Howdy y'all! Well now... Merry Christmas! And a Happy New Years! Hope y'all got what you wanted or something close to it. I got my notebook, pencils, two binders, and paper. I was in desperate need of those for school. That was my Christmas list, no joke. Heh heh heh, of course my Ma told me the list was pathetic so she got me other things as well. The vet gave us our dog back too, he's in a cherry wooden box, still weighs close to five pounds after being cremated. Anyways! Enough about all this random stuff, y'all came here to read. So without further ado, I give y'all the next chapter to this here story.

Disclaimer- I do not own Inuyasha

Mutual Understanding

Sango stands there, completely silent; too shocked to bring herself to speak. Having an accused murderer show up on her doorstep in the middle of the night begging to bring him in is one thing, but crying as well? For a few moments Sango humors herself into thinking that she's still asleep dreaming or that she's so tired that she's hallucinating. But here she is, three days after her suspension finishes, with the man responsible for her suspension to begin with, sitting at her doorstep.

Finally bringing herself back to reality, Sango looks down at the man on her doorstep. His face hidden in his arms as he rests them on his knees. He's long since gone silent and has just sat in his spot, waiting. Sango wraps her arms around herself and shivers a bit; her bathrobe not doing much to protect her from the chilling breeze. It makes her wonder how the thief could stand the cold day in and day out.

"Come inside." Sango says before turning around and makes her way towards the kitchen. Halfway to the kitchen, Sango glances back to Inuyasha to see that he hasn't moved an inch from his spot. "I'm going to make some coffee." She announces before stepping into the kitchen. It may not be the smartest thing to do, to leave him by himself, after all, he could just get up and run. But Sango doubts he'll go anywhere since he seems to want to go to jail anyway.

Sango fills up the coffee maker with water and turns it on. She stands near the coffee maker, watching as the hot brewing coffee slowly fills up the coffee pot. Her mind begins to wander again as she tries to come up for a reason as to why the pickpocket would want to turn himself in. Then she remembers about Kagome's death and the small boy's, Shippo, disappearance. Shippo is the thief's son and Kagome is... Well, Sango isn't exactly sure what the woman is to the thief besides the mother of his child. Perhaps he feels like he can't go on anymore. Sango knows what it's like to love someone, she fell into depression for a long time with Kohaku's disappearance. Sango can only imagine what it must feel like for him to lose the only people who have a remote connection to him.

Sango's shaken from her thoughts as the coffee finishes. Opening up a cabinet she grabs two coffee mugs. After filling up two mugs, she makes her way out of the kitchen. She's a bit surprised to see that the door is closed and Inuyasha no longer at her doorstep, she was half expecting to walk out of her kitchen to find that he hasn't moved yet. Instead of the doorstep, Inuyasha has moved to her couch, his arms wrapped around his knees as he rests his chin on his arms. Sango opens her mouth, about to ask him to get his shoes off her couch but closes it when she notices his shoes are on the floor at the side of the couch.

Sango silently makes her way towards the couch, setting the extra cup of coffee on the coffee table before taken a seat in the chair on the opposite side of the table. The police officer takes a sip of the hot coffee while studying the man in front of her. His face is expressionless, much like the way he looked when she first met him, when she ran him over. His violet eyes seem void of emotion as he stares down at the steaming cup of coffee sitting on the coffee table. Needless to say, looks broken, as if he's given up on everything.

"Are you... alright?" Sango asks, breaking the silence. It's a stupid question really, but Sango can't think of anything else to say. She supposes a normal cop would have already thrown him in jail right now, but Sango doesn't think that would be a wise thing to do at the moment. Not after what she's found out.

"Kagome's dead and my son is missing, do you think I'm alright?" Sango has a bit trouble preventing herself from wincing at the harshness of his voice. "Now three people have died because of me."

Sango's brows furrow in thought. 'Three?' Sango begins to think of the people who were supposedly murdered by Inuyasha. There's Kagome, and than there's Koga Wolf. But that's only two, so who's the third? 'Oh.. he must think he murdered his son as well.' Sango realizes. "Your son is missing, he hasn't been found, dead or alive." Sango reminds. It doesn't seem to help improve the thief's mood any.

Sango sighs and sits back in her seat. She watches as Inuyasha slowly reaches for the coffee on the table. His hand stops a few inches away from the cup as his eyes fall on the folded documents in the middle of the table. He looks up to Sango for a brief second, seeing her watching him. After a moments contemplation. Inuyasha grabs the folded documents on the table and opens them up, noticing that Sango isn't objecting any.

Opening up the folder, Inuyasha's eyes immediately rest on a photograph of a familiar man. The pickpocket's lip twitches slightly as if he's trying to hold back a smile or smirk, "Heh... Wolfie." Indeed, it's a photo of Koga Wolf. Inuyasha eyes glance down to the caption underneath the photo, 'Koga Wolf- Shot and killed. Shooter unknown.' Inuyasha raises an eyebrow at the caption. Unknown shooter? He was the one who shot him, the cop should know that, after all, she was there when it happened. Inuyasha glances up from the documents to Sango, "What does it mean, 'Shooter unknown'?" he asks confused.

Sango sips her coffee, "Just what it says." She replies nonchalantly. "I haven't figured out who was the one who shot him. My superiors believe it was you who killed him."

"And they're right." Inuyasha cuts in before tossing the document onto the coffee table, "So why don't you just bring me in now?" Inuyasha says while standing up.

Sango takes a moment to take another sip of her coffee, "Sit down. I know something that may interest you. I don't believe you're the one who shot him."

"Why the hell now? You were there when I did it." Inuyasha shakes his head in disbelief before plopping back down on the couch; crossing his arms over his chest and turning his head to the side.

"Koga Wolf was shot in the back of the head." Sango announces, causing Inuyasha to glance back over to her, "And since the two of you were wrestling for the gun that night, and you were both facing each other...."

"Then there was no way I could of shot him." Inuyasha finishes up slowly, his eyes wide with this new realization. Sango nods her head slowly. Inuyasha shakes his head, bringing himself out of his daze, "I'm still a murderer. I killed Kagome after all, at least... I think I did... I don't know... I was a bit drunk that night."

Sango rubs her temples in aggravation. Obviously, Inuyasha isn't getting the bigger picture of things, "We'll talk about that later. But think of the night of Koga's murder."

"Uh... why?"

Sango rolls her eyes at the thief, "If you weren't the one who shot Koga Wolf... then who is?" Inuyasha remains silent, his face contorted in surprise. Obviously, he hadn't thought of that. "What I've been trying to figure out is why someone wanted to kill him."

"Because he was a jackass." Inuyasha comments.

"So I asked around to find anyone who knew him." Sango continues, ignoring Inuyasha's earlier comment. "No one knew anyone who would go as far as to kill him." Sango places her empty coffee cup onto the table, "Finally, I came up with a different theory for Koga's murder. The shooter must have been aiming for you that night."

"What!?" Inuyasha shouts in surprise, "You mean there's some bastard out there trying to kill me!?"

"That's my theory..." Sango pauses for a moment before continuing, "I think he may have been following you for awhile. For all you know, they could be someone you know."

"I don't talk to anybody." Inuyasha states.

"Nevertheless. The shooter may have been following you, trying to figure out places you visit frequently. A killer sometimes tries to learn about his target's life before he makes his move. The shooter who killed Koga Wolf could very well be the same person who..." Sango stops, letting Inuyasha figure out the rest himself.

Inuyasha's fists clench at his sides. He grinds his teeth together as he lets out a menacing growl from deep in his throat. His violet eyes narrow into thin slits, they look like they turn into a amber color as his anger continues to build up near it's breaking point, "The same bastard who tried to kill me, killed Kagome!" He practically hisses out, his voice filled with venom. "I'll kill whoever this cowardly bastard is!"

------

Police Department

"9-1-1 What's the emergency?" The female dispatcher says over the line.

"Hello miss. I'd like to inform you that the person responsible for the murder of Koga Wolf and that young woman a week ago can be found at thirty-six Grand Avenue."

"And who is calling?"

"An anonymous tip."

------

Inuyasha watched as Sango made her way down the hall, leaving him alone on the couch. Once she's no longer in sight, the thief tries to find something to keep him occupied for a few minutes. He spots the remote control to the television on the coffee table, picking it up, he turns it on. 'Boring.' He flips the channel. Having gone through all the channels without much success, he decides to settle for the late night news.

"And the entire jury voted for the death sentence... In other news. Multimillion dollar man, Mr. Youhan, died early Tuesday morning. Mr. Youhan left a Will stating that half his money is to go to his son. Along with half his business. We only know this much from speaking with Mr. Youhan's son directly. Here's the report."

Inuyasha yawns loudly as he watches a video clip of a reporter speaking with a man who's obviously the rich guy's son. In Inuyasha's opinion, the guy looks a bit girlie, but then again, he supposes that anyone who lives in luxury would have such a strange fashion sense.

"Sir, could you tell our viewers what your father's will states."

"My father left half his business and money to me."

"But what of the other half?"

"It's been put off to the side for now."

"What are you watching?" Sango's asks, her upper body hovering over the couch. Inuyasha nearly jumps out of his skin. Sango gives a quiet laugh as the thief picks himself off the floor, grumbling. Sango averts her gaze to the television, curious to find out what could be so interesting on. Seeing the news on, she tilts her head to the side a bit in question, "He... looks familiar from somewhere." Sango comments.

Inuyasha rolls his eyes at the officer, "Well his father was a millionaire, he's probably been on the damn television before." Inuyasha replies before turning the television off and setting the remote back on the coffee table. The pickpocket glances back over to Sango and raises an eyebrow at her, "Why'd you get changed? Taking me in after all?"

Sango resists the urge to roll her eyes at the thief. "I'm obviously not going to get any more sleep tonight with you here. So I decided to get out of my bathrobe."

Inuyasha turns back around and shrugs his shoulders, "Wasn't bothering me any."

"What?"

"I said I can just leave."

Sango narrows her eyes in suspicion and opens her mouth to comment. Before she can get a word out however, there's a knock at her door. "Erm... Sango? You home." Inuyasha jumps off the couch and ducks behind it.

Sango stands in her place, blinking a bit confused. 'Is that... Kilala?' She thinks to herself before making her way towards her door and opening it. Sure enough, Kilala stands behind the door in her officer's uniform. "Kilala? What are you doing here? Do you know how late it is?"

Kilala gives her friend a apologetic look, a shy smile playing across her face, "Sorry Sango, but there was this anonymous caller who said that the man who killed those two people can be found here." Kilala stops any comments coming from Sango by holding up her hand. "I realize it's a prank, as does practically everyone else at the station. But with rules and regulations and all, they still had to send me down to check things out."

"Oh.. um right."

Kilala gives a friendly smile, "Well I guess this qualifies as 'checking things out.' So I apologize for waking you up, even though.." Kilala pauses a bit as she looks at the way Sango is dressed, "Even though it doesn't seem like you were sleeping... Why are you still up so late Sango? Don't you have work tomorrow morning?"

Sango's eyes dart side to side as she tries to come up with a quick excuse, "Just one of those restless nights."

'Why the hell is she helping me?' Inuyasha thinks to himself from his spot behind the couch.

"Oh, I see." Kilala's gazes sympathetically at her friend, "I'm sorry to hear that..." The police officer looks over Sango's shoulder to peek into the apartment. At the sight of a pair of beaten up old sneakers sitting at the side of the couch, Kilala cocks her head to the side in question. Surely Sango doesn't wear something as dirty as those! Kilala shakes her head, dismissing the mystery of the sneakers. She had learned long ago that there are just something's that she'll never know about her childhood friend. "Well anyways, I better get going now. Try to get some sleep Sango. I'd hate to see you collapse at work again for neglecting to sleep."

'Collapse?' Inuyasha mouths thoughtfully.

"Right, I'll see you at work sometime then Kilala." Sango announces as her friend heads back towards her patrol car. Sango closes her front door and leans her back against it tiredly. "It's clear now." She announces. Her eyebrows furrow in thought when she doesn't receive a reply. Causing her to push herself away from the door and head over to the couch. Peeking over the couch she notices Inuyasha still laying on the floor, his head resting on his right hand while his left one drums his fingers, seemingly lost in thought. "Are you okay."

"Yea... but I just had a thought." Inuyasha said a bit quietly. "She said there was an 'anonymous caller' who told the station where I am..." Inuyasha pauses as he realizes something, "I guess... I guess you were right. There is someone out there following me. Who else could possibly know where I am?"

Sango cocks her head to the side and crosses her arms, "Well... did you tell anyone you were coming here?"

Inuyasha raises an eyebrow at her, "Who the hell would I tell? Besides, I didn't even know I was coming here. I was walking around like a dumbass, pitying my own existence like the bastard that I am."

"Um listen..." Sango starts a bit hesitantly, not sure whether or not she should tell him or not. After some contemplation, she decides that if anyone has a right to know, it's him, "I don't know if you know this, but her funeral is tomorrow."

Inuyasha blinks a bit confused, "Kagome's?" He asks unsure, he immediately feels stupid afterwards, 'Of course hers you idiot, Who else would she be talking about.' Sango just nods her head in response. Inuyasha sighs as he lowers his head, "Where is it?"

"I'll take you." Sango announces. Inuyasha's head snaps up, he sits lays there, gazing questioningly at the police officer. Sango resists the urge to fidget under his gaze, "I mean... It's not like you have a means of transportation, or maybe you do..." Sango thinks after a moment. One of Inuyasha's brows raise again, "So you can uh... stay here tonight and I can take you tomorrow." Inuyasha sits up and shrugs his shoulders. Sango gives a small shy smile, "Ok.. I'm going to go back to bed then, you can sleep on the couch. If you need anything just ask." Sango begins heading towards her room, she stops halfway and turns back around to stare at the back of Inuyasha's head now that he's sitting on the couch, "And... try not to steal anything this time."

From his seat, Inuyasha rolls his eyes and bites his lips to hold back a retort. 'Can't blame her, I did in fact steal that damn necklace from her.' Inuyasha shakes his head as he hears Sango's door close, 'She'll probably sleep with one eye open to make sure I don't steal anything.' Inuyasha crosses his arms over his chest, his brow furrowed in anger as he glares at the turned off television, "Feh..."

Sango closes her door softly, letting out a sigh of relief. For some strange reason, she felt a bit uncomfortable talking to the thief. Maybe it's because she doesn't know what to say around him, after all, a person he loved was just murdered and she doesn't know how sensitive the subject is to him. She wonders how he can handle it, after all, the only person important to him is now dead. 'That's not true... he still has his son.' Sango thinks to herself. She can only hope his son is still alive. If he is, than the thief will still have someone in the world that's important to him, someone who could give him some happiness. She can only guess that the life of a thief is a miserable one. Always struggling to get by, with no help from anyone, and have no one care about you.

Sango can't help but envy the thief that's sleeping in her living room. He's so much stronger than she is when it comes to losing someone. Despite the fact he practically broke down in tears on her doorstep, he was taking it much better than her when she lost Kohaku. She can still feel the familiar knot in her chest just by thinking about her little brother, 'I haven't lost him. I'll find him one day.' Sango tries reassuring herself, just like the many times in the past. She's finding it harder and harder to fool herself though.

With her mood dropping even more with the thought of her brother, Sango pushes herself away from the door and heads towards her bed. She decides not to even bother getting changed back into her nightclothes, instead she just crawls on top of her bed with the clothes she's wearing. She grabs one of her pillows and hugs it to her chest as she curls up in a fetal position, 'Kohaku...'

Sango hears her squeaky doorknob begin to turn and a moment later her door creaking softly as the door is opened. "Hey, you awake?" She hears Inuyasha whisper roughly into her room.

Sango sits up and rubs her eyes, pretending that he had woken her up, "I am now, what is it? Need something?"

"I want to ask you a question." Inuyasha replies.

"What?" Sango asks confused. Her brows raise a bit in surprise, even in the dark she can see his eyes narrow a bit.

"Why...Why the hell are you helping me!? I stole that stupid necklace from you, and even pawned it at Myouga's shop. You should hate me, yet your helping me. And I want to know why."

The confusion in his voice is easy to pick up. It makes Sango pity the thief somewhat. 'He's probably never had anyone help him before.' Sango lowers her gaze to her hands that are sitting in her lap, "Because I know how it feels to lose someone important to you." Inuyasha gaze drops to the floor as he slowly pulls the door closed. If it weren't for the fact that it's so early in the morning when it's actually quiet outside, Sango would of missed his reply. But she did hear it, and she couldn't help but give a small smile, "You're welcome."

Well... I was going to end the chapter later on so I could of end it by leaving your minds twisted. But I figured this seems like a decent spot to stop. So expect a good Ol'Twist in the next chapter. I can hardly contain my excitement. Heeheehee... I got to finish this chapter today because all Schools around my area have been closed. Can you guess why? If your answer was snow then.. Congratulations! You think like any other normal person, but still... Snow is the incorrect answer. The correct answer is rain.. No joke. The schools have been closed on account of rain. And no there's no mass flooding or anything. It's just... rain. So instead of a snowday, it's a rain day. Than again... it could be because there's a threat of ice later today... Nah.... That can't be it. It's because it's raining.