I know last chapter was short, just bear with me! Please? I'll work on making them longer!!!!

Otulia: We don't own InuYasha. Sorry to disappoint ya'.

Aftershock

Miroku found Sango sitting by the rice paddies, staring into the water. "Sango?" he asked. "Are you okay?"

She didn't answer, and he sat down beside her. "What's wrong?"

She looked at him sadly, tears sliding down her cheeks. "It's my fault," she whispered. "It's my fault that Kagome got hurt."

"It isn't your fault, Sango. You couldn't have known the bandits were there," Miroku replied soothingly.

"But it was my idea to go to the hot springs, and I went unarmed! If I had taken my hiraikotsu, or even my katana, then I could've…" She trailed off, hiding her face in her arms.

Miroku pulled her into an embrace, stroking her hair. "Don't blame yourself. Bad things happen. You can't blame yourself for everything that goes wrong."

She cried on his shoulder, letting out all her pent-up guilt and grief, and the terror she'd felt.

InuYasha sat outside Kagome's door, listening to her steady, even breathing. She'd gone straight to bed after her bath without speaking to anyone, and had fallen asleep instantly.

He sighed, staring at the floor. Her family had taken it better than he could have hoped. He had been afraid that they'd be angry with him for not being there to protect her, but he had been proven wrong. Her mother had cried, as any mother would, but understood that Kagome didn't want to be bothered about it. She would talk when she was ready. Sota had only wanted to know if his sister would be okay, and Gramps listened with a sad acceptance, showing none of his usual distrust toward InuYasha.

A small whimper reached his ears. He stood and opened the door a little, looking in. Kagome was curled up on her bed, tears leaking from her eyes. "Kagome? Are you alright?"

She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and looked at him. "Uh-huh. I just…had a bad dream." She didn't have to say what it was about; he already knew.

"Do you want me to sit in here with you?" he asked quietly.

With a grateful look clear in her eyes, she nodded. "Please?"

InuYasha slipped through the door and closed it behind him. "I'll be right here," he said, sitting on the floor by the foot of her bed. "Try to get some sleep."

Don't kill me for it being so short! I wanted to update, but I have writer's block!!!! Please review with ideas!!!!