Manipulated – Part Twelve:  Wall

Corisu Li: *waves away mist that spells out "I don’t own Inuyasha"* We’ve been in Chocospace for weeks now... setting the canon characters on the OOC ones... And we’ve had some pretty interesting deaths...

Aamalie: ...OOC!Kagome purposefully running onto Kagome’s arrow in a fit of Inu-lusting angst... >.<;;

Kunoichi: ...OOC!Miroku getting sucked into the kazaana because he was too much of a scaredy-bish to fight back or run...

Kei: ...OOC!Kikyou choking on her own lipstick...

Aki: ...OOC!Kanna talking until she suffocated from lack of breath...

Corisu: ^^;; Yeeeah. The list goes on and on. But finally, we have made it here, to the depths of Chocospace, and WE STILL DON’T SEE THOSE DARN EARS!!!

Aamalie: *blinks* Uh... have you tried looking there? *points*

Ketsueki: *is standing in front of a floating mirror, a pair of white ears perched on her head* Ooooooh...

Kei: O.O;; Aw, maaaan...

Aki: WE wanted to do that...

Kei and Aki: *collective sigh*

Corisu: -.-;; Oi, you!

Ketsu: *looks up, blinking innocently* Yes?

Aamalie: *points at Gin’s head* We kinda need those...

Ketsu: For whaaaat? *smirks*

Kei and Aki: Oh, for cryin’ out LOUD! *dash forward, trying to snatch the ears, and-*

(ZAPPP!)

Corisu and Kunoichi: *blink at the area where the pair once were* Uhhh...

Aamalie: What’d you do to them? *mutters* Not that I care much, buuut...

Ketsu: I have transported them back to the real world! Mwahahaha!

Aamalie: Oh. Is that it?

Ketsu: Hmph! It was the best I could thing of on such short notice! Now... *grins evilly* You will never get the ears back! *headband with ears tied on falls off. She picks it back up, puts it on her head, and runs like all hell*

Corisu: Finally, the chase scene! *Scooby Doo music* Let’s get her! *blinks* Oh, yeah, by the way, why did so many of you think I’d killed Miroku-sama? o.O;; You guys are so odd...

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Sango’s pleas quieted to whispers as she bent over the monk’s form. Silence thrummed through the cellar for a few minutes, then Reika’s voice broke the hush.

"Is he dead?"

Those three words were spoken with such venom that Sango looked up, her eyes narrowed at the other girl’s form, shrouded in half-darkness. "No. He’s just unconscious."

Reika fell silent again as Sango worked the ropes around her ankles loose, stretching her legs beside her and letting the feeling return to them. The effort of untying the tight knots had made a few more cuts on her fingertips, but she’d live.

"It would serve him right if he was," the girl continued.

Sango did more than look up at this proclamation. She stood, strode over to the girl, and squatted beside her, matching her heated stare with one of her own. "Have you ever heard the legend of the Black Phoenix?"

Reika paused, then shook her head.

"Well, it isn’t a legend. He was possessed. When Houshi-sama is himself, he is a good friend of mine."

"So you enjoy being tied up by him, is that it?"

Sango moved so quickly that she shocked herself. She slapped the younger girl soundly across the cheek.

For a moment, Reika just blinked, her head turned to the side. A reddened patch covered one cheek.

"You’d do well to treat me with more respect. I could easily leave you here, remember that."

"No," the girl turned back to Sango, her eyes suddenly pleading. "I need to get out of here... Untie me, please!" She tugged at her ropes, her gaze fixed on the prone figure lying on the earthen floor.

"If I release you, you have to help me get him out of here. I can’t carry him alone, not up that ladder." Sango hoped that the girl had some degree of common sense. In the girl’s eyes, it was either help get the man out or remain tied up with the man while Sango went for help.

Reika suddenly seemed to find the floor very interesting. "I’ll help."

"Good." The taijiya cast her gaze around the room, and her eye caught the twinkle of metal in the light from the trapdoor. She approached the glint, which turned out to be Miroku’s staff and her own katana.

Picking up the sword, Sango returned to Reika, holding the weapon high.

The girl’s eyes widened and she began to struggle. "Don’t! I’m sorry!"

Sango just blinked. ‘Wha- Oh...’ "I’m not going to hurt you. I’m just going to cut your ropes. The knots are too tight for me to attempt." When the girl stilled, Sango pressed the dull side of the blade to the inside of the girl’s wrist and sliced through the bonds with a swift motion. With another slash, the girl was free, and rubbing her wrists thoughtfully.

Sango sheathed her katana and made her way back over to Miroku. "Come on. I’ll go up and y-"

She broke off as a scuffling sound came from the other side of the room. The girl was already halfway to the ladder. ‘Oh, for crying out loud...’ "Genmei! Wait!"

The other girl didn’t listen. Her hand was on the ladder- her foot- She was halfway up... disappearing... gone.

Sango sighed. ‘Now how am I supposed to get him out of here?’ As if in response, an ‘oof!’ came from above. ‘What was that?’

Overcome with curiosity, Sango ascended the ladder after the girl and poked her head into the sunlight. She had never been so glad to see someone in her life.

Inuyasha stood in the doorway, eyes wide. Reika was on her butt on the floor; she had apparently run right into him. Kagome was on tiptoe, peering over the hanyou’s shoulder at the girl.

Reika climbed to her feet slowly, then glanced back toward the trapdoor, catching sight of Sango. She screamed, then threw herself at Inuyasha, clinging to his haori.

"They’re crazy! The man down there was going to kill me! And she was... was..." Reika suddenly became aware that the man that she was speaking to was rather... odd. "AAHH! YOUKAI!"

"Oi! Shut up, wench! That hurts, you know!" Inuyasha raised his hands to his ears as Kagome pushed by him.

"Don’t mind him, he won’t hurt you." The young miko gave an encouraging smile. "I’m Kagome. Who are you?"

"Don’t bother, Kagome," Sango spat, pulling herself fully from the hole. "She won’t listen to anything you have to say anyway."

Reika just huffed, stepping closer to Kagome and out if Inuyasha’s path. The hanyou walked over to Sango, extended a hand, and helped her to her feet. "You okay?"

"I’m fine." She made a gesture toward the trapdoor. "How did you find me?" she added, rubbing her left wrist idly.

Inuyasha just blinked for a few seconds, an unvoiced question in his eyes. "Kirara showed up at dawn, frantic about something. She almost took my arm off trying to wake me up." He showed his slightly tattered sleeve for emphasis before continuing. "She started to lead us in this direction, until I could detect it for myself. There was a dead guy in the bushes not far from here."

He didn’t need to say more. Sango read the hidden implication. "He’s down there," she said quietly. "Out cold. But he’s back to normal," she added, dropping her hands to her sides. "He’s back," she whispered again, as if savoring the words.

Kagome had obviously heard the news and appeared beside Inuyasha, leaving Reika at the door. "Really, Sango? Are you sure?"

The taijiya nodded. "But I can’t move him. Inuyasha, would yo-"

Before she’d finished her sentence, the hanyou had disappeared through the hole in the floor.

"How, Sango?" Kagome inquired, her eyes wide. "Was it the haiku?"

"Later, Kagome," Sango replied, kneeling beside the hole. "Inuyasha, retrieve his staff from the corner," she called.

When Inuyasha finally reappeared, Sango could finally see the damage that housing the Phoenix had done to the monk in full light. He looked positively awful. His hair had long since been loosed from its ponytail, and it was heavy with a substance that was unmistakably blood. The front of his robes was covered as well, and his skin was very pale save for a fevered blush high up on his cheeks.

Kagome barely suppressed a gasp. "He looks terrible!"

"He’ll be fine, Kagome," Sango said quietly. "Physically, at least. Before he passed out, I saw the look in his eyes. I guess I had hoped that he would forget what he had done, just like... like Naraku made Kohaku forget..." She paused, then turned her back on the others. "He’ll remember it all."

Reika was still standing at the door, and she let out a soft ‘oh’ at this comment. "He was taken over by an evil spirit?"

Sango whirled on the girl, her eyes flashing. "I have put up with you for far too long! Do you think I enjoyed being cooped up in a cellar with your incessantly flapping mouth with no means of escape? You insult my friends, act completely arrogant and dense, and then you expect us to help you when you get into a tight spot? For all I care-"

"Sango."

The voice was weak, but unmistakable. "Houshi-sama..."

"She’s... afraid. You cannot... penalize her for that..." Miroku made a weak effort to escape Inuyasha’s grip, and finally succeeded in lowering his feet to the ground, still leaning heavily on his friend.

Reika used Miroku’s distraction to escape the hostile atmosphere of the house... and a telltale scream told the entire village that she’d found Kirara.

Kagome took a step toward the monk, ignoring the girl’s frightened squeals. "You shouldn’t be trying to stand!"

Miroku shook his head. "It is not my... body... that is injured."

Sango moved back until she was beside Miroku. Though the others seemed unable to pick it up, she could discern the slight difference in his eyes. They were a darker violet than they had been before his possession, and they seemed to have lost their usual light.

"Houshi-sama..." she whispered, putting a hand on his shoulder.

He grinned up at her, a little of the old Miroku shining through the pain. "Lady Sango, I believe I have you to thank for my... liberation?"

"Don’t talk about that now. Wait until you’re stronger," she answered firmly.

Miroku opened his mouth as if to protest, closed it, and nodded. "That would be best." He gently pushed away from Inuyasha, standing on his own with minimal effort. "Judging by the screaming girl outside, I would say that we’ve worn out our welcome. Shall we go?"

As the other three made their way toward the door, Sango blinked in confusion. ‘Why is he acting as if nothing ever happened? He does remember, doesn’t he?’

"Sango! Come on, let’s get out of here!" Kagome’s voice rang out from the yard.

With one final glance at her place of imprisonment, Sango stepped into the glaring sun.

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

Weeks.

It had been weeks.

And he still wouldn’t talk about it.

Sango eyed the monk over her bowl occasionally, peering into the flames that separated them, then snapping her eyes back to her food. He was still joking with Kagome, still giving Inuyasha scalding advice... but his eyes were still dark.

They had left Reika behind in the village after telling the chief a doctored version of their story. Reika would, undoubtedly, tell him that Phoenix had nearly killed her instead of taking her in to protect her from a pursuer, and that Yanata had been slain by Miroku himself, instead of a random youkai. The tachi didn’t really care either way. The important matter was removing themselves from any location that might remind Miroku of his misdeeds...

They had retraced their steps, Inuyasha leading them to skillfully skirt the village where Koharu had been slain. They stopped by Sakai Hiro’s, picked up a very angry Shippou, and returned to the camp that they had left what seemed like years ago.

All of that effort, to try and keep Miroku’s remorse and self-blame to a minimum...

And it seemed like the monk wasn’t thinking about it at all!

Sango’s eyebrow twitched slightly. ‘How dare he act as if nothing happened... with something like this, he should be devastated! Not that I want him to be devastated, but- argh!’

A sudden sensation drew her attention away from her bowl.

Without thinking about it, Sango smacked whoever-it-was swiftly and forcefully.

"Uh... Sango?"

"Yes, Kagome?"

"Miroku was just moving your hair away from the fire... you were leaning rather close, and it was over your shoulder..."

"Oh." Sango looked back at the face-up monk. "Sorry about that, Houshi-sama..." Sango made a move as if to pull her hair up into her combat ponytail, when Miroku stopped her with one hand on her wrist.

"Don’t. You are beautiful either way, but I like to see your hair framing your face."

Tomato time for Sango. Her blush looked nearly painful as she racked her mind for something to say. What came out when she opened her mouth was NOT what she’d expected. "Well, I have to keep my hair away from the fire somehow, and it’s too cold to move far away! Would you rather I cut of all of my hair and grow a beard?*"

Miroku blinked for a second. ‘Ooookay....’ He released her quickly, letting her continue drawing her mane into a ponytail. "Don’t even joke about that," he said finally, still a bit shocked.

"Yeah!" Shippou remarked from Kagome’s lap. "Besides, then your beard would catch fire."

Miroku took up the game. "I didn’t think females could grow beards. Disturbing concept..."

"I don’t think they can, Miroku-sama. Although... there was a bearded lady at a carnival when I was younger... but I don’t know if that was faked or not..."

"Feh." Inuyasha entered the conversation with in his normal fashion. "You can’t even tell if a beard is real? I thought you were supposed to be educated...*"

"OSUWARI!"

"Damn it!!"

Sango sighed. It was a normal night... one that shouldn’t have been normal... With another sigh, she stood. "Kagome-chan, do you remember the springs near here? I think we could do with a bath, ne?"

Kagome nodded enthusicastically and had all of her materials collected before Sango could say ‘onsen’. When the two girls had disappeared into the woods, Miroku stretched back and yawned. "You know, a bath would be the perfect thing to relax my muscles..." He shifted as if to stand, then a rock hit him directly in the temple, knocking him on his side.

Inuyasha’s chin was dropped to his chest, his eyes closed. When he heard the thud of monk + dirt, he remained silent for a while, then asked, "Whatever happened to your bath?"

Miroku sat up, looking into the woods for his assailant. Rubbing the lump on his head, he decided to remain where it was safe. "I’ve made an interesting discovery..."

"What?"

"I’m... uh... hydrophobic.*"

Inuyasha opened one eye at this, but said nothing. ‘The monk’s weird... but not weird enough.’ Letting his awareness drop, he slipped into a light doze, wondering why Miroku hadn’t yet shown any emotion about the killings.

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Corisu: This was supposed to be the last chapter, but it reeeeeally didn’t turn out that way... The next will be, though! ^-^ You may be wondering some things... Miroku has put up a sort of mental block about what happened, but don’t worry! Angst galore in the finale, as well as comfort... ^_______^ Also, the ‘*’s aren’t random... they’re a little challenge that makes me write faster. Aamalie-chan gives me the quotes, I work ‘em in... which is why the last part of this chapter was slightly odd... o.O;;;

Kunoichi: If you’re done ranting, can you get the ears from the crazy girl?

Ketsueki: *is running around, lightning bolts flashing across the sky* Muahahahaha!

Aamalie: -.-;; *calls out* Are you having fun over there?

Ketsu: *stops* N-n-nooooo... *bursts into tears*

Everyone else: *sweatdrops*

Corisu: Okay, what’s the problem now?

Ketsu: I want the ears, but if I take the ears, Inu won’t have any ears! ;_;

Kunoichi: *nods* I see your point...

Aamalie and Corisu: x.X;;;

Ketsu: WAH! *lightning bolt strikes Kunoichi* WAAH!

Kuno: *cough* Oh, that’s IT! *wiggles nose, and Ketsu vanishes, the ear headband falling to the ground*

Aamalie: She... did it?

Corisu: Waaait... Kuno-chan, where did you send her?

Kuno: ^_______________________^

Ketsu: *falls onto Corisu* @.@

Corisu: @.@

Aamalie: *mushroom sigh* You’re not the shiniest tool in the bishie torture kit, are you? *walks over and picks up ears*

Kuno: No! ^_____^

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Review Responses:

Wakadori Ramen: @.@ I see your point. After re-reading it is does kind of seem... odd. *shrugs* Oh, well. What’s done is done. I’m glad to see that it didn’t annoy you to no end, though! ^^;

Stripe: Cliffies aren’t stupid! They make the world go round... for me, at least! *evil laugh* ^^ Glad you liked!

Lily Thorne: *pokes*.... *pokes again* Ahem. What on earth made you think I’d killed el bishie supremo Houshi-sama? x.X Hopefully, this chappie was to your liking. ^__^

SM Together: ^^;;;; Well, I’m about to say something that I never thought I’d say... I’m glad that I’m the reason you can’t wear nail polish! o.O; Man. That sounded weird.

Aamalie: *pointed look* Niiice. *shrugs* Ah, well, s’okay. I’m almost positive that I’ve missed reviewing a few chapters in the past. Just call me a hypocrite... even though I’m not. XD

Kin103: Yay! Evil cliffie! *parties* But at least this one wasn’t. Right? Ne, now you know how many chappies are left... ^_^ Hope this was soon enough for you!

LiL psYch0: I’m glad that this fic had the same effect on you as the kazaana does on youkai! ^________^ Don’t scold yourself... some of the best fics I’ve ever read were the ones that I caught 3/4 of the way finished... x.X

WindMistress: O.O;;;; The second one to think I killed him... Geez, I’m a little sadistic, but not THAT much... I wuv Miroku too much for that! *glomps him* Is this update soon enough?

GinHasa: ^^;;; Hope you liked the cameo... I had the first part written before you returned the e-mail, and when I re-read it, I seriously said, "Oh, well that worked out nicely." XD *points and laughs* Your class was outside... Mou, mine was just absent. o.o;

Lyra Pelgina: *bows* Uh... I am relieved that my life has been spared... methinks. ^^;; Chapter junkie, are you? XD Hope this was fast enough!

Queenizzay: YES! ^______________________^ Now it’s time for me to return the favor! Neeee... *shifty eyes*

Maniac3: ^__^ I knuuuu... I’m glad he’s back as well. That chapter pretty much wrote itself. I’m glad to see that you’re enjoying this! ^^

fireand flames: I’m so glad you like the way I write! ^________^ Oh, Inu lost his ears because they were hit with the Whacking Stick of Disintegration, which... disintegrates things... XD

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Preview of Chapter 13 (unlucky anyone? x.X): Keep Living

"You don’t understand. You couldn’t."

"Damn you, listen to me!"

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