Miroku had every intention of behaving himself when he left Kaede's hut that morning. However, he had learned early on that resolve could only get him so far in life. It was better to be open to new opportunities that might present themselves. And so when two of the lovely ladies from yesterday happened to cross his path, well, who was he to question the vagaries of fate that had brought them to this second encounter?

"Good morning!" he called, with an exaggerated flourish that set both girls to smiling. That was a good sign—he'd been a little bit worried that Sango's antics might have dampened his prospects here, but that did not seem to be the case. At least not with these two.

They paused where they were and waited for him to join them. One giggled a little as he drew closer, earning an elbow to the ribs from her friend.

"Don't let me interrupt," he insisted, though he was of course only too happy to do just that.

The girls settled with one on either side of him, and the three of them resumed walking together.

"You're not interrupting," one of the girls—the one who had elbowed her friend—assured him. "We were just out enjoying the morning!"

It might even have been true. But they'd been approaching the crossroads that led to Kaede's hut, and they knew he and his companions stayed there when they were in town. It was entirely possible that they girls had come this way hoping to run into him. Such thoughts could be nothing more than wishful thinking, but after yesterday, and with two lovely ladies at hand… well, he wasn't going to question it.

He let the two girls lead him on a meandering walk, roughly circling the outside of the village. It did not escape his notice that they were far enough from the main part of the village to avoid being observed, but not so far that they were likely to be at risk of attack from bandits or other unsavory creatures. Although Inuyasha was out there somewhere. Without the slightest slip of his charming facade, Miroku steered his companions away from the direction of the Bone Eater's well. Just in case.

Everything was going quite well—he couldn't have planned things to fall out this conveniently—and yet the more promising the conversation got, the more Miroku couldn't shake the sensation that they were being watched. One of the girls hinted that she knew a likely spot where they could be alone for a while, but even that couldn't dispel the sudden trepidation he felt. Had thinking of Inuyasha summoned him? His disapproval was likely to be even worse than Sango's… but there was no sign of the hanyou or the slayer. He could only conclude that his imagination was running wild, and resolved to ignore it.

But the foreboding feeling only grew stronger as they left the village behind and slipped through the trees and into the forest. Miroku tried to keep the mood light, but even the girls were beginning to notice.

"Maybe this isn't such a good idea," one of them murmured, looking suddenly reluctant. She had been entirely eager a few moments ago, but trepidation could really dampen a mood.

"Are you sure?" her friend asked.

The girl shook her head. "Something just doesn't feel right," she admitted.

"She's right," Miroku agreed, though he could already feel the day's promise slipping away from him. "There is definitely an unpleasant aura about."

"You don't think it's… a youkai… do you?"

There was no sign of a youkai, only that damnable sense of foreboding. Miroku gave a silent curse. He couldn't in good conscience put these girls in danger, but he also didn't want to send them back to town only to find out there was no threat. Not when there was a good chance he could convince one of them to bear his child.

"I'm not sure," he hedged, hoping for some sign that would tell him what was going on.

His patience paid off a moment later, when a strange creature emerged out of some nearby brush. Miroku had seized the creature by the tail before he realized it wasn't just strange, it was entirely familiar and definitely not a threat.

"Shippou!" he realized aloud. Well, at least it wasn't anything more nefarious than a wandering kitsune. "Were you following me?"

"Maybe," Shippou said with a pout.

Feeling rather ridiculous for having let nerves get the better of him, Miroku set Shippou down. "Why?"

The two village girls watched all this a little nervously, as if they were having serious second thoughts about their plans for the morning.

"There's nothing to do back at Kaede's!" Shippou protested. "We should go look for Inuyasha and make him apologize to Kagome!"

The impossibility of such a task notwithstanding, Shippou's presence was doing nothing to improve Miroku's mood. And it was doing even less for his prospects with the two girls.

"We'll see you around, monk!" they chorused, having apparently decided he was too busy to spend any more time with them, or that they would rather not get involved with anything related to a shady character like Inuyasha. They waved as they turned to head back into town. Miroku's hopes retreated with them.

Finding himself suddenly and completely alone with Shippou instead of a pair of eager and lovely girls, Miroku heaved an exaggerated sigh. Thwarted again!