InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Prayer Beads ❯ You Will Stay, Houshi-sama? ( Chapter 3 )

A/N: Hi everyone! *Ducks incoming paper projectiles* Sorry! I know, it's been ages, over a year, I think. But since no amount of begging and apologizing could excuse my lack of updates, I give you, the next chapter. :D

 

oooooooooo

PRAYER BEADS

You Will Stay, Houshi-sama?

oooooooooo

Miroku awoke grudgingly to bright sunlight in his face, and he blinked a few times to get rid of the spots before his eyes. Memories of the previous day assailed him, and a growing sense of dread filled him as the full implications of everything FINALLY got through to his brain.

He was trapped in the 1950's, with nothing but a few pieces of jewelry to his name...

Scratch that - the name he was using wasn't even supposed to be his, yet. That would be his grandfather's. At this day and age, he was yet to be born, heck, he was yet to be conceptualized, and he had to maintain a low profile since he wasn't supposed to legally and rightfully exist yet.

And now he was living in a dilapidated apartment complex with his best friend, an over-protective, overbearing hound, and the most beautiful woman he had ever groped.

They had shared a simple dinner the previous night, where the dark-haired, violet-eyed lion of a man named Inuyasha had kept him as far away as humanly possible from Kagome the entire night. Too bad for them, since they REALLY needed to talk - both he and Kagome seemed still unaware of how they could possibly be in the past, and he was confused as to how the girl was there, when she was just in his time, and Sango claimed that they had met about a month prior...

A few things had been clear though... Inuyasha didn't recognize him in the least - which had been weird, since Inuyasha and he had been rather compatible on a few different levels and had been getting along quite well in 2004 - and it seemed he and Kagome were not romantically involved.

His head was starting to hurt again.

The look Kagome had given him the night before, right as they went to their respective rooms to sleep, spoke volumes: `We gotta talk, in private, you pervert.'

He sighed and pushed back the slightly moth-bitten covers in his bed in something short of disgust before donning his shirt and pants. Having gotten there so late the previous day, he had been unable to buy anything for the apartment that he would be living in for the next month.

He hadn't been born to a life of luxury, but even his old things had been in much better shape than the few pieces in there. He regarded his remaining jewelry, which he had left on the bedside table, before he decided to toss them into the bottom of the drawer to not risk dropping or losing them. After all, they were his only sources of money at present. In place of the jewelry, he felt around his pockets and brought out the string of blue prayer beads and slipped them over his head.

As he walked out of his room, not even bothering to find something to brush his hair, he decided: After breakfast, he was gonna buy some sheets!

Along with some clothes. The weird looks he had gotten from all the people as he walked down the hallway were not unnoticed. After about the hundredth person had stared at his outfit with a shrug, he headed right back to Kagome and Sango's door.

As he raised his hand to knock, the door opened, and he stared at a slightly perturbed Kagome, who was self-consciously smoothing her dark maroon dress.

“Nice beads,” Kagome commented, poking at the ornament. “What are you doing here so early?” she asked.

“I woke up. Duh. What are YOU doing up?”

Kagome shrugged as she turned and closed the door, stepping out into the hall with him. “Force of habit, I guess. I used to get up real early for my work in the call center, so no matter how hard I try, I never get to sleep later than seven.”

“Same here,” Miroku replied as both he and Kagome began to head for the eating room. “Since I got that hit with my second movie and the contracts started piling, I barely get three hours of sleep anymore. Now I can't seem to sleep more than five hours.”

Silence settled between them as they reached the canteen of sorts, and both ordered a bagel and a cup of coffee each from a droopy-eyed food vendor. The silence was broken as soon as they found a table, as the intrigue and curiosity surrounding their trip to the past took over.

“What happened?” Kagome began. “How did you get here?”

Miroku shrugged. “I have no idea. I fell down the well in your shrine yesterday, and found myself facing a teenage Kenji Higurashi.”

Kagome gave a nervous laugh. “I bumped into Granny Kimiko when I got out of the well. So, in 2004, I've been missing for about a month, ne, Miroku?”

Miroku still didn't understand some things. “So you're saying you've been stuck here the entire time?” he asked. `How is that possible? She had been in 2004 when I fell... and now she and Sango are saying that she's been here all this time... what do I tell her?'

“Mama must be so worried,” Kagome continued. “How is she? How is everybody? I tried sneaking back into the shrine to get back to the future, but when I tried jumping into the well, it won't let me through!”

He furrowed his brows in confusion. Should he, or shouldn't he tell Kagome that she had been in the future the whole time, except for a couple of days after her birthday? It didn't make sense!

“Kagome... everybody is fine,” he said, deciding not to tell her - yet. “But I do want to know how you got here, and how you met Sango. I'm sure you already know how WE met...”

“I can't say I was surprised when she told me you groped her,” Kagome remarked with a grin. “Well, I met Sango through Inuyasha. I... during my last birthday, strange noises woke me up real early, and I followed them through to the well house. When I got there, I saw something in the bottom of the well and was trying to see what it was when I fell...”

`Sounds familiar,' Miroku thought with a chuckle.

“So it was still dark out when I arrived here. I was confused about why the door to our house was locked, so I tried calling for mama. Granny Kimiko opened the door. I was so surprised when I finally realized where, or WHEN I was, so I sprinted off, only to be met by a couple of muggers.”

“Muggers!”

“Yes,” Kagome said. “That's where I met Inuyasha. He saved me from those creeps, scolded me for being out so early, criticized my clothing, and found me a place to stay when he found out I didn't have a home. He brought me to Sango since I had no money, and he supposed I could just stay here with her.”

Miroku chuckled again. “That is so like Inuyasha.”

Kagome looked confused. “How can you say that when you only met him yesterday?”

Miroku gulped. “I... am a good judge of character?”

Kagome raised an eyebrow. “Whatever. So, how did you end up here?”

Miroku gave her a recount of what happened leading up to his trip through time, from the mysterious old woman, the prayer beads, and meeting the younger version of Sango.

“So... you met the future Sango? And she gave you these beads?” Kagome asked, not lifting her gaze from the polished blue beads around Miroku's neck.

“Hai,” he replied, fiddling with the beads, but he still didn't have the heart to tell her that she was in the future, and had even connived to push him into the well herself. The information would just send Kagome panicking.

“This doesn't make any sense...” she said as Miroku showed her the prayer beads. “It was a stupid old well! How did it take us to the past? Why us?”

“I don't know, Kagome... I don't know...”

oooooooooo

“You want to what, Houshi-sama?”

Miroku cleared his throat as he repeated what he had asked. “I want to work in your theater with you... would that be possible? I am rather unemployed right now and it would not do for me to run out of resources.”

Sango had found him and Kagome discussing something in the cafeteria when she went down to breakfast, and was quickly invited by the two to sit with them and eat. Now this...

“I think it would be a great idea, Sango-chan! Miroku is a very good actor, and he never forgets his lines. He's also a good director,” Kagome piped up.

“But I thought you worked for the Sunset Theater?” Sango asked.

“I did...” Miroku replied, ignoring Kagome's amused stare. “But Sunset is awfully far from here, and I can't exactly travel through two towns each day just to get to work.”

“Oh,” Sango replied. “I do not know. I would love to have you with us in the theater, but I am not sure if Jacky would agree.”

Kagome grinned. “Trust me, Sango-chan. Anybody who has ever seen Miroku-sama act gave in to him. He is THAT good!”

“Well, I know he never forgets his lines... not to mention other characters' lines.”

Miroku swelled with pride at the obvious note of admiration in Sango's voice as she said that.

“I will talk to Jacky later. And I will inform you if he would agree to let you audition,” Sango continued.

“Great! Would you need my cell phone number?” he asked absentmindedly, and he bit his inner cheek when Kagome frantically began to shake her head at him.

“Your what number?” Sango asked.

“My... umm...” Miroku began.

“His employee number,” Kagome immediately rescued, and he mouthed a “thank you” when Sango turned to face the girl. “Sunset has all these weird traditions, and Miro-kun keeps forgetting that not every theater is like Sunset, ne Miro?”

“Umm... yeah!” Miroku agreed. “Haha... silly me!”

“Ok...” Sango replied reluctantly, before she got up to leave. “Best I leave now. If I want to recruit someone, I had better be punctual about it!”

oooooooooo

“What is wrong with these people?” Miroku asked Kagome with more than just a little irritation as they returned to the apartment. The two of them had gone shopping for clothing and supplies, and Miroku had both hands full with his - and Kagome's - new purchases. Kagome had successfully suckered him into buying her stuff.

“What ever do you mean?” she asked as she held the door open for him.

“They wouldn't stop staring at my clothing. Weren't jeans supposed to have gotten popular in the 1950's because of James Dean?” he remarked.

Kagome shook her head. “Miroku, this is 1952. James Dean got his first hit in either 1954 or 1955, if I'm not mistaken. Therefore, you are way ahead in the fashion department.”

Miroku grumbled angrily, but the sound he uttered was drowned out by the growl a certain someone had started spewing from a corner of the apartment's reception room.

“Just where in hell did you two disappear to?” Inuyasha asked menacingly as he advanced on them. Both Miroku and Kagome cringed at the angry glint in his eyes.

Kagome was the first to speak up. “We just went and got some clothes. Miro-kun is relatively new here, and I volunteered to show him around.”

“Are you a tour guide, bitch?”

“NO!”

“Then it was not your job to show him where to find what in the city!”

“He's my friend!”

“Friend, my ass... you're acting like you're lovers!”

Miroku stared as the two continued to shout and make a scene in the middle of the large room. He noticed the angry flush in the man's cheeks, and realization hit him as more careless accusations spilled from his lips. `Inuyasha is jealous!'

The Inuyasha he had met in 2004 was very confident, and he definitely knew his place in Kagome's heart. He was nothing like the insecure, jealous and disheveled young man before Miroku at present... except for the possessive part, that is.

“Do you just like men in general, or is it this bouzo's money that you find so attractive?” Inuyasha continued to growl, and Miroku very visibly cringed.

Kagome looked scandalized. “I am NOT after his money!”

“Then you DO like men!”

“Why you...”

“Guys!” Miroku butted in. “This is pointless! Why don't we all sit down for a while...”

“Keh! You expect me to sit down and act civilized with YOU?” Inuyasha growled as he turned to him, cracking his knuckles.

“Inuyasha! Stop terrorizing the people!” Sango's voice suddenly rang out, and all three turned towards the door to find her there, standing with her hands on her hips. She strode over to them determinedly, and her hands tugged on a lock of Inuyasha's black hair as she approached. “I swear, Inuyasha! You desperately need to take anger management lessons!”

Inuyasha just rolled his eyes, pulling his hair away from Sango. “Not you too...”

“Oh, yes, me too,” Sango replied. “Before I forget, I had passed through the shop, and Yo-jiichan had asked me to inform you that he had fetched a very good price for the jewelry he acquired yesterday.”

`Jewelry?' Miroku thought. `Is Inuyasha into jewelry right now?'

“Really?” Inuyasha asked, his interest suddenly piqued. “Well that was fast... thanks Sango, I should go over to him.” Inuyasha took one look at Miroku and Kagome, who had identical looks of puzzlement on their faces, before he declared, “Or maybe later... Jiijii can handle it all on his own.”

Miroku grinned widely. `Ah, Inuyasha, green is not a very good color on you...'

“So, Sango, what did Jacky say?” Kagome suddenly asked, and Miroku could have sworn that Inuyasha flinched at the mention of the name.

“Oh yes, I came to tell you,” Sango said as she turned to Kagome and Miroku. “Jacky said that he would have no problem having Miroku around since he obviously has some talent in directing, but he would first like to see him act.”

“Yes!” Miroku and Kagome pumped their fists in glee at the same time, earning them weird looks from the two others.

“Could he go and audition now, Sango?” Kagome asked excitedly, and she squealed when Sango nodded. “This is great! Can I tag along?”

“Yeah, bring her, Sango. Maybe that director friend of yours can give the wench a job,” Inuyasha interjected, earning him a dirty glare from the future girl.

Miroku sensed a strong note of dislike of Jacky coming off Inuyasha in waves, and he suspected that he now had the perfect topic of conversation to strike up with the irate man. `Ah, finally, a topic we may both agree on.'

“Actually, Jacky commented that he liked the patchwork you did on that costume last week, Kagome. He asked if you would be interested in being the theater's costume designer?” Sango supplied.

“He's offering me a job? Of course I'm interested! I've been sitting idle and useless for so long, I'm starting to grow ashamed of myself!” Kagome exclaimed.

“Well, it's settled then! We shall all go to Sincerity Theater right now!” Sango said with a smile, but her smile turned utterly diabolic as she turned back to Inuyasha. “I'll bet Jakotsu will be VERY pleased to see you, Inuyasha... you haven't been to visit for ages!”

Inuyasha visibly cringed, and Sango laughed before telling Miroku and Kagome to bring their things to their room before they headed off to the Theater.

oooooooooo

“I'm freaked out about seeing that guy,” Miroku muttered loudly enough for Inuyasha, who was walking alongside him, to hear. The two girls, who were chatting amiably just ahead of them were none the wiser.

Inuyasha turned to face him. “What?”

“Jakotsu. He gives off rather... strange vibes, don't you think?” Miroku asked, acting as if he was really hesitant to pursue the topic, instead of what his real motive was - to get Inuyasha to agree with him on something so he wouldn't be so hostile.

It seemed to work. Miroku grinned widely when Inuyasha cringed, darting a tentative glance at him. “So... you could tell too, huh?”

“Yeah...” Miroku replied, scratching his head. “I mean, what straight guy would say words like `marvelous, absolutely fabulous' to another guy? Not just that... he stared at me weird.”

“I can relate,” Inuyasha added, looking straight ahead though his face was pensive and short of disgusted. “That freak had been after me for months... since we met.”

`Gotcha,' Miroku thought, knowing he had now stepped a foot into the man's good side. “Makes you wanna wish to just disappear, doesn't it?” he said, and Inuyasha nodded as he turned to face him.

And the two men began talking in civilized tones to each other.

oooooooooo

Miroku grinned as he looked at the last scene he was supposed to act out for his audition. He had been asked to dance and sing, which he felt he had passed with flying colors even though the song he had sung had not been composed yet at the time. Then he was given a sheet containing fragments of different plays. The first few scenes had been that of a comedy, then of confusion, then of seething hatred. This last one was very interesting.

He skimmed through them quickly before Jacky said `action', and at the cue, he looked straight at Sango, making her blush, before he looked away, fell to his knees and raised his arms to wrap around an imaginary body on the ground, and began.

“My life was meaningless...” he began, as his eyes automatically lost the humor they normally displayed. This scene was of sadness. “But you... you brought light into my life,” he said, a sad, slight smile curving his lips, “I had been searching all my life for you... wishing all my life for you. You were the one thing I never thought I would have.”

Tears gathered at the edges of his eyes, but he remained manly despite the sorrow of his voice and gaze. His face was of pleading, one of yearning, desperate hope that moved all the people in the room. “Please, don't' leave me. Not when I have just found you! You can't!” he half shouted desperately. Then, in a heartbroken sob, he whispered, “You can't... not before I could get the chance to be with you... not before I tell you... I love you...”

“Cut!” the command seemed to wake all the observers from a trance Miroku had created, and they all clapped as he gave a cheeky bow. Sango seemed especially moved, the tears standing in her eyes a testament to how touched she was by his acting. Even Inuyasha was looking impressed.

Jacky then climbed up the stage with him, before saying in a loud voice, “Anyone who thinks he shouldn't be admitted into the theater, raise your left hand.”

No one did.

oooooooooo

“You were amazing, Houshi-sama!” Sango exclaimed as she and Miroku headed back to the apartments. Kagome and Inuyasha had to go someplace else, leaving them both to go back home alone.

Miroku chuckled, the praise being one that he had received numerous times. “I'm honored that you think so, Sango-sama. After all, I am joining the theater so I could get the chance to work with you.”

Sango blushed heavily, even as she remembered Kagome's words from the previous night: “He is quite a charmer... sometimes I could barely tell if he was serious or not!”

“You mean, aside from the fact that you were unemployed?” she teased.

It was his turn to blush. “Ah, that too.”

Sango smiled. “But truly, you must be one of the best actors of the Sunset Theater! Why did you leave that group?”

Miroku cringed, trying to come up with a fast, believable lie. “It was... really not my choice. You see, I, um... had to move here for... personal reasons.”

“Oh,” Sango mumbled, disappointed. She was curious about this man, and Kagome's past, and was dying to know more, but she wasn't about to ask him what those `personal reasons' were.

“Well, you certainly travel light,” she commented, referring to his lack of baggage. “All you had with you was money.”

“I do not very much enjoy lugging heavy bags around,” he replied with a grin as he caught sight of their apartment. “I would much rather just buy my things once I get there.”

“That is a strange philosophy,” Sango remarked. “After all, would it not be more convenient to not have to go to the nearest stores just to buy a change of clothes? Not to mention, more economical.”

“Money is really the least of my problems right now,” he mumbled, earning him a raised eyebrow from Sango.

`It is really strange of me to meet three people with such secretive pasts within the span of three months,' Sango mused. “At least you have a house for now, right?”

“And a job. But that is really all that I need to survive, isn't it?” Miroku said thoughtfully as they stepped into the main reception room of the small, run-down apartment.

“I agree,” Sango nodded, and they were both about to head for the stairs when the receptionist called her. She turned with a questioning look as the woman ran up to her breathlessly, holding up a slip of paper that she immediately handed to Sango.

“Sango, a message came in for your friend Inuyasha. Would you mind informing him? I haven't seen him around. And there is a man waiting for you in the waiting room in your floor,” the girl said quickly, and turned before Sango could get the chance to thank her.

Miroku was looking at the piece of paper with interest. “For Inuyasha, huh? Just how long have you known him?” he asked curiously.

“Only about three months. We met under the strangest circumstances...”

“Really? Why do you say that?”

“Well,” Sango giggled as they climbed up the stairs towards their floor. “He was wearing some ripped clothes, running frantically from a small army of homosexuals...”

“NO!” Miroku said, horrified at the thought. “By any chance, was Jakotsu in that army?”

“Oh! You've figured it out?” Sango said in surprise.

“Sango-sama, no man could not tell that `Jacky' is gay. So, was he?”

“Well, he was basically leading them...”

“Gods! Poor Inuyasha! No wonder he was so horrified of Jakotsu!”

“Yes, well, it appeared the `army' had found him sleeping alone in the forest beside the Shinto Shrine where I met you, and were trying to `wake him up'. So he was fleeing, and when he caught sight of me, his eyes widened and he started screaming `help'!” Sango said laughingly, while Miroku stood shocked.

“Inuyasha was afraid of a few gays?” Miroku asked as they approached the waiting area, spotting a sole man sitting in one of the couches. The man had been staring at Sango, and his gaze was making Miroku very uncomfortable.

“Well, wouldn't you be, if...” Sango began, but she froze in her tracks when she spotted the man sitting in the waiting area. She backed away instinctively, colliding with Miroku who stood warily behind her.

“What do you want?” Sango asked stonily, as the man stood and began walking towards her.

“Ku ku ku, Sango. Is that truly the way to greet your...”

“Don't you dare continue that statement, Naraku,” Sango seethed. “What are you doing here? I told you I never want to see you again.”

Miroku moved to stand protectively in front of her as he sensed the resentment Sango held against the man in front of her.

“Come now Sango,” the man went on, totally dismissing Miroku even as he stood directly in his path. “No need to get so hostile.”

Miroku decided to intervene. “Good sir, I believe the Lady Sango is rather uncomfortable with your presence. If I may, would you please just tell her what you came here for?”

Naraku glared at him. “And who are you?”

“I am but a friend of the lady.”

“Then get out of my way, I need to talk to her.”

“No! Houshi-sama, please stay,” Sango exclaimed, clutching the fabric of his shirt. “He has no right to order you around. And he holds no sway over my life.”

“Believe what you will, Sango, but I will regain control over you,” Naraku said menacingly.

Miroku fumed at the comment. “I believe that was a threat, sir. I request that you leave,” he said in clipped tones.

Naraku reached around him to grab hold of Sango, but Miroku immediately slapped his hand back. The two men glared at each other for a while, before Naraku pulled back and let out a sound that resembled a growl.

“I will be back, Sango. Remember that.”

“I hope not,” Sango snapped back, tightening her hold on Miroku as they watched Naraku walk away.

Miroku turned to Sango, who was still holding on to his shirt. “Who was that, Sango?” he asked when they were sure Naraku had left.

“Naraku Yogoreta... a part of my past that I would much prefer to forget about,” Sango replied, before she headed for one of the chairs in the area and slumped down on it helplessly. “I thought I had gotten rid of him.”

“He is not a very good man, is he?” Miroku remarked, still pissed off about the man daring to threaten Sango right in front of him.

“He is a horrible man! I... I have been trying to get away from him, but it seems he is too relentless,” Sango sighed dejectedly, burying her face in her hands. “He won't give up!”

“Would he hurt you, Sango-sama?”

“I don't know,” she replied grimly. “But I would not wish to find out personally.”

Miroku's eyebrows drew together. Keeping his eyes on the beautiful woman, he held up both of her hands in his, drawing her attention.

Sango was reminded of just how handsome Miroku truly was when she looked into his expressive eyes. His determined face captivated her, his sensuous lips beckoning her. She tried to look away, but that was near impossible as she seemingly fell into a trance.

Miroku's throat closed up when he realized what he had done, the words he was about to say dying on his lips. Sango was blushing prettily, her eyes slowly going over his face as she tried to form words.

Miroku finally found his wits when he remembered why they were there... why Sango was so upset. “Sango... you do not need to worry about that man, because I promise, I will do everything in my ability to keep him away from you.”

Sango smiled hopefully. “You will stay, Houshi-sama?”

“Yes... I will. As long as I am here, I promise to keep you out of harm's way,” Miroku replied, letting go of Sango's hands. “Shall we go on to our rooms? I for one would still have to arrange my things.”

“Oh, yes! Do you need some help?” Sango offered as she stood.

“I would love for you to help me,” he agreed, giving her a pat on the behind...

Sango stiffened. “HENTAI!” she screeched, giving him another new `handprint' on his face.

Miroku blinked dreamily as Sango marched away from him. `Ah, Sango-sama... the 1950's does have its merits, after all...'

oooooooooo

Inuyasha and Kagome walked back to the apartment after his visit to his jewelry store. He had to go visit Myouga, whom Sango had always insisted on calling “Yo-jiichan”. Kagome, of course, had insisted on coming with him.

The visit was not useless, thank Kami. It seemed Myouga had once again duped some rich bastard into selling him his jewelry for nearly half the price they should have fetched, and now Inuyasha had some more money to his name. `Keh as if I need any more of that shit.'

But then again, Myouga also had some very interesting news... about a certain something that he would much rather forget. Yet, his past was truly getting closer to him, and he knew, though it brought a sad lump into his throat that soon, he would have to run for it - again.

He looked at Kagome out of the corner of his eye, and his heart dropped even lower. `I thought I could finally stay put. But now I have to leave, and I never got the chance to tell her... never got the chance with her...'

Kagome noticed Inuyasha's pensive mood, and decided she wanted to keep his mind off it. “I'm glad you and Miroku seem to be getting along fine now. Yesterday you looked like you wanted to murder him!” Kagome told Inuyasha with a giggle.

“Keh... we have some things in common, that's all,” he muttered, before he evasively changed the topic. “He's a good performer, ne? I didn't think he'd be that good. Did he train or something?”

“Well, he went to some acting classes as a kid. But he had been good to begin with,” she replied. “I remember he was always the star of school plays... the only guy to ever overshadow the girl who played Cinderella in the play Cinderella!”

“That good, huh?” he grunted. “You admire him much?”

“Oh, I admire his talent, but we grew up together so I only see him as an older brother,” she explained. “Besides, actors are not my type.”

“Then what is your type?”

“Oh, I don't know...” Kagome replied thoughtfully, twisting her hands into the fabric of her knee-length maroon skirt. “I just want somebody who understands me... somebody who would stand up for me.”

Inuyasha kept his gaze on the street as he asked, “And you didn't find that where you guys came from?”

“What?” Kagome looked up in confusion at his unexpected question. But then again, everything about him was unexpected... since the day she met him, he had oozed an odd sort of mystery that has never failed to baffle her, and she knew deep inside that with Inuyasha, there was always more than meets the eye. And it was really no secret that Inuyasha was hiding some very important things from her.

“Nothing...” he replied evasively, even as she gave him an evil eye for daring to not answer her. “Keh.”

Kagome sighed, knowing well that he had just clammed up and nothing could make him open up about that. She decided on the best course - changing the topic. “Hey, I never really got to thank you for saving me back when I arrived here. And for bringing me to Sango. I'd probably be dead or wandering the streets if it weren't for you,” she said with a soft smile, which Inuyasha could not, for the life of him, take his eyes off.

“It was no big deal.”

“It was to me,” Kagome insisted. “And because of all you've done for me, I couldn't help but feel like I've known you guys all my life. I trust you with my life, Inuyasha.”

Inuyasha outwardly cringed, and it did not go unnoticed by Kagome. “Inuyasha... is something wrong?”

“I... nothing.”

“Oh come on, Inuyasha! I know you better than that!” Kagome insisted.

Inuyasha gave a resigned sigh. He knew full well that Kagome was aware of the fact that he was constantly hiding something... but should he tell her? He shook his head, before he turned his gaze to the sky and muttered, “I'm not exactly what I seem, Kagome.”

Kagome looked straight ahead as she answered. “I know... we all have secrets, Inuyasha. But I know that whatever you decided to keep to yourself, it can't be bad,” she flushed. “You're one of the most wonderful people I have ever met.”

Inuyasha stopped walking. “But what if I'm really not what you think I am?”

She turned puzzled eyes to him. “Inuyasha... you're my friend. Whatever it is... whoever you are, I'm sure that if ever there is something you don't want me to know, it's for the best. You wouldn't let anything hurt me, I'm sure of it.”

“That's just it!” Inuyasha said, suddenly grabbing one of her hands in his. “My being here is my problem. I don't want you to get hurt!”

Kagome brought her other hand up to their entwined hands. “But you're here, aren't you?”

Inuyasha hesitated, before raising his free hand up to brush some stray strands of hair off her face. He let his hand cup her cheek, and even through the darkness that had now fallen upon them, both can see the other blushing. “I can't stay... I'm putting you in danger by being here. And... I just know that when you find out why, your opinion of me will change. And I don't want that.”

“Inuyasha, are you trying to tell me something?” she asked, dread seizing her. `Is he saying goodbye?'

He disengaged himself from their hold, turning his back and clenching his fists. “Once my past finds me, it's not gonna let go. I can't let you get tangled up into it. You don't deserve the hell it will bring.”

Incredulous anger took hold of Kagome's heart. “So you're leaving?”

“I have no choice!” Inuyasha declared. “I don't want to go, but I'm sure that you, Sango, and everybody else would want me to leave if you all knew...”

“Stop that!” Kagome said forcefully as she took hold of his sleeve and pulled him back so they were face-to-face. “How do you what we want? How could you know what I want? Did it ever occur to you that I may want to have you here whatever it is you're hiding?”

“You can't get involved Kagome! I've had to deal with this thing alone, all my fucking life!”

“Well, maybe you don't HAVE to deal with it alone anymore, because now you have ME!”

He froze. Did she mean...

“I will be here for you, no matter what it is. You don't even have to tell me what you're trying to hide from... but I want you to stay with me!” Kagome insisted. She raised both hands to cup the sides of his face, forcing him to look her in the eye. “Please don't go, Inuyasha!”

“But I have to...”

“Then take me with you!” Kagome blurted out. Once her mind had processed what she had just shouted, she pulled her hands away and turned, not daring to look at Inuyasha for fear of his reaction.

Inuyasha was stunned. “You... what? Kagome...” Inuyasha pulled her, holding her sides to make her face him again.

“I don't have a life here, Inuyasha. You gave me what I have now. And I can't...” Kagome started, but something stopped her from continuing. `I can't just let you go!'

“Would you really still trust me? Whatever my secret was?”

“Yes, I know I will,” Kagome replied. `I care about him...'

Inuyasha opened his mouth to answer, before he suddenly froze, pulling Kagome to his chest protectively, before looking around warily, shouting. “I know you're here! Get out of the fucking shadows and show yourself!”

Kagome was suddenly frightened. Inuyasha was looking rather panicked, holding her to himself more tightly than that time he had defended her against the muggers. He was looking around, as if whatever he realized was there would spring out at any moment.

A growl left Inuyasha's lips as someone emerged from the shadows a bit off to their left. The sound was almost animalistic, hinting at violent fury that he was trying desperately to hold back. He let go of her and pushed her behind him in one motion as he faced the coming figure.

The figure stepped directly under the glow of the nearest street lamp. Kagome gasped at the odd features sported by the person - long, flowing silver hair, deep blue lines along the side of each cheek, and a piercing golden gaze. Features that made the person seem feminine almost, but the masculinity that oozed from the figure was nearly tangible.

But the thing that bothered Kagome the most was, despite the strange markings on his face and other weird characteristics of the man, he looked remarkably like Inuyasha.

“What the fuck do you want?” Inuyasha said in a menacing tone that sent shivers of nervousness up and down Kagome's spine.

“And here I thought you'd be glad to see me,” the strange man's smooth voice intoned as a nearly malicious grin surfaced on his face. “Brother.”

oooooooooo