Footsteps echoed off of the beech trees as the group passed through to their destination, back to the well for Kagome to go back to her time for another one of her "exams". Miroku let out a sigh as he sped up his pace to walk with the ladies. Interrupting their conversation to smile tightly and throw a thumb off the path. "Excuse me, ladies. But I request we stop momentarily so that i may be able to relieve myself." Kagome and Sango agreed, happy to take a small break. As the monk headed into the woods, his dark robes soon blending in the the shadows, Inuyasha huffed. "For fuck sake. We stopped a couple of hours ago! Why do ya'll need so many breaks?!"
A pale lip rose over shockingly white fangs as he looked to the path in front of them and then to the gently darkening sky peeking through the tree's canopy. "I'm gonna scout the next couple of meters and find a place to set up camp."
Before Kagome could even form a thought, he was gone in a red and white blur, the branches barely shaking in his wake. Kagome, herself, let out a sigh as she tucked her skirt and made a seat for herself from a raised root. The slayer removed her hiraikotsu and sat on the flat of it's side. "I'm sure hungry! You got any more ninja food before you go, Kagome?" Shippo asked, climbing up her side and onto her shoulder, ducking underneath the dark expanse of her hair. "Maybe a couple of pocky sticks, but you ate all the rest of them, Shippo." Kagome replied, a small smile on her face as she didn't make a move to stop the tiny hands from pulling the drawstring at the opening of her bag and delving greedily inside.
"I have some mushrooms and root vegetables left. Do you think we should make a stew tonight?" Sango asked, thumping the broad side of her fist into her shoulder to release some tension. "Sure! We can ask the boys to get us some rabbits!" Kagome agreed, rubbing her heel. Miroku appeared behind them a short time later ."I have returned, my ladies! I hope i wasn't too sorely mi- Where did Inuyasha go?" The man asked, tying the top of his purple Uttarāsaṅga in place.
"Oh, just to growl to himself about how weak and useless humans are as he finds a place to camp." Sango mumbled, taking Miroku's offered hand as she stood. "For the life of me, I can't seem to understand our red-clad friend. He also has physical requirements. Why must it always be such a big deal when we need to relieve ourselves?" Miroku asked, shaking his head at his friend's strange behaviors.
"You know… now that i think about it…" Shippo chirped up, crawling out from behind Kagome's hair, half of a chocolate bar in his tiny fist. "I never see Inuyasha leaving to go do his business." At the simple statement, the three human's eyebrows rose dramatically. "You're right, Shippo!" Sango exclaimed, pulling at Miroku's sleeve eagerly, "What if he doesn't ever need to relieve himself!" Miroku rolled his eyes. "My dear Sango. Despite our grumpy canine companion being more than human, I highly doubt that his extra abilities remove his need to heed nature's call."
As the two bounced their ideas off of each other, Kagome remained quiet and thoughtful, her index finger tapping her chin gently.
"What if he's like a sloth?"
"Then why would he- a what?" Sango asked, turning from Miroku mid-sentence. One of her eyebrows cocked high, chocolate brown hair bobbing as she tilted her head comically. "Is that a creature in your time, Kagome?" Miroku asked, crossing his arms in interest. He loved hearing about Kagome's strange and knowledgeable world.
"Well. Not exactly but, yes. They exist in this time as well, just far away in another land. They are animals about…this big," Kagome said, stretching her arms out wide," And they live up in trees." At this, the trio listening intently nodded in unison, their wide eyes trained on the young woman. "And they move reaaaally sloooowlyy," Kagome mocked the long, loping limbs of the sloth reaching for Sango's strap on her hiraikotsu with hooked fingers. The trio shook their heads at that. He was simply too fast. "BUT!" Kagome continued, holding up a single finger in pause. "They only come down from their trees to… use the restroom.. Once. A. Week." Eyebrows once again raised, Sango's mouth opening gently. "We know he doesn't really ever need sleep." She ticked off a single finger. "He can go weeks without eating. He's like a camel. " At that, Kagome waved away they group's curious stares, continuing with raised digits. "I'm just saying. It's not too far fetched that he only goes to the restroom once a week."
Kagome nodded affirmation as she hauled her backpack up, dusting off her skirt when she sensed Inuyasha's return. Giving her friends a knowing look with raised eyebrows, Kagome smirked and adjusted her pack with a bounce.
"There's a spot about an hour walk from here with a hot spring nearby so ya'll weirdos can take your baths." Inuyasha grumbled, not looking at the group as he huffed, his arms tucked away in his suikan. Kagome smiled at his gruff attitude. He was always like this before she went back home. "Ooookay! Let's hurry! A bath sounds aaaamaaazing!" Kagome fawned, taking the lead.
As the rest of the group followed slowly behind the pair, Inuyasha grew suspicious of their strange silence. Turning his head, he saw that they were all watching him carefully. "What the hell is wrong with you idots?!" he exclaimed, snarl returning to his lips.
Sango's eyes narrowed as she looked at his confused face, gripping her hiraikotsu's strap tighter, "Like a sloth."
a/n : this is a silly thought that came into my head one day while daydreaming. I might do a follow up to this for comedy sake.
-EtS