Hey guys! We're back. Not much to say this week so we'll go right to the story.
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: ChibiBean does not own nor claim rights to InuYasha or any of its character nor do we claim the lyrics by Relient K. Thank you.
Together Forever…
"And this one last bullet you mention, is my last shot at redemption,
'cuz I know to live, you must give your life away." –Relient K.
"You…you what?" Sarah asked, in a voice of disbelief bordering on shock.
"We eloped this morning. We thought it would be easier," Azurine explained, wincing at the hurt expression on her best friend's face.
Miroku sipped his tea quietly, trying to avoid conflict.
"Why didn't you at least wake me up?" Sarah whimpered, sitting at her kotatsu.
(A kotatsu is a low table, about a foot high, sometimes equipped with a space heater.)
"Sarah, that's kind of the point of eloping: not telling anyone until it's all done and legal."
"Sarah, it was sunrise. We really didn't want to wake you that early," Miroku explained.
"Don't give me your innocent act, monk," Sarah warned.
"What's done is done," Azurine reasoned. "We're not getting married again, so you're just going to have to deal with this."
"But…I'm your best friend…" Sarah pouted, trying to get her way…as always.
"Did you think of me when you got married, Sarah?" It was war now.
"We thought you were…we didn't know when…"
"Did you? Did you have any regrets about my not being there?" Azurine clenched her hand, feeling the white painful heat of the Shikon Shard embedded there.
"You promised I'd be there! You promised I'd be your maid of honor!" Sarah cried, hating this.
"Yea? Well, I was supposed to be yours. Things don't always work out, do they?" Azurine stood. "I'll be back later, Miroku."
She left quickly, Miroku's eyes following her. "Sorry about that, Tanpopo. She's pretty upset. She thought you'd take this better."
"I understand," she said coldly. "Come on Yukito. We're going home. Say good-bye." 'Kito appeared from the other room, leaving Shippo behind.
"Bye, Miroku!" he exclaimed, oblivious to the tears welling in his mother's eyes. He waved a pudgy, little hand as he followed Sarah out of the door.
Turning back, Sarah's face glistened with tears, but she pretended nothing was happening. "Tell Azurine that I know what all this is about, now." With that, she was gone, her child trailing behind her.
Miroku sighed heavily and turned to Shippo who, in turn, shrugged. "I don't know," the kitsune replied, "but I didn't like the sound of that."
"I better find Azure. I hate to see the two of them like this." Miroku grabbed his staff and went off after his new, unhappy bride.
It was late in the evening when Miroku brought Azurine back. He'd found her hiding in the woods halfway to the next village. She had stubbornly refused to come home until she and Miroku became so hungry that they began seeing random Onigiri in top hats and wielding Samurai swords dancing about before their eyes.
They got lost several times seeing as the genius Azurine was, she'd strayed off of the path during her escape.
When they finally arrived at the village around dusk, they found Sarah waiting at their hut. Azurine paused, eyeing her friend with uncertainty.
"Look, Sarah, I…" she began.
"No. Don't say anything. Listen, you know what you said about our pact? Back from when we were kids? I never broke that promise. Azure, I didn't have a maid of honor. I mean, Kagome asked, but I said no. That spot was reserved for you." She smiled and said, "I'm really sorry I didn't wait for you."
"Don't be. I was being an idiot bringing it up like that. Can we just forget about this stupid fight?"
"All right," Sarah said, her face beaming. "I can live with that. Who wants pie?"
And so it was that they feasted on pie until late into the night.
A half hour into their pie feast, Yuto arrived carrying Little Yukito in his arms. The boy was sleeping peacefully, looking quite content sucking on his thumb. After putting the child down, Yuto tried to get Azurine drunk as a favor to Miroku. However, the laws of the present still heavily imprinted in her mind, Azurine refused to drink any alcohol, claiming that she was still underage.
…That is, of course, until Sarah spiked her friend's tea.
Choking and sputtering in mid-swallow, she stared incredulously at Sarah. "You didn't!"
Sarah giggled. "Didn't what? Here, let me pour you some more tea." When Azurine refused, Sarah grew dark. "Drink…the…tea."
Shrinking back, Azurine accepted the cup. "O-okay." She sipped quietly at the tea, and the three cups that Sarah offered after that. Before Sarah left, she made sure that Azurine was as drunk as a sailor. Well, Azurine's equivalent of that.
Miroku saw Yuto and Sarah out, 'Kito cradled snuggly in his mother's arms. The monk turned back to Azurine. "My poor wife; so drunk."
Azurine wobbly got to her feet and hugged him. "And how, exactly, did I get so drunk, eh?" she giggled.
"I have no Earthly idea," he said innocently, grinning from ear to ear.
Suddenly, Azurine was kissing him. In a state of shock because Azurine was making the first move, Miroku stood stock still for a moment. Then, Azurine's mind blanked, and the rest of the night only came in short fragments. She remembered them standing before the bed and she was kissing him again, and then…
It was a bright, sunny morning; too bright for Azurine's monster headache. She groaned and rolled over, feeling a light kiss brush her forehead. She drifted back into sleep, wrapped in a warm embrace.
Inexplicably, what seemed only a few seconds later, she could hear Sarah talking to her, thus aggravating her headache even more.
"…fault. You were the one who got drunk enough to get a hangover. I was able to go about my day's work with my first one. Come on, get up. I've got just the remedy."
Azurine looked at her, grimacing. "Shut up."
Sarah did so, handing her the cup. She also remembered that her first hangover wasn't as light as she'd made it sound. Sure, she'd been able to do her day's work, but only after getting up at noon, being nursed back into tolerable conditions by Yuto, and finishing her work by late that night. She shrugged to herself before realizing that Azurine hadn't drunk any of the medicine. "Well?"
Azurine sniffed it before downing the liquid. "You know I hate you for spiking my tea. Why'd you do it? And where'd Miroku go?"
"He's off looking for InuYasha to explain your absence yesterday, or something to that effect. I don't think he's pleased you guys eloped. Miroku didn't want you to have to deal with it, so he let you sleep in. As for us slipping you alcohol, we owed Miroku a favor."
"What favor?"
"He was a vital role in getting Yuto and I together. Amazingly enough, he always gave Yuto good advice and seemed to have a way of setting up convenient situations." She sighed dreamily, a lost look in her eyes.
Azurine rolled her eyes and shivered. "Is it cold in here, or is that just me?" she asked suddenly.
"I suppose it's just you, considering, from your bare shoulders and back, that the rest of you is uncovered as well, besides the blanket."
Azurine looked down. Below her shoulders, the sheet covered everything, but she could feel that she had nothing under that.
"Oh my God!" she screamed, ducking beneath the covers.
"Come on now. I only saw your shoulders. This isn't as bad as gym class when we had to change in front of everyone. Not to mention that, being a healer in this town, I've seen naked women before," she sighed. "You know this means that Miroku's seen it all."
Memories flashed back to Azurine of the previous night. She whimpered under the covers. "Oh, god…we seriously…Sarah, give me my clothes."
The woman threw the clothes on top of the lump in the sheets and left the room until Azurine had dressed. When Azurine reappeared, she was neat and clothed, her hair brushed and her gloves pulled securely over her hands.
"This never leaves this hut, got it?"
"Of course, though people are going to assume seeing as it was your wedding night," Sarah said sympathetically.
"Oh, my god, Sarah, I can't believe it actually…oh god. What if I get…reassure me here, Sarah."
"Uh…don't worry? You were with Cain for years and never…"
"That was different. He always used…" She cut herself short as Miroku entered.
"Good morning, my healthy looking wife." He grinned his way through his words and kissed her on the cheek. "How are you feeling?"
Despite the minor panic attack she was having, Azurine managed to beam at him. "Just fine. You?"
"I am the best I've ever been. Are you sure you feel well? You look a bit pale."
"I just have a hangover from that favor Yuto and Sarah owed you." Azurine's smile fell as she glared at her husband.
"We are married now, Azurine…" he began.
"Yes, we are, which means you didn't have to get me drunk. I wasn't going to back out of our wedding night." She was slightly hurt he hadn't trusted her.
"Azurine, those two did that on their own. I had no idea what they were doing," the monk explained.
Azurine looked at Sarah. "Really?"
"Eh heh," Sarah laughed nervously. "We sorta figured you were scared of what might happen and wanted to give you a little extra push."
"I hate you."
"Love you, too," Sarah responded cheerily.
Azurine sighed, still quite worried about what might come of this. What if there is a baby? What if were not ready?
"When we have a son, I hope he has your eyes," Miroku commented randomly, taking her chin in his hand and kissing her.
After a moment, Azurine backed away, looking at him suspiciously. "Flattery, kisses, talking about the future…okay, what do you want?"
"I think he doesn't want you to notice that your ears are missing," Sarah observed.
Miroku: facepalm
Azurine blinked and felt around the top of her head. Sarah was right; she no longer had fuzzy, dog ears, but rather normal human ones on the side of her head. Miroku slowly blushed.
(Bean: This whole next part was Chibi's idea. I wanted it to be just the kids, but no, Chibs wanted to push it farther.
Chibi: pout I think it's funnier this way.)
Azurine was so confused. "What's going on?"
"I think," Sarah mused, "That Miroku must have purified you."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Azurine cried.
"In the act of…ahem…impurity, I think he purified your demonic blood."
Miroku blinked. "So, I purified her?"
Then, the fact seemed totally absurd because it was Miroku they were talking about.
Azurine paused in her hysterics. "You sure?" she asked, looking him over.
"Ninety-nine percent sure," Sarah declared proudly.
"Then I must have slept with another monk. He can't even purify water."
Sarah laughed. "I doubt that. Miroku?"
The monk wrapped his arm around Azurine in mock jealousy. "No, she's definitely mine."
Azurine rolled her eyes and shoved him away. Sarah sighed and smiled. "What a cute couple," she said, grinning.
The next week passed in a blur. Half of the time, Azurine didn't even know if it was day or night. When she finally snapped out of her daze, she found herself lying in a field sometime around noon. Sarah and 'Kito were playing somewhere nearby as she sat up.
"Hey, Sarah…if Miroku and I…do have a baby, how much will it hurt?" she asked quietly.
Sarah shrugged as she tickled 'Kito's chin. "It's pretty painful, but it's worth it."
Little Yukito giggled and pointed to a huge sunflower growing not too far away. "Pretty flower, Mommy! It BIG! I go get it for you." He ran up to it and tried to yank it out. After a moment of straining, he fell back on his bottom. Staring at the huge flower hopelessly, he noticed a nice, small blue flower next to it. He picked that instead and ran back to Sarah. "Here, Mommy, for you. I love you." He gave her a hug and giggled again.
Yuto approached them after just finishing some chores. "Hello, ladies. Hey buddy. How's my big boy doing?" As he picked up his child, there was a large explosion of dust and smoke. Sarah and Azurine coughed heavily. Sarah grabbed 'Kito and put a sleeve over his mouth and nose. She looked up to see why Yuto had put him down and became very frightened.
Yuto stood stiff as a board staring wide-eyed into the cloud. He was pale and sweating. He looked as if he was bracing for something dreadful.
"My, my," said a familiarly cold voice as the cloud cleared away. "How unlikely. You're both still alive."
Azurine and Sarah found themselves staring at a woman named Sade.
Sade was Azurine's biological Mother, alike in nearly every feature: the same beautiful green eyes; the same brown hair, though Sade's was a tad lighter; the same silver streak of hair, the same build and face. The witch blood that coursed through Azurine's veins had come from her mother. When Azurine was still a baby, Sade had abandoned her because Azurine's father had 'soiled' the witch blood with demon blood.
Behind Sade stood two more of her six children. On the right was the second eldest child, only four years younger than Azurine. Her name was Sadie. She, too, was identical to her mother except for her violet eyes and a red streak of hair.
The other girl was six, a whole twelve years behind Azurine. The little girl looked content sucking on her thumb and not causing any harm to anybody. Her streak of hair was yellow. "Hi!" she said cheerily. "I'm Sage! Are you my sister? Mama doesn't like you, but I think you look nice."
"Erm," said Azurine confusedly. "It's nice to meet you? And thank you…I think."
"Take her," Sade said exasperated. "She's more like you than the rest. And with another one on the way, I just can't keep taking care of her anymore!"
She shoved Sage toward Sarah and Yuto. Sage, who only remembered Yuto from his time with Sade as a mean, cruel person, screamed and ran to Azurine, clinging to her leg. Azurine sheltered her in a hug.
"Why are you giving her to Yuto and I?" Sarah asked, holding her own son.
Sade paused. "Yuto…you didn't know?"
Through his tense state he looked confused. "Didn't know what?"
Sade laughed. "No, I suppose you wouldn't. Sage is your daughter."
Sage, previously unaware of this, buried herself in Azurine's arms. "I don't want him to be my daddy! He hurts people!"
Yuto looked faint. "My…daughter?"
Sarah shook her head. "That's impossible," she started.
"Not so. As you should well remember, I had Yuto under mind control for most of his servitude. He never had any memories of what happened during those periods. Only I know what he did during these times." Sade grinned and maliciously said, "That is how Sage came to be."
Yuto looked like he was going to be sick and Sarah put her hand on his shoulder to reassure him. Meanwhile, Sadie was staring at Azurine. "What's up with your hand?" she asked with a look of disgust on her face.
Sage pulled out of her tight hug to look. Sade looked as well. Sarah and Yuto knew what was meant, but turned towards her anyway.
Azurine promptly pulled her hand out of sight inside her jacket sleeve. The bright glow of the shard and the searing pain had intensified since Sade appeared, a reminder of her promise to Naraku. Up until now, she'd been ignoring it. She had no desire or intention to kill anyone in front of her new sister.
"Daughter, why is there a Shikon Shard in your hand? Why do you keep it gloved?" Sade asked suspiciously.
"Her hand is dead, Sade," Sarah said in a stony voice. "Naraku planted it there in thinking that he could get information of you. Now, that shard is all that keeps her hand alive."
Azurine looked in astonishment at Sarah. Sarah gave a warning glance not to mess up her intricate lie.
Azurine removed her glove and showed Sade the blackened skin. "I haven't even got any power in this one. The magic is afraid to touch it."
Sade smiled. "Half-blood, half-power."
Azure stepped forward, Sage still clinging to her. "Leave us now, Mother." She said the last sarcastically.
Sade turned to go, but first looked at Sarah, a cruel smile twisting her features. "If you want proof of Sage's origin, the proof is in the eyes." Then, she was gone. Yuto collapsed and sunk to his knees, finally able to breathe easily. Even without the ring that had once bound him to the witch, Yuto had still felt a pull towards her while she was there.
Sarah looked into Sage's scared eyes and recognized them immediately. "It can't be."
"Believe it," Azurine said, kneeling down to look at Sage's face. "The same thing probably happened to my Dad. She seems pretty scared of you, Yuto."
Yuto stepped forward, a kind, sad look on his face, but Sage ducked behind Azurine. She wrapped her arms around her sister's neck and Azurine lifted her in a piggyback.
"Want to sleep over my house, Sage?" Azurine asked.
"I wanna go home! Why did mommy leave me here? Why doesn't she want me anymore?" Sage was in tears and sobs racked her tiny body. "I wanna go home and play with Sadie again!"
Azurine swung Sage around into her arms, looking sad for the girl. "I can't bring you home, Hunny. Mommy left you here, but she also left you free, Sage. I promise that, while you stay here, I'll be the best big sister ever, okay?"
Sage nodded, still sniffling. "Big sister, I'm tired."
"I'll bring you with me, then." Azurine looked at Sarah and Yuto. "You guys take tonight to think about this."
As Azurine walked off, she could hear Yuto talking desperately to Sarah. "I'm so sorry, Sarah. I had no idea."
"I know, dear."
Sage laid her head in Azurine's lap. "Big Sister, will you keep me safe?"
Azurine ran her hand over Sage's hair, hugging her close. "Mm-hm, of course sweetie."
Sage drifted off to sleep, thumb in mouth. Azurine smiled sadly as she watched her. The child was so much like her: abandoned by Sade, an unwanted child, looking for a home.
After about a half an hour, Miroku came home. "Why, hello? Who is this lovely little girl?"
"Miroku, she's only six, get your mind out of the gutter. This is my sister, Sage," Azurine explained with a pointed glare.
Miroku sat beside her and leaned in close to look at Sage. After a few moments, he grinned at Azurine. "Won't it be great to have one of our own?"
"Sometimes, I just can't wait," Azurine admitted. "Other times, I'm sort of scared. I mean, what if I turn out as bad as my mother?"
Miroku shook his head. "That's not possible. There is no way you could ever be as bad as her. Look at the way you treat Sage. Look at Sarah. No mother and a father who beat her, but she's the best mother I've seen, yet."
"You know what? Sage is Yuto's daughter," Azurine said, taking Miroku aback.
"Really, I never saw Yuto as that type of guy."
"You mean a perv like you?"
"Yes, that definition fits. So, where is this little one going to stay? With us or Yuto?"
"Sarah's probably going to want to take her in, you know how she is with kids. Until she decides, though, she's with us. Do you mind?"
"Not at all. She's your sister, she's family." Miroku stood. "I'm going to get us some water. Do you need anything?"
"Water would be nice…and if Sarah has anything for stomach aches, something strong."
"Are you not feeling well?" Miroku pressed a hand to her forehead. "You haven't got a fever."
"I think I ate something that disagreed with me," Azurine reassured him. He noticed that she did look a little green.
"All right, I'll be back with it soon." He rubbed her hair and left.
Azurine raised an eyebrow. "What was that about? He's treating me weird."
She shrugged it off and resumed running a hand through her sister's hair. After a few minutes, she rested her shoulder against the wall and fell asleep.
End Chapter.
Chibi: Yea, so, a nice long chapter. My poor Yuto. I love him so. See ya guys next week. Bai-bai!