InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Hunt for the Sword of Legend ❯ A Meeting of Fate ( Chapter 2 )

Don't get used to the chapters coming this fast. I thought this one would be really hard to write but when I sat down it just sort of came out like it had a mind of its own. I hope you like it.

 

 

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Inuyasha and friends. I wonder if she'll ever sell me Sesshoumaru though. If there is such a place a The Resort Hotel, I don't own that either. I picked the most generic sounding name I could, but just in case, here you go.

 

 

Italics are Japanese

 

 

Chapter 2:

 

 

A Meeting of Fate

 

 

“Thank you, God!” Inuyasha exclaimed as he stepped off the plane into the terminal. “That was the longest thirteen hours of my life!”

 

 

“Don't be so dramatic Inuyasha. It wasn't that bad and you practically slept the whole way here.” Sango was sitting in between Inuyasha and Myoga and had to listen to Inuyasha's snoring for a good portion of the flight.

 

 

“Feh!” Sango rolled her eyes at the silver haired male's favorite comeback.

 

 

The three of them walked to the luggage claim and shortly after found their bags. The two men handled their own by themselves but Sango had to locate a trolley to cart her enormous amount of baggage.

 

 

Together they walked out of the airport and searched for a taxi. Hopefully they would find one with a trunk big enough to haul their masses of luggage. As luck would have it, a van-like taxi was going by and they hailed it. After everything was packed into place there was still plenty of room for them to sit comfortably. They were glad to have a little room to breath after the long flight.

 

 

The taxi made its way to a very large hotel and stopped at the front entrance. The companions removed themselves from the confines of the vehicle and stepped inside the door that was held open by a bowing man. Making their way to the front desk Myoga saw fit at that moment to explain the sleeping arrangements.

 

 

“Inuyasha and I will share a room and Sango will have her own room. The rooms will be conjoining though so we can consort with one another as we see fit. I hope that you don't mind the intrusion, Miss Sango.” Myoga was hoping that this was okay. He hadn't said anything until now because the thought hadn't occurred to him until he stepped into the massive lounge/sign-in area.

 

 

“That's more than fine Myoga. I would have been content to sleep on a spare mattress in yours' and Inuyasha's room. I didn't bring a lot of money with me so I didn't expect any special treatment.”

 

 

“Sango,” Inuyasha sighed as he slung an arm around her. “I wouldn't ask you to come if I expected you to pay for everything. I asked you here as my guest. And as such I will take care of your room and board.”

 

 

“I suppose the fact that you're using Sesshoumaru's money for this trip wouldn't have anything to do with that, right?” Sango said, teasingly. She knew that Inuyasha made little money doing what he did. The only reason Inuyasha even put up with his `superior' brother was because, for some unknown reason, Sessh funded his field trips.

 

 

“Yeah well, don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Even if it is Mr. High and Mighty himself.” That earned a light-hearted giggle from the entire entourage. Myoga stepped up to the front desk as the laughter died down.

 

 

“Hello and welcome to The Resort Hotel. May I have your names please?”

 

 

“We are Myoga Suzuki, Inuyasha Tanaka and Sango Itou. We have reservations for two conjoining rooms.”

 

 

“Ah, yes. Here you are Suzuki-sama. Your three key cards are in the envelope and here is the schedule for the restaurant and the like. We hope you enjoy your stay here at The Resort Hotel.” The tiny Japanese girl bowed and returned to typing on the computer in front of her.

 

 

The party rounded the corner from the large desk they had just been standing at and stopped in front of a hallway of elevators.

 

 

“What floor are we going to, old man?” Inuyasha was getting irritable from the jet lag and he showed it with no remorse. After Myoga politely told him that they were staying on the fourteenth floor, Inuyasha punched the corresponding button none too calmly and the elevator was set in motion.

 

 

“I called the office of the lawyer that summoned me last week. I told her secretary that we would be arriving this morning and that we would be in first thing tomorrow morning. I figured that we could be well rested and settled in by then.” Myoga started wondering what this Kagome Higarashi would be like. She seemed very nice when he had spoken with her but lawyers could be tricky.

 

 

“That sounds fine. But right now, I would kill for a hot bath!” Sango was looking a little weary herself. “Maybe after we get unpacked we can go down and sample the restaurant's fare.”

 

 

“I wonder if they have any ramen.”

 

 

“Inuyasha! Here we are in a beautiful, upscale hotel and you what to know if they have ramen. How do you eat that stuff so often?” Sango had always wondered but never asked. It seemed like every time she had visited the guy in his own home, all he ever wanted to eat when she asked was ramen.

 

 

“Well, if you must know, I practically lived off the stuff when I was in college. Back then Sessh wasn't paying for anything. I survived off that and hotdogs from the café on campus. It was the cheapest thing they sold. I haven't eaten a hotdog in years with out being disgusted but ramen was always good as ever. I never seemed to get tired of it. Plus I don't like to cook when it's just me, which is almost always, and it's easy and quick to make. Does that answer your question?” Inuyasha looked at her like she had asked him why he liked to breathe. As if the answer was so obvious that it was painted in the sky with clouds.

 

 

“A simple `because I like it' would have sufficed Inuyasha.” Sango returned a scowl of her own.

 

 

“Okay you two. I know you're tired and cranky but there is no need to be at each others throats so soon. We will be together for at least a week so try to get along.” Myoga was used to breaking up the spats between Sango and Inuyasha. They bickered like brother and sister.

 

 

“Feh!” was Inuyasha's retort and Sango just rolled her eyes.

 

 

Finally in there respective rooms, they sat and relaxed. “Well, I'm going to take that bath. When I get out I'll go get us something to eat.”

 

 

“Don't worry about it Sango. I saw a WacDonalds across the street. I'll go get it while you and Myoga settle in. I'm not really as tired as you two are.”

 

 

“I wonder if that would be because you saw fit to snore in my ear most of the flight.” Sango mumbled to herself.

 

 

“I heard that, wench. I do NOT snore!”

 

 

“Whatever.” Sango saw fit to slam the bathroom door making sure she got in the last word.

 

 

“Hey!” Inuyasha was about to trample into the bathroom or rip the door off the hinges. Myoga decided to break up this clash as well.

 

 

“Inuyasha, I thought you were going to get us some good old American food.”

 

 

“Shut up old man.” Inuyasha grabbed his coat and practically shattered the windows in the room with the force he used to `shut' the door.

 

 

“That temper is going to get him in a lot of trouble one day. Not to mention that mouth.” Myoga wondered if Inuyasha would ever tone down his attitude. With a scoff, he answered his own question, “Not likely”.

 

 

------------------------------------------

 

 

“That stupid bitch. She's always insulting me when she's grumpy.” With a sigh, Inuyasha walked out of the hotel's main doors and started towards the restaurant across the street.

 

 

`Well, I guess I'm a little grumpy myself.' Inuyasha thought as he crossed the six lane road. He pushed past all the locals as he made his way along the crosswalk. `I was being pigheaded as well, but she'll know I'm sorry. Even if I don't say so, Sango always knows when I feel bad for something. Just like I know when she's sorry.' Another sigh escaped his lips as he opened the doors to the WacDonalds.

 

 

Standing in line, Inuyasha looked up at the lit screen above the registers. Some of the food looked familiar and some didn't. He chose some safe selections that everyone would like. `Maybe I'll get Sango a hot fudge sundae. Yeah, that will do.'

 

 

---------------------------------------

 

 

Kagome walked down the streets of Tokyo talking to Miroku on her cell phone.

 

 

“So are you making lunch or should I pick something up on the way. I'm right in front of a WacDonalds.” She was quite for a moment as she listened to Miroku say that he hadn't thought to make anything and if she would so kindly get something, he would pay her back.

 

 

“Don't be silly. How many times have you bought lunch for me; and breakfast AND dinner for that matter? Now, tell me what you want.” After she heard what Miroku wanted to eat from the greasy diner, she told him bye and hung up the phone.

 

 

Standing between the WacDonalds and the building next to it, she looked down and put her cell phone back into her purse.

 

 

The next few moments happened in the blink of an eye. Kagome felt like she was suddenly flying. It wasn't until she felt the strong and powerful hands around her middle that she reacted with a squeak of a scream. Almost as fast as she had been picked up, she felt one of the hands that held her clamp over her mouth and the other slam her up against the wall at the back of the alleyway between the two buildings she had been standing in front of only seconds ago. The next breath she let out, she felt a knife against her throat. Snapping her eyes up in panic, she looked at her captor. She could feel his not-so-minty breath hover over her face as she looked at him.

 

 

He had deadly black eyes and pale sickly skin. On top of his head was a greasy black mop that just barely passed for hair. Seeing that he had her attention, he chose that moment to speak.

 

 

“You will tell me what the clue is. I will take my hand from your mouth so you can answer. If you so much as think about doing anything but answer, I'll slit you from ear to ear, understand?” Kagome almost got sick as she thought about what this man could do to her. Instead of passing out, like she wanted to do, she nodded. The tears that she was so desperately holding back chose this moment to leak out of her nearly blood shot eyes.

 

 

“Good.” He said. Then he removed his hand slowly. “Now, you will tell me what the clue is.”

 

 

“I don't know what you're talking about sir. What clue?” The attacker slammed her against the brick wall again and dug the knife a little deeper into her throat. Kagome sucked in a breath and cast her eyes down. Trying not to get sick, she heard the attacker speak again in a more aggressive voice. She could barely make out what he was saying through the buzzing in her ears.

 

 

“Don't you dare play dumb with me! The clue about the sword in Kaede Sato's will. Tell me what it is, bitch, and you won't die.” Kagome was near panic at this point. She could feel the blood rushing through her veins under the cold steal of the knife pushed none too lightly at her jugular. Just as she was about to tell him that she didn't know, which she was sure would end her life, the knife's pressure slackened. Feeling dizzy and sick, she barely made out a blur of silver before she passed out.

 

 

-------------------------------

 

 

Inuyasha paid for the order he just made and was walking out as he heard a sharp, high-pitched sound. `Was that a woman?' he asked himself. Wanting to know what the noise was, he placed the food he was carrying on a picnic table and started to move slowly, making no noise that would give him away, to the other side of the WacDonalds building.

 

 

As he neared the corner of the building, he could barely make out a frightened female voice say something in Japanese. Now he really wanted to know what was going on. `If I see what I think I'm going to see when I look around this corner, someone's gonna be in some pain.' Inuyasha thought grimly to himself. Then he readied his stance just in case there was more to the situation then he thought.

 

 

Finally being within distance to look around the corner, the first thing he saw was the glint of a knife being pressed to a delicate, long neck. The next thing, which was what made him jump into action, was the look of overwhelming fright in the young woman's eyes.

 

 

Inuyasha didn't even give the thug time to think, he moved so fast. He grabbed the guy's hair and arm holding the blade at the same time and jerked back as forcefully as he could. Luckily for Inuyasha, the man decked in all black wasn't expecting such an intrusion at the time and fell easily into the strong hero's hands. As he was dragging the trashing form of the knife welding grease ball away from the woman, he could vaguely hear passers-by start to yell for the police. After keeping the man from struggling from his steal grasp for what seemed like forever, a police officer came into view and started running toward him.

 

 

“What in the Gods names is going on here?!” asked the police officer. He was starting to get his cuffs out while trying to figure out who he was actually supposed to put the hand cuffs on.

 

 

“Mr. Officer, Sir, I don't speak Japanese. I'm American.” Inuyasha was hoping with all the hope he could muster that the situation, in which he found himself, was not going to take an ugly turn.

 

 

“Well, in that case could you tell me in English what exactly is going on?” Thankfully for Inuyasha, this particular police officer spoke English very well.

 

 

“I'll tell you everything as soon as you take this scum bag off my hands” he replied gruffly as the man encased in his arms decided to put up a fight and start struggling once again after seeing the cop.

 

 

As soon as the sentence was out of Inuyasha's mouth the officer was in front of him putting cuffs on the greasy haired male. When he was sure the thug was going to be no more trouble, Inuyasha once again sprung into action and rushed back into the alleyway.

 

 

Seeing that the strange looking silver haired man was starting to `run away' the police officer shouted after him. “Where are you going?!”

 

 

“The woman I pulled him off of is still in here. She passed out right after; I think you should call for an ambulance.” With that Inuyasha walked the last few steps to see to the woman he had rescued. When he finally found her crumpled up on the wet ground, he could vaguely hear the officer calling in to what he presumed was the local dispatch to send an ambulance. He wasn't really sure how the Japanese police system worked, after all.

 

 

The first thing that struck Inuyasha was how small she looked. She reminded him of a small girl curled up on her bed. Moving very carefully over her, he started to scan her body for injuries. After making sure of the fact that she wasn't any worse for the wear on her small frame, he moved closer to look at her face. It was hidden in her arms at the moment. Gently, so as not to startle her awake, Inuyasha pushed her to lie on her back. His breath caught in his throat at the discovery of her face. She was the most gorgeous woman he had ever had the privilege to gaze upon in his entire life. She had a slender face and high cheek bones. The hair that flowed all around her was like a river of black silk. The skin on her face was pale and glistening with a small amount of moisture. Her eyebrows were shaped into arches above her closed eyes and her eyelashes were fluttering on her pinked, slightly freckled cheeks. The lips below her small elf-like nose were full and parted. The thought, however brief before floating out again, occurred to Inuyasha that maybe he could kiss her back into the land of consciousness.

 

 

Inuyasha shook his silver head and allowed himself a tiny smile. “Where did that come from?” he wondered out loud. Gently, he placed a hand on the back of her neck and the other went to the side of her face. He brushed a thumb across her cheek and proceeded to try and rouse her.

 

 

“Ma'am, please wake up” Inuyasha whispered to the dreadfully attractive Japanese woman in his arms. Her eyes started to flicker until finally she opened them. Inuyasha was once again shocked at the woman he looked down onto. Looking up at him were the most stunning beautiful smoky blue eyes he had ever come across. He felt his mouth slacken and forgot the fact that he was actually supposed to be making sure she was alright after her near death experience. After what seemed like a year, he finally found his voice; although it didn't even sound like his voice when he spoke.

 

 

`I hope you speak English' he thought for a brief second. “Are you alright?” Inuyasha still couldn't rip his eyes away from her glassy gaze; even as he heard the sirens of the ambulance and police car pull up. He felt as if he was in a trance.

 

 

Blinking once at the man whose slight embrace she was in, she found her own voice and responded. “I think I'm okay. Did…are you the one that pulled him off me?”

 

 

The musicality in her voice, even at a whisper, was not lost to Inuyasha's ears. “Yeah” he said. “I came up behind him and caught him off guard. Are you sure you're not hurt anywhere?” Almost instinctively, Inuyasha moved the hand on her face to stroke her long, slender neck. As he caressed her neck softly making sure there were no lacerations, he felt her hand cover his. At the contact, Inuyasha's eyes snapped up to hers.

 

 

“Thank you” she said in a small, hushed voice. Tears started to leak out of her eyes and Inuyasha brushed them away as soon as they fell.

 

 

“What's your name” he asked as he caught the tears that had to be from the stress of the last ten minutes, or so.

 

 

“My name's…” and all of a sudden, Inuyasha was dragged back by a paramedic. He was wrenched from her body and suddenly he found himself wanting to kill the man pulling him away from the woman he had been entranced with. He kept his temper in check when he realized what the reason was. Two other paramedics were huddling over the tiny woman and trying to make sure that she was, as she had said, alright. Inuyasha was trying to see what they were doing over their shoulders when the police officer he had talked to before caught his attention.

 

 

“Sir, I have a few questions if you don't mind.”

 

 

“That's fine” Inuyasha said in a mildly annoyed voice.

 

 

As Inuyasha answered the seemly thousands of questions in a less than half interested way, he watched them put the mystery woman on a stretcher and into the ambulance. The questions didn't stop until the sun started to set. By then, Sango and Myoga were on the sidewalk with him. After their friend had been gone for an hour, they found their way to him to see what had happened to cause him to be so late with their lunch.

 

 

After the questions stopped and information was exchanged, the police left the three of them sitting at the picnic table eating their cold food. Inuyasha was looking at the half eaten cheeseburger with his eyebrows cast in anger.

 

 

“Lucky for the girl you were there at the right moment. And lucky for you that guy was so into what he was doing, he failed to notice you coming. I wonder what he wanted from her.” Myoga's pondering was abruptly halted by Inuyasha's ill placed temper.

 

 

“How the hell should I know?!” Inuyasha jumped up from the wooden bench and thrust his trash into the bin before stalking off to the hotel.

 

 

As his two friends watched him hastily walk to the hotel, they wondered what could have gotten into him.

 

 

“What's got his knickers in a twist?” scowled Sango.

 

 

“Don't repeat this to our hot tempered friend but, I heard from one of the policemen that when the paramedics showed up, he was looking at the young woman he saved in an odd way.”

 

 

“What do you mean Myoga?”

 

 

“The officer said if he didn't know any better, that our friend Inuyasha was in a world of his own while talking to her. He said that if the first officer on the scene hadn't told him that they didn't know each other, he would have thought they were lovers by the way they were gazing into each other's eyes.” As the elderly man finished his story, he batted his eyes in a humorous sort of way, to his female companion.

 

 

Sango's eyes widened and looked back at where Inuyasha had just made his departure.

 

 

“Well, I guess he'll never see her again. That's probably why he's angry.”

 

 

“One could only guess with that one, Sango.”

 

 

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Kagome stared at the pristinely white sheet draped over her legs as she found herself lost in her own thoughts. She had told the paramedics that she felt fine and didn't want to go to the hospital, but they insisted. Now she was sitting in a cold room under observation. Much to her distain, the doctor had informed her that he wanted to keep her for a few hours to make sure she would suffer no lingering symptoms of her brush with death. As she waited for the minutes to slowly dwindle away, she found herself caught up in thoughts of her rescuer.

 

 

“Those eyes” she said to the empty room. She couldn't get them out of her head. She had never seen amber eyes before. Although she knew she had strange eyes herself, being Japanese with blue eyes, she couldn't help but feel like those eyes would stay in her mind forever. The man with the beautiful eyes also had a wonderfully handsome face to go with them. Kagome couldn't think of any other time she had been so ensnared with a man's looks. She had found men handsome before, but never had she felt like she was being drawn like a moth to a flame. The way he touched her had sent fire to her skin. It was still on fire as a matter of fact. Kagome found herself lightly touching her neck the way he had touched her hours before. It was almost like she was trying to make herself feel the way the silver haired god had made her skin feel. `Silver hair' she mused as her eyes found the ceiling; her hand still caressing the tight skin of her throat. `I have never seen anyone that age with silver hair. It suited him, too. And he's American.' Kagome was snapped from her thoughts when she heard a gentle knock at the door.

 

 

For a brief second, she couldn't breathe. `Could it be him?' she speculated. With an audible gulp, she answered the person on the other side of the heavy, wooden door. She let out the breath she had been holding at the sight of Miroku coming through the door holding what could only be described as the biggest teddy bear she had ever seen.

 

 

“Where the hell did you get that?” she asked as her eyes became enormous. It seemed to Kagome, if she didn't open her eyes wide enough, she wouldn't be able to see all of the massive plushie at one time.

 

 

“I found him at the gift shop down stairs. I thought you might like it. It was calling out to me, `buy me'!” He ended his small speech with a large grin. Kagome rolled her eyes.

 

 

“You only bought it because it was the biggest, most ridiculous thing the shop had. You wanted to see my face as I walked out of this hospital carrying that huge waste of stuffing.”

 

 

“Ah, you know me too well my favorite cousin.”

 

 

“Miroku,” Kagome let a smile slip where her scowl was moments before, “I am your only cousin. Even if you hated me with the passion of a thousand suns, I would still be your favorite cousin.”

 

 

“Passion of a thousand suns? Where do you come up with that stuff?” Miroku asked, trying to avoid the earlier statement.

 

 

“Oh, never mind. Did you talk to the doctor on your way in? Can I go home?” Kagome was hoping her guesses were true so she could take a nice, long, hot bath in her own home.

 

 

“Yeah” answered Miroku. “He said he'd send a nurse in, in a couple of minutes with the discharge papers.”

 

 

“Thank goodness!” Kagome sighed.

 

 

“So, what happened? The doctor wasn't exactly forthcoming with any details. All he said was that you were rescued from some man and that you fainted. You look to be fine, but are you?” Kagome could see the distress set into her only friend's features. He looked stressed.

 

 

“I'm fine and I feel fine. I'll tell you what happened when we get home. All I really want is to go home and relax in the bathtub.”

 

 

“Okay, fair enough. So long as you're fine, I'll wait for an explanation until then.”

 

 

“Thanks for being here for me Miro.”

 

 

“Well, it can't really be helped” Miroku said with a tiny smile on his face. “I am your emergency contact. They called me while I was in the middle of a massage.”

 

 

“I'm sorry Miroku. I owe you big time.”

 

 

“Well, you could pay me back by hooking me up with that secretary of yours.”

 

 

“Fat chance” retorted Kagome as she threw the pillow that had been propping her up at his perverted, smiling face.

 

 

Just then the nurse rapped on the door and let herself in. “Miss Higarashi?”

 

 

“Yes?” The nurse smiled at her and handed her some paper work.

 

“After you sign those you are free to leave. Do you have anyone to drive you home?”

 

 

“Yes” Kagome answered. “May I ask why?”

 

 

“Well, the doctor asked me to give you something to calm your nerves. Your blood pressure is still a little high but you're in the clear. The medicine may make you a bit sleepy so I wanted to make sure that you're not going to try to drive yourself home and potentially end up back in here.”

 

 

“My good woman” Miroku stood and took the youthful nurse's hands into his own. “You are so kind in looking out for my cousin's well being. Is there anything I can do to repay you?”

 

 

“Miroku…” Kagome ground out in her most threatening voice possible. The pout that overtook his face a second later could be seen from the moon. He released the frightened nurse's hands and sat back down in the chair behind him.

 

 

The nurse tore her eyes from Miroku after she was sure he wasn't going to try a repeat performance. She looked back at Kagome and handed her a cup with two small pills rattling around inside of it and a larger cup filled with water. Kagome took both from her and swallowed the pills harshly.

 

 

The nurse took the forms from Kagome's hands and, as quickly as she could without seeming rude, told her bye and rushed out the door.

 

 

“Miroku, you can't even keep your comments to yourself long enough for one little nurse to get me to sign some papers and give me some medicine. Honestly, I'm lucky my doctor wasn't a woman or she might have refused to treat me, as you would have no doubt pawed at her ruthlessly.”

 

 

“I can't help but admire beauty when I see it. I'm not a monk, or a nun like you.”

 

 

“Whatever, I'm ready to get out of this dreadful place. I'm afraid my clothes will smell like disinfectant even after I wash them.”

 

 

Miroku helped her up off the small hospital bed and helped her gather her things.

 

 

“And you get to carry the giant teddy bear.” Kagome was laughing her fool head off as they walked through the automatic doors to leave the hospital. The sight of her cousin struggling with a pink purse and an over-sized stuffed animal was by far the funniest thing she had seen in a long while.

 

 

It was worth the embarrassment to Miroku to see her laughing with no cares in the world. What he wouldn't give to see her like that always.

 

 

---------------------------------

 

 

Inuyasha lay on his bed looking up at the ceiling. Sango was sitting at the foot of the bed with a look on her face that Inuyasha knew all too well. Her eyes were soft and there was a small, knowing smile on her face. She knew what was bothering him; she just wanted him to say it out loud. So far, he had not given in. The look, however, told him that Sango knew he was about to spill his guts if she just prodded a little further.

 

 

“Come on Inuyasha. I know when something's bothering you. You can tell me anything. I'll never judge you.” There it was; the homerun statement. If he told her, then he would have to explain why he felt the way he did, which Inuyasha wasn't sure he could do; he still hadn't figured it out himself. Then again, if he didn't tell her, she would get offended and feel like he didn't trust her. `How does she always get her way' he thought as he let out a sigh.

 

 

Sango straightened herself up. She knew what that sigh meant. He was admitting defeat in a roundabout way. They could both read each other like a book. She wanted so desperately to know what was going on in her friend's head, and she was about to find out she thought giddily to herself. Sango barely managed to keep the smile of victory off her face as Inuyasha sat up to look at her and make sure Myoga was nowhere in the vicinity to hear what he had to say. Looking down at his hands so as not to have to look her in the eye, he cleared his throat.

 

 

“I just can't stop thinking about her. She was so beautiful.”

 

 

“Inuyasha, you don't even know her.”

 

 

“I know, that's what's so confusing. I just can't help but want to talk to her again; to hold her again.”

 

 

“Talk to her again? She could speak English?”

 

 

“Yes. I can't get her voice out of my head either. What's wrong with me Sango?”

 

 

“Nothing is wrong with you Inuyasha” Sango said in a comforting voice as she slid her hand to cover his. She could see that he was drowning in confusion. “It's getting late. Why don't you sleep on it? The whole situation happened kind of fast and you might just be having some after effects.”

 

 

“Feh! I'm not so weak-willed that a little situation like that one would affect me like this. I've been in much more dire circumstances than that one and haven't had any problems. You know what my life is like. I love the rush of adrenaline I get from things like that. It's almost second nature by now. What's so different this time?”

 

 

Sango let out a sigh and moved to leave her best friend in his thoughts. She knew that he could only figure out his feelings on his own at this point. As much as she despised admitting it, she couldn't help him through this. She shut off the lights and whispered into the darkness her last advice on the state of affairs Inuyasha had found himself in before she shut the door to his room.

 

 

“Maybe you found your soul mate Inuyasha. I believe love-at-first-sight exists. The question is, do you?”

 

 

“Feh!” Inuyasha said to the closed door. Before he drifted off to sleep he remembered something his mother said to him before she died.

 

 

`…the first time I saw your father, I knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that he was the one I was destined to be with.'

 

 

That night, Inuyasha dreamed of being young. He dreamed of his mother and father and the love on their faces as they looked at each other. Then he dreamed of the blue-eyed, Japanese woman that had burrowed so effectively into his mind and heart.

 

 

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Miles away a twenty something woman was having her own problem in sorting out the feelings in her head. Kagome was soaking in her bathtub as she had promised herself. She could feel the muscles in her body slowly relaxing. Sitting in a stiff hospital bed for hours did nothing for one's back. As she sat back in the full tub, Miroku knocked at the door.

 

 

“Are you in the tub?”

 

 

“Yeah, you can come in.” The tub in her bathroom was hidden by a partition wall. Miroku could sit on the toilet and talk to her, and Kagome could soak after a long day, and still feel like she had some privacy. The two had always felt comfortable sharing this sort of closeness. Some would call them strange but they were okay with their relationship. And as perverted as Miroku was, he was nowhere near that kind of sick and twisted.

 

 

Right on cue, Miroku strolled in and shut the door behind himself. Kagome heard him sit on the toilet like he always did. As she almost floated in the very hot water, she would swear she could hear the crazy wheels in her only friend's head slowly turn. Kagome braced herself for what she knew would be a very extensive session of Q and A.

 

 

“So, now will you tell me what really happened?” `And so it begins' thought Kagome with an exaggerated roll of the eyes.

 

 

“Well, after I hung up with you, a man picked me up and pushed me into the wall in the alleyway next to the WacDonalds. He held a knife to my throat.” Kagome could sense the air around her becoming filled with rage. Before he could even say anything about retaliation, she continued.

 

 

“Calm down Miro, I'm fine. Anyway, he didn't even have me pined for more than a few seconds before this other guy grabbed him off me. I don't know what exactly happened next because I fainted.”

 

 

Miroku sighed and asked his next question. “Is the guy in jail?”

 

 

“From what they told me, yes.”

 

 

“What about the guy that saved you? Do you know his name? I would really like to shake his hand and thank him.”

 

 

Kagome felt the man's touch all over again. She let her head roll back as she savored the soft movement she knew wasn't really there. It must have been longer than she thought when she came back to reality, because was calling her name and asking if she was alright.

 

 

“I've fine. I was just thinking, and no, I don't know his name. All I know is what he looks like and that he's American.”

 

 

“Wow! An American coming to the rescue; who would have thought?” Miroku mused aloud. “What did he look like?”

 

 

“Like the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.” Kagome realized she had said that part out loud when she heard a very startling laugh coming from the other side of the wall. She let out an annoyed groan. “Stop laughing at me!”

 

 

The laughter died down as Miroku composed himself. “What did he look like besides beautiful?” he asked with obvious amusement in his voice.

 

 

Kagome let out a sigh. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately. “Okay, but no laughing.”

 

 

“I swear I'll try.”

 

 

“Good enough. He had tanned sort of skin and believe it or not silver hair and gold eyes.”

 

 

“Silver hair? How old was this knight in shining armor?”

 

 

“Your age probably. After I passed out he must have come back to check on me before the paramedics got there. I opened my eyes and there he was, looking for all the world like he was the most concerned he had ever been in his entire life. I couldn't help myself; he was so sweet and handsome, I sort of starting crying.” The last part came out as barely audible. Miroku wasn't sure he had heard her right. `Surely not' he thought.

 

 

“Crying?”

 

 

“Yeah.”

 

 

“I'm not really sure how to respond to that Kagome.”

 

 

Kagome splashed the water she was lounging in and furrowed her brows. “I figured you would say something like that. The fact is I don't really know what to say either.”

 

 

“Kagome, if I didn't know any better, I would say you're in love with a guy that you don't even know.” A long silence passed between them. As the silence drew on, it finally hit him.

 

 

“Kagome, are you in love with him?” He made sure to ask in a non-threatening way so she wouldn't shy away from the question and get angry.

 

 

“I don't know” she whispered.

 

 

“Well” Miroku said scratching his head, “it wouldn't be the worst thing for you to fall in love; even if you don't even know the guy's name.”

 

 

“Yes it would.”

 

 

“You have played this game for far too long.” Kagome knew the big brother voice when she heard it.

 

 

“What game would that be Miroku?” She was starting to get angry at where the conversation was headed.

 

 

“You can't live your entire life alone, Kagome. I care about you far too much to let you do that to yourself. I know you don't like letting people get close but it has to end sometime. If I have to search this entire city to find this hero of yours I will. This has to stop.”

 

 

“Stuff it Miroku! I don't need your advice and I don't need your pity. I never asked you for anything but to keep your mouth closed on certain subjects. Leave it alone.”

 

 

Miroku sensed that he had been dismissed from her presence. He got up off his makeshift seat and let himself out. As he closed the door behind himself he left her with words that tore her heart out.

 

 

“I can't watch you kill yourself like this forever. Do you really think your mother, father, brother or even Gramps would want you to live your life like this? One day I won't be here and you really will be all alone. You need to ask yourself what it is you really want out of life.”

 

 

After she heard the door pulled shut, she let out so many tears she felt it a miracle the tub didn't over flow.

 

 

“It's not what I want” she said to the empty walls of her bathroom.

 

 

-------------------------------

 

 

Well, there it is. Let me know if you enjoyed it. I would love to hear what you think, good or bad. As always, if you find a mistake, please feel free to tell me.

 

 

Inu Kagome 4Life: I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. If I have anything to say about it, the entire cast will get into loads of trouble. What good is writing a story if I can't spin a little drama? Thanks for the review.

 

 

AN: I wanted to explain why Inuyasha seemed so out of character in the scene with Sango and him in the hotel room. Inuyasha and Sango are best friends. Things he would never say in front of other people, he'll say to her. He knows that she would never laugh at him and anything they say behind closed doors with be kept between the two of them. This relationship will come up again with Sango in Inuyasha's position in the future.