I'm baaaaaack! Did you miss me?

Chapter 6: Night noises

Keiko sat on her bed, thinking about Miroku and Sango's relationship. In the past two days, it had advanced greatly. They had 'slept' together the night before, and were doing so tonight.

It seemed Amatsu had done his work well. She was still furious at him, though, and would hunt him down at all costs. She smirked as an idea came to her. She could use Inuyasha and his friends to take the god of evil down.

Merely telling them he had a shard of the sacred jewel would take care of them. She was also angry at Miroku for rejecting her. True, she had been the one coming onto him, but he had still rejected her. It had been a test of his faith, but, Miroku, the proven womanizer, had rejected her. She took it extremely personally.

She could use Amatsu to off Miroku, then Sango would retaliate and kill Amatsu. Then Benzaiten could finish the rest and claim the shikon shards for her own. As a god, she was powerful enough without them, but her children, the ones she had conceived on her visits to earth, were either half-human or half-demon, thus making them weak. The Shikon shards would increase their power, and they would become gods.

Reflecting, she remembered that one of her children had been full god. Kaguya, the princess of the moon, had been fathered by Amatsu. It was a mistake Benzaiten sorely regretted. And now Kaguya had been devoured by some demon, which had in turn been slain by the group she was traveling with now.

Lying down, Keiko decided to sleep now. She would put her plan into action in the morning.

In the room across the hall, Miroku and Sango were preparing for sleep. Miroku had offered to sleep on the floor, but Sango shook her head. The monk had as much a right to a warm bed as she did, and the taijiya wasn't going to stop him from getting a good night's sleep.

Sango splashed some warm water on her face. "So, Houshi-sama, why didn't you sleep with Keiko instead?"

Miroku, who was already in bed, watching her back, shrugged. "She doesn't seem quite... human..."

"Why'd you ask her then?"

"I didn't want her to feel left out."

She turned to him, face serious and deer eyes big. "You're kidding, right?"

"Right. I just ask everyone. All the girls, that is." He made a dramatic face. "Purely unintentional, darling."

"Don't call me that." She crawled into bed next to him.

Miroku smiled at her. "You like it."

Sango blushed. "It just is... my father used to call me that. I guess you've sort of taken his place in my life."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, you think of me as your father? I'm not that old!"

She shoved him. "Not like my father. Like the main male influence in my life."

"I influence you?"

"Sort of. Your strength is... motivational. I wish I was as strong."

He took her hand. "You are strong. Just in a different way." (A/N: SO CHEESY, NO?)

Sango looked surprised at his words. "Th-thank you, Houshi-sama."

He rolled over and put the lantern out. "G'night..."

Sango slipped an arm around his waist. "Do you... mind?"

"No, not at all, Sango..."

They fell asleep, pressed against each other.

Can anyone spell waffiness? W... A... F ... F... blah, blah, blah.. I probably won't update for a while, I have an overload of school work combined with writers block.