As the sun sank low on the horizon, a boy in only white hakamas sat high in an old oak, observing the golden sunset. Or so it would appear to an onlooker. His gaze was drawn not to the sun, but to a feminine acquaintance of his. His braided, waist-length pigtail draped over his shoulder to rest on his fairly toned chest as it rose and fell with each breath. His cinnamon eyes looked on past his burnt brown bangs to gaze at the object of his affection.
Her almond streaked hair was pulled into a tangled bun to keep it out of the way of her work. The sleeves of her burnt orange kimono were rolled up and exposed her slender arms as they busied themselves with washing her father's indigo robe. She stopped and looked about, for having had the feeling of being watched unknowingly. A swish was heard in an oak not far from her, upon which her attention was fixed.
"Huh? Must've been a monkey." She concluded as she could not find her onlooker.
Said onlooker sighed as he hid behind a neighboring maple. "Phew! She almost saw me." He paused. "Jeez! What's wrong with me? Why didn't I want her see me?"
'Because I like her and was nervous she wouldn't like me spying on her.' He told himself mentally.
"Humph! Whatever…" he concluded as he spun around to head home for the evening, his kendo slung over his left shoulder. The first thing he saw, or felt rather, was a forehead sporting tendrils of almond colored hair. He was startled, but unwavering at the contact. His opposition, however, was not so lucky, as she staggered and fell backwards.
On instinct, his right hand shot out and grasped the falling girl's waist as his left grabbed her outstretched arm. She was suspended in mid-air and realized she had been caught. Their eyes met and blushes were exchanged.
"Uh, hey, Saki…" He stammered.
"Hey yourself, Nikorasu." She replied.
The moments ticked past as they gazed into each other's eyes, neither saying a word. Finally, Nikorasu's hold on her began to falter.
"Um, Nik?" she questioned, "I think I can stand on my own, now. Would you mind setting me down before I slip?"
Nikorasu replied with a snort and a smirk, "Slip? Now why would I let you slip when-"He stopped suddenly as she jerked and lunged out of his grip. His hand had slid farther south since her rescue and was nestled quite comfortably on her bottom.
She voiced her opinion as they both tumbled noisily to the ground, "Look, I don't mind if you touch me, just please warn me next time. Okay?" she looked upon his face as his cocky smile died a miserable death of embarrassment, and was replaced by a crimson blush he felt would stain his face forever.
"I-I wasn't t-touching you! I w-was just… I mean… Aww, damn it…" he babbled. The realization of his current position on top of her didn't help his state of being, either. His chin hung just above her breasts and his abdomen rested between her legs in a very intimate fashion. In a panic, he quickly gathered himself up and sat up off of her. "I'm really sorry about… well, that! I-it wasn't on purpose, I didn't mean to-"
"You know what? Just stop already, you're making a fool of yourself." Saki interjected. She had sat up by now and faced him fully.
"Uh, but, I mean… right." He finished clumsily. They sat cross-legged across from each other, one confused, the other embarrassed.
Saki began the impending conversation Nikorasu had been dreading, "So, Nik, why are you so nervous around me? And why were you spying on me in the first place?" Her eyes were questioning and her mouth was drawn up into a pout that made her impossible to resist.
"Um, well I-"Nikorasu started.
"Hey, Nik! Wrap it up; your mother's got supper cooking!" Nikorasu was cut short yet again as his father leapt to an over-head branch. "Oh, hey, Saki! How's your old man doing?"
She stood up to greet him, "Hello, Mister Inuyasha! My father's doing-"
"Very well!" A male voice was announced. The owner of said voice revealed himself in the form of a monk, emerging from behind a tall maple tree. "And how about you, Inuyasha? It's been a while." He smiled.
"Not too bad, Miroku. I just came by to get Nik for supper; Kagome's making his favorite." He replied.
"Well then, please don't let me keep you any longer! Saki still has some chores to do, anyways." Miroku stated with a glance to his daughter.
Inuyasha prepared to leap away as he said his farewells over his shoulder. "Well, see you around! Stop by sometime, Kagome's been wanting to see everyone again." With that, he and Nikorasu were off. The boy waved a quick good-bye to Saki as he sped up to catch up to his half-demon father.
Their trek home was short, spent mostly in silence. As they neared their home, Inuyasha suddenly stopped and faced his son, who also stopped alongside him. "Alright, start talking. What don't I know about you and Miroku's daughter?" The half-demon interrogated.