Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Inuyasha, Rumiko Takahashi does.


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Whispers of a Screaming Soul
Meeting One; Taking Two; Talking Freely

By Sakura-chan88
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'As fear of night-dark creeps into a soul
And the soul cowers away
A cry is heard
As a terror-filled plea
To be saved by the light of day'


Kagome bit her bottom lip, sitting in her bed and wrapped in the blanket he had been in, remembering his eyes, his ears, his voice... full of concern and fear and life. She couldn't erase the horror and dread of dawning comprehension that had laced his words and actions.

Why now? Why think about it after such a pleasent sleep?

Perhaps it was because of the shadow figure standing at the edge of each subconscious image produced and projected in her deep slumber on the bed he had laid in hours earlier. The shadow figure who grew with each joyful moment and deflated in each terrorizied glimpse of a nightmare. The shadow figure with golden eyes and distinguishable triangular ears atop its' head.

Kagome shook her head, blinking her eyes and gazing down at the hand that clasped the blanket securely around her. "What am I thinking...?"

That wasn't hard to answer. She was thinking, clearly, 'I wish he was here...'

So foolish a wish, too- a wish to want a man beside her when she was supposed to hate them. Sango would laugh if only she knew...

"Kagome-chan?"

Her head snapped up in alarm, startled eyes locking onto glistening cinnamon orbs sported by a face she knew all too well. "Sango-chan! You scared me!" she cried, her hand dropping from the cloth embracing her.

"Oh, Kagome-chan..." the woman whispered, as she entered the room and closed the door behind her. "... It's awful..."

She reacted instantly, leaping from the bed to help the older girl to the table when she began to slither to the floor. Something was wrong- Sango never acted like some weak, teenage girl. Never. Then she heard the suspicious sniffle...

"Sango-chan! God, what happened!?" Kagome shrieked, kneeling before the woman settled in her chair. There were tears in her eyes. In Sango's eyes known so well for their steel-like quality. "What did he do!? Did he hurt you?"

Sango's chin quivered. "I wish he had- oh, how I wish he had..."

"What have I done...? Oh Gods- please no. Please, please tell me I didn't...!"

Familiarity rang through the air, piercing the confusion and planting comprehension. "He didn't bed you..."

Sango nodded. "He... want to... talk... Drunken as he was... He..." She sucked in a raggedly shuttering breath, tears spilling forth.

He was in hysterics by now. "No- this can't be- I- I... Please, tell me this is a dream- nightmare- NOT REAL...!"

"What about, Sango-chan?" Kagome whispered the gentle encouragement.

"Me..."

A hand snaked out to cup her chin, concern shining in the man's golden eyes as his ears flattened to his skull. "I- I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"About you?" Kagome whispered.

"Yes... About me- why I was here, what I feared..."

"... Are you... afraid of something?"

"... What my name was..."

"What's your name?"

"He didn't accept Bell, did he?" Kagome whispered, her lips curling into a smile at the memory of Inuyasha's persistance.

"Not at all," Sango gurgled in an attempt to laugh at her previous situation.

"And?" Kagome prompted. "Did you tell him?"

"What- and have him ask for me directly so Naraku could find out I talked clean to a customer?" Sango said sadistically. "I don't think so."

"He give you a name?"

"Cinnamon."

"He noticed your eyes first," Kagome chuckled lightly. "That's a good sign."

"Yeah, I suppose so... But Miroku seemed to be... a pervert- but how can he be a pervert who doesn't want sex?" Sango sighed. "Last night was so confusing..."

Kagome nodded and sighed. "Looks like we have something in common with last night."

"Eh?"

"For one, we both got names of the men..."

At the quizzical tone and lifted brow from her friend, Kagome settled down for a long recount of the night before.


He stumbled into the tavern, drunken already from the last bar he had been tossed out of. He was seeking escape- escape from the knowledge of the inevitable. Inevitable happenings that he knew about ahead of time he always found to be the most disconserting and horrible of things that would happen. After all, why know about something that's about to happen you don't want to have happen and be unable to change it?

He was immediately greeted by the tavern owner, a slick looking man in a black business suit wrapped in the pelt of a babboon demon. He grinned drunkenly as the man handed him a mug of the local toxic Marsh-Malt Liquor and waving off the folded bills.

"On the house, Mr. Ookami," he declared, stretching out a hand toward the lounge area with a polite 'after you' bow.

Mr. Ookami left the man to claim a seat near the youngest group of tavern girls before he set his sight on one particular provocatively dancing female, her long black hair dancing around her as her ripped skirt inched its' way higher on her thigh by the guidance of her hand in a slow, seductive manner. Her eyes blazed blue with a shadowing gray when the nearest girl whispered something in her ear and she turned to flash her gentle smile at a short old man taking a seat behind her.

"Myouga, I thought you left town," he heard her sweet voice float through the room as the noise gathered and her words were lost.

'She'll do as a perfect distraction.'
Kagome felt the eyes watching her back with a predatory gaze. She knew a lot of eyes were on her, including her boss's, but this was a different gaze she sensed. This gaze had determination and demon written all over it. Focasing on the old man in front of her, she tried to ignore the stare and almost succeeded.

"I did, but I'm back," the old man called Myouga replied as Kagome entertained her previous customer with a quick swing of her hips and a light trace of her fingers up his thigh. "Ryu didn't make it."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Myouga," Kagome called over her shoulder as she made a grab for Hiten's mug. "What's it tonight, Fire-eyes?"

"The strongest."

"Western Land's newest brew," Manten offered as he slipped his hands around her to grab her derriere. "Came in the shipment yesterday."

'Western Land, eh?' Kagome smirked at the comprending look on Sango's face as she tossed the drink back and downed it, the burn in her throat excrusiating and sending her over the edge of reality and off balance to land in Myouga's arms.

"Careful, girl," Myouga chuckled. "You're lucky I stopped by Kaede's for her spell-casting or you would have squashed me."

"I wish you hadn't," Jiroumaru muttered. "You're triple the pest you are this way. The girls are here for seduction, not chat."

"I don't enjoy taking advantage of these young women."

"They wouldn't be here unless they wanted to be taken advantage of," a new voice amended, arms circling around Kagome's waste and tossing her over a broad shoulder. "Let's go, bitch."

Kagome choked back her surprise and grabbed Sango's arm as she passed unwillingly. Sango nodded at the look in her eyes, mouthing, 'Silver and gold. I got it.'

'With ears of a pup,'
Kagome mouthed back with a drunken grin.
Sure enough, the hanyou strutted through the swinging half-doors with Miroku directly behind him half an hour later. Sango cursed her luck. She'd have to emprovise... After all, Miroku had said he wouldn't allow her to be taken advantage of by anyone, so he'd be taking her to 'bed'.

And, if they were friends...

That was not appealing to her in the least. Two men being caring... Oh, no. Only in her wildest dreams... (no- she never even thought about it because it was too far fetched of a dream...) would she ever hope... nope, not even then...

Sango laughed with Kikyou before she slipped out of the group of smog inhaling, toxin drinking fools to bow in welcome to the two, making a grab for Inuyasha's arm. Miroku gave her a confused, pouting look.

"I think I can take you both on. I'm a fiesty little vixen," she purred, taking Miroku by a loop in his belt. "Plus, I'm doing a favor for a friend," she whispered, looking into the striking golden eyes of Kagome's concern. "She couldn't stop you tonight because she was dragged off early."

The silver haired man smirked and played along, wrapping a strong arm under her knees and hoisting her over his shoulder. Miroku blinked and gaped at Sango's actions as well as his best friends.

"I've always talked about a three-some, but that didn't mean it included another guy," he mumbled.

Inuyasha chuckled and walked away. "Your loss, bud. I'll be sure to give her enough pleasure for the both of us."

That got Miroku moving.

Sango relaxed, but tugged hard on Inuyasha's hair. "Your shoulder is hurting me!" she hissed, slapping his butt for the show of it. "Giddy-up, Doggie!"

She just hoped that was enough to fool her boss.
Kagome didn't understand it. The man above her had so little focus about what he was doing; his eyes were fogged over, she noted when he sat up a moment to remove her shirt, and the frown on his face told her something was terribly wrong and tearing him apart- which could mean trouble for her poor human hips if he put his energy into his thrusts.

His hands roved her body as his lips traveled down between her breasts and stopped above her navel. She couldn't bring herself to fake anything. She just laid back and watched him, waiting for him to do whatever his inebriated mind commanded. When he paused and planted his face in the soft of her belly, her consciousness screamed its confusion.

Her hands absently moved to stroke his velvet black hair in a soothing motion.

"I'm engaged."

The confession caught Kagome off guard. Her hands paused. "Engaged?"

"Mmm. Don't even know 'er," he said against her stomach, hands sliding easily under her to press her closer. "Dad made a promise... to her mother."

"You want to talk about it?"

The man brought himself up into a sitting position, his midnight blue eyes locking wozzily with hers. His hair slipped from its loose tie to frame and enclose his disheveled appearance. "I- I just want to forget."

"It will all come back in the morning, Mr...."

"Kouga Ookami."

"Mr. Ookami," Kagome dubbed him. "It may help to talk about it. Can you, or are you too tipsy?"

"... Do you mind?"

Kagome smiled, sitting up and brining her blanket around them both, sliding next to him. All she could think of was the golden eyes that marked the change in her life. Two nights free...

"Not at all."
"So, Ms. Remedy told you about last night?"

Sango nodded, eyeing the silver haired man with appreciative eyes. He was a looker- but nothing compaired to Miroku. And both were polite- in a way, if you forgot that they were men who found drinking themselves silly. Neither of them had tried to move her from the chair near her table. Though, with the way Miroku had been last night, she doubted he needed a bed to be comfortable when fucking.

His hands went to her hips and traveled up beneath the flimsy fabric she donned for a shirt. Eyes of the deepest indigo burned into her cinnamon orbs and into her intoxicated mind. A hot puff of air brushed against her neck as lips closed on her skin.

The two stumbled into the room, the man barely closing the door before his hands left their previous position to grope her buttocks and lift her, legs wrapping securely around narrow hips. Moments later, she was laid out on her table, her shirt in a bundle on the floor. The man traveled a tongue up the flat of her stomach and stopped just short of her collar bone.

'How about we stop here and catch up later?'

The woman blinked, looking into his lavender eyes. 'What?'

'I think we can take a break...' He shucked off his button-up shirt and handed it to her. 'See, I don't find taking advantage of a woman pleasing... I'm much too sober to let my morals go.'

'Morals?' she dead-panned.

'Well, if you don't want to stop...' His hands took hold of her hips and brought her against him, leaning over her. 'We don't have to...'

'Uh...'

'Let's talk.'

'... Uh...' He flashed her a smile that she couldn't help but trust and be wary of simutaniously. 'Sure...?'


"Yeah. She is known quite well for her remedy, too." Sango shot him a disapproving glare. "And you drank the one she was giving to me."

"She's the one that offered it," he stated defensively, stretching out on her bed. "You know, I could go for a nice cup of tea, right about now."

"Tea?" Sango repeated, her jaw dropping. "You're joking, right?"

"... Where have I heard that before?" Inuyasha asked himself. "Oh, right- I suppose you wouldn't believe me if I said I'm the co-owner of The Western Lands Company, too."

"No, I believe that. But tea? Why would you come to a pub if you wanted tea and no sex?"

"I have my reasons."

"And you?" Sango asked Miroku as his hand inched up her thigh in a slow line.

"To see the women, of course."

"And not sleep with them?"

Miroku grinned to himself. "I would only dream of it."

"Then, if you really do have your so-called 'morals'," Sango spat, "remove your hand from me."
Kagome listened intently to the man beside her, her mind registering and storing his words as she counted her blessings on a single hand- Sango, Myouga, Inuyasha, Miroku- for making Sango happy (even if Sango didn't realize it)- and Kouga. Oh, and that her boss hadn't noticed any change in her or Sango. So, she did need two hands, but that was more than enough to make her happy enough to smile.

"She sounds beautiful, but that's not enough," Kouga was saying. "I don't love her- I don't know her! I can't call it off or Dad will disown me and I'll lose my inheritance- I'm a prince, for crying out loud! Why can't I change the law- oh, that's right, because my father set the law stating no King could ever change it! I want to strangle him, but that only means he'll die sooner and I'll be married sooner!"

"You aren't getting married til your father dies?" Kagome inquired, setting a gentle hand on his shoulder. "And you're a prince? Isn't this like... treason... going against your father and sleeping with someone."

Kouga thought for a moment, then nodded. "Thanks for stopping me," he whispered with a far off look. "I'd have been beheaded... And, yes, I'm a prince- prince of the last wolf pack that follows monarchy. The woman I'm supposed to marry is the Mountain Wolves' dictator's granddaughter. It's all politics and promises made long ago I wish Dad had forgotten. And, yes, I don't marry until Father dies."

Kagome smiled and cupped his cheek to look into his eyes with a warm, friendly smile. "Kouga... If you have time to see her before you marry her, why don't you just try to get to know her? That way you'll know. I mean, what if she's your soul mate? How would you know if you shun her without trying...?"

He took her words in and smiled in return. "You're right. You're absolutely right!" he declared, leaping to his feet. "I'm going to-" he began before swaying dangerously. "To fall, I think..."

And he did without another word.

"You have got to be kidding. You just had to fall on the floor, not the bed, didn't you?" Kagome asked the unconscious man sprawled on the ground. "You better be grateful that I'm a considerate woman, Mr. Ookami, and I'm charging you double when you finally deside to wake up and leave to meet that girl of yours."

Mirok sighed and removed his hands, again, from Sango. Leaning back on his elbows, he let his legs dangling off the side of the table, swinging them in a lazy motion. "What now?"

"You can go home, or spend the night and pay me my money from yesterday."

Miroku blinked and sat straight up. "But, I didn't do anything!"

Inuyasha chuckled heartily. "Money grubbing bitches, aren't you?"

"Money grubbing bitches we may be, but we're only that way because of our boss's... uh... Nevermind that," Sango finished, waving her hands with a much too bright smile plastered on. "I'm just rambling from the alcohol."

"That's not what it sounded like to me," Miroku voiced, moving to kneel before her. He searched her eyes. "What is it about this place? You seem so..."

"Afraid?" Inuyasha offered.

"Spirited," Miroku said. "Too intelegant to choose such a degrading profession to pay the bills."

"Thanks," Sango hissed. "Rub it in, why don't you? I've already told you I don't enjoy my work-"

"What's not to enjoy?" Miroku attempted to joke. He was sent a withering glare by Sango as she continued, "and I never said I chose to work here, did I?"

The men were silent, mulling over what she let slip. She bit the inside of her cheek, scolding herself for losing control of her tongue. That may very well be the last thing she ever said.

'As words frozen in the throat
Thaw and are uttered at long last
A cry is heard
As a surprised yelp
For the fear of speaking wrong'

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the chapter!