Jackie; Yay, I have readers!

DISCLAIMER; refer to chapter 1

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Chapter 5; Reflection

Miyoiki settled into the hot spring, leaving her clothes and weapons on the rocky shore. She leaned against a large rock and sighed.

He is not mean! You just don't understand him yet!

Rin's words echoed in her mind. Was she right? Just as Miyoiki left, seemingly out of nowhere, lord Sesshomaru had praised her for the first time. She was so satisfied by it that she smiled, and for a split second she could have sworn he was going to smile back. There was something in his golden eyes...

She would be logical about this. One compliment did not redeem him any more than two days in his service condemned him. What did she know about him? He could use his sword to resurrect life somehow. He had saved her. Though cold and unfeeling at first glance, he had taken on a human ward with no hope to see any benefit from it. He was emotionless and treated speech as if it were an inconvenience. He was a demon, and demon's despise humans. Rin… He was a collection of contradictions.

And those eyes… She had the sudden urge to cover herself, and crossed her arms over her chest. Who was he really? What made him the way he was? She looked down into the water at herself and scowled.

She had no shortage of suitors at her castle, and had always thought of herself as beautiful. But the way he would look at her, like he was dissecting an insect he would rather squash beneath his boot, made her feel repulsive. Then there was his expressionless voice… She shivered. His rich, baritone voice, that sent vibrations through her, and yet, never sharpened or softened to give any hint of what he was thinking while he spoke. Not that he spoke much. That compliment had been the only time he'd spoken without demanding information or issuing an order.

But he had complimented her. Did she really have the right to judge him after only two days? She was spoiled by her life at the palace. In spite of harsh physical and mental training, she had become accustomed to constant and mindless praise. Maybe this new assignment was a blessing, a means with which to better herself. She had heard it said that one should do something for the satisfaction of doing it, not the praise that followed.

She sighed. It was good advice. She always gave good advice, but she still felt shell shocked. She had been dumped from one extreme to the other. She had been taken from a place of constant flattery to a place of constant beratement.

That wasn't fair to him either. It wasn't like he was following her around telling her that she did a poor job of things. He just never said anything. Somehow that seemed much worse to her. She had no idea where she stood with him.

Just then she heard a soft 'kurplunk' in the water. She looked around, but no one was there. Just her imagination, she supposed. She finished cleaning herself and headed back to camp. As she left a man emerged from the shadows with a goofy smile on his face.

"All clear!" Miroku chimed, "The danger has passed!"

"And just what kind of danger where you keeping us from the hot spring over?" Sango growled.

"Just some bandits," Miroku said with a sincere smile on his face.

"Yeah, right," Kagome huffed.

"Truly!" Miroku insisted, "Bandits bathe too you know, and I didn't want them two see you lovely ladies and cause any problems!"

He grasped Sango's hand, rubbed it against his cheek and said, "Especially you, my sweet Sango, but if it came to it, you know I would lay down my life for you."

Sango blushed bright red and thumped him over the head with her free hand as she said, "Would you knock it off! Now go back to the camp and keep Inuyasha company or I'll give you a matching lump for the other side of your thick skull!"

Miroku did as he was told. After all, he'd had his peek for the night. He was just grateful that kicking that stone into the water hadn't given him away. He settled by the fire and noticed that Inuyasha was sniffing the air curiously.

"What's the matter?" Miroku asked.

"Sesshomaru is nearby," He answered, "I can smell him."

"Should I get the girls so we can go look for him?" Miroku asked.

"Nah," Inuyasha answered, "If he were here for us he'd have made it known by now."

Back at Sesshomaru's campsite, Miyoiki returned. Sesshomaru was staring in a direction as though he expected something was coming. Miyoiki took her place by Rin and asked, "Is there a problem, my lord?"

"There is no problem," He answered with the same cold voice.

Yet, he continued to stare in that direction. Miyoiki fought the urge to glare at him. Instead she laid down beside Rin and went to sleep. She needed more time to observe her new lord. When she drew her final conclusion it would be a fair one.

Naraku smiled cruelly while observing through the eyes of his poisonous insects. How fortunate that both of his most bitter enemies were so close. When he took power over the metamorph he would wipe both brothers from the face of the planet.

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Jackie: Thanks for reviewing. The more you review, the more I feel compelled to write!