InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Burning Secrets ❯ Chapter five ( Chapter 5 )

Chapter Five

 

Morning came, and with it a welcoming sense of normality Kagome and Inuyasha were at each others' throats from the start, taking a break only long enough for Inuyasha to give Shippou some well deserved lumps. The night before was like a dream to them all, and no one even mentioned it. Miroku did, however, keep a close eye on his hanyou friend, though this didn't deter him any from `comforting' Sango after an argument involved her.

 

After breakfast they headed out towards the west, following rumours of a few shards in that are. At Inuyasha's insistence they traveled at a practically breakneck speed, only stopping once so the humans could take a break. Almost immediately they left again, pushing on until early evening.

 

When they did finally stop Shippou and Kirara were sent to gather firewood from around the edges of the clearing. Sango and Kagome chattered much like, in Inuyasha's opinion, excited birds as they prepared the camp. Their conversation was interrupted only once, by Miroku's less than noble advances on Sango. The priest knew better than to touch his Kagome, but that never seemed to stop him from showing his affections to the demon hunter.

 

Once dinner was ready, they sat around the blazing fire holding cups of ramen noodles. Kirara and Shippou were between Sango and Miroku, a barrier from the priest's amorous hands. Kagome sat next to Sango on her other side, and Inuyasha closed the circle. As the others dug hungrily into their food, misplacing the majority of their manners in the presence of friends and the lax atmosphere, Inuyasha just sat still, hardly eating at all. Despite the fact that ramen was by far his favorite food from Kagome's time, he merely stared blankly into the fire, his eyes distant and his food growing cold.

 

Miroku noticed his friend's behavior but refrained from saying anything this time, not wanting to make another scene in front of the others. He was therefore surprised when Kagome commented, even more so by the rough tone that she used.

 

“Not eating again, I see,” Kagome pointed out sourly. “What's wrong with the food tonight?”

 

Inuyasha made a noncommittal response and took a small bite, forcing it down. Kagome huffed angrily and went back to her own meal, ignoring him now that she'd gotten what she had wanted. Miroku looked over at Sango to find her staring back at him. Apparently she'd noticed the hanyou's strange behavior, too. He suspected that they'd be speaking on it later that night.

 

During the entire ordeal Inuyasha's eyes never once left the fire. The light from the dancing flames reflected in his golden eyes, making them look eerily alive but at the same time more dead than they'd ever seemed before. In this reflection Miroku saw just how much Kagome's actions and words were taking a toll on the half-demon. Miroku silently vowed to put an end to it, no matter the costs. He would not lose his friend to someone so undeserving of the feat.

 

At Kagome's request they decided to keep going for a while longer, in hopes of getting back home sooner. When they headed out Miroku and Sango rode on Kirara, Shippou and Kagome on the girl's bike, and Inuyasha on his own in the trees.

 

“Houshi, what's wrong with Inuyasha?” Sango asked once they were in the air. Miroku just sighed and shook his head. He was tired, and he wasn't really ready to talk about it yet. Sango, however, was more than ready and she was determined to get an answer.

 

“Houshi, answer my question,” she demanded. “Inuyasha has been acting strangely since last night. If you are holding nay of his secrets I need to know.”

 

“Why?” Miroku asked, shocked by the severity of her tone. It wasn't like the huntress to speak like this unless he was being lecherous.

 

“With Inuyasha acting so erratically like this I cannot predict his actions, or if he is a danger to Kagome and our group.” Miroku stared at her, eyes wide, and brought in a sharp breath.

 

“You bitch,” he snarled, startling Sango.

 

“N-nani?” she gasped, unsettled by the pure fury in his voice. Pervert that he was, the priest had never called her or any women by such a degrading name. In fact, despite his attraction to them, he seemed to put women on a much higher level of respect than he did men. Miroku's eyes narrowed on her and she could tell then just how mad he really was. She began to wonder if she had made a mistake in her hasty conclusion about Inuyasha's actions towards the miko.

 

“Inuyasha a danger to Kagome? Are you really that blind or are you just stupid?” he spat acidly. “You should learn to pay more attention before you speak. Inuyasha would die before letting any of us get hurt, especially Kagome, and you have the audacity to ask me if he is a danger to her? If anyone is a danger here it is Kagome. She treats Inuyasha like a disobedient pet, one whose feelings can be pushed to the side at a whim. Inuyasha is in more pain now than any one man deserves to feel in his entire life because of that child. And you are here accusing him of harming her? If you ever suggest him to be a danger to Kagome again I can promise you that you will regret it.”

 

Sango dropped her gaze so he wouldn't see the shame and fear written there. Miroku was acting like a completely different person, like- like Inuyasha when Kagome is in trouble, her mind taunted her. She turned sharply away from the priest, though she could still feel his glare on her back as she tried unsuccessfully to erase that thought from her mind.

 

His tone and the ice in his eyes would haunt her all night, intruding even into her dreams. When he spoke to her just then he had looked like Sesshoumaru when Inuyasha had actually managed to anger him one time. There were so many emotions swirling so deeply in his eyes that they were almost completely void of it all.

 

When they stopped again for the night she made sure that Kagome was between her and the houshi. She wasn't sure if she could deal with sleeping beside him after she had acted so irrationally as that. As harsh as his words had been, it had been even worse because she knew that, at least in part, they were true. Inuyasha slept in a tree above Miroku, most likely under the priest's orders. Shippou and Kirara were the last to settle down, curling up together between the two girls. As she drifted into sleep, Miroku's words and the expression on his face remained with Sango, promising the hunter a night of rough, disturbing dreams.