InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Facets of the Living Jewel ❯ An nescis quantilla sapientia mundus regatur? ( Chapter 21 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or the other characters. Ms. Takahashi does.

 

 

An nescis quantilla sapientia mundus regatur?

By Licentia poetica

 

Innin gave a scream of frustration as Inuyasha took Kagome through the well. “Aahh! That stubborn idiot!” Exasperated, she struggled against Miroku's weight for a moment, then looked up at Sanga and blurted, “She's still in her pajamas!”

 

Sango blinked in astonishment at the absurdity of the comment before blushing self-consciously and glancing down at herself. `I forgot we were dressed in this inappropriate clothing, yet these `pajamas' cover much more than Kagome's uniform ever did.' She glanced up at Innin apologetically, but forgot her own discomfort at the distress apparent in the older woman's face. “Lady Higurashi, please don't be worried. Kagome has extra clothes with Kaede and will be able to change into them once she wakes.”

 

Innin gave a sigh and glanced at the well for a moment, her shoulders slumping as she almost inaudibly repeated, “When she wakes.” She gave a rueful glance up at the taiji-ya and smiled tentatively, obviously trying to force a calmness she didn't feel. “Of course. Once she wakes, yes. She'll…I…I'm sure she'll be fine.” Her gaze moved to the young kit cradled in Sango's arms and she shook her head as if collecting her thoughts. “We should take care of Miroku and Shippo right now.”

 

Sango glanced down at Shippo; the kit was quiet and trembling, not a good sign in the usually cheerful kitsune. As he stared back at her with wide eyes, she gently cuddled him. “Shippo, are you all right?”

 

He took a deep, shaking breath and threw his arms around her neck, burying his face into her chest. He trembled against her for a long moment, but finally he calmed enough to mumble into her collar bone “I'm okay, I guess.”

 

She knelt down smoothly in spite of the awkward weight of Shippo and inspected Miroku as he leaned bonelessly against Innin's supporting arms, his face gray and pinched with pain. His shallow breaths hissed past lips drawn back from his clenched teeth. “Oh gods…” Sango breathed, suddenly terrified. `Is he dying?' She glanced up at Innin, her eyes wide and pleading. `Can the healers in this time of miracles save him?'

 

Innin smiled gently and touched Miroku's cheek, her voice purposefully calm as she answered Sango's unspoken questions. “His skin is clammy and his color isn't good, but I'm sure he'll be fine. He probably has a concussion, given the force with which his head struck the pavement. I'll have to take him to the emergency room.” She sighed and squirmed slightly under his weight. `But first I'm going to find out what's happened to Kagome.' She glanced up at the quiet kitsune as he stared worriedly at Miroku from the shelter of Sango's arms. “Do you think you could stay here with Shippo?”

 

Before Sango could answer, Shippo twisted in her arms to face her and excitedly asked “Where are we? Is this Kagome's home? The voice in the well brought me across to save her, and now baka Inuyasha's taken her back again!”

 

“The well brought you across?” Innin repeated, startled. Mentally, she shook her head. `That wasn't in the plans Kensei and I discussed…what went wrong? Why did Kagome's time power react like that? I need to talk to Kensei— and soon, before everyone from the Sengoku Jidai comes across to our home!' She turned her attention back to the kit as he spoke rapidly, obviously still excited from his recent experience.

 

“Yeah, it sucked me in at the other side and then it talked to me and it told me I had to save Kagome, and it—it threw me at her!” Shippo's arms began to wildly pantomime his story as he continued, “And that was really scary but I was really brave and I—I almost got sucked away into this thing like Kagura's Dance of the Dragons, but then Kagome pulled me back, and then Inuyasha smashed the power apart. He saved us!”

 

He took a breath to start speaking again but stopped short as Miroku gave a low moan. Shippo lowered his arms and glanced up at Sango guiltily. He frowned when he saw that she was suppressing a smile even as she tightened her arms around him again. Misinterpreting her relief that he was safe and able to be his normal, exuberant self, he folded his arms and pouted “Well, I was brave. And I missed you guys all last night! And stupid Kirara gave me a bath!”

 

Sango stopped trying not to smile and chuckled, knowing what kind of bath Kirara had given him. `I'll have to thank Kirara for looking after Shippo so well.' She gave him another hug and said gently, “Shippo, I promise to listen to your story later, but we must take care of Miroku now.” She set the kit down and turned to Innin as Miroku's injury took precedence in her worries. As Shippo gave a tentative sniff, testing the air, she added “This is Lady Higurashi, Kagome's mother.”

 

Shippo regarded Innin with intent, curious eyes. “Hello. You're pretty, but not as pretty as Kagome.”

 

Innin gave a short laugh. `Leave it to a child….'

 

“Shippo! That wasn't polite to say!” chided Sango.

 

Innin chuckled. “It doesn't matter, Sango. Right now we must take care of Miroku. I will have to take him to the hospital, to the healers. We need to get him to my car.” Miroku, his eyes still closed, stirred against her and she winced as his weight put strain on her muscles. “Could you please hold Miroku for a moment?”

 

Sango shifted around to Miroku's back and Innin transferred his limp weight into Sango's arms, raising her eyebrows slightly as the taiji-ya handled his heavy form with ease. `It's almost as if he weighs nothing, but I can hardly move him and Sango is smaller than I am!' She quirked a smile at the sight of Shippo crawling on all fours up Miroku's chest and staring into his pale face, patting his cheek lightly and growling softly. `Almost like Buyo when she's trying to get our attention.' She stood up and dusted her skirt off. “Please, give me a moment to speak with my husband.” She put a hand to her hair and sighed as she walked over to the shrine to make contact with Kensei. As she entered the open door and reached for his mind she was met with mental silence. `The mind meld won't work?' She went down the stairs to touch the ancient wood of the well and felt no answering power in response to her mental call. She could still feel her connection to her husband, but he did not answer. `He's closed the well again. Oh gods, I hope nothing has happened to him! How will I know if he's safe…how will I know if Kagome's safe?' She fisted her hands and breathed deeply to try and calm her emotions. `I can still feel the connection, so Kensei must be asleep after the power drain in the last few minutes. I just have to trust…if only Inuyasha hadn't taken Kagome through! I hope she's all right, but I'll just have to wait to find out.' Sighing, she left the shrine and walked to the house, nodding to Sango and holding up her hand as the woman gazed at her anxiously. “Another moment, please.” She opened the front door and called, “Sota! Come here, please!”

 

A few moments later he came hurtling down the stairs and nearly ran into her. He skidded to a stop when he saw Shippo with the others, his eyes widening as a grin appeared on his face. “Mama? What's happening?”

 

“It will take too long to explain right now. I'll tell you later.” She indicated that he should follow her and brought him over to the trio. “Sota, this is Shippo. He came through the well from Inuyasha's time.” As the two young males warily eyed each other, she continued “Shippo, this is Kagome's brother, Sota. I thought you two could play together while I take care of Miroku?”

 

Sota stopped appraising Shippo just long enough to glance up at her. “What about school, Mama?”

 

Innin sighed. `I need to keep Shippo occupied. After all of Kagome's stories, I don't want to leave a mischievous, bored kitsune in the Shrine! My brother doesn't need any more trouble.' She patted his shoulder and said quietly “I need to take Miroku to the doctor's, Sota. You can miss school for one day.”

 

“Yeah!” yelled Sota, pumping his fist in the air. He grabbed Shippo by the wrist but then paused, looking around. “But Mama, where's Kagome and Inuyasha?”

 

Innin gave another sigh. “They've gone back through the well, Sota. Please, take your guest in the house.”

 

Sota tugged at Shippo's arm. “Come on, Shippo, I'll show you my videogame collection. Bet I can beat you!”

 

Shippo resisted the pull and glanced up at Sango for permission, grinning impishly when she nodded. Then he tugged his arm away from Sota's grip, put his hands on his hips, leaped off Miroku's chest and stalked up to Sota, still grinning. “You, beat me? Hah! I'm a fierce youkai, you know.”

 

Sota gave an answering grin, waving his hands dismissively. “Yeah, yeah. I know all about you from Kagome. Beat you to the house.” He smacked Shippo on the shoulder and ran off.

 

“Hey!” Shippo scampered off after Sota; the two entered the house already talking and laughing like old friends.

 

Miroku stirred, opening his eyes. “Lady Higurashi.” His voice was weak and unsteady. “I…I am grateful for your concern, but…I cannot be seen by a healer in this time. They will not understand the Wind Tunnel…I….” He closed his eyes and paused, as if he had run out of energy to speak.

 

Innin glanced at Sango, who was watching the monk with concern and worry on her face. She kept her voice low and soothing. “Nonsense. I know it seems strange, but they won't even look at your hand, especially if you go in these clothes. They will think the beads are a part of a costume.” She winced and added “Also, the well is closed to travel into your time.” Sango gasped and Miroku opened his eyes, trying to focus on Innin's face and obviously not succeeding very well. Innin continued as if the blockage of the well was a commonplace occurrence. “That happens sometimes, when my husband must rest.” She knelt next to the two and said softly “You cannot go back to be healed in your own time.”

 

Miroku nodded but winced and stilled his motion almost immediately, closing his eyes again. `It hurts to nod my head and I feel nauseated, but I must convey this.' Trying to control his queasy stomach, he spoke between long breaths. “There is another issue. I believe that ojiisan will not accept Shippo…because the kit is youkai. His reaction to Inuyasha earlier…we cannot…leave the children here alone.” He swallowed hard and tried to focus his muddled thinking on something besides his rebellious stomach. He almost smiled in spite of his throbbing headache when he felt Sango's arms tighten around him in a small hug. `Perhaps there are some hidden blessings in pain.'

 

Sango stated firmly, “Worry about yourself, monk. I will stay here with the children and keep them from any mischief. Please go with Lady Higurashi and see a healer.”

 

Miroku quirked a half-smile and answered, “Of course, lovely Sango. I would do anything for you.”

 

Innin raised her eyebrows at his tone of voice and Sango's incomprehensible blush at the words, but said briskly “Let's take him to my car.” She moved to his side and brought his arm around her shoulder as Sango eased hers under his other arm. The two women helped Miroku to stand, Sango taking the taking the brunt of his weight with muscles honed from carrying Hiraikotsu. Following Innin's lead, the three shuffled slowly around the back of the house to her car. Sango and Miroku eyed the machine distrustfully.

 

`I've read about these, I just never thought I'd be riding in one. Obviously, I can't walk anywhere though…gods, my head!' Miroku swallowed and used controlled breathing to try to combat the increased nausea and pain that moving caused.

 

Innin opened the passenger door with one hand before ducking out from under his arm as Sango helped ease Miroku into the seat. `That girl has amazing strength.'

 

Sango felt her face brush against Miroku's cheek as she eased his arm over her head. She looked into his face as she moved back; his eyes were closed and his normally full lips were thinned with pain. She suddenly reached back in and gave him a short, soft kiss on the mouth. “Be well, monk.”

 

He opened his eyes in surprise before giving her a lopsided smile. “Huh…Sango. A kiss?”

 

They stared into each other's eyes for a long moment, but as a dusting of pink began to appear on Sango's face they were suddenly startled by the unfamiliar growl of the engine as Innin started the car. Sango stepped back, her face flaming in embarrassment as Innin reached over Miroku's inert body and tugged at the passenger door. Blushing, Sango helped close it, returned Innin's short wave, and followed the car with her eyes as it sped down a slight hill and entered the street below. `Oh gods. I kissed him. Oh gods, what was I thinking? Hopefully he was hit so hard that he won't remember. Oh gods!' Unable to keep a coherent thought in her head, she sighed and began walking back to the house. `I'll just…I'll find Shippo and Sota. I'll…oh gods.'

 

She found Shippo and Sota upstairs playing a “videogame”. The swordsmen in the game moved in response to a control stick that Shippo seemed to be learning how to use fairly quickly, much to Sota's chagrin. `Good. They're busy. Oh gods. I kissed him?' Sango smiled vacuously in response to Shippo's delighted grin, not processing his excited comments about his swordsman's special attacks, and turned around to enter Kagome's room. Dazedly, she looked at the unmade bed and her clothes from the day before lying in a pile on the floor. `Oh gods. I kissed him!' She picked up her clothes and fingered them distractedly, trying to force her mind away from the kiss. `They're dirty. I was going to wash them in the stream near Kaede's house yesterday. His lips were so warm. Aaah! I have to think about something else—anything else but that kiss!'

Gripping the clothes tightly to her chest, she became aware of the sour smells of sweat and wood smoke that clung to the fabrics. `After that wonderful bath last night I don't really feel like putting these on again. Perhaps Kagome has some clothing that I could wear?' She turned to the open door of Kagome's “closet” to see if she could find something suitable.

 

After a few minutes of searching, she was a bit perplexed. `The fabrics are all fine woven, but most of the clothes are so revealing!' She eyed her filthy clothing with distaste and settled on a pair of jeans that fit like her demon slaying outfit and a short garment to cover her chest, something which Kagome had worn in the Sengoku Jidai. `I remember she called it a t-shirt. It will be a tight fit across the shoulders and my breasts, but it will do until I can clean my own clothing. I wish I had a clean breast band.' As she began to put the shirt over her head, she caught sight of the brown paper bag that Innin had brought in that morning. She hesitated for a brief moment before walking over to the bag and looking inside.

 

`The talismans to prevent me from becoming pregnant.' Sango bit her lower lip and removed one from the bag. `They look harmless, almost like some of the bandages that Kagome has in her backpack, but Lady Higurashi was so certain that they are powerful enough to prevent me from conceiving a child.' She touched her fingers to her mouth, rubbing against the small bruising that she had given herself with her teeth, and sat down heavily on the bed. `Oh gods…I kissed him! What if he…what if I want…oh, gods.' Forgetting that the instructions for the use of the birth control patches were in the bag, Sango removed one and tore open the wrapper. `It looks just like a bandage, except that both sides are plastic.' Holding the patch in one hand and the t-shirt in the other, she walked into the bathroom and gave herself a long look in the mirror.

 

`Every woman of my own age in my era is married and already has children. I'm missing out on that part of my life, but I can't risk being pregnant while I'm fighting demons all the time.' Her eyes narrowed and her jaw clenched as she half-formed a resolution. `Well, I can't have children yet, but here in Kagome's time I can at least experience something that other women my age know all about. I'm in a different time, with different clothes, different attitudes about a woman's place, different everything! Maybe, just once, I can….' She left the thought unfinished and dropped her eyes from her own reflection, feeling butterflies in her stomach at what she was about to do. Rummaging in the drawers near the sink to find the tape Kagome used for bandages, she found some and taped the patch onto her upper arm where it wouldn't be seen under the t-shirt. Raising her eyes to meet her own haunted gaze, she stiffened her posture and glared back at herself. `There. Now it's done. I'm ready for anything.' She nodded to herself and left the bathroom, humming an old song to bolster her courage as she finished getting dressed. `Now I'll go make breakfast for the children and the ojiisan.'

 

Sango had taped the patch into place, but hadn't removed the white plastic over the adhesive side. Of course, that was supposed to be removed so that the birth control hormones would be placed next to the skin and begin to diffuse into the body. As it had been applied, both at the wrong time of the month and in the wrong way, Sango was not protected by the patch.

 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

 

Many hours later, as the sun began to set and evening turned the city's blaring noises into a quieter hum, Sango began to worry. `I don't know where the healers are in this time, or I would have found a way to follow Lady Higurashi and Miroku. What if they discovered the Wind Tunnel? What will they think of it, here in Kagome's time?' She kept shying away from her other thought, but it crept into her consciousness with the shadows of the evening. `What if something is seriously wrong with Miroku? What if…oh gods, don't let him be hurt badly.' Shaking her head to dispel the thought, she walked out of the house and stared longingly at the street where she had last seen the car, reviewing the events of the day.

 

Assisted by a surprisingly gentle old man, she had cooked breakfast and even lunch for her three male charges. From his kindly behavior to Shippo, she decided that he didn't necessarily have trouble with all youkai, just with Inuyasha. The ojiisan had showed her where and how to wash her clothing and she had already placed it in the dryer. The shadows of the evening lengthened and shook her head as worry crept in again. `What could possibly be keeping them?' Puffing out a breath to blow her errant strand of hair away from her face, she began running through a kata form in the yard. `I might as well keep my body in shape, and this way I have an excuse to stay out here and listen for the car.'

 

She had finished two of the advanced forms and was beginning a third when she heard the noise of the car as it drove up the small hill. Sango froze in position, afraid to turn around. `What if the news is…what if Miroku is…oh gods.' The sound of both of the car's doors opening made her release the breath that she had been holding. `Thank the gods.' She turned to face the car and froze again, stopping abruptly as she saw Miroku climb out of the passenger side. He was getting out of the passenger seat unassisted, but that was not what shocked her.

 

`I've never seen him not wearing his monk's robes.'

 

He was garbed much as she was, with strange shoes, jeans, and a t-shirt. The only familiar garments were the sleeve and prayer beads covering his Wind Tunnel. The well-developed muscles of his arms rippled smoothly as he lifted several packages from the back of the car. She gasped, her mouth suddenly dry, as he leaned into the car and the jeans tightened over his legs and his muscular, toned buttocks.

 

She tore her eyes away and bit her lip, for once fully understanding his wandering hands. It was taking all her will power not to run her hands over the well-honed muscles. `I will not touch him in the same place where he always grabs me!'

 

He straightened and glanced over his shoulder in her direction, then suddenly froze in position, his eyes wide. The sudden lack of movement made her look back at him; she could see him visibly swallow.

 

Miroku had been seen by the physicians in the emergency room fairly quickly. `Lady Higurashi was right; they barely acknowledged that I have a hand, much less being bothered to see what was underneath my prayer beads.' They had diagnosed a mild concussion and had given him some medication to ease the pain, too busy with the chaos around them to worry about this actor who had fallen off of the stage while rehearsing a play. They left him with instructions to rest for a day and take it easy.

 

The medication had worked quickly and he had made a few requests to Innin as they left the emergency room, using his most beguiling manners to persuade her. She had laughingly complied while giving him an admonition that he would let her know the minute he felt a twinge of pain. He was now fairly wealthy from selling just one of the coins that he had brought with him and Innin had taken him to several stores to acquire the items that he required. First, they had bought him some clothes so that he could be in Tokyo without drawing unwanted attention. Innin had also helped him to buy clothes in Sango's size, eyeing him a bit distrustfully when he said that the taiji-ya and Kagome were about the same build, but that Sango was broader through the shoulders. He had made sure to keep his face absolutely devoid of expression and not make any comments on breast size.

 

They had eaten when he had declared that the concussion-induced nausea was completely gone, shopping at a nearby “grocery store” where Miroku had finally seen where Kagome procured ramen. Finally, they had gone to buy the item that Miroku wanted more than all of the rest combined, the one thing that had caused Innin to give him a stern look. It was easy to find, but there were several kinds, and the well-made one that he had finally settled on had been rather expensive.

 

He was feeling rather smug as he picked up the heavy sack with his most precious item and glanced briefly over his shoulder in Sango's direction as she turned towards the car. His breath caught in his throat and he couldn't help but stare. He hadn't paid attention as they drove up, but she was dressed differently and the fabric of the t-shirt she was wearing was taut against the swell of her breasts. She was obviously not wearing a breast band and her nipples were stiffened to a peak in the cool of the evening air. He swallowed hard to repress the immediate rush of desire in his groin.

 

`Calm, peace, balance.' Taking a deep breath, he broke his frozen immobility and turned around completely, smiling at her and trying to keep his gaze on her face. “Ah, lovely Sango. And how was your day?”

 

“Where have you been? I've been so…where have you been?” Sango looked away from him and twisted her hands, blushing hotly.

 

`Why is she embarrassed? Is it her clothing? Gods help me, those curves.' His eyes drifted down as she continued to look away and he swallowed again as he tried to repress his arousal. Her face turned back toward him and he focused on her face again, a heartbeat too late. `Holy Buddha, I hope she doesn't realize what I was looking at…I'll be a mass of bruises.' Miroku tried to keep his eyes from straying from Sango's frowning face as he searched frantically for an explanation that didn't involve talking about her breasts, the only thing that his mind seemed to be able to focus on at the moment.

 

He gave a silent prayer of thanks as Innin spoke up apologetically from behind the car, saving him from imminent destruction-by-enraged-taiji-ya. “I'm sorry, Sango. It took some time at the emergency room, and then we had to get some…supplies for your stay here.” She gave a conspiratorial grin to Miroku as she gathered several packages from inside the trunk. “Could you help bring the food into the house?” She calmly walked passed them both, breaking into a grin as soon as they could no longer see her face. `Well, if nothing else happens, at least those two might finally get together. Kagome will be so happy! Kensei? What do you think?' Her grin faded as she realized that she still could not reach her husband through the mind meld.

 

Miroku stayed frozen in place as Sango stalked over to him. `I must not look at anything below her eyes. Do not give in to temptation. Focus on her…oh gods, her breasts are quivering as she walks.' He swallowed again, hard, as she came within touching distance and took one further step, close enough that he could feel the heat radiating off of her from her kata workout and see the slight sheen of sweat on her skin. She looked up into his face, an odd expression on her own, while shifting from foot to foot uneasily. Suddenly she reached up with one hand, buried her fingers in his hair, and pulled him down to her. `Sango?' Any coherent thoughts suddenly left him as she gave him a kiss that held an indescribable mix of excitement and uncertainty, causing his heart to thud against his ribs. As her hand moved to his shoulder and arm, he tried to gather his scattered wits and justify his lack of discipline in not pushing her away: `I'm still holding these packages so I can't do anything; it's not my fault that I can't keep her from kissing me! I will remain in control. Calm.' But when she tentatively touched her tongue against his closed lips, it caused something inside him to give way. He dropped the bags, gave a needy groan and splayed one hand behind her head, taking control of the kiss.

 

She abandoned herself to the sensations: his masculine scent, his hot, slick mouth, the flexing of his firm, muscled arms under her hands as his fingertips explored her body. A pulsing heat between her thighs reminded her that she wanted more from him. She reached for him with both hands.

 

Two small, calloused, strong hands sliding under his shirt jolted Miroku back to reality. He tore his mouth from hers, fighting the desire in his body. `There is no future together, not until you get rid of the Wind Tunnel. Control yourself! This is wrong!' He tried to salvage the situation. “Lovely Sango.” His tone wavered as her hands stilled on his chest and he fought for control. `Gods, what has happened to my voice?' He cleared his throat and continued “We must not do this. You have never allowed us to proceed this far; what has happened to your old-fashioned morals?” He winced as he felt her stiffen in his arms and pull her hands back as if burned. `Uh, oh. That was the wrong thing to say.'

 

“Old-fashioned morals?” she growled, her voice low and angry. She stepped back from him and poked him in the chest, glaring up into his face. “Let me tell you something, monk. You've travelled for years with Kagome and I and for the first time in your hentai life you've found something to admire in women besides their bodies. You value my `old-fashioned' morals, and you respect the fact that I haven't let you have your way with me. Every time you grab my…every time you touch me inappropriately, you are secretly hoping that I'll hit you until you can't see straight.” She stalked to the trunk of the car, grabbed some bags of groceries, glared at him, and stomped back to the house, muttering imprecations under her breath the entire time.

 

He stood still for a moment, considering her words. `Well. At least I'm not a mass of bruises.' He sighed, picked up his packages, and walked into the house. `I wonder if she'll ever talk to me again, though.'

 

While dinner was prepared, Sango studiously avoided speaking with him or even glancing in his direction. `Well, at least things are calm. After the events of the past day, it is a blessing.' He chatted with everyone as Innin and Sango quietly served and cleaned up the meal, but Sango never answered him directly. `Damn, she's avoiding me. She usually begins talking to me faster than this when I've touched her inappropriately. Perhaps I can try to apologize after dinner.' His hopes rose as Innin sent Shippo to bed with Sota and wished her guests a good night, excusing herself with a yawn and the statement that she was exhausted herself, but Sango left with her without even glancing in his direction. `Damn!' He focused on the ojiisan's comments about an arcane sutra and tried to ignore the pain in his chest that had nothing to do with his physical injuries.

 

Sango retreated upstairs, knowing it for a retreat, leaving the men comparing notes. She listened to the sounds of their voices drifting up the stairs as she prepared for bed. `He pushed me away, not physically, but…he insulted me. How stupid can I be? He's told me he doesn't want to think about me that way, but…but his kiss. Gods, his kiss!' She brought both hands up to her cheeks, feeling the heat of her flushed face under her fingers. `I can't think about it. I can't keep thinking about how beautiful his body was this afternoon. I thought I might be able to be different here, but he doesn't want me that way. How stupid can I be?' Sighing, she lowered her hands and began to undress, the t-shirt catching on the patch on her arm as she pulled it off. She drew herself another bath, still half-listening to the rumble of male voices below as she fingered the edge of the patch. `Perhaps I should take off the talisman?' Miroku's deep laugh echoed up the stairwell and she frowned at her own hesitation. `No. Things are different here. Keep it dry and safe, just in case.' She washed in the warm water, blushing as she became aware that she was sensually touching her own clean, soft skin and delighting in the sensation. Puffing air at her stubborn lock of hair, she dried herself off, renewing the tape on the birth control patch before putting on the new nemaki that Innin had bought for her.

 

`It's quiet downstairs…the men must have gone to bed.' She turned off the light, sighing, and flopped backward onto the bed. Lying in the darkness on the unfamiliar comfortable surface, her skin caressed by the soft material lining the nemaki, she could not ignore the heightened sensuality of her body. Giving a soft groan, she threw one arm over her eyes as if trying to block out the visual stimulation of Miroku's well-toned body that had plagued her all during dinner. `Why do I keep torturing myself with this?' The irrepressible memories lingered in spite of her attempts to suppress them; the rippling muscles of his arms, the way his body moved with such grace, the view that she had received when he leaned into the car, the way his mouth had possessed hers when he took control over the kiss. She rolled over on her stomach, locking her ankles and thighs tightly together, trying to fight the awful aching need within her. Her nipples responded to the slight caress of the cotton lining of the nemaki as she moved by peaking against the mattress below; every movement seemed to increase the way her body throbbed with its own supplication.

 

Suddenly she sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. `Enough. I've made the decision already…why am I afraid?' She rose and silently padded downstairs in the darkness, her way lit only by the waxing moon.

 

She slowed as she came to his bedroom doorway and stood trembling at the threshold, afraid to go forward yet afraid to go back to her old ways. The moonlight melted down through the window, pooling over him as he lay sprawled carelessly, slumbering under the light coverings, his breathing relaxed and slow. She pressed her fists against her mouth, her chest tightening as if it were encased in a vise. `He's not wearing anything. How should I waken him? What should I say?' Suddenly she felt awkward and ugly. `He's going to tell me to leave and I'm going to be humiliated.'

 

Lowering her hands below her mouth, she whispered his name, anyway. “Miroku?” Her voice was so quiet it might have been the sigh of wind in the trees. He stirred, but after a deep breath he stilled again. “Miroku?” she asked again, slightly louder. `Gods, I'm supposed to be strong like Kagome, but I sound so tentative and frightened! I am taiji-ya!' She spoke his name for a third time, trying to project a bravery that she didn't feel into her voice. “Miroku?”

 

“Sango? What is it?” he asked sleepily. He pushed himself up on one elbow, disoriented and scarcely awake, squinting as though he could barely make her out in the shadows of the doorway.

 

“Miroku?” she quavered, not knowing what else to say as her bravado deserted her. `This is horrible!' Yet she stood there, waiting, hoping, frightened; her two hands fisted tight to her chin.

 

The moon light surrounded him as he sat up slowly and time seemed to cease as he tilted his head to one side and regarded her. “What are you doing down here?” he finally asked, his voice a gentle murmur.

 

“Don't ask…please…I want…Miroku?” She uttered his name in a plea for understanding, but trying to articulate her conflicting desires was almost impossible. She tensed to take a step backward and flee back upstairs when he spoke again.

 

“I guess I don't need to ask, do I? We are alone in the middle of the night, Inuyasha's superior senses no longer provide an effective barrier, and there is no need to guard against an attack. You want to come to my bed.” His voice was quiet and knowing.

 

She nodded her head, unable to speak and unable to move in either direction.

 

Miroku had no idea what to do. `I know what I should do, but…how am I ever going to get us out of this with any semblance of friendship intact?' Pulling the sheet snugly around his hips with one hand, he ran the fingers of the other through his hair in frustration. “Sango. Lovely Sango.” He lowered his head, wanting her but remembering the many blows he had received for touching her in any way that suggested sexuality. `What has happened to her? Why is she pursuing this now? She has never…she must not know what it will entail. She can't mean this.' He tried to speak in a gentle but friendly tone. “You should go back upstairs.” His voice control was gone again. `Damnit!'

 

She gave a little shuddering gasp but continued to stand, staring at him with her fists drawn up to her chest as if guarding herself physically from his words. `Gods, Sango! Please, you have no idea what you are doing to me!' He sighed and spoke into the silence of the moonlight. “You were right earlier. I do value your morals, I do want…I do value you as a comrade, or I'd have taken you years ago. Go back upstairs and tomorrow we will go back to the way things were.”

 

“You're going to send me away?” Her voice was a strained whisper, but he could hear the pain in her words and she tensed visibly.

 

He reached out his cursed hand to forestall her; afraid suddenly that if she left their friendship would be shattered. “Sango…please. I don't know what it is about you that upsets my balance so…one minute I want to take you, and the next I know that I couldn't live with myself afterwards. We're comrades…friends. You're not some…some momentary sexual adventure that I can enjoy and then leave and go about my travels.” He fisted the hand and dropped it onto the bed. `I have no right to hold on to her. Oh, gods, Sango, leave before I lose my will power!'

 

She stepped over the threshold and closed the door behind her, moving into the swath of moonlight. “Don't you think I know that? I know what you try to hide from me, and I promise I won't…I know that you….” She stopped speaking and shook her head, bringing her fists back up to her chin. Suddenly she spoke in a low, choked voice. “I want what every other woman in the village has known long before she is my age! I do not want to go back upstairs!”

 

He stood up from the bed, holding up the sheet to hide his nudity. “Damnit, Sango, that's not fair! You have called me hentai so often…” he tugged at the sheet viciously, but it anchored him to the mattress, holding him captive in front of her. `She has no idea what she's doing to me.' Sweat broke out on his chest as he fought the desire in his body, watching her enveloped in moonlight. “It's because you're not like every other village woman that I can't…I can't just…take you. You are too important to me. Do you understand the difference?” He gave a small sigh. “Besides, you'll hate me afterwards.”

 

“Why would you mind? We've had disagreements before.” Her loose hair, lit by the moon glow, framed her face except for the one recalcitrant strand that always fell in front of her eyes; he resisted the urge to tuck it behind her ear.

 

“Of course I would mind! This will change everything in our relationship, affect our ability to fight and to travel together, and we must…” his voice trailed away as she tightened her arms, folding them up into the center of her chest. `Gods, she looks so vulnerable standing there.' It was a side of her that he didn't often see, and he had to resist the urge to take her protectively in his arms and comfort her. 'Gods, just go, Sango! I'm the one you need to be protected from!'

 

“If you send me back upstairs, I shall hate you anyway. Our relationship is already changed.” Her voice was soft and strangled, as if she forced the words out.

 

She came forward and lowered her arms, her movements catlike with control in spite of her obvious reticence. The moonlight scintillated off her hair as he strained to see her face. “Sango, I'm not right for you. There is the Wind Tunnel, and I…and I can't…I won't risk bringing a child into this world who would be cursed as I am. Not with you.” He winced as his normal vocal control completely deserted him, changing the statements from denial to an appeal for her understanding. He tugged futilely at the sheet, trying to maintain some semblance of control even as his command over his emotions ebbed.

 

She stepped toward him, coming so close that her breath raised goose bumps on his skin. “You don't have to worry about that. Lady Higurashi gave me something that will stop my body from making a child.”

 

He closed his eyes, breathing rhythmically to find his calm center. He wanted her so badly that it physically hurt. `I never, ever thought she would ask for this.' She sighed and he felt the puff of air move across his chest like the subtlest of caresses. Control eluded him and he opened his eyes, staring down into her shadowed face. Her body was so close to him that he could feel the warmth radiating from her skin. `I am losing this battle.' His free hand reached for her face and he gently cupped her jaw, rubbing his thumb across her lips.

 

“Don't hate me, Sango. Please don't hate me.”

 

“Can we kiss first, like we did near the car?”

 

“Oh gods, Sango,” he groaned, and let the sheet fall from him as he gathered her up in his arms.

 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Translation: An nescis quantilla sapientia mundus regature? Latin; don't you know how little wisdom rules the world?

 

Nemaki: Japanese; nemaki is the name for a cotton gauze-lined yukata. The nemaki is the actual true "pajama" sleeping robe; bathrobe, if you will.

For the record, Buyo's sex is not revealed in either the manga or the anime, but because Buyo is depicted as calico, it is either a female or a sterile male, and I choose the more common female. You see, coat colors in cats are controlled by several genes, but the calico gene is carried on the X sex chromosome (females are XX, males are XY). There is a gene for orange color (Xo) and a gene at the same location for black color (Xb). In early development females randomly turn off one of the X chromosomes in their cells, so all females are a “mosaic” of genes (I personally have blue eyes except for one patch of brown in my right eye, though eye color is a bit more complex). In the case of a calico cat (XoXb) some cells turn off the Xo and others the Xb, so parts of the cat's fur are orange and parts are black (the white color is other genetics that I won't get into here). Because males (XY) only have one X chromosome they can't be calico unless they have Klinefelter's syndrome and carry an extra X chromosome (XXY). This condition makes them sterile and is rare. Calico cats are believed to bring good luck in many cultures; in Japan the calico (tortoiseshell and white; mi-ke) is considered to be extremely lucky.