InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Love's Lessons ❯ The Warriors ( Chapter 5 )

Chapter 5: Inuyasha, Kagome, Sango, Miroku and Shippo: The Warriors

 

Sensei - teacher/master

 

Kagome and the others were just getting up when the dark haired miko girl asked, “Where's Inuyasha?” She had seen that he wasn't by the door, which was his normal place to sleep, and had gone outside to look for him.

 

Miroku had known when Inuyasha left in the night and, thinking he was just going to take care of business, he had gone back to sleep. He realized upon waking this morning that Inuyasha had been gone all night. Miroku was a light sleeper and he knew that his friend would have awoken him, even if just momentarily if he had returned. The monk said nothing but deciding to go look for himself, went to the small cave by the springs.

 

Inuyasha and Hissori were just coming down the path as Miroku just entered the forest. The girl, seeing the monk, hid behind Inuyasha. “That's just Miroku,” yawned Inuyasha, he was a bit tired from staying up all night. “He's nothing to worry about.”

 

Hissori came out from behind Inuyasha and looked curiously at the robe clad man. If her new master said he was okay then she would believe him as he had proven to her that he was kind and caring, that he would do her no harm and let no harm befall her.

 

“What's going on?” asked Miroku curiously

 

“Hissori is going to come with us,” said Inuyasha as he started back towards the village, Hissori a few steps behind. Miroku kept pace beside his friend.

 

“You mean she's going to stay at the village.” Miroku was glad that Inuyasha had convinced her to come back.

 

“No, I mean she's going to come with us when we leave today.”

 

Miroku looked askance at his friend. “Does Kagome know this?”

 

“What difference is it if she knows?” Inuyasha was really getting bugged about being asked about Kagome. “She'll find out when we get back. Why would she care?”

 

Miroku looked at his friend and thought, you are so dense sometimes, Inuyasha. If Kagome knew that the hanyou had spent the night out with this girl Miroku knew she would care a lot. He sighed at his friend's stupidity but knew he would not tell Kagome. It was none of his business and he was not the one to tell her.

 

When they returned to the village Sango, Kagome and Shippo had just about everything ready for them to leave. Inuyasha introduced them to Hissori telling them that she would be accompanying them, at least for now. They were a bit surprised that he would invite someone along without talking with them first but greeted Hissori warmly. She in turn bowed, still a bit nervous, but accepted their greetings with a smile and helped Sango finish packing up.

 

Inuyasha took Kagome aside and told her about what he knew of the girl so far. The teen girl was horrified that someone would purposely harm another enough to make is so they couldn't talk. “How do you know her name if she can't talk,” she asked him.

 

Inuyasha, with a perfectly straight face, lied to Kagome for the first time ever. “She wrote her name on the ground so I could see.” He didn't know why he lied about such a stupid thing but he didn't want Kagome to know he had given this girl a name.

 

“I thought maybe you could help her a bit,” Inuyasha said to Kagome as he started to blush. “I mean you're good with people,” he finished, looking at the ground. Kami knows she had helped him come out of his shell.

 

The young miko gave him one of her big happy smiles at the compliment. “I'll do my best,” she told him cheerily.

 

The group left, Inuyasha in the lead, Hissori a few steps behind with Kagome beside her and Sango beside Kagome, Kirara on her shoulder. Shippo was on Kagome's shoulder chatting away to their new guest about what they did and how brave he was while Miroku took up the rear, his staff rings chiming as he moved. Miroku had noticed that Sango, although polite, was not being as friendly towards him as normal. Guess she's still mad. I'll have to make it up to her.

 

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Days later they had managed to get another shard. They had had to fight a group of four large ugly demons with huge horns and claws. The leader had a shikon jewel embedded in his one horn that even the Tetsusaiga was unable to cut. Kagome had had to shoot the beast with one of her purifying arrows to retrieve it.

 

At first Hissori had been totally terrified, but then the more she watched the group fight from the relative safety of the tree line the less frightened she became. She was awed by the abilities and courage of the group and saw them all as great warriors. She decided that if she was to be with them, she should help as well. She did do most of the work at their campsites, keeping things cleaned up and in order. She often cooked, mended clothing and would clean anything Inuyasha brought back from his hunting excursions. This work she knew, as familiar to her as breathing, but now she wanted to do more.

 

She had listened when serving the food at her lord's feasts of the stories the men would tell of their great adventures but they were nothing compared to what this group did. I must make myself more useful, I will learn to fight as well.

 

With this thought firmly in her mind she made her clothing more comfortable to move in if she was to engage in battle. She discarded the sleeves of the kimono leaving her arms bare and cut two slits in the lower skirt, one on each side to allow more mobility for her legs. She also laced up the front so it fit much tighter to her small frame and kept her long hair in a braid to keep it out of her face. She now tried to decide what kind of weapon she should try to learn.

 

She watched the group over the days they were together, whenever they practiced or actually fought. She knew she would never be able to shoot an arrow like Kagome. She had tried to pick up Sango's boomerang and could barely budge it, so that was out. She didn't know any spells or illusions like the little fox. She had no way to get a sword and she would never think to touch master Inuyasha's so she watched the monk Miroku carefully. He had his great wind tunnel and spiritual power but he also had a staff. She watched the way he used it in battle and thought that was something she could learn to do. It was light, easy to carry and best of all, she could make one herself out of wood.

 

Inuyasha had watched as Hissori transformed from a scared rabbit into a more outgoing and confident girl. He had to give it to Kagome she sure knew how to help those wounded in their souls and hearts. He also really liked the new outfit she had made herself. It bothered him that she still would not meet his gaze and he had caught her almost bowing to him in supplication a few times. It confused him as to why she did that but what confused him more was the feelings he had when he was around her.

 

She made him feel relaxed in his own skin. Kikyo had loved him but had wanted him to become human for her. Kagome had told him she liked him just the way he was but she would still use the subjugation charm and not trust that he wouldn't be able to control himself. He had hoped that by now Kagome would have taken the beads off but she never even mentioned it. Hissori seemed to trust him implicitly and she made him feel like he wanted to be the best he could be and hold up to that trust. He would talk to her often about anything; sometimes gripping about Kagome or one of the others in their group, sometimes inconsequential things that happened to him that day and what his thoughts were on certain topics. She always listened as if anything he said was important. This was something not even his friends did, sometimes tuning him out, thinking him as only the brawn of their little group.

 

One evening he had watched as she had bolted up in her blankets, dripping in sweat, her eyes large with fear. He realized that she had had a nightmare and a really bad one at that. She had walked down to the stream they had been staying near to clean the sweat from her body and get a drink. He had approached and had tried to calm her. He told her about the nightmares he had had, telling her things of his past he had never told another soul and she had listened, never once looking at him with pity but with understanding. She knew exactly what he had gone through. They had spent the rest of that night by the stream both bearing their souls, him by voice her by gestures, gradually becoming closer.

 

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Hissori had finally completed her staff and was more comfortable with all the members of the group, happy to think that she had found friends here. She had brought it to Miroku for inspection. He looked it over, feeling the balance of it as he practiced a few moves. It was lighter than his but strong and sturdy. “It's very good,” he told her as he passed it back.

 

She tried the moves he had just done and pointing to him and then to her trying to get the idea to him that she wanted him to teach her to use it. Miroku was flattered that she was trying to emulate him. He didn't feel he was the strongest member of their group as far as fighting went, but he always gave it his best. He smiled, “You want me to teach you?” he asked.

 

She nodded, smiling happily.

 

“Alright, but I warn you, I'm a tough sensei,” he joked. She stood tall and gave him a very formal bow indicating that she would do as she was instructed. Since then they had spent their free time practicing and getting to know each other better.

 

Miroku had tried his best to make things up with Sango and he had made some headway, or at least he had thought until the day she had approached him with a serious look on her face.

 

“Miroku, we need to talk,” she said, making him begin to feel quite nervous. He had just given her a huge bouquet of picked flowers in the hopes of getting her to forgive him. He said nothing, waiting for her to continue.

 

“I just want to be friends, I have no interest in pursuing a relationship,” she stated bluntly. She normally would never have been this bold but Kagome had told her that if she didn't want to be with Miroku she should be honest with him. After that last time of being humiliated she just couldn't carry on forgiving him and hoping he would come to his senses anymore.

 

“I still care for you but not in that way,” she spoke, lowering her eyes.

 

“Sango, I'm sorry for what I did, please forgive me.” Miroku was feeling his heart drop into his stomach.

 

“That's just it, I do forgive you,” she sighed sadly “But you're never going to change, I cant' share you with every girl that catches your fancy and no matter how many times you say you won't do it, you will.”

 

Miroku didn't know what to say to that. It was true, he would plead for Sango's forgiveness and she would give it, then he would be back to chasing other women around within the week. It just hit Miroku that he had really not been treating Sango fairly and he felt terrible. He also realized that she probably was right, he wouldn't stop.

 

“I understand, Sango, I'm so sorry,” he said miserably.

 

“That's okay; I told you I forgave you. Friends?” she asked

 

“Always,” he replied with a sad smile.

 

She gave him a kiss on the cheek and then turned and left him alone.