroku decided it would be best to be happy with the given reply. He smiled softly. Just thinking about his koibito could lighten up his whole heart.
Nightfall came as everybody had gotten into their respectful places. Sango, Miroku and Kagome were in sleeping bags. The little kitsune was curled up into a tight ball near the fire next to Kagome, just like Kirara was right next to her owner. Inu Yasha had found a comfortable branch way up in a tree next to Miroku's sleeping bag. The whole group was resting the night away peacefully.
Inu Yasha's ears twitched as he sensed something, being the light sleeper he was. His eyes snapped open and he quickly scanned the area. Finding nothing up at this level, he brought his eyes down to search the dark ground below. From a normal mortal's eye, you could not see anything, but Inu Yasha had caught a whiff of something familiar, and his eyes saw a glimpse of red and white that moved quickly into the dark confines of the forest, where the group had chosen to rest.
-Kikyou- was the first thought that came to Inu Yasha's head. Quickly, but quietly, he jumped off his tree and ran swiftly in the direction of Kikyou's scent. Even though she was a dead spirit, she could still move rather fast if she wanted to. He followed her scent deeper into the forest, the moonlight barely reaching into the forest. The dark leaves above were like a big blanket, covering the forest as the trees rested in the night. Finally, he slowed his pace as he felt the scent get stronger and stronger. It was obvious that Kikyou wasn't moving. Clearly, she was expecting him. As he reached the final destination, he saw Kikyou sitting at the trunk of a big oak tree, her eyes closed. She did not look hurt, simply resting.
"Kikyou…" Inu Yasha whispered, just as her empty eyes snapped open, staring holes into Inu Yasha's ember orbs.
Meanwhile, Miroku had stirred from the soft rustling of leaves on the ground. He groaned, rolling over. Slowly, he willed himself to sit up and check if everything was okay. –Everybody's here- he thought as he looked around the fire. He lifted his gaze upwards to the tree were Inu Yasha was and stared silently. He wasn't there. –Scratch that…- he thought, as he got out of his sleeping bag slowly. As he looked around, he frowned.
"Where could he be?" he muttered to himself, and took the path where the leaves were rustled and peace seemed to be unrest.
"Inu Yasha," Kikyou said, as she slowly got up. She walked towards him, her face never changing, and her eyes still emotionless. "I've heard that you fell in love with someone else," she continued, a flash of anger and hurt passing through her eyes, "Fallen for another person. Forgotten…about me?" Inu Yasha drew in a quick breath, and looked away. Sure, he was in love with Miroku and claimed that he had long forgotten about Kikyou, but he never thought of her as an 'obstacle' that would test his love for Miroku.
"Yes, I've found someone else," Inu Yasha bluntly confirmed her assumptions. He was determined to stay loyal to Miroku. Kikyou simply stared straight ahead, seemingly staring right through Inu Yasha as if he were non-existent. She took a step forward. And another. And another.
Right until she was about an inch away from him. She rested her cold palms on his chest and she looked up at him, all void of emotion. "But, you once said that you thought of me every day. You said that you had never forgotten about me," she stated. He opened his mouth to retaliate, but she was quicker. Swiftly, she placed her cold lips on his, all the while resting her hands on his chest. Inu Yasha's eyes were wide open, shocked at what was happening. Yet for some reason, he moved his arms down to wrap them around her thin waist. It was so wrong, but it felt so right.
And behind the bush, Miroku felt a surge of emotions running through his body at once. He closed his eyes in an attempt to wash out all those feelings. Tears began to flow from his eyes as he bit his lip, trying to stop himself from crying. He turned around and walked away, heading back for the village.
-Stupid Miroku- he scolded himself. What was he thinking? How could he take over the position of someone who had held Inu Yasha's heart for over 50 years? He shook his head. No, he was silly to ever assume such a thing. But the tears kept on coming. They were nonstop, consistently flowing down his beautiful face as his heart slowly ripped inside. Miroku stopped a few feet from the rest of the group, sitting next to a strong tree. He wrapped his arms around his knees and hugged himself. Little comfort was given as he could not erase the image of Inu Yasha willingly kissing Kikyou.
-I was never meant to love anyway- he thought bitterly. He looked at his Kazaana. The curse. The stupid curse that had ruined his life countless times before. But this time, it had gone too far. His heart fell to pieces, and there was no one left to pick them up. There was no one there to comfort him and tell him it was alright. He smiled when he thought of the rest of the group. They would surely comfort him and provide him with warmth. But his smile faltered as he again, thought of Inu Yasha. It wouldn't be the same. Miroku was always the one who had captured the hearts of other young women. He had never felt what it was like to be loved. To be submissive to another. He let out a shaky breath and ran his thin fingers through his hair. Love wasn't an easy thing; it wasn't always the fairytale that most people wanted. Despite what he knew, Miroku couldn't bring himself to stop crying, or at least stop thinking about it. Just one little act of betrayal, and Miroku had been shattered. Shattered by the only one who had managed to capture the young monk's heart.
Carefully, he stood up, as he did not trust his body at times like these. He leaned against the tree trunk and wiped the last of his tears with the sleeves of his robe. Quickly, he made his way back to the group and slipped himself into the sleeping back once more. He closed his eyes, willing himself to sleep, only after he whispered softly to himself, "My paper heart is now confetti…"
Author's Notes: THERE! UPDATED! Heh, sorry for the long wait. You know, the whole Christmas thing, I got way into it and I just got really busy and everything. Haha, the little Kagome part about Christmas ACTUALLY has something to do with the whole storry. xD. Yeah, it wasn't a random Christmas spirit spasm from me. Anyway, I made the ending a little longer and I haven't read it over yet…but I might actually do that sometime, so don't be surprised to see me update the same chapter again. xP. Anyway, THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS! Keep it up!