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Chapter 3: Staring

Kagome was on her hands and knees scrubbing the deck ruthlessly.

Inuyasha watched her through the window in his cabin. "She knows something." he growled.

Miroku, behind him looking at the map said, "Maybe, but she's determined to hide it."

"Why?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well the Shikon no Tama is a very powerful jewel. Maybe she knows where it is and is supposed to keep people from finding it." Miroku looked at the compass next to his map.

"I don't think so." Inuyasha said.

"Why not?"

"The jewel is powerful, true. So do you think it's location would be entrusted to one person. No, that's not it."

"But your convinsed she knows something." Miroku shrugged. "What if it's just the legend?"

"If it was just the legend she would have told us. Everyone knows the legend. She knows something more."

"Maybe if you were nicer she would be more willing to tell us." Miroku said.

"Yeah right. You tried that yesterday. Didn't work."

"Ah, so you suppose getting her to hate us will make her tell all, yes?"

Inuyasha growled.

"I think I know why your doing this." Miroku said without looking up.

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed because he knew what he was going to say.

"It's because she looks like..."

"Say her name and I pull your heart out and feed it to you." He snarled.

Miroku smiled remorsefully. "She looks like her."

"Not even a little bit." he snapped.

"It's in the face."

"Shut up." he growled through clenched teeth.

"Although Kagome's face has more..."

"If you value your life you won't say another word." Inuyasha turned away from the window and glared at him.

"All I'm saying," he went around the table and stood in front of his best friend. "is that you've been hanging onto her memory for 3 years. It's time to let go. Time to move on." he put his hand on his shoulder.

"I have moved on." Inuyasha knocked his hand off his shoulder and left the room.

"Sure you have." Miroku said under his breath.

Kagome picked up her bucket and wiped her forehead.

She started to move to a different spot when someone interrupted her path.

"Oh, hi again." the listen fox demon said with a smile.

"Hi." Kagome said cautiously.

So far, no one in the crew had attempted to talk to her. She didn't mind. Ignoring her was better than beating her, but they would all look at her from time to time as if they wanted to say something. Now the little fox kit was smiling at her and the crew was trying to discretely watch her and see what she would do.

"My name's Shippo. What's yours?" he asked happily.

"Um..Kagome."

"It's nice to meet you Kagome. I'm Shippo. I've been wanting to say hi since yesterday but the Captain ordered us to leave you to your work. I thought since you picked up your bucket that you were done. Are you?" he said all this very fast.

"Um..no. I was moving the bucket to another spot." Kagome pointed to an area of the deck she hadn't cleaned yet.

"Oh..." he paused for a second as if he was thinking then said, "Can I watch? I promise I won't get in your way."

"I don't mind." Kagome said smiling at him a little.

"Cool." he said following her and sitting down next to her bucket when she sat it down.

"The Captain says your are slave, is that true?" he asked watching as she scrubbed back and forth.

She didn't mind the manual labor much but it was hell on her back.

"I suppose since he captured me it's true." Kagome stopped long enough to pull her hair back into a knot.

"Oh. I think that's terrible." Shippo complained.

"Do you?" Kagome asked smiling at him again.

"Yup!" he said smiling back. "Most of the people on this ship were slaves."

"They were?" Kagome asked stopping for a second and sitting on her legs.

"Uh-huh. They come from towns where the Captain freed them. Some asked to leave, but others wanted to stay for him."

Kagome found that a little hard to believe but didn't say anything. From the look in Shippo's eyes he hero worshipped Silver.

"Were you a slave?" she asked gently.

"Me? No." he shook his head. "I was an orphan. The Captain found me starving and begging on the streets one day. He said, 'If you want some food follow me'." Kagome laughed at how he made his voice deep to try and sound like Silver. "So I did. Came on the ship, ate some food. Started learning how to work the ship. Just kind of, never left, y'know?"

Shippo looked at her funny, "You know, the Captain doesn't capture people without reason. Why did he capture you?"

"Maybe he wants me to clean his ship." Kagome answered getting back to work.

Shippo giggled. "No. That's my job normally. He must want you for something else."

"Well, he thinks I know something he wants to know." Kagome confided in a not so silent whisper.

"Do you?" Shippo asked.

Kagome didn't look him in the eye as she said, "Of course not. He'll realize that eventually. Until then, I guess I'm stuck swabbing the deck."

Shippo laughed with her.

"You know, maybe you were right." Miroku said coming up behind Inuyasha who was sitting in his chair.

"I'm always right." Inuyasha said turning his eyes away from the woman. "But remind me again why I'm right."

"Kagome seems to like kids." he said as she and Shippo stood up. The fox jumped up and landed on her shoulder, both of them smiling. "She hated kids."

Inuyasha's mood soured at the mention of her again.

"What are you trying to prove, Miroku?" he growled.

"Nothing. Just trying to figure out why you captured her."

"She knows..."

"Yes, yes I heard you the first time. But let's recap. You saved her from Dibious,"

"He knew we didn't hurt wemon or children. That was teaching a lesson."

"You brought her to the ship."

"And through her in the brig."

"You set her to work instead of twisting her arm to find out what you want."

"The crew wont follow my rules if I don't."

"And," he said like he was pulling an ace out of the hole. "you have been staring at her all day."

"I have not." Inuyasha snarled knowing perfectly well that he had.

Miroku smiled like he knew he had won. "Oh, but you have. You have been watching her like a mother hawk."

"Maybe I want her." He suggested.

"Ah, but if it were just that, you would have made moves toward her already."

Inuyasha grumbled because he knew he was right. It sucked when your best friend and first mate knew you so well.

"Maybe you do want her. But, there is something holding you back. Something you haven't let go of." Miroku hinted.

"Your pushing your luck real hard, Miroku."

"I'm just saying." he put up his hands in surrender.

"Well maybe it would be better for your health if you shut up. And set a course for home."

"Aye, Captain." Miroku turned and walked away.

Inuyasha looked and saw Kagome scrubbing at another spot talking happily with Shippo.

"Your doing it again." Miroku said walking by.

Inuyasha growled and held up his claws.

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