Sango: (cupping cheek) Is he coming out yet?
Christine: (embraced within Erik's arms) 3 hours, 29 minutes and 15.7 seconds...
Erik: . . . You're timing this, my dear?
Christine: I was bored --
Miroku's room: (Silence)
Erik: Anyone want some cheese while we wait?
Sango: What's with you and cheese?
Christine: I hear the French love cheese
Three of us: Yeah...
(More awkward silence)
Sango: You know, Ihappen to be a fan of American cheese which is odd because-
Erik: (glare) . . .
Sango: Heh heh, but anything is fine!
Chapter 14: Illusions Shattered
Sango felt her heart jump to her throat as she walked slowly over to the mirror. It looked the same as it always had—cool and distant, with nothing special or distinguished about it at all.
She continued walking until she stood directly in front of it. "Miroku?" she asked softly, "I don't understand…"
But at that moment, she heard something click, and let out and audible gasp as the mirror swung open…
xxxxx
Kuronosuke half ran back to Sango's dressing room. He couldn't wait for her to see the surprise he had in store! The picnic under the stars was going to be amazing. They could use this time to catch up with one another.
Finally, he reached her room. He knocked softly on the door. "Sango?"
Suddenly he frowned. There was a man's voice coming from inside! Kuronosuke pressed his ear up against the door and heard Sango say, "Miroku? I don't understand…"
He frowned. Who was this Miroku! Well, he was about to find out and-
"Monsieur de Baka! Come away from that door, we have a feast waiting for ye in the main hall!" Kaede placed a hand on his back, although both pairs of eyes were fixed on the dressing room door, and she had failed to lead Kuronosuke away.
xxxxx
Miroku's fingers trembled as he fumbled with the latch for the mirror, and then flicked it open.
He and Sango stood face to face for the first time. For a moment, they just looked at each other.
Suddenly, however, someone knocked on the door. When Miroku heard Kuronosuke's voice from the other side, his features hardened.
He held out a gloved hand. "Come, Sango."
xxxxx
Sango vaguely heard someone knocking on the door and shouting her name, but she ignored it. Finally, at long last, she was getting her first look at her Miroku. He was tall, and dressed all in black. Odd color for an angel, Sango thought, but then brushed it away. His face—the half she could see, anyway, was angelically beautiful.
The other half, however, was covered in a porcelain half-mask. She frowned slightly. Why would he be wearing a mask? Was it symbolic, or was there a reason for it?
Without her even noticing, Miroku had led her through the mirror. As soon as she was through, he turned and snapped the mirror shut behind her.
Now, for the very first time since she had first heard him, Sango wondered if Miroku wasn't an angel.
As her mind skimmed over the things that had happened between them so recently, she couldn't help but wonder…
Angels weren't supposed to be like this, were they? Not any angel she had ever heard about, anyway… and, though she hated to admit it, she had been too willing to believe he was an angel in the first place.
But she wouldn't accept that. Not yet. She had to hear it from him first…
As he took her hand once more to lead her down the dark passageway, she hesitantly said, "You're not an angel, are you, Miroku?"
He stopped walking, and wouldn't turn to face her. After a moment, he softly whispered, "No. No, Sango, I am not your Angel of Music. I never was."
Sango withdrew her hand from his. He let it go, still not daring to turn and look at her. She fought back the tears that were suddenly welling up in her eyes. No sense in grieving for something that never was.
Slowly, the realization hit her. Really hit her. How stupid she had been! How completely stupid! She couldn't believe that she had actually thought that this man was the Angel of Music! She had been so wrapped up in believing that her father would send her the Angel that she had refused to believe the truth — there was no Angel of Music, and there never had been one!
Sango looked back up at Miroku, and her frown deepened. She could just barely make out his shape in the utter darkness, but she could tell that he still had his back to her. Suddenly all of the sadness and embarrassment were gone from her, and all that was left was cold anger.
How dare he! He had taken complete advantage of her! Yes, it was partly her fault for being stupid enough—desperate enough—to believe him, but that still gave him no right to do what he had done to her!
"You lied to me." Her voice was cold and filled with hate, even to her own ears. "You deceived me! Who are you really? No, don't answer that. How will I know you won't just lie again? I refuse to be tricked twice in the same way! How dare you do that to me! I trusted you…I was actually stupid enough to trust in you! You deceived me; you made me look like a complete idiot to all of my friends! Kagome and Inuyasha must have thought I was mentally ill… talking about an angel my dead father had sent me! And Kuronosuke... Oh, Kuronosuke!" Sango fell to her knees, no longer holding back her tears.
xxxxx
Miroku couldn't look at Sango as she screamed accusations at him. He couldn't answer. They were all true…every one of them.
He closed his eyes and tried not to think. What had he done?
Suddenly he heard her fall to her knees behind him, and start crying. Miroku froze, not able to bear the sound.
Silently he turned to face her. Her head was buried in her hands, and her entire body was shaking as it was wracked with her sobs.
Miroku couldn't take it anymore. He would do anything—anything—to make it up to Sango. He knew, deep down, that she'd never forgive him. No one ever did.
Gently he kneeled down beside her and, after a moment of hesitation, laid a hand on her shoulder.
xxxxx
Sango hadn't even heard him approach her. She didn't think he would dare to get near to her now—not after what he had done to her! Hadn't he harmed her enough!
When she felt the pressure on her shoulder, however, she was brought back to earth. She viciously slapped his hand away. "Don't you touch me! Don't even get near me! I hate you! I hateyou, you pervert!" she yelled, knowing she sounded like a child having a temper tantrum, and not even caring. "You monster, I hate you!"
Through glazed eyes, she saw him jerk back almost involuntarily, as if he had been struck. The pain in his eyes was evident.
'Good,' Sango thought savagely.
For a moment there was silence between them, and then she heard his voice saying dispassionately, "Get up, Sango. You promised you would stay with me for three days, no matter what. You're not going to go back on your word, now are you?"
Sango gritted her teeth and stood, brushing her dress off slightly. "No." she said coolly. She watched the hurt flair up in his eyes again, and then get pushed away.
"Very well." his voice, his beautiful, angelic voice, sounded even more distant than it had before. He turned away and began off into the darkness.
Sango stumbled after him, not able to see. He didn't even look back at her once. Suddenly, she wished she hadn't said those cruel things. Even if he had tricked her, it was clear he hadn't wanted to harm her in any way. Still, she thought, trying to keep the anger, he took advantage of my situation!
No matter how hard she tried, however, she couldn't stay angry at him. In the time when she had found out that he wasn't actually an angel, she had conveniently forgotten how much he had helped her. Finally, she said, "You're him, aren't you? The…the Phantom of the Opera?"
Miroku continued walking, not bothering to look back towards her. "If that is what you've heard, then, yes I am. Had you expected anything else?"
Sango fell silent before questioning him again. "Miroku…is that your name?"
"It is…"
"Then I… I…" she faltered, "I didn't mean…what I said. You have to understand, though…" she had stopped walking again, and the grief overwhelmed her. "F-father… he promised me… and I so wanted to believe him!" she felt the hot tears begin to stream down her cheeks again. "I…I didn't want to think I was alone. I wanted to believe he was still there, that he had sent me the Angel of Music, that I would have someone to rely on, someone to trust!" she choked, then continued, "But I was wrong, and now what I've always feared would happen had come to pass. I'm alone. I'm alone." She tried to stop her tears, but failed.
"You're not alone, Sango." Miroku said softly. He closed the distance between them, and lifted her chin to make her look at him. "You will never, ever be alone, not as long as I live. I can promise you that much."
Sango stared back at him. "Thank you." To her surprise, she realized she meant it. Perhaps some part of her was still convinced he was her Angel, or perhaps she realized how very much Miroku meant what he said.
"Sango… I know you cannot forgive me for tricking you." he said softly, "I really did not want to hurt you…in fact, I wanted to help you. You looked so lost and alone in the Opera House that I couldn't help but try to comfort you. I…" he trailed off, and began to turn away from her.
Sango stopped him. So maybe he wasn't the Angel of Music. Maybe he hadn't been sent from her father. But he was still Miroku. He was still the one who had taught her, who had, for a brief amount of time, made her forget about her father's death. He was still the one who had made her prima donna…
"Miroku," she said softly, "I understand. And thank you, again. She reached up and touched his cheek. "Please forgive me for what I said back there? I don't know what hurt you so much, but I can promise that I didn't mean it."
A haunted look came to his eyes… violet; she noticed…why hadn't she seen that before? And they almost seemed to glow in the dark, if that was possible… and he nodded. "No, Sango, you didn't mean it. …Not yet…"
Then, before she could say anything, he gently took her arm and led her down the rest of the passageway.
At the other end, Sango was surprised to see, there was a vast lake. Miroku helped her into the boat, and then got in behind her and pushed off.