KISU SURU

(To Kiss)

Dedicated to all who loves Inu Yasha, especially to Tita Judith, who introduced me formally to the world of Inu Yasha., and to Rumiko Takahashi, of course.

Chapter One

Sango picked up a wild periwinkle on the grassy field. Poor thing! She stepped on it awhile ago accidentally and there it was now, a smashed mutilated, ex-botanical trash.

Exactly how she felt at that moment.

Her grip on the maimed bloom tightened releasing all her angers and pent-up sorrows she felt but supressed silently iinside.

Naraku had toyed with her family jsut like so, and she became an easy prey to him. She gullibly moved as his pawn in his diabolical games.

This fate is worse than death, kowing that you did something really wrong and stupid that cannot come undone.

"You really should come back near the bonfire, Sango," A gentle male voice interrupted my thoughts. "It's gettinga wfully chilly."

She glanced at the master of the shadow that hugged her tiny figure partly. "I will be fine, Houshi-sama. Don't worry about me." She threw the flower on the ground and tucked her knees in.

"I can't not worry about you when I know you are not fine." He plopped down beside her and rested his staff beside him. "I don't want to leave you alone when you're looking like that."

She looked away. "I'm used to being alone."

"You don't have to be alone," he said, looking at her meaningfully.

Her face flushed.

"Mind if I ask you a personal question?"

She blinked. Was he looking at her earnestly for the first time since they met?

"Sure."

"Is the reason why you're suddenly acting so weird is.." He grinned. "It's your monthly period?"

She slammed his head with her boomerang. "Moron!"

He rubbed his head sheepishly. "Ouch, I'm sorry."

She stood up, slinging her weapon over shoulders. "If you don't have anything else to do, the go and pester the wild animals living here somewhere." She stomped away furiously.

"Hey wait!" He scratched his head. "Shoot! Never mess with a boomerang-holding lady if you still want your skull to remain intact throughout your life."

Sango, still looking quite annoyed, sat on a rocky bank at the river.

"Jerk!" she screamed upon remembering the monk. She tucked her knees in and peered at the dark, forbidding waters of the river. "What's the matter with me anyway? Why am I expecting to hear something more from that stupid monk?"

She gazed at her reflection on the water, wondering what' s the cause of the confusion on her face.

To her surprise, she saw Miroku's face looking at her reflection too. "Gee, I never knew you are the type to have aesthetic vanity, Sango," he commented, his face just a few inches away from her cheek. He was peering from behind her shoulders.

She instinctively screamed in surprise and shoved him away. Miroku lost his balance and fell into the icy cold water of the river.

"Oh, Kami-sama!" screamed Sango. "Gomen!" She immediately helped him up back dry land. "You took me by surprise and.."

"Next time, please tell me ahead of time whether you like surprises or not," he said wryly. He sneezed. "Man, it's chilly!"

She winced. "Come on, let's walk you back to the bonfire so you can warm yourself."

"It's too..cold."

She helped him up slowly. "What should we do to keep you from freezing?"

"T-Take me..in your arms," he moaned softly.

"What?!" Her eyes grew wide in horror. "D-Do you mean an embrace? An intimate physical contact?"

"Precisely."

"No way!"

He hugged himself tighter and wailed, "Oh, it's too cold! I might contact a fever!"

"That's blackmail!" But she did hugged him close to her. "Come on, let's walk."

He rested his head on her shoulder comfortably. "Tighter. Hold me tighter."

"What??!"

"Ah, I'm going to die of hypothermia!"

"Alright already!" She tightened her embrace.

"Ah..much better," he murmured contentedly.

As they trudged back to the camp, no more words have been exchanged between them. Speech lost its power for Touch did its work.

They soon reached Kagome and the others.

"Where have you two been? We were so worried!" exclaimed Kagome at once.

"It looks like you took a night swim," observed Shippou.

Sango shook her head. "No, Miroku fell into the river."

Inu Yasha smirked. "I didn't know you were that clumsy!"

"Shut up!" barked Miroku, hitting him with his staff.

Kagome noticed Sango's arms around the priest, but said nothing. Instead she smiled cheerfully. "Well then, we can all sleep in peace now, right?"

"Right!" Shippou carried Kirara to bed, and the teen joined them. Inu Yasha, on the other hand, distanced himself from his friends and leaped on the branch of a tree to rest.

"Well, I guess it's time to go to bed," said Sango awkwardly.

He smiled teasingly at her. "Your bed or mine?"

"If only you're not drenched to the bone right now, you're already minced monk meat," she snapped walking him to his sleeping bag. She knelt down and helped him lie down comfortably.

As soon as she was done, she stood up. "Get a good night's rest, Houshi-sama. You will need it."

She lied down her own bed and shut her eyes tight but slumber didn't came. She tried a couple of times more but still, sleep remains elusive. She sighed deeply.

"Are you awake, Sango?"

Her eyes flew open and saw Miroku kneeling beside her, peering at her face.

"Y-Yeah."

"Can't sleep?" He gazed at her sympathetically.

"H-Hai."

"Me too," he said quietly.

"Cold?" she asked.

He shook his head and continued to stare at her intently - almost tenderly.

And she began to grew listless with it. Her mind turned blank. What was it that she was going to say?

Silence.

At last, one found his voice. "Please give me back my sleep."

"I'm not keeping it-" she balked when she saw his face slowly lowering towards her. She gulped inwardly.

Their lips were only a few inches apart.

His lips parted..and spoke. "Did you happen to see or use the sleeping potion I bought last week?"

Her face flamed. She thought he was going to kiss her for real! "Get out of my bed!"

"What? But I can't sleep without that!" he whined.

"Ouuut!!!!!!!!!!" she screamed, waking up everyone around the campfire.

+ more +